Incredibly awful address to the jury by defence counsel in a capital case does not move the US Supreme Court to lift a protective finger … Let death prevail … Stephen Keim reports ... more

We’re fortunate indeed to have enticed the indefatigable Norman O’Bryan AM SC onto the couch … The man who put the spanner in the works of VicBar’s chambers and clerking closed shop … He opens up about his fears, regrets and talents ... more

NT Supremes uphold prof misconduct findings against solicitor who made conflict of interest allegations against big Darwin law shop Cridlands and three of its lawyers … Buffalo Bruce reports ... more

Percy’s back with a shocking story of embezzlement in Honkers … Old judge looted by his errant son-in-law broker … You can’t choose your rellies ... more

Up pops Melbourne’s favourite Spanish noshery within striking distance of a clutch of legal stomachs … Jaws makes a bold claim that the paella is nestled deep in the soul of Melbournians ... more

Justinian introduces a crossword puzzle specifically designed for lawyers – partly cryptic, partly not … It’s composed by Stephen Clarke, who this month took out The Times of London’s clue setting challenge … Download and give the old brain a stretch ... more

Jackson inquiry in UK is the latest in an ageless line of reports into lawyers’ costs … Success fees out … Contingency fees in … What’s worse? ... more

Mary Macken, President of the NSW Law Society, linguist, weightlifter and lawyer for Sydney Buses, unburdens herself on Justinian’s couch … Disturbing personal obsessions revealed … French culture racing through her veins … Denial that other Mackens covet high office ... more

The Firm is a cerebral wasteland … Senior associate turns vegan … “Holistic” response not applicable to food decisions … Were lawyers always this way or did the law make them so? ... Vicki Mole rips ... more

Companies transmogrify into people as US Supreme Court strikes down laws limiting corporate funding of politicians … The deadline has come and gone but Guantánamo remains open for business … New evidence on detainee “suicides” ... The laws of war don’t apply to war ... more

The then Media Watch host and one of the country’s most magnificent silks gently birched in the High Court for not knowing the rules … Plucked from Justinian’s hardcopy archive ... more

Batty Tobacco thinks that a judge’s criticism of the “document retention” policy smacks of apprehended bias … Appeal judges divided on the thought process of the difficult to locate “fair minded lay observer” ... more

Solicitor not guilty of professional misconduct only unsatisfactory conduct … Penalty halved … Basten calls for proper judges to preside over tribunal hearings into lawyer misconduct … Court of Appeal to the rescue ... more

December saw some high profile defamation cases going the way of media defendants … There was a verdict for The Sydney Morning Herald in the Roco Roco restaurant review case … The same day The Australian won the war crimes case brought by Serbian paramilitary commander Captain Dragan … However, there was one case that month in which the media’s truth defence failed in the face of compelling cross-examination … Transcript ... more

Struggle over legal fees paid by alleged drug dealers produces some intriguing arguments over who owns the loot … Sizzling retainer agreement in contention ... more