The legal profession, to its own detriment, has not done a
good job of anticipating and adapting to changes in society, a law professor
from Washington and Lee University School of Law says. James E. Moliterno spoke to the State Bar Board of Trustees last month.
Over the last decade, JusticeCorps has trained nearly 2,000 students to help self-represented litigants in California navigate the
court system. The program celebrated its 10th anniversary last month and
received an award from Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye.
Addressing the severe shortage of legal services for the
poor requires strong measures such as pro bono requirements for lawyers and new
kinds of legal service providers, according to New York and Washington state
officials.
More than 45 percent of test-takers passed the California
Bar Exam last month, marking a 17-year high. The pass rate for a February exam hasn’t
been that high since 1997, when 48.8 percent of test-takers passed. As is
usually the case, those taking the test for the first time and those who
attended California law schools accredited by the American Bar Association
fared the best.
State Bar Board of Trustees Vice President Craig Holden will
have no opposition running for president in the July officers’ election. See
who’s running for vice president and treasurer. The new officers will be sworn in at the Annual Meeting in September.
With weeks to go before the state budget is due to be
finalized, courts appear likely to receive a significant boost in funding. But
it’s unclear whether the increase will be enough to prevent continued court
closures.
The state’s judicial watchdog agency has disciplined a
former Los Angeles County Superior Court judge for treating attorneys who
appeared before him in a “sarcastic, belittling and harsh manner.”