Tony(c) Award For Best NY Blawgger: JaneAnne Murray for NY Federal Criminal Practice Blog

The Tony(c) Award for the "Best NY Blawgger" (that is a writer who blogs about legal topics in NY) goes to JaneAnne Murray for her blog "NY Federal Criminal Practice Blog." JaneAnne's writing is crisp and understandable. The Blog reads like a law schoolstudent's recitation brief on a casebook case. Her analysis of the cases is clear and understandable. It is also a great niche blog.

I loved the way JaneAnne Murray covered Judge Weinstein's decision in US v. Polizzi which I covered in a post yesterday. She took a complex, 288 page, tome on sentencing and other issues, and whittled it down to a few paragraphs laid out brief style. The facts, holdings, and synthesis is clear to any attorney having to work with this case.

The fact that the blog is a little light on links and analysis on some of the bigger cases leaves room to improve. Covering the large amount of decisions she covers in the circuit (a circuit that has 2 of the most cited US District Courts and one of the top 3 cited US Circuit Courts of Appeal) Ms. Murray has a lot of cases to comb through and brief. Additionally, unlike most state court decisions(which generally run a few pages) these decisions are long and often tedious. I think her blog is a useful tool for research, and a definite worth-while read if one is just trying to keep up with criminal practice in one of the busiest US Circuits in the country.

Thus The Tony(c) Award for the Best NY Centric Legal Blog goes to NY Federal Criminal Practice Blog. Congratulations.

Tony(c) Award for Best Legal Technology Blog: Dennis Kennedy & His Blog Get an Award and an Honor

From this day forward, the Tony(c)Award for Legal Technology Blogging is going to be named for its First recipient: Dennis Kennedy. Dennis is the author of the Dennis Kennedy.Blog

Dennis is responsible for starting me on blogging. It was an article he wrote for the Law Practice Management magazine, which talked about things that would be hot in 2004 that got me thinking about starting a blog of my own. Dennis was right about all of the things he said would be hot. Blogging was a great way for me to get my name out there and for others to think of me as an expert on the things I blogged about.

Over the years, Dennis became a friend. He encouraged my blog and my work. He continues to inform our profession about ideas, gadgets and processes to make our forays into the tech side of things easier. He makes technology fun for us non-techno geeks. He remains on the cutting edge of technology (see his twitter feed and his microblog) and he is a prolific author. He was actually holding tweet-ups before there was a Twitter by hosting blogger cocktail parties at the big tech shows.

Now I will be the first to admit, I don't always understand what Dennis is talking about. If you send him an e-mail however, he is always willing to help, which is actually a really good addition to a blog.

Finally, Dennis is a champion of bloggers. He started me on the idea of handing out an award for bloggers I file. His awards are called The Blawggies. That is what I mean, he has always championed the work of other bloggers. That is very cool, and generous.

I owe a lot to Dennis, and one of the ways I want to thank him for the difference he has made to my life, is to name an award after him, to honor his mentoring of me. So, from here on in, the Tony(c) award for Legal Technology Blogging is named the Dennis Kennedy Memorial Tony(c) Award for Legal Technology Blogging.

That Lawyer Dude Salutes...: MY FAVORITE BLOGS OF 2006

Dennis Kennedy gave me a Blawggie last week and tagged the winners (kinda/sorta) to come up with their own blog awards to honor and introduce those bloggers to other readers. So I have come up with my "Salutes". Like Dennis' they are subjective and are made up of my opinion only (more or less, I ran them by Mrs. Lawyer Dude and the Jr. Dudes too, but I am the only one who voted and so I am responsible for the choices.) Hence without further adieu, That Lawyer Dude Salutes:

1. Best Law Student Blog: Will Work For Favorable Dicta... Figures my first choice just stopped blogging. But I loved Energy Spatula's work (and her Blog persona name too.)Her stories were sometimes sad and sometimes crazy and often raunchy as Hell, but she was honest and true and had me pulling for her all the way. ES has graduated and moved onto a job. ES, Good Luck with the Job and "The Boy." I hope you come back soon.

2. Best NY Blawg: Sui Generis. Hands down my favorite NY Blog and one of my top five. It is a mixture of case briefs and law updates, commentary and even comedy. Every week Nicole Black has comedic breaks-funny and strange (and occasionally bizarre)transcript quotes to make us smile, as well as a weekly review of the top NY Legal stories in the tabloids and a round up of NY focused Blawg reports. I really enjoy reading her blawg. If you practice law in NY, reading Nicole's blawg is essential.

3. Best New Legal Blog: Environment Crimes Blog Blogger Walter James has quite a neat blog. It hits on criminal law topics as well as issues of Policy and Trial Techniques. His writing style is crisp and he has very good insight. I think you should check out this post and see what I mean. I hope Walter keeps at this for a long time. His teaching is spot on.

4. Best Technology Blog: Jim Calloway's Law Practice Tip Blog. I read a lot of blogs. Many of the tech blogs are the best written and most helpful of the bunch, and frankly this was one of the hardest categories to decide, but for me Jim makes Tech stuff chewable. I like to read Dennis Kennedy and Between Lawyers and I Heart Tech, but for breaking it down and using it in the office and at home, Jim Calloway does it. Jim is folksy and I can almost hear him speaking the words when he writes. He makes the hard stuff understandable. Even if you are a hardcore Techie, Jim may be keeping it too simple, but for the rest of us, Jim's tips are the right speed.

5. Best Family Law Blog: Divorce Hotline . Always well written, Janine teaches not just lawyers but clients about the issues in Divorce and Family law. She infuses her experiences with her knowledge. She is a true and honest voice in the blogosphere. Check out this post and you will understand what I am talking about.

6. Best Law Practice Management/Marketing Blog: Larry Bodine's Professional Services Marketing Blog. This category was filled with good blogs, My Shingle, What About Clients, From the 21st Floor, and Law Firm Internet Marketing Blog to name just a few, but Bodine has consistently had the information and ideas that have fueled my marketing and law practice management actions. I strongly recommend reading his blog. Reading the others is not a bad idea if you want to position your law firm for the next 20 years. Remember, the dinosaur becomes extinct.

7. Best Place To Find Blogs- Inter Alia Tom Mighell's Daily Blog of the Day and a compilation Blog of the Week, Inter alia doesn't necessarily teach you anything so much as points you to places you can be taught in. Tom finds the new, the funny, the informative, and gives you a synopsis. Half of my blog syndicator list probably came from Tom's suggestions. Runner up in this category Robert Ambrogi's Lawsites.

8. Best Constitutional Law Site: Fourth Amendment Law Blog. This category took in everything from civil rights law through constitutional and death penalty blogs. John Wesley Hall's Fourth Amendment law blog gets the latest and most important cases in front of us quickly with good analysis. I read it daily and if you are practicing in the criminal law arena you should be reading it daily too.

And finally 2 Criminal law categories

10. Best Public Defense Blog: Arbitrary and Capricious A&C is everything I am not. He is pity and short and to the point. He is a PD and proud of it. What we have in common is a respect for the rule of law and an appreciation for it as well. A&C is informed and usually a quick read. It is among my favorite, a Must Read for me. It should b for you too if your want to stay on top of what is happening, especially in the west coast legal world.

11. Best Criminal Law Site: A three way tie. Prof Berman's Sentencing Law And Policy Blog, White Collar Crime Prof Blog and DUI Blog. Since this is the first time I am doing this, I wanted to tell you about a bunch of blogs that I find helpful in practice and also for teaching me to blog. Sentencing Law and Policy is simple the resource for all things Booker. If you are not reading this blog you should not be handling cases in Federal court.
White Collar Law Prof Blog is also a wealth of important information and should be reviewed at least weekly if you are practicing criminal law. It doesn't only teach you what is happening in White Collar Crime but teaches practice oriented information that every lawyer could use. It is well written and biting. It is part of a network of Law Professor blogs all of which could be part of a regular reading list.
Finally DUIBlog is written by a lawyer (Lawrence Taylor) who uses his blog to market his practice. Nevertheless Lawrence's blog is informative and teaches not only DWI Law but the effect that the DWI witch hunt is having in diminishing constitutional protections. He analyzes the effect of "lobbying" groups like MADD and how they unfairly affect trials. It is a wealth of information and a study in how to do this blogging thing correctly if you are using it to market.

Well that's my best of 2006 list. Now go out and announce yours too. Dennis Kennedy is right, it is our job to let everyone know about who we are reading and why. It will make for better blogging and it is a good way to be sure that hard working lawyers we read get the recognition they deserve. Happy New Year all. See you in 'O7
And be sure to check out our sister blog Long Island (Criminal)Trial Law for her return in a revamped style in the second week of the new year.

Dennis Kennedy Bestows A Blawggie on That Lawyer Dude!!!

This is a real honor for me. To begin, an article in The ABA's Law Practice Management magazine by Dennis Kennedy and Tom Mighell, was the inspiration of this blog. Tom and Dennis had pointed out the trend and I wanted to be ahead of it. I was and it helped my practice nearly immediately. Later, I had the pleasure of serving on a panel with Dennis in Las Vegas and a close friendship was begun. Even so I take Dennis at his word in awarding me his honor, especially since he is also close to the other two bloggers he was considering for the award.

Secondly the award is named for the writer of one of my favorite blogs. Sherry Fowler is an honest voice and she can move you to tears. She ended her blog "Stay of Execution" last week. She has begun a new blog titled "Stay" which is dedicated to short posts. I will miss her longer posts however.

Finally I am awed by the company Dennis thrusts me into. Ernest Svenson has been cited on my blogs a couple of times (Here and here) Ernie also has one of the great Blogger handles "Ernie The Attorney" which is also the name of his wonderful solo blog. Ernie is not just a lawyer who is teaching or giving an opinion he is a reporter. He has been sending posts on the slow recovery on New Orleans. In fact if I were giving the award I would have given it to him again this year. (I am not however willing to give it back Ernie.) As for Denise Howell (who along with Mr. Kennedy and Mr. Svenson is another member of the Between Lawyers team) Hell, she Coined the phrase BLAWG!! Her Blawg by the way is a combination of information about intellectual property and law firm life. It is also an honest read and a really well written blog.

Here are the rest of Dennis Kennedy's winners:
Here is what Dennis said about the award he bestowed upon this blog:

8. The Sherry Fowler Best Writing on a Legal Blog Award - Anthony Colleluori's That Lawyer Dude

I'm a big fan of the pure writing ability of some of the best legal bloggers. I named this award after the legal blogger who had the biggest influence on my blog writing Sherry "Scheherezade" Fowler, who just ended her blog, Stay of Execution, one of the important blogs in the history of legal blogging, to start a new blog called "Stay." Ernest "Ernie the Attorney" Svenson won this award in 2005 and could have easily done so again with his great posts on post-Katrina New Orleans. However, the blogger whose writing really grabbed me this year was Tony Collelulori at That Lawyer Dude. After meeting Tony, I always describe him as having a heart of gold. That comes through in his writing and his writing often has an emotionally compelling quality that you don't often see. Some of his posts make me think about them for days - they grab you. Here’s the recent post that clinched this award. His analytical posts are great, but his personal essays are the highlights of his blog. If you are not reading Tony's blog, you should be. Runners-up in this category - Ernest Svenson and Denise Howell.

Here's a list of Dennis's Blawggie winners:

I. List of 2006 Blawggie Award Categories and Winners.

1. Best Overall Law-Related Blog - Marty Schwimmer's The Trademark Blog
2. Best Overall Law Practice Management Blog - Tom Collins' More Partner Income
3. The Marty Schwimmer Best Practice-Specific Legal Blog - Evan Schaeffer's The Illinois Trial Lawyer Weblog
4. Best Legal Blog Category - Law Librarian Blogs and Canadian Law-related Blogs (Tie)
5. Best Legal Blog Digest - Stark County Law Library Blog and Bob Ambrogi's and Carolyn Elefant's Law.com Inside Opinions (Tie)
6. Best Blawg About Legal Blawgging - Kevin O'Keefe's Real Lawyers Have Blogs
7. Best Legal Podcast - Bob Ambrogi's and Craig Williams' Coast to Coast Podcast
8. The Sherry Fowler Best Writing on a Legal Blog Award - Tony Colleluori's That Lawyer Dude
9. Best Law Professor Blog - Tung Yin's The Yin Blog
10. Best New Law-related Blog - Peter Lattman's WSJ.com Law Blog and Adriana Linares' I Heart Tech (Tie)
11. Best Legal Technology Blog - DennisKennedy.Blog

Go to his post for their links and for his reasoning.

To end, Dennis has challenged us to name our own favorite blogs and give them awards and recognition. He is right. Being listed on a blog roll is nice but being told what works for me and why is a more important thing. Hence, I will be naming those that That Lawyer Dude Selects, later in the week.