Michael Finkelstein, 2011

Dear followers,

As usual, much has happened since my last blog post. I had a friend come into town last weekend whom I met while living in and traveling around Europe last summer. I love it when people come visit New Orleans and I get to show them the city, especially people who have never been here before. I take great pride in my city and in telling people about the history of the city, the state, and the people down here. I get an excuse to indulge in some of the best food in the city and go play tourist in my hometown. I look into their astonished eyes as they gaze up around inside the famous St. Louis Cathedral and I see their mouths drop as they first walk upon Jackson Square, seeing it abuzz with tourists, locals, and artists alike, selling their crafts to the casual passer-by.  

This Sunday, I went and caught a beautiful sunset on Barataria Bay at Jean Lafitte National Park. I narrowly avoided being nibbled on by an alligator, but that's for another story. On Wednesday, I ate lunch with an attorney my dad did some work with in the early part of his career, Rick Perles. Mr. Perles has since started his own firm and has been very successful. (http://leefutrell.com/). While I spent most of the conversation trying to figure out exactly what he does in his practice and how he does it, Mr. Perles was quick to give me his great advice and lessons learned during his career, before discussing the decision he made with a few former co-workers to open their own practice in New Orleans. 

Wednesday night, I enjoyed a fantastic dinner at Delachaise on St. Charles Avenue, near Superior Grill. The food was nothing short of amazing and the wine was superb. Between the elegant and eclectic menu, premium and extensive wine selection, outdoor patio, and general laid-back vibe, I felt like I was back in Europe again. After dinner, my date and I rushed over to Tulane's Dixon Hall, where we had tickets to see Tulane Summer Lyric Theater's production of Sunset Boulevard. While some of the songs were a little choppy, the show was a great success. The female lead gave an outstanding performance and the combination of the show with an amazing meal before and delightful company really made for a very nice evening. 

Thursday I met up with Emily Adams from the LSU Foundation and the LSU College of Humanities and Social Sciences. We hopped around uptown scouting bars and restaurants to host an LSU Young Alumni Event. During our escapades, we, oddly enough, happened upon a Bama Alumni reunion at Oak uptown. I had apparently looked confused and was stopped by a crowd of people who asked me if I was lost. As we began talking, they told me that they were Auburn Alumni who scheduled an impromptu alumni rendezvous of their own at Oak. So, Emily and I ended up hanging out among a crowd of Auburn and Bama people who just so happened to end up at the same place.

On tap for tonight is a relaxing evening with some friends before heading out to a friend's wedding in Baton Rouge tomorrow. Should be a good one, I'll keep you updated. Till then...

300 feet above the Mississippi River, I turned my head to glance downstream; the City of New Orleans, the Riverwalk, St. Louis Cathedral. A big breath as I pulled my head back and glanced north - the end of the bridge, I can almost the glimmer of the lake - Lakeview, my house. Just keep running.

This past weekend, I accomplished a few things that have left me feeling very humbled, and with a deeper sense of community. On Saturday, I was in the few thousand lucky people who ran across the Crescent City Connection as part of the BridgeMan 4 Mile Race. For those familiar with the Crescent City, the iconic twin bridges are a symbol of the city and a main artery for connecting various parts of the greater New Orleans metro area. The race itself was a 4 mile trek from Gretna, up to the foot of the bridge, across the river, down and around to Convention Center Blvd, past the entrace to Mardi Gras World, and wrapping up underneath the bridge we just conquered  bordering the river.

On Sunday, I was very happy to support the HALO Foundation of New Orleans at an event they hosted at the famous Rock 'n Bowl. HALO was established to help a local home health care nurse who was brutally attacked and raped while going out to someone's home for her work. The woman, going by the name "Angel," has been unable to work and support her family since she was attacked. One thing I'm always looking to do more of is be involved in the greater community and help contribute to worthwhile causes. I've always had a desire to help women who have been abused or harmed. As a part of my bar mitzvah when I was 13, I collected donations and other goods to send to the local battered women's shelter. Being a part of this great cause this past weekend reconnected this spirit of community, I was happy to be a part of it, and bring along other people to help contribute to this great cause.

On a lighter note, I took the ferry across the river to Algiers Point on Wednesday afternoon after work and spent the evening enjoying the music and festivities at Wednesdays on the Point. Experiencing the little festivals and celebrations like these serves as a constant reminder to me that the people of Louisiana know how to have a good time and enjoy life like no place else in the country.  

Ongoing, work has been giving me some great experience and I'm very encouraged that my experiences there have been going well. I recently authored my first victorious Motion for Summary Judgment! It has quelled some of my nerves about going into practice that I'm now writing motions and other documents for filing with court, under the name and supervision of the attorney I'm working for, of course. But still, to be getting this much experience doing real legal work at this point in school is a very unique and special advantage that is not being wasted on me.

I'm also hoping to keep on staying more involved in the greater community. I'll be continuing to post my ventures so please keep visiting to see what's going on around my end. Till next time...

Subject: Summer Update
Sent on 6/5/12 to 531 Recipients

Dear friends, family, and fellow legal professionals,

My busy and productive spring has rolled into the summer and I am spending this summer working at the New Orleans law firm of Usry, Weeks & Matthews. While living at home this summer, I have continued to network and involve myself in the greater community.

This past spring, I clerked with the US Attorney's Office in Baton Rouge, competed with LSU's trial advocacy team, started a chapter of the Jewish Law Students' Association, and helped raise nearly $1,500 to support arts education in Louisiana schools through the George Rodrigue Foundation for the Arts (http://www.georgerodriguefoundation.org/site.php). 

Loyola University Chicago Law Review recently published Judge Rosenthal's article that I helped contribute research towards during my time clerking for her in Houston. The article is entitled "The Summary Judgment Changes that Weren't" and I am proud to say that a few of my few footnotes appear scattered throughout the article. I have attached a copy for those who would like to read it. My own article on the NBA labor dispute, published in the Louisiana Bar Journal, was republished at http://www.mediate.com//articles/FinkelsteinM2.cfm. 

Finally, I have launched my photography site at http://illegalphotography.smugmug.com/. Please stop by my regular website as well, as I have committed myself to more frequently updating my blog http://michaelfinkelstein.weebly.com/. Thank you all for your continued support and please feel free to share my emails with others who may be interested. Best wishes and safe travels this summer.

Sincerely,
Michael Finkelstein


Attachments: The Summary Judgment Changes that Weren't, by Judge Lee H. Rosenthal (43 Loy. U. Chi. L. J. 471)

Moving back home this summer has renewed my passion for the city of New Orleans. Festivals, events, concerts, endless things to do and places to go have kept me constantly busy and entertained over the past month. I've already remembered how special of a place New Orleans is in the world, and 

First up after finals was Jazzfest, where I saw an amazing performance from The Eagles before kicking off my working summer. Later that week, after a short trip to the Gulf Coast, was a party with the LSU Med School students, Bayou Boogaloo music festival along Bayou St. John in mid-city, bike rides through City Park, an afternoon with Trombone Shorty for Wednesday at the Square, New Orleans Greek Fest, Sunday Runday in Audobon Park with the good folks from Claim Your Journey (http://claimyourjourney.com/), catching up with friends from Tulane, and a networking night with the Young Adult Division of the Jewish Federation of New Orleans.

All along the way have been good friends, family, and fun times. Up this weekend: Back to the Beach, my friend Jordan's wedding at famous St. Louis Cathedral, reception at Jax Brewery, the New Orleans Oyster Festival, Sunday softball league, Sunday Runday. Whew, so much going on, but loving every minute of it. 

Five thunderous claps startled me from my work as I ran out of my office to see if everything was alright down the hall. I thought someone had perhaps knocked over some bookcases in the library and I rushed to see if anyone was hurt. I quickly discovered the source of the troubling booms - our file clerk throwing away our collection of Federal Reporters. Part of my mind cringed with the thought of throwing these books away, and then I realized what a beautiful moment this actually was. 

Last week marked my second week at the New Orleans law firm of Usry, Weeks, & Matthews. With no functional website, the firm is a technological anomaly in today's legal industry. The recent national trend has been to increase access of information available online. In this age of information and technology, consumers are driving content more and more every day. With websites like LegalZoom.com and Avvo.com, lawyers are satisfying this desire, and the industry has undergone dramatic change in recent years. Yet, the traditional law firm model remains constant. The billable hour, the often-condemned unit of measurement between lawyers and clients, is still the measuring stick of firm validity.

Fundamentally, however, the legal industry is still in flux today. The recent downfall of 100+ year old "Legal Titan" Dewey Leboeuf (see http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/east/2012/05/14/247383.htm) evidences the changing times in legal practice. 

One of those key changes has been in the area of access to legal information. The internet has fundamentally transformed our lives, the way we interact with people, and how we obtain information. Before the advent of computers, legal information, mostly in the form of cases, statutes, and secondary legal sources, were once only available in the form of books. These books were both voluminous and expensive. Very expensive. Assembling a working collection required to do significant research required the kind of capital only available to big law firms. At the minimum, this would have required purchasing hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of legal books.

As we've all heard, knowledge is power. No one knew this better than the big, power firms. Having amassed libraries of books, the firms cornered the market because they controlled the information. 

Today, these sources are all available online. With a Westlaw or Lexis subscription and the click of a mouse, small firms, even solo practitioners, have the same access to legal information that was once dominated by BIG LAW. In effect, technology has given the little guys a level playing field. Subscribers now have access to appellate briefs, pleadings and motions on a district court level, and unlimited cases from around the country.