Stick ‘em up … or don’t
Worried that his city is going to revert to the shoot ‘em up ways of the Wild West, Columbia lawyer Joe McCulloch has taken to the streets with an armful of posters featuring a crossed out handgun.
Attorney on the air
When a friend asked attorney Luther Battiste III to take over his Sunday morning jazz show on The Palm 92.1 FM, Battiste saw a dream come true. “I have an amazing collection,” Battiste said. “I started listening to jazz in high school. I had an uncle who was in college at South Carolina State — […]
A bridge not far enough
The South Carolina Senate took a very small step last week toward modernizing the state’s antediluvian anti-gambling laws by unanimously passing a bill to allow members of social groups to play games involving tiles, cards or dice in private homes. The bill would amend a state law, on the books since 1802, banning such games. […]
Fat City, S.C.
Where are the fattest cities in America? It turns out a bunch of them are in South Carolina, according to the latest Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index data released earlier this month. Three of Gallup’s 50 heftiest cities were in the Palmetto State — Columbia, which came in 48th with an obesity rate of 29.2 percent, Spartanburg, […]
First rule: Follow the rules
Gregory Somers claims that his employer in his Greenville office discriminated against him by failing to provide an accommodation for his religious beliefs. That’s the sort of claim that one would usually bring to the attention of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. But in Somers’ case, the unusual twist is that he works as an […]
Little girl, mammoth controversy
South Carolina should be used to being the butt of the nation’s jokes by now. But that doesn’t mean there’s any less face-palming when yet another embarrassment occurs within the state’s borders. Last week, public ridicule was directed once again at the Palmetto State after the world learned of a local lawmaker’s attempt to hijack […]
A laughing matter
How many lawyer jokes are there? Only three. The rest are true stories. Lawyer jokes have been around for at least as long as Shakespeare, but the 1980s was a heyday for the genre — at least in the United States. That’s according to British sociologist Christie Davies, quoted in Slate.com. Davies writes in his […]
One (not at all) shining moment
One of the main concerns for alumni of Charleston School of Law over the school’s pending purchase by the InfiLaw system of for-profit law schools is that the school’s brand would be tarnished by association. The results of an ongoing competition on the popular legal blog Above The Law will do nothing to alleviate those […]
A note from the doctor
As a former public defender, this author knows what it is like to feel unprepared for court. Who hasn’t felt the urge to call in sick on trial day? Fortunately, I never did, and given the outcome of a recent opinion, I’m especially glad of it. The Illinois Supreme Court recently suspended by consent attorney […]
Just change your password, for Pete’s sake
An unusually high number of South Carolina attorneys failed to pay their license fees for 2014 — so unusually high that it makes you wonder whether a recent change involving the state’s Attorney Information System may have played at least some role. In all, 65 attorneys were suspended from the practice of law earlier this […]
Have you the read the news?
A famous quote by the Dutch Renaissance scholar Desiderius Erasmus is often translated as, “When I get a little money I buy books; and if any is left I buy food and clothes.” Last week, bibliophiles everywhere got a little extra money to buy books as Amazon began issuing credits from the proceeds of a […]
The cuckoo’s nest
Disputes between neighbors can get ugly. But what happened to a woman feuding with two of her neighbors in Columbia goes beyond the pale. Ursula Pallares claims in a lawsuit against Sharon Seinar and Lisa Maseng that the pair harassed and humiliated her then tried to have her hauled out of the neighborhood in a […]
Business Law
- Economy forces attorneys to get down to business
- Business Court judges trawl for customers
- Va. company's Web site did not subject business to personal jurisdiction in S.C., appeals panel rules
- Former running back from S.C. wins courtroom victory in contract dispute
- Contract – Government Contract – Qui Tam – False Claims Act
- Licenses & Permits – Beer & Wine Permit – Restrictive Covenant – Suitable Location
- Consumer Protection – FCRA – Auto Loan – Bank Accounting Errors
- Licenses & Permits – Veterinarian – Vaccine Maintenance
- Tort – Business Tort – Va. Computer Crimes Act – Trade Secrets
- Textile firm, railroad settle Graniteville train wreck lawsuit
- State regulators look at car dealer accused of lying to customers
- Subprime mortgage meltdown hits securities law
Commentary
- Stericycle decision forces evaluation of policies, practices
- Are workplace DEI policies still legal after SCOTUS decisions?
- Court cases add new twists to legal language
- It’s all business, especially the busyness
- Virginia Tech student got due process in hearing
- High court justices cross the line of propriety
- High court’s term was rough on big business
- The flip side of generative AI in law and how to address it
- The fight for equal educational opportunity continues
- Letter From The Editor – Working from Home
- NLRB joins FTC in taking aim at non-competes
- Supreme Court leaves key internet protection untouched