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Author: William A. Jacobson

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William A. Jacobson

William A. Jacobson is a Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Securities Law Clinic at Cornell Law School.

He is a 1981 graduate of Hamilton College and a 1984 graduate of Harvard Law School. At Harvard he was Senior Editor of the Harvard International Law Journal and Director of Litigation for the Harvard Prison Legal Assistance Project.

Prior to joining the Cornell law faculty in 2007, Professor Jacobson had a highly successful civil litigation and arbitration practice in Providence, Rhode Island, concentrating in investment, employment, and business disputes in the securities industry, including many high profile cases reported in leading newspapers and magazines.

Professor Jacobson has argued cases in numerous federal and state courts, including the Courts of Appeal for the First, Fifth and Sixth Circuits, and the Rhode Island Supreme Court.

Professor Jacobson has a national reputation as a leading practitioner in securities arbitration. He was Treasurer, and is a former member of the Executive Committee and Board of Directors of the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association, a professional organization of attorneys dedicated to protecting public investors. He frequently is quoted in national media on issues related to investment fraud and investor protection, and in the past has served as one of a small number of private practice attorneys who trained new arbitrators for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

Professor Jacobson is co-author of the Securities Arbitration Desk Reference (Thomson-Reuters), updated annually.

Professor Jacobson is frequently quoted in the media on political and legal topics, has authored many Op-Eds in major publications, and appears on television and radio to discuss politics and the law.

A more complete listing of Professor Jacobson's professional background is available at the Cornell Law School website. The views expressed here are his own and not those of any employer or organization,

The best way to reach Prof. Jacobson is by e-mail here.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 23, 2013 28 Comments

Tonight on Special Report with Bret Baier both Tucker Carlson and Charles Krauthammer were excoriating Cruz over the issue of Obamacare defunding.  That's fine. If you think he's wrong or foolish or whatever, make the case. But as part of their arguments each brought up that Cruz...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 23, 2013 13 Comments
The attack is over, but the current situation is unclear as to whether there still are hostages. Live Twitter feed at bottom of post. CNN reports:
Night fell Monday in Nairobi with no clear resolution of the standoff between Kenyan forces and terrorists at Westgate Shopping Mall. Kenyan authorities sounded increasingly confident that they had brought the three-day standoff to a close with a final assault Monday, reassuring a nervous public that there was little chance of escape for any surviving Al-Shabaab gunmen who had terrorized the mall, killing at least 62 people. "Taken control of all the floors. We're not here to feed the attackers with pastries but to finish and punish them," Kenyan police Inspector General David Kimaiyo said on Twitter. But it wasn't clear Monday evening whether any hostages remained inside the four-story mall, and authorities had yet to sound the all-clear about six hours after the assault by Kenyan forces.
https://twitter.com/NewsBreaker/status/382201774058115073

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 23, 2013 0 Comments

Friday nights and weekends tend to be more active here than one would expect.  But by the time a lot of readers return on Monday, things have moved down or off the home page. Here are some things you might have missed. Video contradicts French diplomat claim...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 22, 2013 27 Comments
The hostage standoff at the Nairobi Mall attacked by Somali jihadists still is ongoing. There are conflicting reports as to the involvement of Israeli commandos in trying to free the hostages, with some reports indicating an active role, other reports just an advisory role. At of this writing 59 people are dead.  The jihadists reportedly killed only non-Muslims, asking targets to recite a Muslim prayer as a means of sorting out the victims. We will continue to update throughout the day. The live Twitter feed is at the bottom of the post. https://twitter.com/KenyaRedCross/statuses/381839150460051456 https://twitter.com/FoxNews/status/381914119810461696

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 21, 2013 8 Comments
I don't think I posted this video, when it went semi-viral in late August. A group of Israeli soldiers on patrol in Hebron, a town on the West Bank that had an ancient Jewish community until deadly anti--Jewish riots in 1929, danced with people at a wedding club, JPost.com:
According to the report, the soldiers entered the club while on patrol on Monday, after hearing the song Gangnam Style by Psy coming from the building. IDF soldier filmed dancing with Palestinians after allegedly leaving patrol The footage aired by Channel 2 purportedly shows a soldier in IDF uniform, fully armed, sitting on the shoulders of a Palestinian club-goer, even clasping hands with another man at the club. Channel 2 said that the club was frequented by members of a Palestinian clan known for its pro-Hamas tendencies.
In a better world, this would have been a good thing.  But they were disciplined for it, because Palestinians have been trying to kidnap Israeli soldiers for ransom, and it left them vulnerable. That is no idle threat, as the news today of an Israeli soldier kidnapped by a co-worker for ransom demonstrates: https://twitter.com/LTCPeterLerner/status/381413050139803648 https://twitter.com/LTCPeterLerner/status/381414577671766016 IDF soldier Tomer Hazan, kidnapped and killed in West Bank:
Hazan was lured on Friday to the village of Beit Amin, south of Qalqilya, by a 42-year-old Palestinian resident of the village, Nidal Amar. Amar worked at an Israeli restaurant, in Bat Yam, where Hazan also worked part-time.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 21, 2013 34 Comments
Um, Michelle Malkin's health insurance will not be renewed due to Obamacare. Destruction of the private insurance market is what Obamacare is all about.  We've been saying that since the earliest days of the earliest drafts in the summer of 2009. It's not about expanding coverage to people who need it. Politifact Obamacare It's about leaving nothing left except government care.  And no, you can't keep your doctor or your present insurance. https://twitter.com/michellemalkin/status/381402534574698496 https://twitter.com/michellemalkin/status/381403140924243968

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 21, 2013 6 Comments

Tin soldiers and Obama coming, we're finally on our own, this summer I heard the rumbling, four tanks in Ohio: Ohio State’s Public Safety crew now have an armored fighting vehicle [caption id="attachment_65455" align="alignnone" width="567"] (Ohio State is ready)[/caption] We could have used those up in Vermont: Middlebury College Staff...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 21, 2013 8 Comments

You thought the creepy Obamacare videos were creepy? From Brooks, the creepy bumper sticker below was accompanied by the ubiquitous One Big Ass Mistake America full-gate sign: Was getting gas in Euless, TX, and saw this truck at the pumps. The owner was rather pleased that I took...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 20, 2013 18 Comments

Looks like the chance of "comprehensive immigration reform" (a/k/a amnesty) passing the House just got a little less. From Greg Sargent at WaPo, In blow to immigration reform, House `gang of seven’ bill looks dead In a blow to the hopes of passing immigration reform anytime soon, the bipartisan House...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 20, 2013 26 Comments

or more precisely, who they really are. Allan Brauer, Communications Director for the Sacramento Democratic Party wished Amanda Carpenter's children slow painful deaths from incurable diseases (via Twitchy): Amanda Carpenter, by the way, used to be a speech writer for Jim DeMint, and now is a speech writer...

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