Class recorded January 7, 2025

In recent years, we have seen a disturbing increase in the level of incivility in public discourse and the legal profession. This program will address civility in the practice of law from the judicial perspective, considering questions such as: What do judges expect? Why is civility important? Why are personal attacks, insults, and taunts a poor strategy for advocacy? And what tools can judges use to deal with incivility? The program will also discuss standards for civility in the practice of law and how to deal with uncivil opposing counsel.

Earn 1.0 hour California participatory MCLE credit in subtopic of Civility

MCLE Disclaimer: MCLE credit is only granted to attorneys licensed to practice law by the State Bar of California. Attorneys from other jurisdictions should contact their state bar to learn about credit reciprocity.

Presented by: Judge Mark A. Juhas and Judge Robert B. Broadbelt:

Judge Mark A. Juhas sits in a general family law assignment on the Los Angeles Superior Court. He is the immediate past chair of the California Commission on Access to Justice. For the California Judicial Council, he has been on the CJER Governing Committee and the immediate past Co-chair of the Family and Juvenile Advisory Committee; he was a member of the Elkins Family Law Task Force, Elkins Family Law Implementation Task Force and Self- Represented Litigant Task Force. He recently received a lifetime achievement award from the Family Law Section of the State Bar, a Distinguished Service Award from the California Judicial Council, and the Aranda Access to Justice award from the Judicial Council, among other honors.

Robert Broadbelt is a Judge of the Superior Court of the State of California, for the County of Los Angeles. His current assignment is in the Civil Division of the court, in an Unlimited Civil -- Individual Calendar courtroom at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse in downtown Los Angeles. Before being appointed to the bench in 2012, Judge Broadbelt spent most of his legal career as a partner in the law firm of Browne Woods George, LLP, where his practice was devoted to complex business litigation with an emphasis on unfair competition and trade secrets. Judge Broadbelt received his B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley, and his J.D. from the USC Gould School of Law.

Registration fee: $20
Register first, then watch the recording to the end and complete the evaluation to verify your attendance. A staff member will email you the course materials and your Certificate of Attendance.

Tuesday, February 25, 2025: 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm

This class will be hosted on ZOOM

Join the LA Law Library book discussion group as we explore issues relating to the United States Supreme Court.  Our first discussion of 2025 will be on Tuesday Feb. 25, 2025 at 6:30 pm on Zoom to discuss The Shadow Docket: How the Supreme Court Uses Stealth Rulings to Amass Power and Undermine the Republic, by Stephen Vladeck.  Vladeck is a professor of law at the Georgetown University Law Center and is a nationally recognized expert on the federal courts, the Supreme Court, national security law, and military justice.  He argues in the book that the court has increasingly delivered rulings by means of the “shadow docket” – unsigned orders with no position or legal analysis attached and comprised of shorthand language, which can result in the court enforcing unpopular legal rulings without attaching responsibility or rendering a concrete decision.  Vladeck’s arguments against the walled-off court are persuasive and timely and leave much to ponder and discuss!

Presented by: Katie O’Laughlin, Managing Librarian, Reference & Collections

Registration fee: FREE!  Register to receive Zoom link

Tuesday, April 22, 2025: 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm

Please join the LA Law Library book discussion group for this very special discussion of Simone Ladwig-Winters Lawyers Without Rights: The Fate of Jewish Lawyers in Berlin After 1933*, edited by Bill Choyke, LWR Coordinator at the American Bar Association.  The LALL is also hosting a display of the ABA travelling exhibit Lawyers Without Rights in the Main library through July 2025. 

Professor John Q. Barrett of St. John’s University School of Law will co-facilitate the discussion.

“As the rule of law comes under attack today in both developed and Third World countries, Lawyers Without Rights tragically portrays what can happen when the just rule of law disappears – replaced by an arbitrary rule of law that sweeps aside the rights and dignity of selected populations.  The story of the fate of Jewish lawyers in Berlin and all of Germany is more than a historical footnote; it is a wake-up call that a system of justice free of improper political considerations remains fragile and should never be taken for granted.”  Amer. Bar. Assoc. https://tinyurl.com/3uuvujjs

About John Q. Barrett:

• Benjamin N. Cardozo Professor of Law at St. John’s University School of Law
• Fellow at the Robert H. Jackson Center in Jamestown, New York. Robert H. Jackson (1892-1954) was a U.S. Supreme Court Justice and U.S. Chief Prosecutor of Nazi war criminals at Nuremberg. Barrett is also the originator of The Jackson List https://thejacksonlist.com/
• Graduate of Georgetown University and Harvard Law School, former U.S. government attorney and investigator and regular lecturer and commentator on the U.S. Supreme Court, Justice Robert H. Jackson, Nuremberg and other historical and legal topics.

*The American Bar Association is generously offering a 50% discount on the book.  Use promo code LWRLA50 through August 1, 2025.  Lawyers Without Rights: The Fate of Jewish Lawyers in Berlin after 1933

Presented by: Katie O’Laughlin, Managing Librarian, Reference & Collections

Registration fee: FREE!  Register to receive Zoom link.

Tuesday, June 24, 2025: 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm

UPDATE: The final LALL book discussion on Tuesday June 24, 2025 will now be both IN-PERSON and on Zoom!  Katie will have the opportunity to say goodbye and thank you in-person as well as on Zoom!  Same date, same time but you have the choice to come in person or join on Zoom.

In honor of Pride Month, please join the LALL book discussion group via Zoom on Tuesday June 24, 2025 at 6:30 pm when we discuss Love Wins: The Lovers and Lawyers Who Fought the Landmark Case for Marriage Equality, by Debbie Cenziper and Jim Obergefell.

Jim Obergefell and John Arthur were a loving, committed couple living together for more than 20 years in Cincinnati Ohio.  When John was diagnosed with ALS in 2011, they flew to Maryland where they legally formalized their relationship in marriage.  After John’s death in 2013, Jim learned from civil rights attorney Al Gerhardstein that Ohio would not reciprocally recognize the Maryland union and John would be classified as “single” on his death certificate.  Gerhardstein and Jim then filed a lawsuit that led, after a long personal and legal journey, to Obergefell v Hodges, the landmark 2015 U.S. Supreme Court decision that made same-sex marriage the law in all 50 states.  Love Wins is an engrossing, deeply moving tale in which love and fairness are the predominant themes.  Join us and share your thoughts!

Presented by: Katie O’Laughlin, Managing Librarian, Reference & Collections

Registration fee: FREE

ZOOM LINK: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86277572196?pwd=FNEM54pGGFgibgaCfPXAl47j9z5BYC.1