William A. Jacobson | Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion - Part 796
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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 May 11, 2009 7 Comments

Kraft Foods has issued a formal request that users of Dijon mustard receive a presidential pardon (click on photo below for full text): "So we urge you to respond to “Dijon-gate” by issuing a “pardon” to any American who has ever been criticized for putting...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 11, 2009 13 Comments

A tongue-in-cheek look at MSNBC's fawning coverage of Barack Obama's image control at a burger joint, that's enough to send some on the Left into full-blown attack mode. At least Kraft Foods has a sense of humor, as it has issued a formal letter requesting...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 10, 2009 4 Comments

Professor Darren Hutchinson examines the military commissions Obama is establishing to try detainees, and finds that while there are some differences from the Bush tribunals, it is hard to conform Obama's campaign promises with the current proposal:As a Senator, Obama voted against the Military Commissions...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 10, 2009 0 Comments

Remember to call your mother, hug your wife, spend time with your grandkids baby mama, whatever![youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFAMtCWFZdg]--------------------------------------------Follow me on Twitter and Facebook...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 09, 2009 9 Comments

Nancy Pelosi reportedly has been one of the best Speakers of the House, if the standard is keeping members in line. Lasting power, however, requires more than an up vote on a particular piece of legislation. Being a powerful Speaker requires someone who has credibility...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 08, 2009 0 Comments

NY Times links to and quotes from my post on potential Supreme Court replacement for David Souter:William Jacobson of Legal Insurrection seems to agree that while sexual orientation may not be a big deal, previous support of gay marriage is a red flag.Elena Kagan has...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 08, 2009 15 Comments

Things are not going so well for the administration, or the country:Under Restructuring, GM To Build More Cars OverseasWhite House on defense over legitimacy of budget cutsU.S. Banks' Not-So-Stressful TestObama To Fire His First Gay Arabic LinguistCIA Says Pelosi Was Briefed on Use of 'Enhanced...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 08, 2009 47 Comments

My two posts on the televised Obama/Biden burger joint visit and Obama's request for Dijon mustard, MSNBC Hides Obama's Dijon Mustard (aka Dijongate) and Thou Shall Not Mock Obama's Mustard, generated enormous reaction.Neither of these posts was about mustard as such, but rather, the absurd...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 07, 2009 96 Comments

My post the other day, MSNBC Hides Obama's Dijon Mustard (aka Dijongate), has hit a nerve unlike anything else I have written.The post concerned the lunch trip of Obama and Biden to a burger shop to get a "Hell Burger." I accept that this should...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 07, 2009 28 Comments

Matthew Yglesias is one of the best-known left-wing bloggers who does not hesitate to attack anyone he considers to be bigoted (under very expansive and political definitions). Yglesias blogs at Think Progress, a blog run by the Center for American Progress. Think Progress, much like...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 06, 2009 9 Comments

You've been a bad boy, Arlen Specter. After all we did for you; making you Chair of the Judiciary Committee when we had the majority, and minority leader of the committee when we were in the minority. Supporting you against Pat Toomey five years ago....

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 05, 2009 7 Comments

I think it's time for the Blogospheric Neologian to coin a new political phrase:SpecterenfreudeThe pleasure derived from watching Arlen Specter do unto Democrats that which Specter did unto Republicans.In the course of his first week as a Democrat Specter voted against the Democratic budget, rejected...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 05, 2009 110 Comments

MSNBC, Obama's favorite network, reported on Obama's trip with Joe Biden to get a burger. Just two wild and crazy guys out for some red meat. Andrea Mitchell (does she have nothing else to do?) reported that Obama ordered a burger and mustard. Sounds like...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 05, 2009 5 Comments

Al-Jazeera, which has served as a continuous conduit for al-Qaeda videos, has released a hit-piece on American troops in Afghanistan.The highly edited, and ominously narrated, few minutes of tape purport to reveal a plot a year ago by a group of Christian evangelical American soldiers...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 05, 2009 0 Comments

For the past several Supreme Court nominations, the hot issue has been abortion. Whether a nominee supported Roe v. Wade was the litmus test, both for conservatives and liberals. Predictably, nominees shied away from opining on whether they would vote to uphold either the outcome...

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

A video of Court of Appeals Judge Sonia Sotomayor, reportedly on Obama's short list to replace David Souter on the Supreme Court, has come to light (video and transcript via Volokh Conspiracy). Sotomayor stated as follows during a panel discussion at Duke Law School in...

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

The Ransom of Red Chief is a short story written by O. Henry in the early 1900's about a child kidnapped for ransom in a small town by two criminals. But the criminals did not know what they were getting into, as the exuberantly mischievous...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on May 03, 2009 2 Comments

The Obama administration has been bipolar. When it comes to economic issues, Obama is in the process of attempting to fulfill the left-wing's wildest dreams of nationalized health care, government control over the most minute details of the economy, and redistribution of wealth through tax...