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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 March 05, 2009 1 Comment

The Politico article (and AP Photo, right) "Obama's safety net: the TelePrompter," on how President Obama doesn't go anywhere without his teleprompter, is quite disturbing.The article reminded me of the Michael Jackson song, Man in the Mirror:"I'm starting with the man in the mirrorI'm asking...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 05, 2009 2 Comments

Great new song by singer Kathleen Stewart, "It Ain't Your Money To Spend." You can listen to it here.Here the partial lyrics:IT AIN'T YOUR MONEY TO SPEND© 2009, Words by Steve Jones, Music by Kathleen StewartDon't spend my grandson's paycheck.He's only two years old.With Obama...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 05, 2009 12 Comments

From the halls of social science, a theory: "Sex Appeal May Have Hurt Sarah Palin."The conclusion is based on interviews with 122 undergraduates. Basing anything on interviews of undergraduates is suspect to me. This is research?"We hypothesize that focusing on a woman’s appearance will promote...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 05, 2009 6 Comments

Jim Cramer, the television investment personality, has been in the news recently since he criticized Barack Obama's economic plans as a destroyer of wealth. The petty White House reaction to Cramer has put Cramer on the White House enemies list, along with Rick Santelli and...

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

I shudder to think of what would have happened if he failed to put the seat down:MOSCOW, March 4 (RIA Novosti) - A woman in central Russia's Penza Region has been sentenced to 15 months behind bars after stabbing her husband in the eye when...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 04, 2009 2 Comments

From Moscow News, this explanation of history:In this sense Russia has always differed from the West. Western countries regarded themselves as more developed and generally more advanced, while Russia was seen as backwards, barbaric and foolish. In spite of this negative view of Russia, our...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 04, 2009 1 Comment

Back in the day, when the alpha male Clinton roamed the White House, the high tech stock bubble grew, and grew, and grew. That bubble began to burst in March 2000, nine months before "W" took office, and caused the S&P; 500 to head almost...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 04, 2009 7 Comments

Nothing quite like insulting our closest ally. Great job. Britain's mistake was sacrificing its soldiers to help us in Iraq and Afghanistan. Gordy should have seen it coming once Obama sent back the statue of Winston Churchill. If Gordy wanted the red carpet treatment, he...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 03, 2009 5 Comments

Barack Obama sent a letter to the Russians offering to halt the European missile shield in exchange for Russian help in stopping Iran's nuclear development. The Russians said thank you for agreeing to halt the missile shield, but we don't haggle, so you get nothing...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 02, 2009 0 Comments

I saw a reference at Brian Leiter's Law Report blog touting an article that might be "perhaps the best thing to happen to law schools since U.S. News?" Others are citing this potentially ground-breaking piece, including the Wall Street Journal law page, and the TaxProf...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 02, 2009 9 Comments

Obama's fear mongering is well documented. Crisis, catastrophe, "since the Great Depression" and similar terminology are part of the plan to push through Obama's agenda. But do the words cause economic harm, or are the words merely a reflection of a declining economy? In other...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 01, 2009 0 Comments

The Weekly Standard has reprinted a portion of Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America, written in 1835 and 1840. The words are eery in light of what is happening in this country under this new administration:I want to imagine with what new features despotism could...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on March 01, 2009 23 Comments

What is it with this President? Obama has an obsessive need to find enemies against whom to campaign. When Obama's presidency is over, hopefully in four years (but likely eight years) there will be two sets of psychologists: Those who provide therapy to the American...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on February 28, 2009 0 Comments

The New York Times has run a story on the travails of my home state, Rhode Island. The Times pays homage to the good things about Rhode Island, which is a quirky state with beautiful landscapes and beaches, in which everyone seems to know everyone...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on February 28, 2009 2 Comments

Another conservative secretly takes to the internet. The Commissioner: Where sports and politics collide. Ouch. But one thing, another new blog in the Ithaca area without name, rank and serial number. How can people attack you if you don't identify yourself? Maybe that's the point....

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