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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.

Allison Kilkenny at HuffPo (September 24, 2009 11:34 AM) on the right-wing inspired killing of Bill Sparkman: By utilizing the branding "Fed," the killers were clearly trying to make a political statement, namely "Obama: Stay Out."Worst call since the criticism of John Bolton for warning...

The Kentucky state police announced that the death of Bill Sparkman was an elaborate suicide made to look like a murder so that Sparkman's son could collect on his insurance policy. Robert Stacy McCain has all the details and updates.I'll let others delve into all...

When the story of the e-mails "hacked" (or leaked) from a British climate institute first exploded, I was very cautious. I'm turning from a "hacked e-mails skeptic" to a "hacked e-mails believer" for two reasons.First, numerous bloggers have done a good job exploring and explaining...

Last January, I warned of a dangerous slide by Turkey into the Islamist orbit, Turkey Looking Like The Next Iran. About a month ago, I further noted Caroline Glick's excellent article about Turkey's coziness with Iran and anti-democratic Islamism, Turkey is Lost to Islamists.In response...

Mary Landrieu's deal for an extra $300 million in Medicaid funds for poor Louisiana residents has been hailed by Landrieu as a great victory for the people of Louisiana, and by just about everyone else as a shakedown of Harry Reid and the American people.But...

The Nation magazine has an extensive article detailing a classified operation in Pakistan by Blackwater, acting expressly under U.S. authority and coordination, to fight al-Qaeda:At a covert forward operating base run by the US Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) in the Pakistani port city of...

Today is just filled with wonderment at the unexpected nature of being. From the "I didn't see this coming" department:Lawyer: 9/11 defendants want platform for views Obama's Nice Guy Act Gets Him Nowhere on the World StageWave of Debt Payments Facing U.S. Government Schumer: Dems...

Great post by Michelle Malkin pointing out that MSNBC, whose commentators routinely lash out at conservatives and Republicans as being all-white, is in fact all white:--------------------------------------------Follow me on Twitter and Facebook...

In my post the other day, Berkeley Students Should Be Protesting Obamacare, I made the point that the Berkeley student protesters were too stupid to realize that their future was being sold out from under them under the Obama-Pelosi-Reid health care restructuring plans because younger...

It is reported that Nidal Hasan, the Fort Hood shooter, is paralyzed. So you knew this was coming:How barbaric that the military will seek to kill a man with no sensation in his body from the chest down. He might prefer it (I certainly would)...

Saturday, November 21, 2009. State: Louisiana. Verdict: Bad Day. Proof:LSU butchers final few seconds"It's not $100 million; it's $300 million!"Somebody is not happy.--------------------------------------------Follow me on Twitter and Facebook...

It gets curiouser and curiouser.Yesterday, Mary Landrieu closed the deal for a payoff to Louisiana in exchange for her vote to let Harry Reid's health care restructuring bill go to Senate floor debate. The deal had been negotiated over weeks, with initial reports putting the...

The other day, when the news of "hacked" e-mails from a British climate institute hit the internet, I wrote Why The "Hacked E-Mails" Don't Interest Me, Yet.In the post, I noted that I did not have the time to devote to the hacked e-mails because...

Mary Landrieu should make Edwin Edwards proud. After being criticized for taking $100 million in earmarked aid for Louisiana as part of Harry Reid's health care bill, Landrieu shot back:“I will correct something. It’s not $100 million, it’s $300 million, and I’m proud of it...

This is the latest in a series on the use of the race card for political gain:I almost had forgotten about Jesse Jackson. But he's still out there, and still the master race card player:“We even have blacks voting against the healthcare bill,” Jackson said...

The students taking over buildings at U.C. Berkeley are protesting large pending tuition increases. The ultra-liberal campus has a sense of entitlement out of whack with the reality of California; liberal economic policies have ruined California's economy, so these students will have to get used...

The Associated Press has been at the forefront of efforts to prevent bloggers and websites linking to, and quoting, traditional media content: Taking a new hard line that news articles should not turn up on search engines and Web sites without permission, The Associated Press...

I've spent some time going through Harry Reid's 2,074 page health care restructuring bill. If you read the dozens of prior posts regarding prior versions, you pretty much know the story. There are many good analyses of the tax and other aspects, so read up.While...