Monday, September 13, 2010

Steven Zack Takes Over The Reins At The ABA



Stephen Zack's four main initiatives for his royal reign will be to preserve the justice system (whatever that means), civic education (provide more funding to the American Federation of Teachers), hispanic legal rights (amnesty), and disaster preparedness (close gitmo). Clearly, Mr. Zack wants to use his position to brandish political credentials and gain influence in Democratic circles.

As for the issues of regulating the profession, accrediting law schools, exploding debt, ABA schools that blatantly falsify marketing statistics, former biglaw associates scrubbing toilets, and corrupt deans channeling money through and sitting on the boards of directors of non-for-profit (in name only) lending institutions, he is notably silent.

When it comes to the issue of outsourcing entry-level legal work to the Indian subcontinent however, Zack is a little more proactive:

In remarks to the commission, ABA President-Elect Stephen Zack said that although he is "agnostic" on the issue of outsourcing, he recognizes that the lack of an official ABA position on the subject is a real problem. An opinion on outsourcing issued by the Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility, ABA Formal Ethics Op. 08-451 (2008), has been taken by others as a formal ABA endorsement, he noted. . . . . The ABA House of Delegates needs an opportunity to consider outsourcing, he said.

Jaime Gorelick said that the commission's work on outsourcing will be put out for public comment, so that by the time the report comes before the delegates at the 2011midyear meeting it will be "fully vetted."


http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:_EXqCwjSoDIJ:www.abanet.org/ethics2020/bnart.2.pdf+Stephen+Zack+outsourcing&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESgolEijPapNAS7ZO-cG8rGgSIh27e2LPLpefs_zctgjOOdgLikBY5_eVq0yPcGHYdWVabZ2j6Xevg2wblpmkMEtEY95ynReA7dSnAUZ8e7gZGR1TMewVwKnMe8uhsc37tupTXfi&sig=AHIEtbSs8P4HIsWVdh1UAJgL-17Jr-7-zw

Jaime Gorelick remember, is that horrible bank lobbying creature that took slush money from Sallie Mae and unsuccessfully tried to kill off the student loan reform bill last year. She also took $26.4 million away from Fannie Mae, money which was later found by federal regulators to have been given out because management manipulated earnings. Talk about ethics!

http://fdlaction.firedoglake.com/2010/02/05/bank-lobbyist-jamie-goreleck-endangers-student-loan-reform/

Make no doubt it, for however "agnostic" Mr. Hack pretends to be, the ABA will indeed put their full seal of approval on Indian outsourcing later next year. Thanksgiving dinner will be served up early next year and the turkeys will be you and me!

42 comments:

Anonymous said...

Biglaw would outsource this work to China if they could.

Blog Goliard said...

That should be "reins".

A ruler reigns, but a coachman takes over the reins.

(I wouldn't have said anything, except it's double-plus-ungood when such a goof creeps into a headline.)

Anonymous said...

All the work has been outsourced already, who cares if it is made official. 25 candidates for every temp position. Law schools pumping out 40,000 grads every year.

Anonymous said...

stephen N. Zack graduated from a TTT school himself- University of Florida. LOL. I feel better already!

Nando said...

Zack has been described as the first Hispanic to take the reins at ABA. Of course, he looks about as Hispanic as John Tesh. Plus, this is a figurehead position.

I guess this means the ABA will no longer "look into" the fraud committed by ABA-approved law schools. ABA clearly wants to strengthen its position on outsourcing. And "public comment" will not do anything to change their earlier decision. But the ABA benefits from this, too. They can then say, "Look, the public and the general membership has spoken on this issue. And this is the direction that they want us to head in. Plus, we live in a global economy..."

bl1y said...

Zack is an administrative partner at Boies. His predecessor, Carolyn Lamm was a fairly high up partner at White and Case (she sat on the partnership committee). Large law firms are benefited by the over supply of lawyers and the crushing debt loads that prevent their current employees from jumping ship.

Liz said...

Did anyone else catch the new ETS PPI emotional intelligence test? They're setting it up like the LSAC system, where you enroll, and for a fee, the "independent non-profit service" sends schools your test and recommendations based on your social skills.

It's kind of shocking that they found yet another way to make money off of incoming law students who are already paying monopoly prices for the LSAT and LSAC distribution service, as well as test prep and application fees per school.

The real problem is that the ABA is pushing this - for crying out loud it's the organization that accredits the law schools. This is way too cozy an arrangement, and that's exactly how the lsat ended up being so expensive.

Anonymous said...

dental plan lisa needs braces

Anonymous said...

Zack is a hack.

Anonymous said...

Where is Sonia and is she working?

Anonymous said...

Mr. Zack. It has come to our attention that you graduated from a TTT school. Effective immediately, you are hereby dismissed from your job and must do document review for $25 an hour. How many documents can you code in a 10 hour day?

Anonymous said...

Call Senators Durbin and Franken and your congressman to support the student loan discharge bill (S. 3219 or House version H.R. 5043)if you are unemployed, underemployed, have no hope of a legal career and are mired in debt and living a life of indentured servitude. This may be your only chance to do something about it.

Student loans were dischargeable up until the banks reformed the bankruptcy code more to their liking in 2005.

Anonymous said...

Since when have student loans ever been dischargeable in bankruptcy? I don't believe they have ever been dischargeable.

Anonymous said...

That would be 2005.

Anonymous said...

Since when have student loans ever been dischargeable in bankruptcy? I don't believe they have ever been dischargeable.

12:14 AM


They always were until somewhat recently. Yet another advantage the previous generations had on us and an example of the free market that corporations and banks have no interest in because it forces them to play by the rules and actually price things accordingly.

There is no legal reason or precedent for student loans not being dischargeable except that the lending companies wanted it that way. That's like making up a new rape law where only people who make under $100k/year can be tried for rape charges. It's completely nonsensical and runs contrary to common sense and the very reason for the laws in the first place, but it is put in place because rich people wanted it that way.

Anonymous said...

Mr. Hack, congratulations on your ascension to the office of president of the most useless professional organization. Your position and TTT law degree makes you a few ingredients shy of a more valueable cuba libre.

Given your Hispanic background, I have prepared a statement in Spanish to commemorate your achievement. Pardon my broken Spanish but I haven't used it since college:

Hack, eres un hijeputa zangano que necesita ir a Cuba para darle mano de piedra a Castro maricon.

But seriously, congrats Mr. Hack. I am sure your parents are looking down from the sugar canes in heaven upon you with pride.

Anonymous said...

Where are the jobs? I need work. Gigs have been cancelled left and right.

Anonymous said...

Ummm, this is where the jobs are. The Indian attorneys are now correcting the US lawyers' work.

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/indian-legal-eagles-begin-to-%5Ccorrect%5C-their-us-counterparts/408244/

Anonymous said...

Indian legal eagles begin to 'correct' their US counterparts

Praveen Bose / Bangalore September 16, 2010, 0:37 IST



Indian lawyers’ standards have risen in the eyes of top American law firms that have done legal process outsourcing (LPO) to here. The lawyers hired by LPOs over time have become skilled enough to review the work of US lawyers, they say.

For instance, the Mysore team of SDD Global, the Indian subsidiary of SmithDehn LLP, a New York-based law firm, is now checking for English and editing drafts of US lawyers. The usual high-end model till now has been that of Indian LPO employees preparing only drafts and for the US lawyers/clients to review these. “The most surprising new work, besides editing for English, is the Mysore team’s legal review of US lawyers’ drafts for errors in substance,” said Russell A Smith, president and chairman, SDD Global Solutions, an LPO with offices in Mysore. Smith is a partner at SmithDehn LLP. “I never would have predicted this,” he added.


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A recent American Bar Council Journal article compared the scenario to a ‘man bites dog’ story. “Indian LPO companies have taken a lot of heat from US lawyers for siphoning of work, but they (the latter) now may need to steel themselves against editors,” said the article. Smith said: “We never expected lawyers in India to be correcting grammer and legal writing efforts of US attorneys.” Also, American lawyers are too busy, law firms are under huge cost pressure and, therefore, unable to take time to do a perfect or near-perfect draft.

Till some time ago, Indian lawyers were seen to be using lofty English — a vestige of colonial rule. Their sentences were long-winding. “Today, they are good with plain, crispy, clear and clean English writing. In fact, LPOs have made them think global and grow global. American lawyers are liking it, a high-quality second look at the draft,” he added.

“Though much of the less complicated legal work is being outsourced to India, in the case of patent filing, there are a few jobs for drafting and crafting that are being outsourced to India by the US law firms,” said Shamnad Basheer, Ministry of HRD professor in IP Law, National University of Juridical Sciences, Kolkata.

Anonymous said...

First they fired the support staff, but I did not care, because I was not support staff.

Then they fired the paralegals, but I did not care, because I was not a paralegal.

Then they fired the contract attorneys, but I did not care, because I was not a contract attorney.

Then they fired the staff attorneys, but I did not care, because I was not a staff attorney.

Then they fired the associates, Then they fired the associates, but I did not care, because I was not an associate.

Finally, they fired me because I was not an equity partner...and there was no one else left to fire.

Anonymous said...

First they fired the support staff, but I did not care, because I was not support staff.

Then they fired the paralegals, but I did not care, because I was not a paralegal.

Then they fired the contract attorneys, but I did not care, because I was not a contract attorney.

Then they fired the staff attorneys, but I did not care, because I was not a staff attorney.

Then they fired the associates, but I did not care, because I was not an associate.

Finally, they fired me because I was not an equity partner...and there was no one else left to fire.

Anonymous said...

UGH!!!! ($25 an hour with weekend work)

We are searching for 10 JD's (bar admission NOT required) as well as newly admitted attorneys for a 1-2 week assignment beginning tomorrow, Friday September 17th. Working through the weekend will be required.

Experience with REDACTION preferred, but not required.

The hourly rate is $25.00 per hour (straight time) however, there will be more than 40 hours of work per week.

Better Coder said...

All,

Just wanted to remind everybody that those of us who have been working consistently because we are fucking better than you, still are making our original rates - and in my case, my 'raise-cuz-I'm-the-best rate.

Also, we get to work longer hours because, you guessed it, we are better than you.

So it's simple.

1) I am better coder than you
2) I therefore make more dolla dolla bills than you.

Oh and 3) because I am better than you, and make more $ than you, I get more ass than you. And I'm not talking some dimply, sloppy-lookin ass. I am talking hard, hard, probably tan, very small, even fragant (cuz spritzes a tiny bit of Thiery Mugler Violet on it) ass.

Very Truly Yours,
Much, Much, MUCH Better Coder Than You

Anonymous said...

Methinks the faggot Better Coder doth protest too much.

Anonymous said...

LOL Better Coder. You crack me up.

Anonymous said...

Wow! Aren't those Indian" attorneys" so wonderful?

Anonymous said...

I think I have to start screwing Indian chicks. I've screwed all types of chicks, but I never really liked Indian chicks, or Asian chicks in general. Too superficial and materialistic for me. But let's face it, someone's gotta have a job if this global economy.

Anonymous said...

It's more like "bitter coder".

Anonymous said...

Indian chicks are very materialistic and they would never go for a coder or temp attorney. Like Jew-esses they like doctors and real lawyers.

Anonymous said...

@ Better Coder:
Sir, it would be an honor for me to see your coding skills in action. Would you give me the honor of watching you at trial...er.. at coding? Perhaps you will consider using your phenomenal coding prestige to talk one of your coding supervisors to give me a coding job.

Anonymous said...

Billing Affecting Private Educational Loans

Bankruptcy

Since 2005, for any qualified education loan to be discharged in bankruptcy, the debtor must prove that failure to discharge would impose an undue hardship

Private Student Loan Bankruptcy Fairness Act (HR 5043) would make all educational loans –other than those made or insured by a governmental unit, made under a program funded in whole or part by a governmental unit, or under any program where substantially all the funds are provided by a non-profit institution –dischargeable like any consumer loan.

Fairness for Struggling Students Act (S 3219) –The undue hardship exception is limited to loans made or insured by a governmental unit or made under a program funded in whole or in part by a governmental unit.

Swamp your Congressmen with calls supporting these bills.

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Andrew Felix said...

I believe Mr. Zack wants to use his position to brandish political credentials and gain influence in Democratic circles.

Regards
Andrew Felix
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