Killer instinct
11/15/12
By Dan Brillman
A new book by Oxford psychology professor Kevin Dutton says
that lawyers and journalists -- and Summary Judgment
contributors include both -- are some of the most psychopathic
professionals. CEOs topped the list, with lawyers coming second,
followed by members of the broadcast media, salespeople,
surgeons, journalists and clergy.
Now let's be clear: The author isn't talking about the
knife-wielding, clown-painting kind of psycho, even though
convicted serial killer Ted Bundy did attend law school. The
type that Dutton has in mind is the individual with manageable
non-violent psychopathic qualities like "ruthlessness, charm and
focus." These traits, which the prof calls the "Seven Deadly
Wins," allow people to rise to the top of certain fields,
reports the ABA Journal. "Any situation where you've a got a
power structure, a hierarchy, the ability to manipulate or wield
control over people, you get psychopaths doing very well,"
Dutton told Smithsonian.com last year.
To come up with his ranking, Dutton conducted an online
60-question "Great American Psychopath Survey," which you too
can take. Perhaps the best line in the book comes from an
attorney, who is quoted saying that "Deep inside me there's a
serial killer lurking somewhere, but I keep him amused with
cocaine, Formula One, booty calls, and coruscating
cross-examination." The least psychopathic professions? Care
aides, nurses and therapists.
Cyber-security on ice
11/15/12
By Suhrith Parthasarathy
Cyber-security legislation backed by President Barack Obama
failed once again on Wednesday in the Senate, this time falling
nine votes short of the 60 required for the bill's passage,
reports The Hill. "Cybersecurity is dead for this Congress,"
declared Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).
The bill, originally introduced by Senators Joe Lieberman
(I-Conn.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) in February, seeks to
establish security standards that would help protect the
nation's critical infrastructure (such as water plants and
transportation networks) from cyber attacks. But so far, it has
served more to reignite a long-simmering dispute over privacy,
regulation and cybersecurity, says Declan McCullagh at CNet.
Republicans object to the extended role the legislation gives
the Department of Homeland Security, while the U.S. Chamber of
Commerce describes it as "flawed." At the same time, civil
liberties groups like the Electronic Frontier Foundation say the
bill violates privacy rights by giving companies the authority
to monitor personal communications and pass data to the
government.
The failure of the bill to pass, The Hill says, now opens
the door for an executive order from Obama, which the White
House began drafting in August.
Females and big law
11/15/12
By Erin Geiger Smith
If you work at a large law firm and are of the fairer sex,
you have likely participated in programs sponsored by a "women's
initiative committee." In fact, 97 percent of the Am Law 200
sponsor some sort of women's committee, according to a
first-of-its-kind survey looking at those initiatives.
Whether or not the committees make a difference is another
matter. The study, conducted by a foundation affiliated with the
National Association of Women Lawyers, says women in law firms
still need support in getting ahead, and it identified four main
areas: 1) making equity partner, since women account for only 15
percent of equity partners but 45 percent of associates; 2)
being credited for getting business; 3) landing higher-level
roles in management; and 4) getting better pay.
To achieve these aims, committees need "more focused
approaches to enhance their goals, strategies and functioning."
Firms also need to fund the committees: The average budget is
less than a first-year attorney's salary.
The foundation hopes the study will help measure
improvements in the future and foster an understanding of how
such initiatives can better the performance of women and a
firm's business as a whole.
As an aside: In a New York Bar Association report released
Wednesday, the number of women senior associates elected to
partnership in New York City declined in 2011, down to 33
percent from 44 percent a year earlier.
Big business is watching
11/15/12
By Erin Geiger Smith
Stories about social media almost always revolve around the
word "more" these days -- more contact, more information, more
customers, more trouble. Now a new study from Proskauer Rose," Social Media in the Workplace Around the World 2.0," adds even
more.
Of the nearly 250 corporations surveyed, more than 40
percent of employers "considered it an advantage to allow
employees to use social media for both business and non-business
use." That's up from 30 percent last year. More employers also
want to keep tabs on what the worker bees are up to: 36 percent
of them (versus 27 percent a year ago) say they monitor their
workers' social media use, and almost 70 percent (versus the
previous 55 percent) say they have formal social media policies.
Some of Proskauer's "key recommendations" include having a
dedicated and well-communicated social media policy that sets
out what is acceptable. If you're going to monitor your
employees, make sure you let them know you're doing it and be
mindful of local privacy laws. Also, "exercise extreme caution"
before relying on information gleaned from social media to make
employment-related decisions about things such as recruitment
and discipline.
And for those of you at work right now who came to Summary
Judgments from Facebook or Twitter, count yourself lucky. A
full 25 percent of employers block access to social media sites
at work, the survey said.
Summary Judgments for November 14
Summary Judgments for November 13
Summary Judgments for November 12
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