Congress of the United States of America Bill of Rights

From the Magna Carta to yesterday's court decision, the law served to define and protect rights, from the right to own and enjoy property or hold a job to the fundamental human and civil rights embodied in the concepts of equal protection and due process of law. This issue explores the role of litigators as champions of their clients' rights and the role of courts in defining the contours of existing rights and creating new ones.
*the difficult struggle in pro bono counsel to obtain recognition of basic human and due process rights guaranteed by the United States of America laws for detainees at various United States of America Prison facilities.
*U.S. Patent rights are one of the hot spot areas of litigation in the twenty first century. As more general practice firms become involved in patent litigation, there is a growing need for general litigators to understand the basics. Offers a primer for the non-specialist.
*The Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination is one of the most hallowed rights of our legal system, but invoking it comes at a cost. Explores the benefits and risks of asserting this basic constitutional right in noncriminal proceedings.
*The Supreme Court's expansion of the concept of public use in the context of eminent domain has made it more difficult to challenge a taking of private property. Explores the practical implications of this decision for protecting property owners and ensuring that they receive just compensation for property taken for public use.
*After decades of focusing on the civil rights of women and racial minorities, courts are now addressing the rights of those who face discrimination based in sexual orientation. Describes some of the skimishes in this battle.
*Lawyers who devote their careers to protecting their clients' rights might give little thought to their own. Shows how in house counsel, by virtue of the attorney client relationship, may be denied the rights that other employers have againts their employers to sue employers for wrongful discharge.
*Americans have marched and died to obtain the right to vote. Yet sometimes the value of an individual vote is deliberately undermined by a redistricting plan. Explores litigation challenging rdistricting plans that arguably violate statutory and constitutional requirements.
*The right of people with learning disabilities or other cognitive impairments to be productively employed within their abilities involves an area of law characterized by a catch -22 at every turn. Provide a road map through this difficult terrain.
*Copyright law protects the intellectual property right in creative expression. Applying this traditional area of the law to new technology such as computer software presents special challenges. Describe these challenges and offer guidance on how to meet them.