Christopher Edley Believes Law Profs Must Follow Higher Ethical Standards

The Chronicle of Higher Education, March 20, 2009 by David Glenn
http://chronicle.com/weekly/v55/i28/28a01201.htm

Mr. Edley also says that a higher standard should apply to law professors and other instructors in professional schools. In those fields, Mr. Edley says, the university should investigate credible allegations of serious off-campus professional misconduct, even if a criminal conviction is nowhere in sight. “Law professors, after all, are charged with preparing the next generation of professionals to live their lives according to our ethical canons,” he says.

Christopher Hoofnagle Supports Disclosure of Bonus Recipients

The New York Times, March 18, 2009 by Louise Story
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/19/business/19cuomo.html?pagewanted=print

Courts generally consider three factors in privacy cases: the delicacy of the data, its importance to public information and the harm that could come from releasing it, said Chris Hoofnagle, director of information privacy programs at the Berkeley Center for Law and Technology. “Courts almost never prohibit the government from getting data. The question is, can they publicly disclose it?” Mr. Hoofnagle said. “The taxpayer funding weighs in favor of disclosure, because of the public interest.”

Maria Blanco Disapproves of Administration’s Revocation of Saenz Nomination

-San Francisco Chronicle, The Melting Pot, March 17, 2009 by Tyche Hendricks
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/nov05election/detail?entry_id=37114

“They were thinking it was going to be a hard confirmation and they didn’t want to expend the political capital,” UC Berkeley’s Maria Blanco told The Melting Pot. “If they weren’t willing to fight for him, what does it mean for immigration reform? That’s what everyone’s worried about.”

-Daily Journal, March 19, 2009 by Roberta Iafolla and Sandra Hernandez
http://www.dailyjournal.com/law/index.cfm (requires registration; go to G:\Law School in the News\News Clips for article)

The White House was particularly troubled over the controversy generated by Saenz’s successful legal challenges of local ordinances banning day laborers from city streets and of California’s Proposition 187, a 1994 voter initiative seeking to cut off services to undocumented immigrants, said Maria Blanco, executive director of UC Berkeley School of Law’s Chief Justice Earl Warren Institute.

-Daily Journal, March 30, 2009 by Roberta Iafolla
http://www.dailyjournal.com/law/index.cfm (requires registration; go to G:\Law School in the News\News Clips for article)

Saenz had been tapped to be the department’s assistant attorney general for civil rights, according to Maria Blanco, executive director of UC Berkeley School of Law’s Chief Justice Earl Warren Institute on Race, Ethnicity & Diversity and an adviser on the presidential transition team. But news that Saenz had been offered the position sparked harsh online criticism by conservative groups.

James Tuthill Insists AIG Bonus Contracts Can be Voided

The New York Times, Room for Debate, March 17, 2009 by James P. Tuthill
http://roomfordebate.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/17/when-bonus-contracts-can-be-broken/#tuthill

“Payment of bonuses to employees who have wrought so much destruction and havoc on us all is simply ipso facto unconscionable, and a court should reform or invalidate the contracts…. If the employees’ acts have been so contrary to the interests of the shareholders, as is the case with A.I.G., then payment of the bonuses is unconscionable and the obligation can be voided.”

Jesse Fried Believes AIG Should Pay Executive Bonuses

KGO-TV ABC 7 March 16, 2009 by Mark Matthews
http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/politics&id=6713338

“The amounts involved are not in dispute, the obligation to pay them is not in dispute and they have to be paid,” Professor Jesse Fried said…. “The people at the very top that made the bad decisions are out; these are lower level executives who the company needs on a day to day basis and if we don’t pay these people what we promised them then they will leave, and the U.S. taxpayer will be left with very little.”

Daniel Farber Describes CLEE’s New Blog, Legal Planet

AWRA Water Resources Blog, March 12, 2009 by Michael Campana
http://awramedia.org/mainblog/2009/03/12/environmental-law-and-policy-blog-from-ucb-and-ucla-law-schools/

“Legal Planet focuses on significant developments in law and policy for a general audience,” said Dan Farber, director of Berkeley Law’s environmental law program…. “We highlight the latest legal and policy initiatives, and examine the impact they might have on our planet. Do they protect our natural resources, or impair our legacy for future generations? Do they reduce our carbon footprint, or worsen climate change? Are they real steps forward, or merely political posturing?”