The taxman has a longer reachThe taxman has a longer reach
“Riches take to themselves wings, and in a moment least expected elude our grasp.” – Sallie Brock, “The Fall of Richmond”
Category: Politics & Law
But other nasties can happenBut other nasties can happen
“In an assault, actual fear is not a requirement. The victim must simply be apprehensive of the contact. Because awareness is a requirement, a victim cannot be assaulted if he or she is unconscious.” – Neal R. Bevans, Tort Law for Paralegals
We call it “the news”We call it “the news”
“On any given day in a courthouse anywhere in America, you are far more likely to see a civil trial that involves a car wreck or a divorce than a trial involving intentional torts. This is not because people do not intentionally injure each other. Unfortunately, people hurt, maim, and kill each other every day.” – Neal R. Bevans, Tort Law for Paralegals
Or for the furtherance of profit or oppressionOr for the furtherance of profit or oppression
“The law is nothing more than a means to a social end and should never, for all the law schools and law firms in the world, be treated as an end in itself.” – Fred Rodell, Yale Law School, “Goodbye to Law Reviews”
Page-turnersPage-turners
“There are two things wrong with almost all legal writing. One is its style. The other is its content. That, I think, about covers the ground.” – Fred Rodell, Yale Law School, “Goodbye to Law Reviews”
Unintelligible in any languageUnintelligible in any language
“The minute you read something and you can’t understand it, you can almost be sure that it was drawn up by a lawyer. Then if you give it to another lawyer to read and he don’t know just what it means, why then you can be sure it was drawn up by a lawyer.” – Will Rogers (as quoted by Judge Mark P. Painter in “Legal Writing 201”)
It’s not poetryIt’s not poetry
“Do not start writing your brief or memo until you have a succinct statement of what the case is about. And you must do this in 50-75 words. If you can’t explain the case in 75 words, you do not understand it very well, and neither will your reader. Too often I have seen cases go all the way to appeal and still the lawyers haven’t figured out what the case is about.” – Judge Mark P. Painter, “Legal Writing 201”
Assuming that’s its purposeAssuming that’s its purpose
“A litigation system must be workable. It does little to advance underlying policy goals to have a system that is too complex for trial courts and jurors—who in the last analysis are linchpins in our litigation system—to implement.” – Kenneth S. Abraham and Albert Clark Tate, Jr., compilers, A Concise Restatement of Torts
No citations to brickbatsNo citations to brickbats
“Self-help may be resorted to, not only to reveal the falsity of the defamatory statement and to vindicate the reputation, but also to punish the defamer and retaliate against him. In earlier times the principal method of this type of self-help was the clan or blood feud. It was supplanted for a time by the challenge to a duel or the horsewhip. One of the primary reasons for developing the tort law of defamation was to induce the defamed person to resort to the courts for relief instead of wreaking his own vengeance.” – Kenneth S. Abraham and Albert Clark Tate, Jr., compilers, A Concise Restatement of Torts
In my profession, we call it ‘extortion by lawsuit’In my profession, we call it ‘extortion by lawsuit’
“Defamation actions have not infrequently been brought—or jury verdicts have been rendered, irrespective of the plaintiff’s motivation in bringing the action—not to compensate for actual pecuniary loss or to vindicate the plaintiff, but instead to cudgel the defendant and to mulct him for substantial damages that may be like a windfall to the plaintiff.” – Kenneth S. Abraham and Albert Clark Tate, Jr., compilers, A Concise Restatement of Torts
Here’s looking at you, kidHere’s looking at you, kid
“Totalitarian systems preclude civil society by withdrawing the right to privacy that is the foundation of liberal citizenship.” – Robert Huddleston, “Poetry Makes Nothing Happen”
My enemy’s enemy is not my friend, but can be quite usefulMy enemy’s enemy is not my friend, but can be quite useful
“For many years after 1945, the democracies found it gratifying to perceive the Second World War in Europe as a struggle for survival between themselves and Nazi tyranny. Yet the military outcome of the contest was overwhelmingly decided by the forces of Soviet tyranny, rather than by Anglo-American armies.” – Max Hastings, Winston’s War
We’re all queerWe’re all queer
“I believe in aristocracy, though—if that is the right word, and if a democrat may use it. Not an aristocracy of power, based upon rank and influence, but an aristocracy of the sensitive, the considerate and the plucky. Its members are to be found in all nations and classes, and all through the ages, and there is a secret understanding between them when they meet. They represent the true human tradition, the one permanent victory of our queer race over cruelty and chaos. Thousands of them perish in obscurity, a few are great names. They are sensitive for others as well as for themselves, they are considerate without being fussy, their pluck is not swankiness but the power to endure, and they can take a joke.” – E. M. Forster, Two Cheers for Democracy
Call me luckyCall me lucky
“I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.” – Ecclesiastes 9:11
No waffles at the power breakfastNo waffles at the power breakfast
“Clear leadership, violent action, rigid decision one way or the other, form the only path not only of victory, but of safety and even of mercy. The State cannot afford division or hesitation at the executive centre.” – Winston Churchill, The World Crisis, Vol. 2
Make me pine for youMake me pine for you
“Men should always be difficult. I can’t bear men who come and dine with you when you want them.” – Benjamin Disraeli (Max Hastings, Winston’s War)
Such as tossing a few overboard or underbusSuch as tossing a few overboard or underbus
“No great country was ever saved by good men, because good men will not go to the lengths that may be necessary.” – Horace Walpole, 4th Earl of Orford, “Letter to the Countess of Ossory”
It has close contendersIt has close contenders
“Individual Moslems may show splendid qualities, but the influence of the religion paralyzes the social development of those who follow it. No stronger retrograde force exists in the world.” – Winston Churchill, The River War
Coincidental that it is Good FridayCoincidental that it is Good Friday
“Today is only one day in all the days that will ever be. But what will happen in all the other days that ever come can depend on what you do today.” – Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls
And nobody’s friendAnd nobody’s friend
“No animal has more liberty than the cat; but it buries the mess it makes. The cat is the best anarchist.” – Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls
It can’tIt can’t
“How can the world be made better if there are no children of us who fight against the fascists?” – Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls
Probable cause? We don’t need no stinkin’ probable causeProbable cause? We don’t need no stinkin’ probable cause
“An officer’s use of deadly force is reasonable under the Fourth Amendment if the officer has probable cause to believe that the suspect poses a significant threat of death or serious physical injury to the officer or others. In determining whether an officer’s use of deadly force is objectively reasonable, a court must determine what was reasonable under the circumstances, considering the totality of the circumstances, including the severity of crime at issue, whether the suspect posed an immediate threat to the safety of the officers or others, and whether the suspect resisted arrest or attempted to evade arrest by flight. It is unreasonable under the Fourth Amendment for police officer to seize an unarmed, nondangerous suspect by shooting him dead, or to use a choke hold to restrain an individual when he or she poses no harm. It is also unreasonable for an officer to use deadly force on a suspect walking towards the police if the suspect’s hands are at his or her sides. Although the initial use of force may be reasonable, the continued use of deadly force in attempting to arrest a suspect may become unreasonable when such force is no longer necessary. An officer must warn a suspect that he or she might shoot, if feasible under the circumstances. The officer may be criminally responsible or civilly liable if the officer uses more force than is necessary to effect the arrest.” – Michele Hughes and Eric C. Surette, American Jurisprudence, Second Edition
What’s a word that will make this interesting?What’s a word that will make this interesting?
“A common criticism of legal writing is that those in the legal profession are enamored of redundancy. They cannot merely say null. They must say null and void and of no legal force or effect. Is all this needed? If something is null, isn’t it void? If it is void, can it have legal effect? The reason legal writing is so prone to word doubling (and tripling) lies in the history of our language. English has its roots in Latin and French as well as in the language of the Celts and the Anglo-Saxons. Often word pairings were used to ensure that readers would understand phrases regardless of their background or station in life. Thus, the French word peace joined with the Latin word quiet. These redundant doublings have persisted long after any need for them. Their use today is often the result of habit rather than necessity.” – Deborah E. Bouchoux, Aspen Handbook for Legal Writers (emphases in original)
Retract your claws, little pussyRetract your claws, little pussy
“There is no one who cannot be hurt.” – Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls
StokesStokes
“Prison is nothing. Prison only makes hatred.” – Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls
How tall towers can be brought downHow tall towers can be brought down
“Bending and buckling (deformation) of steel beams and columns occurs when the steel temperature exceeds approximately 538 degrees C (1000 degrees F). At elevated temperatures, steel exhibits a progressive loss of strength. When there is a greater fire exposure, the load required to cause deformation is reduced. Deformation is not the result of melting. A deformed element is not one that has melted during the fire, and therefore the occurrence of such deformation does not indicate that the material was heated above its melting temperature.” – Technical Committee on Fire Investigations, Sec. 6.2.9.1, NFPA 921 Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigations (2011 Edition)
It’s not just who you know, it’s also when and where you know themIt’s not just who you know, it’s also when and where you know them
“U.S.S. PT-109, commanded by Lieutenant John F. Kennedy, was sunk after it was rammed by a Japanese destroyer in Blackett Strait in the Solomons. Eleven of the 13 crewmen survived and a week later were returned to their base and Rendova after harrowing and heroic efforts to elude the Japanese. (The official report on PT-109‘s loss was cowritten by the flotilla’s intelligence officer, Lieutenant (j.g.) Byron R. White, a 1962 appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court by President John F. Kennedy.) – Robert Goralski, “August 2, 1943,” World War II Almanac: 1931-1945
DE-678DE-678
“The American destroyer escort Harmon was launched. It was the first U.S. Navy ship ever named for a black, Leonard Roy Harmon, a mess attendant killed while saving a shipmate’s life during the fight for Guadalcanal. He received the Navy Cross posthumously. The ship was christened by his mother.” – Robert Goralski, “July 25, 1943,” World War II Almanac: 1931-1945
Simple statement of historical factSimple statement of historical fact
“All contractors involved in the production of U.S. war materials were barred from practicing racial discrimination.” – Robert Goralski, “May 27, 1943,” World War II Almanac: 1931-1945
Breathe deep and clear your mindBreathe deep and clear your mind
“Expectation bias is a well-established phenomenon that occurs in scientific analysis when investigator(s) reach a premature conclusion without having examined or considered all of the relevant data. Instead of collecting and examining all of the data in a logical and unbiased manner to reach a scientifically reliable conclusion, the investigator(s) uses the premature determination to dictate investigative processes, analyses, and, ultimately, conclusions, in a way that is not scientifically valid. The introduction of expectation bias into the investigation results in the use of only that data that supports this previously formed conclusion and often results in the misinterpretation and/or the discarding of data that does not support the original opinion. Investigators are strongly cautioned to avoid expectation bias.” – Technical Committee on Fire Investigations, Sec. 4.3.8, NFPA 921 Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigations (2011 Edition)