24th February 2004:

YOU ARE RULE 11!

You were designed to make sure that attorneys in federal cases make reasonable inquiries into fact or law before submitting pleadings, motions, or other papers. You were a real hardass in 1983, when you snuffed out all legal creativity from federal proceedings and embarassed well-meaning but overzealous attorneys. You loosened up a bit in 1993, when you began allowing plaintiffs to make allegations in their complaints that are likely to have evidenciary support after discovery, and when you allowed a 21 day period for the erring attorney to withdraw the errant motion. Sure, you keep everything running on the up and up, but it's clear that things would be a lot more fun without you around.

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30th May 2005:

YOU ARE RULE 8(a)!

You are Rule 8, the most laid back of all the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. While your forefather in the Federal Rules may have been a stickler for details and particularity, you have clearly rebelled by being pleasant and easy-going. Rule 8 only requires that a plaintiff provide a short and plain statement of a claim on which a court can grant relief. While there is much to be lauded in your approach, your good nature sometimes gets you in trouble, and you often have to rely on your good friend, Rule 56, to bail you out.

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I'm sure that there's a psych type in the audience who could explain this to me. Please take the opportunity to do so; it's always fun hearing those sorts of explanations.

Meanwhile, I'll be mourning the apparent destruction of my car's CD player. How'm I supposed to drive down the road listening to Lisa Gerrard or Liz Phair? Thank God the radio still works; if I couldn't get the local NPR affiliate and others, I'd probably be inspired to do "something rash", as an annoying protocol droid once put it.

Posted by: Country Pundit at 01:17 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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