A law firm isn’t a “practice”: it’s a professional services business, and should be run like one. But when we start our small firms, most of us don’t put nearly enough thought into learning how to really run a business.…
Legal Community Raises Record Amount for Food Bank
San Francisco, July 2, 2018 — The 27th annual Food from the Bar (FFTB) campaign is in the books and we are pleased to announce that 2018 was a record-breaking year. When the dust settled, and the final tallies were…
LGBTQ Partners and Associates Summer Reception
On Wednesday, June 13, the Bar Association of San Francisco and the Justice and Diversity Center welcomed more than 30 partners, summer associates, and members of the legal community to its annual LGBTQ reception. The reception was hosted by Arnold…
David Goldstein Memorial Scholarship Fund Honors SF State’s Pat Medina
The sudden loss of San Francisco State’s Paralegal Studies’ (PLS) beloved Program Director Pat Medina was felt by the paralegal and legal community around the world. Palmira “Pat” Medina began her career as a high school English teacher but loved…
Train Your Brain: Resilience Tools for Lawyers
Do you remember the movie Groundhog Day? Bill Murray’s character wakes up each morning to his alarm clock playing “I Got You Babe” and he realizes, with dread, that he is about to re-live February 2, again. Have you ever…
Meet the Justice & Diversity Center's New Diversity Director
Please join us in welcoming Samantha Akwei as our new Diversity and Pipeline Programs Director. In this role, Samantha oversees JDC’s educational pipeline programs, including the School-to-College program, Law Academy, and the Bay Area Minority Law Student Scholarship program. She…
San Francisco Rapid Response Network Honored with Immigrant Leadership Award
The San Francisco Rapid Response Network, which is in part coordinated by the Justice & Diversity Center’s (JDC) immigration team, was honored at the 2018 Immigrant Leadership Awards on Monday, June 11. The event, held at San Francisco City Hall,…
Our Too-Powerful Supreme Court
This past March, Republican Senator Dean Heller of Nevada made waves when he predicted that Justice Anthony Kennedy would retire this summer. That may or may not happen—but if Justice Kennedy has decided to retire, it is unlikely he is…
Taking it to the Streets: JDC/BASF Street Team Brings Legal Information to the People
The first Sunday in June marked the fourth time that the JDC/BASF Street Team participated in San Francisco’s Sunday Streets. Inspired by the Ciclovía in Bogotá, Colombia, Sunday Streets is a series of free, fun events empowering local communities to…
Separation Of Families At The Border Lacks Legal And Moral Justification
June 15, 2018 – San Francisco, California – On May 7, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a new “zero tolerance” policy that not only imposes criminal penalties for unlawful entry at the border, but also separates parents and children arriving…
Risk Management: Conflicts In The 21st Century
In California Self-Insurers’ Security Fund v. Superior Court, (2018) 19 Cal.App.5th 1065, the Court of Appeal held that disqualification of an entire firm was not mandatory where an attorney from one firm “switched sides” and joined another firm during litigation,…
Legal Writing Tip: Introduce Block Quotes
Occasionally, you will need to quote four or more lines (50 or more words) of text from a key source, such as when the precise wording matters of say, a particular statute or regulation. And, every now and then, a…