• Harvard’s Charles Nesson argues that Digital Theft Deterrence and Copyright Damages Improvement Act of 1999 violates Constitution by letting civil lawyers for RIAA enforce a criminal law [AP/MSNBC, Elefant]
• In some circles, bitter disappointment at reports that Obama camp probably won’t pursue Bush predecessors as war criminals [Paul Campos, Horton/Harper's; earlier]
• Latest on wrangle over “exorbitant” fee: Alice Lawrence’s deposition-skipping before her death could endanger her estate’s claim against Graubard Miller law firm [NYLJ, earlier]
• One benefit of role as law school mega-donor, as Mark Lanier is with Texas Tech, is that you get to rub (hunting-jacket) elbows with visiting Supreme Court justices [WSJ law blog]
• Lou Dobbs and Phyllis Schlafly were among those who pushed bizarre theory of secret conspiracy to merge U.S. into “North American Union” with Canada and Mexico [John Hawkins]
• Senate Dems plan to abolish secret ballot for installing unions in everyone else’s workplace, so how come they insist on one for themselves in deciding how to handle Joe Lieberman? [Dan Riehl via McArdle]
• Congrats to historian Rick Brookhiser and City Journal editor Myron Magnet, among recipients of 2008 National Humanities Medal [White House release, Brian Anderson, NRO]
• Jarek Molski, California entrepreneur of disabled-access complaints, loses bid for Supreme Court review of his designation as vexatious litigant [AP, Bashman]

If you’re not visiting my other site — or subscribing to it in your RSS reader, or following its Twitter feed — here’s some of what you may have missed lately:

• Sen. Obama’s “I voted for tort reform” talk: maybe not so serious;
• Assaults on arbitration and pre-emption are just the start of the Litigation Lobby’s big plans for next year;
• A new featured column by Richard Epstein on the peculiarly named Employee Free Choice Act;
• Manhattan Institute’s Trial Lawyers, Inc. project is out with a new report on West Virginia;
• U.S. Department of Commerce: foreign investors fear our litigation climate;
• Albany plaintiff’s firm Powers & Santola ladles out campaign money to judges it practices before;
• Through the wringer? Judge Posner is quite severe on a clothes-dryer class action.

• McCain hoist on his own campaign regulation petard [WSJ edit] #
• Conservatives should hold a retreat to talk about why they’re being sent to the wilderness [Friedersdorf/Culture11] #
• Disability activism and “anti-national sexual positions”: just another day in postmodern academia [Massie] #
• Unionism on steroids: Employee Free Choice Act would be Thatcherism in reverse [Claire Berlinski, City Journal] #
• Here’s a twist: a politician walking over his ambition to reach his grandmother #

Via Kaus, I’m pleased to see someone making this issue crystal-clear:

Earlier on POL: Jan. 24; Jun. 21; Feb. 2, 2007.

• Vioxx settlement is good for Merck and the trial lawyers suing it, the price being paid in legal ethics [Gryphon/City Journal]
• Australia: will-contest lawyers “will have their fees capped after a string of cases where the bill has exceeded the final inheritance.” [Sydney Morning Herald]
• ADA obliges golf courses, at least Marriott’s, to furnish accessible carts to disabled golfers, federal judge rules [Egelko, SF Chronicle]
• Henry Fonda/Sidney Lumet jury-deliberation classic Twelve Angry Men normally spoken of in tones of reverence. But what’s this? [Leo McKinstry, U.K. Spectator; Gracchi, Westminster Wisdom]
• Columnist and talk show host Michael Smerconish, himself former trial lawyer, is among latest to be sued by inmate/fantasist J*nath*n L** R*ch*s [Philadelphia Inquirer; earlier]
• Biggest-ever EEOC settlement for individual racial discrimination will bring Lockheed Martin electrician $2.5 million [Reuters/NYT]
• U.K.: Coast guard wins award for saving teen from cliff, then loses job because he didn’t follow prescribed health and safety precautions [Times Online, Sun]
• Lawsuit by baseball pros who missed out on big careers because they never abused steroids? [RedBirdsFan]
• Until Sarkozy, French heads of state liked to cancel outstanding parking tickets on taking office; contrast with American practice of pardons as departing Presidential gesture [Rittelmeyer/Cigarette Smoking Blog]
• New at Point of Law: Ted on med-mal statistics; Prof. Richard Nagareda on recognizing that mass torts are lawyer-driven; voter intimidation and union card check; state AGs and letters of marque and reprisal; Prof. Michael Krauss on thread-count class action; IRBs vs. hospital safety; Ted’s continuing coverage of the Vioxx settlement; and much more.
• OSHA backs down from its plan to regulate hazards like trippable power cords and rickety chairs in telecommuters’ home offices [eight years ago on Overlawyered]

I’ve been discussing this very bad bill (fraudulently labeled the “Employee Free Choice Act”) at Point of Law here, here, and here. The Wall Street Journal editorializes against it today (”Walter Reuther’s Ghost”, Mar. 1) as does the Los Angeles Times (”Keep Union Ballots Secret”, Mar. 1). More: National Review, Investor’s Business Daily.

Don’t cooperate with us on one issue, and we’ll arrange for you to get sued on other issues:

More often, unions undertake confrontational campaigns to squeeze employers to agree to card checks [i.e., recognizing the union as sole bargaining representative of workers on the basis of majority sign-up, rather than a representation election]. To pressure Cintas, the giant uniform and laundry company, Unite Here has encouraged workers to bring lawsuits alleging pay violations and racial and sexual discrimination. Cintas has not given in, insisting that secret-ballot elections are fairer.

(Steven Greenhouse, “Employers Sharply Criticize Shift in Unionizing Method to Cards From Elections”, New York Times, Mar. 11).