Lawyers in the Vortex: When Attorneys Become Public Figures

 cross posted at the Digital Media Law Project
 There was substantial media coverage of the defense verdict in the recent "twibel" (i.e., libel via Twitter) case against singer Courtney Love. Although the case attracted attention for the medium in which the allegedly defamatory statements were made, the dispositive issue was a long-standing element of libel law that did not depend on Love's use of Twitter.  Specifically, the jury found that plaintiff Rhonda Holmes, a lawyer who briefly represented Love in disputes stemming from the estate of Love's husband Kurt Cobain, had not proved the degree of fault on Love's part necessary for Holmes to win the case.

D.C. Courts Fight the Future in New Electronic Device Rule

(cross posted at the Citizen Media Law Project)
The Blog of the Legal Times reports that the Superior Court of the District of Columbia -- the local trial court for the nation's capital -- has issued a new administrative order regarding use of electronic devices in the courthouse. And like other courts, the new rules impose a class system of "haves" and "have nots" -- favored types of the people can have and use the devices, while everyone else can not. The rules also contain an archaic view of electronic devices that effectively means that even when the rules allow them to be used, they cannot be used for any modern, web-based functions.

Two Courts Rule on Internet Use: Lawyer's Use OK; Juror's Use is Not

In two recent decisions, appellate courts in New Jersey and Florida addressed use of the Internet to conduct research during trial.