Southland

Straying a bit from legal shows but staying close to the genre, I also try to catch Southland. This “cop” show is well acted and goes through several different plotlines each week covering both uniformed patrol officers and plainclothes detectives. I was a little disturbed, however, by some issues that were raised in the last episode. One of the patrol officers, a rookie who is a main character and clearly supposed to be a viewer’s favorite, violated all sorts of procedures...

Estate and Gift Tax

On Dec. 10, 2010, President Obama signed into law the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of 2010 (“2010 Act”). This sweeping legislation addressed many aspects of taxation, including the estate and gift tax rules. For starters, it stipulated that the estates of persons who died in 2010 can elect not to have any federal estate tax apply. Or, they can elect to have a federal estate tax apply, but with a $5 million federal estate tax exemption...

Legal Drama Blog

Well the holiday rerun season is over and we are back to new shows. The Good Wife continues to be a great drama, but absolutely lacks an understanding of the legal process. In the latest episode, the “firm” proposed representing both the son of a rich client and his girlfriend in a drug possession count. Our heroine allowed the children to make statements (I saw no Miranda warnings), after which they were both promptly charged with murder. Our favorite law firm then proposed...