An accident reconstructionist paints a picture of how a collision happened. As the name implies, they reconstruct the accident. That’s all well and good. But sometimes—such as when there is video footage of an accident—the accident does not need reconstructing. Why? Because the video already provides a contemporaneous recording of the accident itself.
Read MoreThe Advocate is excited to introduce Inclusion in Action—a new column featuring diversity initiatives led by members of the Federal Bar. Through Inclusion in Action, we hope to showcase projects that can serve as models for readers working to create a more diverse and inclusive profession. Our inaugural article features the Louisiana State Bar Association’s (“LSBA”) Suit Up for the Future High School Summer Legal Institute and Internship Program, originally created by Magistrate Judge Karen Wells Roby and Kelly Legier, former director of Diversity for the LSBA, which is the first pipeline program of its kind in Louisiana.
Read MoreDid you know that in Louisiana a law firm cannot avoid imputation of a conflict of interest by screening out the disqualified lawyer? That’s right. In Louisiana, a single, disqualified lawyer in a firm disqualifies the entire firm.
Read MoreThe coronavirus, Ebola, and other communicable diseases may pose a great threat to public safety, but the historical responses of state governments to these threats often undermine the core American values of individual freedom and property rights. State and federal isolation and quarantine law and civil commitment law have developed intermittently, and they do not provide adequate protection for individual rights. Louisiana avails itself of sweeping public health powers, but it should reconsider the breadth of its current stance and more narrowly tailor response options to ensure freedom and property rights are protected. The legislature can do this by enacting due process protections in the communicable disease setting, by creating prophylactic measures to protect property rights during a disease outbreak, and by penalizing those who disregard safeguards aimed at protecting liberty and property rights during a public health emergency. Together, these measures will help protect the community while also respecting the principles of freedom and property rights.
Read MoreFederal Rule of Evidence 702 governs the qualification requirement for experts in all federal courts, but there are developing, divergent trends in the Eleventh and Fifth Circuits about what this means, with the Eleventh Circuit tending to require a higher level of specialization for an expert to qualify, and the Fifth Circuit considering specialization within a field to go to the weight, rather than the admissibility, of the expert testimony.
Read MoreThe Lawyers of Distinction is pleased to announce that Jason M. Baer of Metairie, Louisiana has been certified as a distinguished 2021 Power Lawyer and Member of Lawyers of Distinction. Lawyers of Distinction is recognized as the fastest growing community of distinguished lawyers in the United States.
Read MoreBack in April of 2020, Baer Law LLC initiated the FIRST Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) class action lawsuit in the country against the TikTok app, alleging that TikTok was scanning users’ faces and collecting facial data without consent.
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