by Chuck Peterson of the Idaho Criminal Defense Blog

A recent Idaho Court of Appeals decision addresses an issue often raised by clients facing a restitution order following conviction or entry of a plea of guilty to a crime. In State v. Blair, a woman who had been convicted of stealing money from her employer objected to the amount of restitution the court determined she owed. She requested a post-sentencing hearing to determine the actual amount, but the court denied her request and entered an order for $5831.43. On appeal she claimed her due process rights had been denied when the court refused to hold another hearing to determine how much money she owed. The Court of Appeals disagreed and the decision of the trial court was affirmed.

This case is instructive because it succinctly identifies the due process right at issue – a fair procedure for determining the amount of money owed – and points to the restitution statute to flesh out the method used by the law to give both sides an opportunity to be heard on the question. Due process really means just that – before you are deprived of your property, the State must afford you an opportunity to be heard in a meaningful way and at a meaningful time. The statute in question permits both sides to present evidence that is relevant to the court’s determination of restitution, and does not require the judge to hold another hearing. The “process” due under the statute, to ensure a fair determination, is a hearing where the state and the defendant have the opportunity to be heard on the question. As that is what happened here, the Court’s determination was upheld.

If you have a restitution question, take a look at the Blair case. Judge Gutierrez’ decision does a nice job of setting out the law and the logical application of the facts to his decision. The case also reminds me of the importance of hammering out the restitution issues with the client before we get to that sentencing hearing.  The State typically sends out copies of the claimed restitution items, and we are usually looking to “make it right” if our client has pleaded guilty or been found guilty because the court will undoubtedly take that fact into account when deciding on the sentence.  Pay the restitution and usually you get a lesser sentence.

by Charles Toutant of Law.com

Lawyers in a New Jersey burglary case seem to have stumbled upon a new terrain for photographic evidence: Google Earth.

An appeals court on Monday found no error in allowing prosecutors to use satellite photos from the global mapping service to help show the perpetrator’s proximity to the crime scenes — specifically, by pinpointing the location of cellular towers near his home and the burgled residence.

Though the defense lawyers argued the evidence was not authenticated, the judge said “we cannot conclude this purported error was capable of producing an unjust result, particularly when the photographs were not offered as substantive proof of the distances between the residences and the cell towers but merely as illustrative aids to the testimony.”

Read the rest of the article here.

by Gaye Bunderson of the Idaho Business Review

Krista McIntyre, a partner at Stoel Rives in Boise, focuses her practice on environmental law, including environmental permitting and enforcement defense. She defends industrial clients in federal and state Clean Air Act enforcement actions, and counsels clients in the development of corporate environmental management systems. A more comprehensive overview of her practice and legal experience can be found at www.stoel.com.

During a phone interview, McIntyre answered the following questions on how environmental regulations are affecting Idaho businesses.

Q. What is the biggest environmental issue in the legal arena for Idaho businesses today, in your opinion?

Seen on the Idaho Women Lawyers website:

Click photo to enlarge.

by Randall Ryder of Lawyerist.com

Jumping onto the social media bandwagon can be a tough task for the not-so-internet savvy. If you are considering taking the plunge, one important aspect is branding your firm and consistently sticking to that brand.

Before you create your brand, make sure the name is available on various social media sites.

Check to see if a name is available on multiple sites

Branding works best when you stick with the same name and make it easy for people to find your blog or your firm on various sites. Before picking a blog name (or even naming your firm), head over to namechk.com to see if that moniker is available on multiple sites.

McDERMOTT WILL & EMERY: REACHING OUT

McDermott Will & Emery is an international law firm representing clients in 70 countries over six continents. The firm reaches out to potential employees, whether lateral associates or administrative staff. For instance, in the section Careers at McDermott, there are 14 stated associate benefits (such as a Judicial Clerkship Bonus, if applicable) and 18 frequently asked questions for summer associates, including “How does McDermott distribute work assignments to summer associates?” The firm emphasizes professional development, mentoring, training, and pro bono as well as an orientation and integration program.

Chambers USA 2009 recognized McDermott as a leading firm for employee benefits. How do you attract attorneys and recruit qualified staff to your firm?

To contact Merilee directly, please go here.

From The Idaho Business Review:

Christopher Cuneo has relocated from the Washington, D.C. area to join Zarian, Midgley and Johnson PLLC (Zarian Midgley).

Cuneo, formerly with the nationally known law firm of Howrey LLP, brings experience in high-stakes patent litigation and analysis of patent validity and enforcement issues. His practice will focus primarily on patent litigation, patent prosecution, licensing and complex litigation.

Cuneo has represented numerous large corporations in patent litigation matters, including BMW, General Electric, Ford Motor Co. and Sun Microsystems.

He was also a patent examiner at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in the mid-1990s, specializing in the examination of patents relating to electric motors and electrical power generation, including green technologies such as wind, wave and solar power generation.

Cuneo has written several articles concerning patentability, non-infringement, invalidity and freedom to operate. He earned his undergraduate degree in physics from the University of Connecticut, his master’s degree in physics from Oregon State University and his law degree from the George Washington Law School.

Jeffrey Sheehan has expanded his law practice to include his wife, Karen Sheehan.

Jeff Sheehan will continue to practice mainly in the area of family law, including divorce, adoptions and surrogacy.

Karen Sheehan will handle primarily bankruptcy, business and estate planning matters. Their websites are www.idahofamilylaw.com and www.boisebankruptcy.com.

(Compiled by Pat Carson of The Idaho Statesman)

DAVIS WRIGHT TREMAINE: LEARNING CENTER

Founded in Seattle in 1908, business and litigation law firm Davis Wright Tremaine LLP now has over 500 attorneys and nine offices—including one in Shanghai, China.

The firm’s website offers a Learning Center with Advisories, Blogs, Events, Publications and Articles, Presentations, Multimedia, and Bookstore. Under the Bookstore listing, there are six product categories for DWT publications: Employment, Cable/Telecom, Commercial Disputes, Privacy Law, and Partnership and Limited Liability Publications. One of the choices is the 18th edition of the Washington Employment Law Deskbook. Coming soon are two new handbooks: one for California Employment Law Deskbook and the other that is an Oregon Employment Law Deskbook. Each of the three deskbooks carries a $150 price tag.

How do you extend your brand?

(To contact Merilee directly, go here.)

The Lawyerist’s Tyler White recently sent out this tip for an easy, completely free way of marketing your law firm:

Develop a decent facebook firm page, and update it consistently.

In the last month, I have had 3 clients come in strictly because they found out about my firm on Facebook. We were already friends on FB, and I suggested that they become fans of my firm page. From there, they found out that I was practicing in estate planning and they either contacted me directly or referred me to someone that they knew.

One of the benefits of Facebook is that once someone becomes a “fan” of your firm page, you can keep them updated on your firm quite easily. You can tell all your fans about your newest blog entry, new developments in your field or anything else. Whenever you post something from your firm page, it shows up in the news feed of whoever is a fan of your page.

So my tip is to start a Facebook firm page and suggest that all of your friends become fans, and most will. And with less than an hour of work you will have gotten potentially hundreds of people to pay attention to what you are doing on a regular basis.