Law

Bloody murder has been a quintessentially American preoccupation since John Newcomen sailed in on the Mayflower and was whacked by a fellow colonist. What followed in America from the 17th century to the present, says cultural analyst and author David F. Schmid, Ph.D., is a form of "entertainment by murder," a ghastly enthrallment that conflates some of Americans' favorite preoccupations: consumerism, titillation by celebrity gossip and violence.

University at Buffalo Law School students received honors and awards at the school's 118th commencement ceremony held on May 19.

Five graduates of the University at Buffalo Law School and one non-alumnus will be honored for their valuable contributions to the legal profession, community and university at the 45th annual UB Law Alumni Association meeting and dinner to be held at 6 p.m. May 3 in the Hyatt Regency Buffalo.

Kathryn A. Foster, director of the Regional Institute at the University at Buffalo has been appointed to the Commission on Local Government Efficiency and Competitiveness created by Gov. Eliot Spitzer to identify opportunities for shared services and regional collaboration for the state's more than 4,200 local governments.

Nils Olsen announced today that he will step down in December as dean of the University at Buffalo Law School to attend to personal and family health issues.

As a conversation starter, legal research may seem too esoteric of a topic. But add to the discussion a little atmosphere -- lunch at an Italian cafe, the chattering of fellow diners, a touch of jazz music in the background -- and now you have the makings of an Internet talk show. More specifically, you have a podcast on important ideas in law and society.

The legal profession, its associations, firms and law schools have spent years and considerable money encouraging lawyers to do more pro bono work. A new study by University at Buffalo sociologist Robert Granfield, Ph.D., finds, however, that mandatory law school programs, bar association campaigns and good will are not the principle spurs provoking lawyers to work for the public good.

Buffalo has fewer police officers per capita than many other cities in New York and nearby states, a condition reinforced by a 13 percent drop in officers per capita between 2000 and 2005, according to the most recently released Regional Institute Policy Brief, "Violent Crime in the City of Good Neighbors."

The Honorable James Robertson, United States District Judge for the District of Columbia, will deliver the University at Buffalo Law School's annual Mitchell Lecture at 11 a.m. March 21 in Lippes Concert Hall in Slee Hall on the UB North (Amherst) Campus.

New digital technologies and broadband Internet access have increased digital piracy of music, movies and other creative products. But the threat of widespread digital piracy also has produced "copyright panic," spawning an illogical expansion of copyright protections in recent years, contends an intellectual property expert at the University at Buffalo Law School.