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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 December 05, 2009 6 Comments

This is the latest in a series on the use of the race card for political gain:Tonight's entry is borderline "race card" but it is too good to pass up. Since someone is watching these posts very carefully, and checking things twice, I want to...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 05, 2009 3 Comments

Barack Obama has changed his plans and now will be attending the last day of the Copenhagen climate change conference, which is viewed as a significant signal that some sort of "deal" may be in the offing:A couple of hours ago, the Obama administration announced...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 05, 2009 3 Comments

In March 2008, Max Baucus (D-MT) had separated from his wife. That same month, Andrew Ramanos was in his final undergraduate semester at George Washington University, where he worked on the school newspaper, the GW Hatchet.In the summer of 2008, Baucus started dating a former...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 04, 2009 14 Comments

Andrew Sullivan has called for Obama to give up his birth certificate, and Sarah Palin to give up the birth certificate and medical records of her son Trig.Palin's book, Going Rogue, caused Sullivan's blogospheric synapses to stand still momentarily, but now they are firing on...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 04, 2009 10 Comments

Andrew Sullivan called for Barack Obama to release Obama's full birth certificate:It is not my job as a journalist or yours as a citizen to take public officials on trust. They are not to be trusted, whoever they are. It is our job to demand...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 04, 2009 5 Comments

Yesterday, Thomson Reuters issued a press release regarding the results of a poll which it says showed that 60% of Americans support a "public option."Needless to say, this poll is being used by supporters of a government-run plan to pressure Congress. SEIU even used the...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 04, 2009 5 Comments

Did you hear what she just said? And it was all recorded, so she cannot deny it.There she goes again. You know who I'm talking about, and what it was. The thought of her in Washington, D.C., when we have such serious issues to deal...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 03, 2009 6 Comments

Dave Ross is a commentator for the CBS Radio Network. You probably never heard of him, and neither had I until today. His voice, though, sounded really familiar.Ross apparently has a morning show in the Pacific Northwest, but comes on the air nationally for CBS...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 03, 2009 4 Comments

The Honduran Congress voted not to reinstate Manuel Zelaya pending the duly and recently elected President Porfirio Lobo taking office in January. That vote is consistent with the accord resolving the crisis.There's not a lot I can add to my prior posts, and these commentaries...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 03, 2009 3 Comments

Not by me. A comparison between Barack Obama and former Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev is suggested by a blogger at Crooks and Liars, using this graphic to attack Obama's decision to increase U.S. troop levels in Afghanistan.The Soviets invaded Afghanistan to help prop up a...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 02, 2009 4 Comments

Congratulations Senior Citizens. Your self-appointed advocate, AARP, has intervened again in favor of Democratic health care restructuring proposals:As the Senate prepares to vote on a controversial Medicare funding amendment to the $848 billion health care bill, the seniors lobby has weighed in with a letter...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 02, 2009 4 Comments

Via the TaxProf, GOP Introduces Geithner Penalty Waiver Act:Congressmen John Carter (R-TX) and Lynn Westmoreland (R-GA) yesterday introduced the Geithner Penalty Waiver Act, requiring that the IRS assess the same penalty against U.S. taxpayers that came forward in the UBS tax fraud investigation as paid...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 02, 2009 6 Comments

From Mr. Privacy:I have let my family down and I regret those transgressions with all of my heart. I have not been true to my values and the behavior my family deserves. I am not without faults and I am far short of perfect. I...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 02, 2009 4 Comments

Some more thoughts on the Obama Afghanistan speech, the morning after.I understood why Obama wanted to go to West Point to give the speech. It would show that he had the courage to give the speech directly to soldiers whose lives would be on the...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 01, 2009 11 Comments

"A camel is a horse designed by a committee." That's the feeling I had listening to Obama's speech tonight about his military designs for Afghanistan.The speech followed pre-speech reports of Obama's plan. There were no substantive surprises, but Obama seemed truly moved by the decision...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 01, 2009 10 Comments

Maurice Hinchey is the Congressman whose district includes Ithaca, NY, where I live during the school year. Hinchey is as "out there" as they come.Hinchey led an effort to impeach George W. Bush in the Summer of 2008, when Bush was just a few months...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 01, 2009 11 Comments

Charles Johnson of Little Green Footballs says he's parting ways with the right because people who disagree with him are fascist, racist, homophobic, white supremacists. And he names names.In fact, this is just another attention getting ploy to get back at people who have criticized...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on December 01, 2009 2 Comments

Let's review the past two days.On Sunday, the Democratic health care restructuring proponents were trumpeting a report by an MIT economist claiming, based on a prior CBO scoring of Harry Reid's bill, that private premiums in the non-group market would drop $200-$500. The White House,...

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