Lawyering on the Right Side of the Brain

There has been quite a bit of news lately on neuroscience and the law. The Law and Neuroscience Blog specifically focuses on the topic, discussing everything from lying to U.S. Supreme Court decisions which cite neuroscience research. This trend enhances the right brain vs. left brain discussions that have been around for decades. While modern technology is challenging some of those assumptions, recent studies have taken the right brain vs. left brain discussion into politics. Right brain functions are typically identified as more creative, while the left side of the brain is often identified with analytical skills, logic, and other functions one might typically associate with skilled lawyers.

This blog post from the ABA showcases a lawyer who tapped into both sides of his brain and filed a cartoon amicus brief opposing a price-fixing settlement between the DOJ and three e-book publishers. While in the end the federal judge approved the settlement, she quoted Emily Dickinson in the ruling.

Curious about your own right brain/left brain tendencies? There are many tests on the web; this test from the Art Institute of Vancouver provides a detailed analysis focused on creativity. Want to tap into your creative side? Try Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain by Betty Edwards.

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If You Tweet It, They Will Come

As lawyers, we are often a conservative bunch. This may especially be so for litigators, who encounter the worst case scenarios of common experiences each and every day. Social media employment law cases are no exception. Inevitably, you will find yourself asking, “What on earth were they thinking when they did that?!”

But undoubtedly, social media tools can be extremely useful to professionals like us. Unfortunately, most lawyers seem to limit their use of social media to LinkedIn and writing the occasional blog post. I want to take this opportunity to encourage more lawyers to actually use social media. Namely, I aim to encourage you to start a Twitter account today. And, no, this is not done to try to attract more followers to my account (but who’s to stop you once you join?).

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New Bluebook Mobile App

The Bluebook, A Uniform System of Citation, fondly referred to as “The Bluebook,” is now available as a mobile app. The Bluebook is a legal citation style guide. The app is available for sale through the rulebook app on all Apple iOS devices.

On August 22, 2012, the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure, Bankruptcy Procedure, Civil Procedure, Criminal Procedure, and Evidence may be downloaded for free on the rulebook app.

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