Autumn 2017 - Volume 101 Number 3

What will AI mean for you?

by George Socha

Autumn 2017 | Volume 101 Number 3

“Artificial Intelligence in the Law” should be the tagline for what’s next in legal technology, if coverage in the legal press is any guide. Lawyers and vendors alike are extolling […]

From the Editor: Restraint

by James Griffith

Autumn 2017 | Volume 101 Number 3

In a recent article concerning the supreme court confirmation process, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg — my former law school professor — was recently quoted as saying she hoped that in […]

Bullet points, yes. Unnecessary dates, no. (PDF)

by Joseph Kimble

Autumn 2017 | Volume 101 Number 3

REDLINES Our writing guru, Joseph Kimble, simplifies and adds punch with some fairly quick fixes. He notes: The opinion deals with Defendant’s motion to quash Plaintiff’s notice of deposition. Before […]

Securing courts and judges

by William Raftery

Autumn 2017 | Volume 101 Number 3

Often thought of as a local issue to be handled exclusively by sheriffs and law enforcement, court security is becoming more commonly viewed as a situation that requires input and […]

Out-of-Control Policing: Are Judges to Blame?

by Lee Rosenthal

Autumn 2017 | Volume 101 Number 3

“Unwarranted.” Few words mean as many things to hardworking judges. “Unwarranted” can mean that an action is “unauthorized,” as in “not permitted” or affirmatively “forbidden.” It can mean that an […]

Nice Try: When Contracts Seek to Preempt Judicial Discretion

by J. Travis Laster and Kenneth A. Adams

Autumn 2017 | Volume 101 Number 3

Contracts can lead to litigation. It’s standard for drafters to anticipate litigation by including in a contract rules for interpreting it. That’s why contracts usually specify a governing law.1 And […]

Roundtable: The State of the Judiciary

by Don R. Willett, Ernest A. Young, David F. Levi, H. Jefferson Powell, Margaret H. Lemos and Carolyn B. Kuhl

Autumn 2017 | Volume 101 Number 3

These are interesting times for the judiciary. Tackling questions of judicial independence, the balance of powers, judicial selection methods, and more, a panel of Duke Law faculty and alumni judges […]

As I See It

by John K. Rabiej

Autumn 2017 | Volume 101 Number 3

The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure should be abrogated. I speak not of the criticisms of the rules as a failure to ensure the just, speedy, and inexpensive determination of […]

Gentleman Judge and Magnificent Man: Judge J. William Ditter, Jr.

by Gene E.K. Pratter

Autumn 2017 | Volume 101 Number 3

The Eastern District of Pennsylvania is a large, collegial trial court where quick humor and timely touches of humanity are as highly valued as intelligence and integrity. Even though this […]

Bold and Persistent Reform: The 2015 Amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and the 2017 Pilot Projects

by Jeffrey S. Sutton and Derek A. Webb

Autumn 2017 | Volume 101 Number 3

At 6 p.m. on New Year’s Eve, 2016, as most Americans were settling in to watch college football games or preparing to go to a New Year’s Eve party, Chief […]