Return to the Ethics Rules as a Standard for Attorney Disqualification: Attempting Consistency in Motions for Disqualification by the Use of Chinese Walls

For years, courts relied heavily on the ethics rules promulgated by the American Bar Association in determining whether to grant motions for disqualification due to attorney conflicts of interest. Recently, however, courts have begun to acknowledge that the significant changes in the legal profession, in addition to the use of motions for disqualification as a tactical device, have rendered strict application of the Model Code of Professional Responsibility and Model Rules of Professional Conduct impractical and unfair in many cases. This article suggests that rather than fighting the trend towards the sanction of screening defenses by law firms, the American Bar Association should guide the use of screening to ensure that the interests of current and former clients are properly protected. The article suggests amending Rule 1.10 of the Model Rules of Professional Conduct to ensure a fair balance of interests between the parties, and to decrease the use of motions for disqualification as merely a litigation tactic

Attorneys on Bioethics Committees: Unwelcome Menace or Valuable Asset

The purpose of this paper is to examine the role(s), if any, of the attorney as a member of bioethics committees, especially hospital ethics committees. In the process of determining whether an attorney should serve on these committees, the arguments will contrast the potential role of an attorney with the different types of attorneys who may be chosen to serve as members of a hospital ethics committee. The ultimate conclusion of this paper is that attorneys do have a role on ethics committees, but that the role depends on the type of attorney, the individual committee and the way the committee functions

Attorneys on Bioethics Committees: Unwelcome Menace or Valuable Asset

The purpose of this paper is to examine the role(s), if any, of the attorney as a member of bioethics committees, especially hospital ethics committees. In the process of determining whether an attorney should serve on these committees, the arguments will contrast the potential role of an attorney with the different types of attorneys who may be chosen to serve as members of a hospital ethics committee. The ultimate conclusion of this paper is that attorneys do have a role on ethics committees, but that the role depends on the type of attorney, the individual committee and the way the committee functions

Tau Phosphorylation Rates Measured by Mass Spectrometry Differ in the Intracellular Brain vs. Extracellular Cerebrospinal Fluid Compartments and Are Differentially Affected by Alzheimer’s Disease

Tau protein aggregation into neurofibrillary tangles in the central nervous system contributes to the etiology of certain neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Though the mechanism of tau destabilization is not fully understood yet, tau protein has been found to be hyperphosphorylated in tau aggregates. To investigate this further, we developed a highly sensitive and specific mass spectrometry (MS) method using parallel reaction monitoring (PRM) to identify tau phosphorylation sites. This method enables us to compare the abundance of phosphorylation sites in tau proteins in the brain and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in humans with and without AD. We detected 29 distinct phosphorylated tau (p-tau) sites in full-length tau from soluble human brain lysate and 12 sites on truncated tau in CSF, mainly in the mid-domain. Brain soluble tau phosphorylation sites are localized on three domains including a proline-rich mid-domain, the C-terminus, and a cluster on the N-terminal projection domain not previously characterized. Some phosphorylation sites increased in CSF, while others decreased compared to brain. Notably, phosphorylation on T205 and S208, recognized by AT8 antibody defining Braak stages of brain tau aggregation, were not detected in normal brain soluble tau but were found in the CSF. Comparison of the p-tau rates from the brain and the CSF indicated that the abundance of phosphorylated sites varied in a site-specific manner. CSF tau proteins from non-AD participants were significantly hyperphosphorylated on T111, T205, S208, T217 and T231. In AD CSF, hyperphosphorylation on these sites was exacerbated, and phosphorylation on T153 and T175 specifically were detected. This supports the hypothesis that tau hyperphosphorylation could be a physiological process amplified by AD pathology. Conversely, we found that S202 was hypophosphorylated in CSF and was not hyperphosphorylated in AD, demonstrating that p-tau isoforms could have different metabolisms depending on which sites are phosphorylated. These site-specific p-tau rates are independent of tau concentration and distinct of current CSF tau and p-tau assays measuring tau isoforms levels. Targeted MS multiplexing ability and high-throughput capacity lets us envision the use of these new p-tau measurements as promising biomarkers for AD diagnosis and tracking therapeutic responses

Drivers of change in the UK Fire Service: an operations management perspective

The UK Fire and Rescue Service is subject to reform, along with other public sector services, resulting in later retirement age and budget limitations; the fire service is also subject to other societal changes such as shifts in fitness levels and a reduction in call outs. This chapter reviews these changes and considers them from an operations management perspective. A method for how to measure operational effectiveness is proposed and its use in informing changes to operating practice in the fire service is advocated