Speaking the Truth: Supporting Authentic Advocacy with Professional Identity Formation

When law students are asked to articulate legal rules in a persuasive communication such as a brief, they may experience internal tension. Their version of the rule, as framed to benefit a particular client’s position, may be different from the way they would articulate the rule if they were not taking on an advocate’s role. The conflict between those two versions of a legal rule leads some students to wonder if advocacy itself is deceptive, if an advocate’s role requires one to sacrifice ethics for success, and if ancient Greek philosophers were correct when they derided persuasive communication as “trickery and magic,” and criticized advocates for making arguments that were “artfully written but not truthfully meant.” This tension is not unique to students. All advocates must ask themselves whether they can provide a true and accurate version of the law (truthful law) and simultaneously articulate a version of the law that will help their clients. This question speaks to the very nature of law and what it means to be a lawyer. If the question is not successfully resolved, students and lawyers are more susceptible to the cynicism and discontent that permeates the legal profession.Using Plato’s denunciation of rhetoric and rhetoricians as a starting point, Part I of this Article will explore how the first year of law school may create and exacerbate tension between law students’ desire to advocate on behalf of their clients and their desire to truthfully communicate the law. Part II will explore how law school could resolve this tension with an explicit discussion of legal determinacy and the lawyer’s role in creating law: what students need to hear, when they need to hear it, and where that conversation might be placed within the curriculum. The Article will identify the developing area of professional identity formation as a natural location for an effective discussion, which would ideally occur within the first year of studies. In that discussion, law students can explore a view of lawyers as meaning-makers and truth-tellers: rhetoricians who understand and are faithful to the true essence of a law but are also able to create alternatives within the scope of that true law. Students and lawyers can integrate their own identities into this professional identity, and maintain authenticity in their advocacy

Reclamation

This exhibition will take the form of a group show of African artists who weave cultural heritage with the contemporary, to challenge Western perceptions of African art and culture. Artists Wole Langunju (Nigeria), Prudence Chimutuwah (Zimbabwe), Lincoln Mwangi (Kenya), Moira Bushkimani (Kenya), and Angèle Etoundi Essamba (Cameroon) are confirmed to participate. In addition to the contemporary works by these artists on display, two Nigerian Gèlèdé masks have been generously loaned from the private collection of Olusanya Ojikutu, one from the early 20th century and, the other, whose dating is undetermined. In showcasing these works in tandem, the exhibition creates a connection both tangible and visual between the works of the past and their evolution to the present day

Why Legal Writers Should Think like Teachers

This article proposes that new legal writers can improve their work by “thinking like teachers.” I assert that legal writing is fundamentally educative. Good writing thus requires good teaching. The article discusses the “curse of knowledge,” which makes it difficult for a writer who fully understands her topic to remember how a reader who is less knowledgeable about the topic will approach the material. It then explores three concepts from the science of learning — context, chunking, and connections — and discusses how a writer can use these concepts to effectively teach her readers

HB 1009: Remote Operation of Personal Delivery Devices

The Act provides for the remote operation of personal delivery devices on Georgia’s highways, streets, bike paths, and sidewalks. It provides the required parameters for operation including parking, time frames, speed limits, safety parameters, weight limits, insurance, and local enforcement through civil citations

Regulation of branched-chain amino acid metabolism in major metabolic tissues of dairy cows during late pregnancy and early lactation

For dairy cows, the transition from late pregnancy to early lactation is characterized by dramatic changes in endocrine status, nutrient utilization as well as tissue metabolism. Specific metabolic processes, e.g., in adipose tissue (AT) thereby contribute to the physiological adaptation to the increased nutrient demands imposed by the onset of lactation. Even though AT is known to be a major site for regulating glucose and lipid metabolism, its role in systemic protein and amino acid metabolism in dairy cows is not clear. The branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) are taken up by the mammary gland in excess and are greatly used for the synthesis of (milk) protein as well as the supply of metabolic intermediates and energy. Their cellular transport and break-down are highly regulated key processes, involving the interaction of several metabolic tissues, one of them possibly AT. Yet, studies on the BCAA transporters or degrading enzymes in ruminant tissues are sparse. Thus, one aim of the present thesis was to characterize the potential capacity of bovine AT (along with liver, skeletal muscle and mammary gland) for BCAA metabolism during late gestation and early lactation by analyzing the tissue abundance (and activity) of the most relevant BCAA transporters and catabolic enzymes as well as the concentration of circulating BCAA on selected time points before and after parturition. Moreover, as high BCAA levels have been linked with obesity and certain metabolic dysfunctions such as impaired insulin sensitivity in mammals, we further aimed to investigate the effect of over-conditioning at calving on the aforementioned variables of BCAA metabolism. Overall, AT consistently had the greatest mRNA abundance of the BCAA transporters and the BCAA transaminating enzyme, branched-chain aminotransferase 2 (BCAT2) when compared to most other tissues, but expressed a rather low oxidative capacity for BCAA (more specifically their keto acids), indicating that AT could be an important site of BCAA uptake and initial degradation in dairy cows. Together with the marginal hepatic mRNA abundance of BCAA transporters and BCAT2 and the high mRNA and protein abundance as well as activity of the subsequent oxidative enzyme in liver, the branched-chain α-keto acid dehydrogenase, it seems that BCAA are only degraded in the liver after being deaminated in peripheral tissues, most likely AT. Furthermore, we detected a decrease in circulating BCAA levels around parturition in our studies, which was associated with the reduced feed intake during this time. Both observations were more pronounced for cows that were over-conditioned at calving. Interestingly, despite the lower feed intake, those cows appeared to have a greater ability than normal-conditioned cows to irreversibly catabolize BCAA in AT, especially before parturition. It is likely that, due to a nutrient oversupply, the over-conditioned cows were in a more anabolic situation during late pregnancy and might have used BCAA metabolites in addition to glycolytic metabolites for synthesizing even more body fat. The present thesis thus provides information about a possible anaplerotic link between BCAA and lipid metabolism in AT of over-conditioned dairy cows and might serve as basis for further studies investigating the role of AT in systemic protein and AA metabolism in cattle during different physiological and pathophysiological conditions.Der Übergang von der späten Trächtigkeit zur frühen Laktation ist bei Milchkühen mit drastischen Veränderungen des endokrinen Status, der Nährstoffverwertung sowie des Gewebestoffwechsels verbunden. Spezielle Stoffwechselprozesse, beispielsweise im Fettgewebe (AT), tragen dabei zur physiologischen Anpassung an den durch die einsetzende Laktation erhöhten Nährstoffbedarf bei. Obwohl die regulativen Funktionen des AT im Glukose- und Lipidstoffwechsel bereits bekannt sind, weiß man bisher wenig über dessen Rolle im systemischen Protein- und Aminosäurestoffwechsel bei Milchkühen. Die verzweigtkettigen Aminosäuren (branched-chain amino acids, BCAA) werden im Übermaß von der Milchdrüse aufgenommen und dort verstärkt für die Synthese von (Milch-) Protein sowie für die Zufuhr von Stoffwechselintermediaten und Energie verwendet. Der zelluläre Transport und der Abbau der BCAA sind intensiv regulierte Kernprozesse, welche die Interaktion verschiedener metabolischer Gewebe, darunter möglicherweise auch AT, erfordern. Bislang gibt es jedoch nur wenige Studien, in welchen die BCAA-Transporter oder die BCAA-abbauenden Enzyme auf Gewebeebene bei Wiederkäuern untersucht worden sind. Demzufolge war ein Ziel dieser Arbeit die potenzielle Kapazität von bovinem AT (neben Leber, Skelettmuskulatur und Euter) für den BCAA-Stoffwechsel während der späten Trächtigkeit und frühen Laktation zu charakterisieren. Dies erfolgte durch Analyse der Gewebeexpression (und -aktivität) der relevantesten BCAA-Transporter und katabolen Enzyme sowie durch Messung der BCAA-Konzentration in der Zirkulation an ausgewählten Zeitpunkten vor sowie nach der Kalbung. Ferner, da erhöhte BCAA-Konzentrationen in Verbindung mit Übergewicht und gewissen metabolischen Dysfunktionen wie beispielsweise einer verschlechterten Insulinsensitivität bei Säugetieren stehen könnten, war es ein weiteres Ziel, den Einfluss von Überkonditionierung zum Zeitpunkt der Kalbung auf die zuvor genannten Parameter des BCAA-Stoffwechsels zu untersuchen. Fettgewebe wies generell die höchste mRNA-Expression der BCAA-Transporter und des BCAA-transaminierenden Enzyms branched-chain aminotransferase 2 (BCAT2) im Vergleich zu den meisten anderen Geweben auf, jedoch zeigte es eine recht geringe oxidative Kapazität für die BCAA (genauer deren Ketosäuren). Dies deutet darauf hin, dass AT von großer Bedeutung für die Aufnahme und den initialen Abbau von BCAA bei Milchkühen sein könnte. Zusammen mit der geringen hepatischen mRNA-Expression der BCAA-Transporter und der BCAT2 sowie der erhöhten mRNA- und Proteinexpression und Aktivität des nachfolgenden oxidativen Enzyms, der branched-chain α-keto acid dehydrogenase, in der Leber, weist dies darauf hin, dass BCAA nur in der Leber abgebaut werden können nachdem sie in peripheren Geweben, höchstwahrscheinlich dem AT, deaminiert wurden. Des Weiteren wurde in den dargestellten Studien eine Verringerung der BCAA-Konzentrationen zum Zeitpunkt der Kalbung festgestellt, welche mit der zeitgleich reduzierten Futteraufnahme assoziiert wurde. Diese Beobachtungen waren bei Kühen, welche zum Zeitpunkt der Kalbung überkonditioniert waren, deutlicher ausgeprägt. Interessanterweise schienen diese Tiere, trotz der geringeren Futteraufnahme, ein höheres Vermögen zu besitzen, BCAA irreversibel im AT zu katabolisieren als normalkonditionierte Kühe. Dies traf insbesondere für die Zeit vor der Kalbung zu. Es ist denkbar, dass sich die überkonditionierten Kühe während der späten Trächtigkeit, aufgrund eines Nährstoffüberangebots, in einer mehr anabolen Stoffwechselsituation befanden und demnach zusätzlich zu glykolytischen Stoffwechselprodukten ebenfalls BCAA-Metabolite für den Aufbau von weiterem AT nutzen konnten. Die vorliegenden Ergebnisse zeigen somit eine mögliche anaplerotische Verbindung zwischen BCAA- und Lipidstoffwechsel im AT überkonditionierter Milchkühe auf. Folglich dient diese Arbeit als essentielle Grundlage weiterer Untersuchungen, um die Funktionen des AT im systemischen Protein- und Aminosäurestoffwechsel bei Kühen in verschiedenen physiologischen und pathophysiologischen Stadien zu erforschen

How can researchers support Parliament in its scrutiny of the UK’s response to COVID-19?

The COVID-19 pandemic and the conditions of uncertainty that surround it have led to an unprecedented demand for knowledge from Parliament and policymakers. In this post, Sarah Foxen, Naomi Saint, and Laura Webb outline how researchers can engage and contribute to Parliament’s response and its wider impacts

Thanks to academics, parliament has greater access than ever before to research evidence and expertise

Whilst much of the focus on policy impact and knowledge exchange is on what researchers need to do, there is less coverage of how much academics have done. This risks painting a picture that there is little knowledge exchange (KE) going on between researchers and policy institutions, and that it is particularly difficult to do. In this post, Sarah Foxen, Naomi Saint and Laura Webb, from Parliament’s Knowledge Exchange Unit, outline the work that researchers have done over the past two years with Parliament. Thanks to the commitment, time and efforts of these researchers, Parliament has greater access than ever before to research evidence and expertise from increasingly diverse sources, to strengthen its scrutiny of Government, debate and legislation

Net Neutrality and Nonprofit Fundraising: Will It Affect Us, and If So How Much?

In 2015, the FCC issued its most sweeping order protecting net neutrality. Fast forward to today’s environment in which the FCC rolled back most net neutrality protections for consumers and producers of content on the Internet. The essence of such deregulation is that Internet service providers can discriminate among Internet users, allowing prioritization (for a price) in the transmission of their data. In this paper, we address different “discrimination” policies (regulatory regimes) to determine how they could affect nonprofits. We expect this research to inform nonprofits, policymakers, and consumers about technology and media policy for nonprofit organizations in the future