Congratulations to the 2006-07 LSD Liaisons

LSD Liaison appointments for the next bar year have been notified and it is my pleasure to welcome James M. Curtin of Northwestern Law as LSD-AT Liaison-elect.

Over the next couple months I will be transitioning out of my role as LSD liaison and into my new role as Vice-Chair of the AT-MEO Committee, so you can keep sending in those questions and suggestions (I'm only slightly distracted studying for the Bar exam).

Congratulations again to James and all the incoming liaisons!

Bar/Bri Antitrust case - class certified

Since we just started our bar review course here in Houston this week, I had to check and see how the Bar/Bri antitrust case was going. Well, Eliot Disner of McGuireWoods LLP just announced last week that the court certified the plaintiff's class to include law students who registered for the bar review course between 1997 and 2006, or approximately 300,000 students.

Among other things, the lawsuit accuses BAR/BRI of an illegal market division agreement with its largest potential competitor, Kaplan. It agreed with BAR/BRI to stay out of the bar review course market, on the condition that hundreds of thousands of dollars per year be paid to it, and that BAR/BRI also stay out of Kaplan's LSAT prep course market. Disner said the claimed conspiracy appears to have resulted in class members being overcharged as much as $1,000 each.

A Special Master has also been appointed to "expedite future proceedings" ahead of the September 12, 2006 trial date.

An interesting case for law students to watch!

[UPDATE] AntitrustProf has copies of the complaint, the class certification, and Order Appointing a Special Master available here.[/UPDATE]

Practical Experience Pays

Take a "random" break from finals and find out from AntitrustReview's David Fischer why some law students don't need to pass a bar exam to practice after graduation

Like every practicing attorney, I can assure you that the practice of law bears little to no relation to the bar exam

... and what his firm's associate hiring committee is really looking for these days. Hint: Steiger fellows will have an even greater edge on the competition.

Congratulations to the 2006 Janet D. Steiger Fellows

There were almost 200 applications for 15 positions with OAG's across the country and the CNMI, so competition was very stiff. Congratulations are in order for the following students:

• Illinois: Brian Miller, University of Miami School of Law
• Iowa: Jason M. Yates, Drake University Law School
• Mississippi: Anders Ferrington, Mississippi College School of Law
• Montana: Jessie Lundberg, University of Montana School of Law
• Nevada: Rachel Bickle-Stone, University of Nevada-Boyd School of Law
• Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands: Joseph S. Turek, Ohio State University – Moritz College of Law
• Oregon: Anthony J. Dal Ponte, University of Notre Dame School of Law
• Pennsylvania: Christopher Reinard, University of Pittsburgh School of Law
• South Dakota: Kimberly G. Beza, University of South Dakota School of Law
• Texas: Briana Godbey, Ohio State University – Moritz College of Law
• Utah: Stephen A. Oler, University of Toledo College of Law
• Vermont: Leticia M. Padilla-Morales, Vermont Law School
• Virginia: Timothy M. Bezbatchenko, University of Cincinnati College of Law
• Washington: Jason Eric Bernstein, Seattle University School of Law
• Wisconsin: Scott J. Jess, University of Wisconsin Law School

We'll be looking forward to hearing about each of their fellowship experiences as the summer progresses.