Senator Finds ABA Stance On Law School Transparency Inadequate

The National Law Journal: U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley is not satisfied with the American Bar Association’s response last month to a series of questions he posed about the organization’s oversight of law schools.

Grassley (R-Iowa) wrote to the organization on Aug. 8 posing additional questions about what the ABA is doing to ensure that law graduates can pay back their student loans; about the makeup of its accreditation committee; and about how the organization is responding to the declining number of job opportunities for young lawyers.

Brewer Appeals Immigration Law to US Supreme Court

AZCentral: Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer filed an appeal Wednesday with the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a ruling that put on hold key parts of the state’s immigration enforcement law.

The appeal comes as Brewer faced a deadline for contesting a district court’s decision that, among other things, barred police from enforcing a requirement that police while enforcing other laws to question the immigration status of those they suspect are in the country illegally.

Brewer lost her first appeal in April when a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected her request to overturn the decision. The nation’s highest court has discretion on whether to hear her appeal.

What To Do With Your 401(k) When You Get A New Job

Daily Breeze:  Changing jobs after a long stint with a single employer can be challenging in itself.  But for those who’ve paid scant attention to their 401(k) plans over many years, deciding what to do with the funds can be downright daunting.

Allen, a Long Beach computer programmer, writes:

“After 18 years at my job, I am changing employers, and I’m getting mixed opinions about what I should do with my 401(k) funds – $287,000.  Some say move it to the new plan but it’s a much smaller company. Others say an IRA is the only way to go. I’m 46 with two kids, so I’ve got many earning years ahead. What’s my best move?”

ABA Wants US Government to Address Student Loan Debt

ABA Journal: In the face of mounting debt among the nation’s students, the ABA House of Delegates voted today to urge the U.S. government to provide for more flexible and competitive terms for federal student loans. The House also passed a resolution that calls for increased transparency in the reporting of employment data, graduate salaries and the “actual” cost of law school.

Resolution 111-A (PDF), which comes at a time when student loan debt outpaces credit card debt, “urges Congress to enact legislation to assist individuals experiencing financial hardship due to excess levels of student loan debt.”

The disconnect between the prospective law students’ perception of their employment prospects at graduation and the reality of the market they will face prompted the proposal of Resolution 111-B (PDF), which “urges all ABA-approved law schools to report employment data that identifies whether graduates have obtained full-time or part-time employment within the legal profession, whether in the private or public sector, or whether in alternative profession, whether in private or public sector, or whether in alternative professions and whether such employment is permanent or temporary.”

ABA Wants Law Students To Have More Practical Training

ABA Journal:  The ABA House of Delegates voted Tuesday to adopt a resolution to urge law schools to more adequately prepare law students for the real-life experience of practicing law and bolster CLE training to better bridge the gap between law school and actual practice.

Submitted to the House in a late report from the New York State Bar Association at the ABA Annual Meeting in Toronto, Resolution 10B (PDF-Revised) resolves that the ABA recommends “that law schools, law firms, CLE providers and others concerned with professional development provide the knowledge, skills and values that are required of the successful modern lawyer.”

Go to Top