San Diego County Public Law Library E-Newsletter

Law Library Holiday Hours During the month of December, the library hours at all Branches will be as follows: Dec. 24th - all Branches will close at 12:00 noon. Dec. 26th & 27th, the Main Branch will close one hour early, 8 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. In addition, the East County and South Bay branches will close for lunch from 1:30 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. until further notice.

Library Director Judges Daily Transcript's Young Attorney Competition The Daily Transcript announced its inaugural Young Attorneys honor in the November 21st issue. This competition, honoring San Diego's promising Young Attorneys, was judged by an independent panel of legal experts. Thirty-three finalists in practice for less than seven years were honored this year. The finalists were judged on the following categories: work ethic and organization, knowledge and enthusiasm, professional ethics, and a commitment to furthering justice in society. Our own San Diego County Public Law Library Director, Robert E. Riger, was among the judges for this competition. Mr. Riger has been the Director since August 2005. He has more than 20 years of library experience in academic, law firm and county law libraries. Before coming to San Diego, he was the Director of the Miami-Dade County Law Library in Florida and served as President of the South Florida Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries. For more information on the Daily Transcript's Young Attorney finalists and for information on how to nominate an attorney, go to: http://www.sddt.com/microsite/youngattorneys/

MCLE December & January "Cram" Series We have many exciting participatory MCLE classes scheduled for our December and January cram series, these include live speakers and showings of DVDs. This coming year, Group 3 is due for compliance (2/1/05-1/31/08). If your last name begins with N - Z, this means that your MCLE deadline is February 1, 2008. In addition to our many participatory MCLE credit classes, we also offer a variety of CDs on mandatory subjects (ethics, elimination of bias, prevention of substance abuse) and general subject CDs for self-study credit at our Main and North County branches. MCLE self-study CDs can be checked out by Library Members for a period of 3 days. Be sure to check our website frequently for a listing of all MCLE classes. See below for a listing of events currently scheduled at our Main and North County locations.

MCLE Events at Main Due to the popularity of our MCLE crunch time events, only attorney and paralegal Library Members may attend. These events are offered for FREE as part of your library membership. Please call 619-531-3900 to register, as seating is limited. All of these events (including the DVDs shown at the Library) qualify for participatory MCLE credit. The following events will be held at the Main Law Library at 1105 Front Street. DECEMBER: Wednesday, December 5th, 12-1pm 2007 Developments In Legal Ethics by David Cameron Carr - 1hr Ethics Wednesday, December 12th, 12-1pm Ethics: Top Ten State Bar Complaints & How To Avoid Them, by David Cameron Carr - 1hr Ethics Thursday, December 13th, 12-1pm Substance Abuse: What to do when a Colleague is Struggling by Moira Brennan - 1hr Sub. Abuse Tuesday, December 18th, 12-1pm Possession, Intent, and Credibility: Defending Against Computer Forensics by Ed Pscheidt - 1hr General Thursday, December 20th, 12-1pm Substance Abuse: Helping Clients and Colleagues (DVD) 1hr Sub. Abuse Friday, December 21st, 1-5pm Ethics: Traps, Snares and Pitfalls (DVD) 4hrs Ethics Friday, December 28th, 9-12:15pm Powerful Trial Techniques (DVD) 3.25hrs General For more information on these events, and to see our upcoming MCLE events for January, go to our MCLE Information page. The San Diego County Public Law Library is a State Bar approved MCLE provider.

MCLE Events at North County Due to the popularity of our MCLE crunch time events, only attorney and paralegal Library Members may attend. These events are offered for FREE as part of your library membership. Please call 760-940-4386 to register, as seating is limited. All of these events (including the DVDs shown at the Library) qualify for participatory MCLE credit. The following events will be held at the North County Branch at 325 S. Melrose Dr., Suite 300, Vista. DECEMBER: Thursday, November 29th, 12-1pm Bias Elimination in the Legal Profession (DVD) 1hr Bias Tuesday, December 4th, 12-2pm ABA Model Rules 1.12-5.5 (DVD) 2hrs Ethics Thursday, December 6th, 12-2pm Ethics Traps - Part One (DVD) 2hrs Ethics Tuesday, December 11th, 12-2pm Ethics Traps - Part Two (DVD) 2hrs Ethics Friday, December 14th, 12-2pm Powerful Trial Techniques - Part One (DVD) 2hrs General Tuesday, December 18th, 12-1:30pm Powerful Trial Techniques - Part Two (DVD) 1.5hrs General For more information on these events, and to see our upcoming MCLE events for January, go to our MCLE Information page. The San Diego County Public Law Library is a State Bar approved MCLE provider.

Big Changes to the FRCP! On December 1, 2007, a newly amended version of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure takes effect. The rules have been rewritten in an attempt to make them more simple and clear. The intent, according to the drafters, was to make only stylistic changes, and not to change the meaning of the rule. Those of us who have worked with the existing rules for years should just take a deep breath and embrace the change. To see the new rules, go to http://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/frcp/index.html. .

New and Revised Judicial Council Forms Effective January 1, 2008, there are several new and revised Judicial Council forms. Of particular interest in general civil litigation are the new forms: CIV-090 "Offer to Compromise and Acceptance Under the Code of Civil Procedure Section 998" and DISC-030 "Commission to Take Deposition Outside California." There are over 40 new forms in the Guardianships and Conservatorships group and several new forms in the Indian Child Welfare Act and Juvenile Law groups. To see a complete list of new and revised Judicial Council forms and PDF versions of the documents go to: http://www2.courtinfo.ca.gov/formspub/.

Website of the Month: How to Protect Your Phone Records Your phone records have personal and sensitive information about you: the numbers you call, the dates and lengths of calls, and your billing information. This information, in the wrong hands, could be used to scam or harm you. For example, people involved in divorces might try to get their spouses' phone records to dig up dirt about them. Identity thieves could use the information to set up phone service in someone else's name. Stalkers and criminals who want to intimidate witnesses could locate victims through their telephone records. One way that someone might try to get your phone records is by contacting your telephone company and pretending to be you. After some well-publicized cases, Congress passed the Telephone Records and Privacy Protection Act of 2006 which makes pretending to be someone else to obtain phone records a federal crime. As of December 10, 2007, new rules issued by the Federal Communications Commission will provide more protection. A password will be required to access your account. In addition, you will receive notice when changes have been made to your account or there has been a breach in the security of the records. To help people learn about their telephone privacy rights, how to protect themselves, and where to go if they have complaints, Consumer Action and the National Consumers League offer a new brochure, Protect Your Phone Records. The brochure is available in Chinese, English, Korean, Spanish, and Vietnamese. Verizon provided funding for the project. This brochure is available for free at http://www.consumer-action.org/modules/module_pretexting Source: www.consumer-action.org

San Diego County Fires and Liability Issues for Evacuated Animals If you have horses and were evacuated during the recent fires, chances are that you had to leave your equines at the Del Mar Racetrack, run by the 22nd District Agricultural Association, or at a private facility. You were likely in temporary housing far from home and could not tend to your animals on a daily basis. Horses need to be fed, given water, and their stalls need to be cleaned at least two times a day. Thus, you were at the mercy of volunteers. The government agencies and their assigned volunteers enjoy certain immunities during times of emergency. The Emergency Services Act is located at Government Code §§8550-8668. Volunteer emergency workers are subject to the same liabilities and immunities as public employees engaged in similar service for their respective employing public entities, see Government code §8657 (a). For private owners who took in horses, if sued, one might argue that Good Samaritan provisions apply, see Health & Safety Code §1799.102. No matter where your animals are evacuated to, it is highly recommended that one provide handwritten notes on the stall door regarding their behavior. For example, he bites, kicks, will escape, is a stallion, is aggressive, etc. Additionally, note that many volunteers have no experience handling horses so you may not want them exercising your horse. They mean well, but without experience it can be an extremely dangerous situation. Horses are unpredictable, 'domesticated' animals that weigh 1000 pounds or more. A large percentage of San Diego County horses have never seen a stall because they live in rural pastures. They are scared and in an unfamiliar environment during evacuations. The first couple of days are chaotic, so if you can't get to the stables, try your best to have someone get there to post appropriate information about the horse on the stall door. Alternatively, call the people in charge and request that they do so. Safety is in everybody's best interest.

Fighting Foreclosures Homeowners have a basic weapon in fighting foreclosures on their homes, the requirement of legal standing. The New York Times reports that a federal judge in Cleveland recently tossed 14 foreclosure cases because Deutsche Bank National Trust Co. could not prove ownership of the properties. The bank is trustee for investors in pools of mortgage securities. Attorneys for defaulting homeowners can cite the ruling when they try to impede foreclosures or try to force a settlement. An Iowa law professor's research indicated that 40 percent of creditors in foreclosure cases failed to show proof of ownership. Mortgage notes originated by a lender that are sold to a securitization pool are not sent to the trust. Instead they are kept at a separate document repository company to keep costs down. According to lawyer O. Max Gardner III, the issue is whether the mortgage has been transferred and assigned to the securitization trust. "If not, then they really don't have standing," he told the New York Times. Source: ABAjournal.com, Nov 15, 2007

December 15th is Bill of Rights Day! Did you know that December 15 is Bill of Rights Day? This is the day to celebrate the fundamental privileges granted to all Americans under the Bill of Rights. In case you don't recall your 5th grade civics class, the Bill of Rights is the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution. These rights play a great role in our everyday lives, from freedom of speech to the right to a fair trial. To review a copy of the United States Constitution, go to http://www.findlaw.com/casecode/constitution/

Upcoming Classes for December & January Members of the general public may sign up for these classes by calling (619) 531-3900. The classes are free to Law Library members and are $5 for non-members. Participants may bring lunch. Pre-registration is required, as seating is limited. For a complete description of the classes, go to: www.sdcpll.org/calendar/calendar.html. All classes are at the Main library, unless otherwise noted. Tuesday, December 4th, 12-1pm Using Lexis* Saturday, December 8th, 2-3 pm Law Made Public Saturday, January 26th, 2-4pm Practical Legal Research * MCLE Credit is available for these classes. Be sure to check our "Classes" page for the most up to date schedule. The San Diego County Public Law Library is a State Bar approved MCLE provider.

New Books Added To The Collection The following is a selection of books or new editions recently added to our collection. Click on the titles to see the record in our online public access catalog. ASSET PROTECTION STRATEGIES By Lewis D. Solomon, Lewis J. Saret Chicago: CCH Incorporated, c2007 KF9025.S65 2008 Available at the Main Library BUILDING A PARENTING AGREEMENT THAT WORKS: HOW TO PUT YOUR KIDS FIRST WHEN YOUR MARRIAGE DOESN'T LAST, 6th ed. By Mimi E. Lyster Berkeley: Nolo, 2007 KF547.Z9 L97 2007 Available at all locations CIVIL RICO PRACTICE MANUAL , 3rd ed. By Paul A. Batista New York, NY: Aspen Publishers, c2008- KF9375 .B38 Available at the Main Library COMPETENCE TO STAND TRIAL, Rev. 2007 San Francisco, Calif.: California Center for Judicial Education and Research, c2007. KFC1116.A75 C66 2007 Available at the Main Library FORM YOUR OWN LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY, 5th ed. By Anthony Mancuso; edited by Alayna Schroeder Berkeley: Nolo, 2007 KF1380.Z9 M36 2007 Available at all locations GAAP GUIDE LEVEL A: RESTATEMENT AND ANALYSIS OF CURRENT FASB STANDARDS Chicago, IL: CCH, c2007 HF5616.U5 G33 Available at the Main Library LEGAL GUIDE TO WEB & SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT, 5th ed. By Stephen Fishman Berkeley: Nolo, c2007 KF390.5.C6 F57 2007 Available at the Main Library, North County and South Bay Branches PROBATION REVOCATION, Rev. 2007 San Francisco, Calif.: California Center for Judicial Education and Research, c2007 KFC1190.Z9 P76 2007 Available at the Main Library

Cartoon by Stu Rees Stu's Views are "Cartoons About Law and Lawyers." Stu Rees is a local entertainment lawyer who represents mostly visual arts creators.

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