Monthly Archives: April 2012

No Such Thing as a Non-Refundable Retainer?

By Jason Castillo, Director of Legal Education The Iowa Supreme Court recently suspended a retired Iowa attorney for 30 days after ruling that a fee agreement with a criminal defendant was unethical.  According to the opinion, “the amount of the fee charged and collected by Vilmont for performing the limited and insignificant services in representing his client was, without question, unreasonable.”  The court then…

Will Other States Follow Maryland in Protecting Online Privacy?

By Jason Castillo, Director of Legal Education Privacy in the digital age – what does it mean to you? Does it mean that potential employers should be able to ask for your Facebook username and password at a job interview?  Why not just ask for the keys to your house and your smartphone? It’s no secret that many of us live our lives online. …

Should One Facebook Post Merit a New Trial?

By Jason Castillo, Director of Legal Education Do you think that this Facebook post violates a criminal defendant’s Constitutional right to a fair trial?  And should the juror’s Facebook postings protected under the federal Stored Communications Act (SCA)?[1]  An appellate court in California has been asked to decide these novel electronic issues.[2] In June, 2010, shortly after the jury convicted the parties involved in…