October 2007

Human Rights Petition Declared Admissible
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights declares the petition admissible in the matter of Jessica Gonzales v. United States of America,

Japan's Emerging M&A Markets Examined at CLS Event
Experts on Japan’s mergers and acquisitions market and Japanese business law will examine Japan’s emerging M&A market during a conference open to the media at Columbia Law School on Oct. 12, 2007. The speakers will look at recent developments in Japan’s M&A market and discuss judicial review of insider trading and its impact on the M&A market.

New Fellowship Supports Future Academics in Copyright Law
Columbia Law School’s Kernochan Center for Law, Media and the Arts has created a fellowship program to support future legal academics interested in copyright law and authors’ rights.

Waxman, Former Bush Official, Speaks on Terror War
Columbia Law School Professor Matthew Waxman, who served in a Pentagon post created in the wake of the Abu Ghraib crisis to address prisoner abuse, will give a lecture open to the media Oct. 8 titled ``Are We At War? Trans-Atlantic Perspectives on Combating Terrorism.’’

Alumnus Yu Wins Recognition for His New Fiction
Columbia Law School alumnus Charles Yu ’01 has been recognized by the National Book Foundation for his recent fiction. Yu was among five young fiction writers recognized by the foundation as ``5 Under 35.’’

Chemical Weapons Conference Symposium Report
Diplomats and international legal experts agreed yesterday that the 10-year-old Chemical Weapons Convention was a legal and diplomatic success story, but they warned that the treaty’s effectiveness was threatened by non-signatory nations, as well as non-state actors such as terrorists.

Chemical Weapons Symposium Marks Agreement's 10th Year
Columbia Law School will commemorate the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons’ (OPCW) last 10 years and look toward its future as it remains vital to international security, disarmament and global economic development. Proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their potential use in terrorism are key threats to the international community today. The event is Oct. 8.

Will China's New Labor Law Change Labor Relations
On paper, China’s new labor contract law appears as if it will significantly improve labor conditions, but enforcement remains the key issue, according to Professor Xie Zengyi.

Appeals Court for the Federal Circuit Holds Court at CLS
Columbia Law School students had a rare opportunity October 4th to watch real cases argued before United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit judges Arthur J. Gajarsa, Alan D. Lourie and Sharon Prost. It was the court’s first visit to Columbia Law School and the audience of 300 students and faculty heard the appeals of three very disparate cases.

James Comey Comes to Criminal Law Class
President Bush’s former deputy attorney general and persistent critic talks to Columbia students and faculty.

New Reform Treaty to Legalize European Union’s Structure
France’s former EU advisor spoke at the Law School about the impact of Europe’s new landmark treaty replacing its failed constitution.

Bush’s Use of Power Worries Panelists
Interdisciplinary panel discusses loss of liberties in the name of the War on Terror.

Federal Circuit Court Sitting
The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit will be seated at Columbia Law School on Oct. 4, 2007.

Ninth-Floor Expansion at Jerome Greene Hall
A $12.5 million construction project started this summer will add 29 faculty offices as well as a new conference area for faculty and students in Columbia Law School’s main building, Jerome Greene Hall.

John Kernochan, Intellectual Property Law Scholar, Dies
John Marshall Kernochan, a law professor, composer and music publisher who founded Columbia Law School’s Kernochan Center for Law, Media and the Arts and whose pioneering work in intellectual property law helped spur stronger protections for artists, died Monday at his home in Jamaica Plain, Mass. He was 88.

Speaker Urges U.S. to Pass Law of the Sea Convention
As the U.S. debates whether to sign the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, New Zealand law lecturer Joanna Mossop ̉02 L.L.M. tells Law School students we need to protect “the common heritage of mankind.”

Library Art Exhibit Honors Ordinary New Yorkers
A new photo-journalism exhibit at Columbia’s Diamond Law Library honors New Yorkers who have fought for their civil liberties.

Lillian Hellman's Crusade: Civil Liberties in an Age of Lies
Columbia University's Alice Kessler-Harris will discuss Lillian Hellman's role as a leading voice in the 1970s fight for American civil liberties. Hellman, a playwright, memoirist and activist, played a crucial part in forming the Committee for Public Justice, a group of writers, lawyers, scientists and educators that was responsible for getting the Nixon tapes released to the public.

Mukasey: Attorney General Nominee and Law School Prof


Workshops Help Families of Prisoners Navigate the Legal System
Families and friends of current and former prisoners will attend a series of workshops at Columbia Law School on October 20 designed to teach them about New York State’s incarceration policies and how to advocate for changes.

Strict Church and State Separation Waning, Say Pluralism Panelists
At a panel discussing religious pluralism, discussion focused on growing government accommodation of religious beliefs and a more relaxed attitude regarding the separation of church and state.

New Book Features Photos of FDR
New photos of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who studied at Columbia Law School, have been published in a newly released book from Turner Publishing.

Four CLS Professors Speak at Corporate Governance Conference
Four Columbia Law School professors participated as expert panelists or presenters during a special conference on corporate governance standards for Europe and the United States this week at the Securities and Exchange Commission in Washington.

Legal Summit for Software Freedom at CLS
The Software Freedom Law Center (SFLC), provider of pro-bono legal services to protect and advance Free and Open Source Software (FOSS), will host a Legal Summit for Software Freedom on Friday, October 12, at Columbia Law School.

Experts Discuss Subprime Crisis and How to Fix the Mess
The sub-prime lending crisis has put millions of Americans in danger of losing their homes. The National State Attorneys General Program at Columbia Law School has assembled a panel of experts to meet October 30, 2007 and discuss why the foreclosure crisis has occurred, current efforts to mitigate the issue, and thoughts on the future.

Panelists Criticize Supreme Court’s Decisions
At the annual Supreme Court Roundup hosted by Social Justice Initiatives, panelists disapproved of the Court’s direction indicated by last year’s decisions.

CLS Experts Can Speak On New Supreme Court Cases
The Supreme Court will hear a varied and compelling list of cases in the new term, and Columbia Law School experts can speak on many of the key cases, as well as provide an overview of the court’s direction.

Tax Code Hampering Art Donations
The tax code is discouraging artists from donating their work to museums.

Equal Educational Opportunity: What Now?
Columbia University President Lee Bollinger, NAACP President Ted Shaw and Lani Guinier, expert on race and access to higher education, will be among those debating the uses of law and litigation in promoting equal educational opportunity at a symposium co-sponsored by Teachers College and Columbia Law School. A highlight of the event will be case study reviews of the impact of school finance litigation in New Jersey, Kentucky and other states to determine whether there have been significant improvements in district, school and student performance.

America and its European Allies in the War on Terror
Incoming Professor Matthew Waxman, terrorism expert and former Bush administration official, examines the divide between the United States and Europe.