Professor Tom Cotter was interviewed by Minnesota Lawyer on the U.S. Supreme Court's decision on a case involving an Andy Warhol illustration of Prince. Based on a photograph original destined for a magazine shoot, the Warhol print of Prince has garnered much attention and value over the years, however, the original photographer was had only licensed the photo for print in one issue of Vanity Fair. The Warhol Foundation argues that the print is "transformative", but the question of whether it is or not is fraught with legal complications. Prof.

Professor Paul Vaaler was quoted by the Star Tribune in an article covering the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to side with the owners of the Mall of America in case regarding a vacant retail space. Currently, a holding company is leasing the space for only $10 a year. Professor Vaaler remarked on the rarity of a unanimous decision from the Supreme Court, and noted how the decision provides leverage to the Mall of America's future legal strategy, commenting, "It's not over with."

Professor Mathew Bodie was quoted in Forbes in an article covering the Iowa State Senate passing a bill that would loose working restrictions for minors. Passing with a vote of 32-17, proponents of the bill claim that it will provide young people and small businesses with new opportunity, while opponents believe it will expose minors to potentially dangerous working conditions. This follows a wider trend across the nation of loosening restrictions on the employment of minors.

Professor Richard Painter was interviewed on Detroit Today to discuss the new findings revealing that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas failed to financially disclose 20 years worth of luxury trips from a billionaire conservative donor. Professor Painter commented, “If the justice is going to interpret federal statutes, in such a convoluted manner, when they apply to himself, I question whether he is able to interpret those statutes, and the United States Constitution in cases that are binding on the rest of the American people.”

Professor Perry Moriearty was quoted by Cherokee Tribune & Ledger-News on the transfer of a case from Hennepin County to Ramsey County due to a conflict of interest in the prosecutor's office. Elaborating on the case in question, Prof. Moriearty shared that whether the sentences should be served concurrently or consecutively was a central issue for the case.

Professor David Cleveland Elected to Serve as President-Elect of the Association of Legal Writing Directors

Professor David Cleveland has been elected president-elect of the Association of Legal Writing Directors (ALWD). With more than 400 members representing over 130 law schools, ALWD is the leading academic legal writing organization in the United States. ALWD is the ABA affiliate group for legal writing and engages with the ABA’s Council of Legal Education and Standards Review Committee on behalf of the legal writing community.

David Cleveland

Professor Richard Painter was quoted by the Washington Post on a Maryland judge whose cases are currently being challenged after it was revealed that he was in job negotiations with a local prosecutor's office. Professor Painter commented, “It’s pretty shocking this would happen. I’ve never heard of something like this. He should have recused himself just as soon as he started discussing the job with prosecutors. It’s the only ethically responsible thing to do.”

Prof. Richard Painter was mentioned in the Washington Post in an article covering former President Trump's recent financial disclosure. Prof. Painter explained that the disclosure may open the former president up to criticism from his Republican rivals, as well as influence voters' decision on whether to support him in the upcoming election.

The rise of ChatGPT and other AI programs has raised questions about the future for many industries, with higher education being no exception. Professor Dan Schwarc was interviewed by Minnesota Lawyer in an article covering the rise of ChatGPT in the workplace. One of the current limitations of the software is the potential to "hallucinate", in other words- create a semantically correct statement that is untrue. Professor Schwarz explained, "The problem is, you don’t necessarily know if they’re hallucinating.

Two Minnesota Law Students Win MSBA Writing Competition

The Probate, Trusts, and Estates Section of the Minnesota State Bar Association (MSBA) hosted an annual writing competition, inviting law students to compete for a cash prize by writing a short piece on a topic selected by and of interest to the section.

Sierra Grandy and Jasmin Hernandez DuBois