AUG. 28-SEPT. 10, 2013
The Indiana Tech Law School opened Aug. 26 in Fort Wayne with an inaugural class of 30 students. Within the Allen County legal community, the new law school has drawn mixed reaction. Past professional associations with the once-prominent personal-injury and wrongful-death attorney William Conour have resulted in several lawyers being named in civil suits. And choosing a life on the farm when you're a city lawyer may seem odd to some, but the decision has shaped lawyer's Sherry Fabina-Abney's family and life in positive ways.
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Indiana’s 5th law school opens
The Indiana Tech Law School opened Aug. 26 in Fort Wayne with an inaugural class of 30 students. Within the Allen County legal community, the new law school has drawn mixed reaction.
Read MoreABA task force sees role for many in helping to fix legal education
In its review of legal education, a special committee led by retired Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Randall Shepard concluded that fixing the problems in law schools will require help from individuals and groups outside the classroom.
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Choosing a life beyond suburbia has shaped lawyer’s family and future
Years ago, Ice Miller LLP attorney Sherry Fabina-Abney and her husband made the decision to raise their children on an 18-acre farm in Johnson County, and they wouldn't have it any other way.
Read MoreTaking flight on terra firma
Pilot or farmer, attorney or father, Chris Stevenson wears many hats. The lawyer, who has worked for Wilson Kehoe Winingham LLC for going on 12 years, specializes in injury work, specifically that which is aviation- or farm-related.
Read MorePast associations with Conour get lawyers named in civil suits
William Conour’s multi-million-dollar fraud has produced an avalanche of state and federal lawsuits naming as defendants several attorneys who used to work with the once-prominent personal-injury and wrongful-death attorney.
Read MoreMassa stays in Rockport case despite calls for recusal
Indiana Supreme Court Justice Mark Massa on Aug. 14 denied a formal motion arguing that he should recuse himself from a pending case concerning a controversial power plant in Rockport. The project is backed by a longtime friend of Massa and former aide to Gov. Mitch Daniels, whose administration championed the project.
Read MoreFailure to report
The arm of the Indiana Supreme Court that enforces rules governing the admission and discipline of lawyers has been in violation of one of those rules for several years.
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Case illustrates the value of legal-medical partnership
The impact of the Midtown/Indiana Legal Services Medical Legal Partnership is life-altering for an Indianapolis great-grandmother and grandson.
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Ethanol plant emissions suit may be bound for Indiana Supreme Court
Indiana’s ethanol industry faces an uncertain regulatory environment and likely more stringent emissions standards after a recent Indiana Court of Appeals ruling. A state agency will ask the Indiana Supreme Court to hear the case, as several corn-to-fuel plant operators also are expected to do.
Read MoreFarm smells ignite debate but no consensus reached
Before dinner can be prepared and served at the table, the food has to be raised on a farm. However, Old MacDonald’s Farm with its placid scenes of pigs and cows is a shrinking segment of American farming, being replaced with large industrial agricultural operations with hundreds and thousands of animals.
Read MoreWill Indiana’s economy cool due to rising energy costs?
Bose McKinney & Evans attorney Nikki Shoultz discusses the relationship of the economy on rising energy costs.
Read MoreMoratorium on administrative rules leads to uncertainty
Plews Shadley Racher & Braun attorney Amy Romig discusses the impact of a recent executive order which placed a moratorium on new administrative rules by state agencies.
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Bodensteiner: Too many lawyers? The problem may be one of ‘allocation’
Valparaiso University Law School Interim Dean Ivan Bodensteiner argues that there may not be too many lawyers, but the problem may be one of how those resources are allocated.
Read More3 things to know about the boundaries of closing arguments
Attorneys James Bell and Mike Gaerte discuss the three things that criminal defense attorneys should know about the limits of a prosecutor's closing arguments.
Read MoreNew planning report form now in use in Northern District
Effective Aug. 14, the Northern District of Indiana has a new form for the “Report of Parties’ Planning Meeting” that is required to be submitted after the parties’ Rule 26(f) planning conference. This new form is to be used going forward.
Read MoreHammerle On … ‘Elysium’ and ‘Blackfish’
In this issue, Bob Hammerle reviews "Elysium" and "Blackfish."
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Daily News 8/24/13
The IL Daily delivers legal news to your email inbox. In case you missed it, following is a recap of some of the stories reported online since the last issue of Indiana Lawyer. Subscribe to IL Daily to receive this news as it happens.
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Indiana Court Decisions – Aug. 7 to 20, 2013
Read updates on For Publications opinions issues by Indiana and federal appellate courts from Aug. 7 to 20, 2013.
Read MoreDisciplinary ActionsBack to Top
Disciplinary Actions 8/28/13
Read who has recently been suspended by the Indiana Supreme Court, received a public reprimand or resigned.
Read MoreBar AssociationsBack to Top
DTCI: Commitment to the rule of law is US’s greatest export
Our convoy departed at 0400 in eight up-armored Humvees, two Ford Rangers and a Mahindra jeep. Heading north, we passed Bagram Airbase and began the ascent up into the Hindu-Kush Mountains. The Afghan summer heat had melted the snow that had blocked passage through the Salang Tunnel at roughly 11,000 feet.
Read MoreBlomquist: Why go it Alone? Mentors Provide Support
I went to the annual Women and the Law Division (aka WLD) summer social earlier this summer. This is one of my favorite IndyBar gatherings because women law students, lawyers and judges of all ages and from all career paths have a chance to socialize, network and just have fun. WLD Chair Nicky Mendenhall ran the show and we were all equally entertained and motivated by guest speaker Judge Robyn Moberly, the first women in the state of Indiana to be appointed a federal bankruptcy court judge.
Read MoreIndyBar: Nominations Open for 2014 IndyBar Board of Directors
Service on the IndyBar Board of Directors provides a valuable opportunity to play a crucial role in the success and future of your local bar association. The nomination period for the 2014 Board of Directors of the Indianapolis Bar Association has now begun with Christine Hayes Hickey of Rubin & Levin PC appointed to chair the effort.
Read MoreIndyBar: Let’s Get Ready to Rumble: IndyBar to Host Election Law Debate
Introducing first, in this corner, we have Bill Bock, hailing from Kroger Gardis & Regas, representing such heavy hitters as the United States Anti-Doping Agency. And his opponent, a partner of the Faegre Baker Daniels firm, is Scott Chinn, legal advisor to Indy political stars and public officials alike. These two heavyweights of the Indy legal community will square off in a head-to-head debate on one of the most hotly contested topics of our day: election law. Keeping the fight clean will be Brian Bosma, partner at Kroger Gardis & Regas and Speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives.
Read MoreIndyBar: Interrogatories — Q & A with Jeffrey J. Graham
He is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and the Valparaiso University School of Law. He served as a law clerk to the Honorable S. Hugh Dillin before joining his current practice in bankruptcy and creditor rights at Taft Stettinius & Hollister. He is Jeffrey J. Graham, and he has been served with interrogatories.
Read MoreIndyBar: Board Approves Model Rule Guidelines for Marion County Judicial Selection
As part of its ongoing efforts to facilitate judicial elections issues reform, the Indianapolis Bar Association Board of Directors approved at its July 2013 meeting a set of Model Rule Guidelines for the Marion County judicial selection system. The Model Rule Guidelines were drafted through the bar’s Attorneys for an Independent Bench Committee, which was also authorized at the July board meeting to seek implementation of these rules. Visit www.indybar.org to view the Model Rule Guidelines.
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