Mark Rubin

Vote Like Your Life Depends On It!

November 7, 2022
Mark Rubin

Vote like your life depends on it!

vote like your life depends on it

Mark Rubin

Vote. Vote like your life depends on it. It matters greatly!

Crime

Be smart, too. Senators and Representatives have almost nothing to do with crime. (When we talk about crime, we mean property crimes and violent crimes?) Criminal laws exist at the state level, but for a limited number of crimes which the United States Code defines. Want to say something about crime? Elections for sheriff matter a bit, as do those elections for District or County Attorney. Truth be told, though, crime occurs for a slew of reasons that have nothing  to do with elected officials at any level. Want to reduce crime? Improve economic conditions and support services

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Law, The Rest of Everything
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Stephens / NYT / Climate Change

October 31, 2022
Mark Rubin

Stephens / NYT / Climate Change

Stephens / NYT / Climate Change

Bret Stephens

I am a Sunday NYT subscriber. The paper arrives early, in its blue bag. It sits on the sidewalk for days, usually. Next stop? Atop the doghouse on what might be called the front porch.* Etc. My point? If I didn’t have to get a paper copy to access the online paper, I’d pass. Not my thing, simply!

Until October 28, 2022. I saw Yes, Greenland’s Ice Is Melting by Bret Stephens, went to print it out to read it – long – and saw lots of art. I decided to wait until Sunday and make a rare newsprint date. And I am glad I did.

Mr. Stephens shares his conservative perspective

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Politics: What a Mess!

October 22, 2022
Mark Rubin

Politics: What a Mess!

politics what a mess

Mark Rubin

Schadenfreude: The Bannon Thing

Schadenfreude. Taking pleasure in another person’s misery. Not my thing, mostly, but every “not so much” provides a basis for exceptions.

I encountered Steve Bannon more than 25 years ago. My partner sued him and I went to work on the case soon after. I only suffered through being in this man’s presence once, but that contact – coupled with the actions that supported the lawsuit – offered many reasons to dislike him. (The actions that formed the basis for the suit provided better ones.)

It took me moments, when Americans started hearing about this guy, to realize I knew him and had sued him. Candidly, the only doubt occurred

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Accepting Results When You Lose

October 17, 2022
Mark Rubin

Accepting Results When You Lose

Accepting Results When You Lose

Mark Rubin

I turned 65 almost five weeks ago. Thank you and all of you for providing me with guaranteed health insurance coverage through Medicare. Not sure if I am a net winner or loser, and we should ALL have access to affordable health care. Not what I am here about today, but thanks anyway.

I mention my age because people even younger than I am grew up with bromides from our mothers and fathers. One, of course, was Nobody likes a sore loser. Turns out, I am sorry to say, that Mom and Dad – mine, at least – got it wrong. About 40% of Americans like, and I mean, Really Like, the sorest

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Donald John Trump’s Really Bad Day

September 22, 2022
Mark Rubin

Donald John Trump’s Really Bad Day

really bad day

Donald J. Trump

On September 21, 2022, New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a roughly 220-page lawsuit against Donald John Trump, his three older children, his company, and others. More on that in a moment.

The Search Warrant Matter

Later in the day a three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals – which included two Trump appointees – issued an unpublished opinion that stayed the trial court order preventing the United States from using classified documents taken by the FBI when it executed the search warrant on Mar-a-Lago. Judge Aileen Cannon was wrong, wrong, wrong.

The opinion lets Judge Cannon know, politely, that judges do not make decisions to further the

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Mark Rubin: Problem Solver / Attorney / Fiduciary

September 14, 2022
Mark Rubin

Mark Rubin: Problem Solver / Lawyer / Fiduciary

problem solver lawyer fiduciary

Mark Rubin

I’m 65 – and a day (as I have finished editing, having forgotten about this piece) – and I’ve been a lawyer for just about 41 years. People ask me what I do, regularly. They’re often other lawyers or legal services consumers. Usually, they’re looking for a cubbyhole. (Employment lawyer. ERISA expert. Estate planner. Etc.) Almost always, I fail them, for I do too many things. (Many years ago I talked with a large Phoenix firm about employment. After a wasted day the very rude managing partner said “We’re not interested. You don’t fit in anywhere.”)

Problem Solver

Tired of failing people, 60+ years old, and having spent 62.93% of

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My Dinners With Irwin

September 8, 2022
Mark Rubin
irwin sattinger

Rochelle Rubin, Irwin Sattinger, and Reille

My Dinners With Irwin

Irwin Sattinger died on September 5, 2022, two days after his 96th birthday. Irwin was my stepdad in every way, but for the fact that he and Rochelle, my mom, never married. (I’m not messing with legalities or details here; for all purposes, he was my dad.)

My mom and Irwin lucked out. They found love and lived that love for many years. They understood, better than anyone I have ever known, how to accommodate one another. (Truth be told, Irwin knew how to attend to Rochelle and her flights of fancy. Best example? She sells her downtown San Diego condo within a year of her passing. Wants to

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Food, The Rest of Everything
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Special Masters

September 2, 2022
Mark Rubin

Special Masters

Special Masters

Mark Rubin

Former Guy wants a new shiny object: a Special Master! A what?

Special Masters

Judges appoint special masters to assist them with some part of a case. Their role depends on the case but every special master acts subject to the limits of the order appointing them. Always, the judge makes final decisions.

Let’s start here: We are dealing with criminal proceedings, albeit at an early stage. Nothing in the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure provides for appointing a special master. But, federal and state courts believe judges have inherent authority to appoint a special master.

The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provide for appointing masters expressly in Rule 53. The rule provides for lots

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COVID Strikes

August 28, 2022
Mark Rubin

COVID Strikes

COVID Strikes

Mark Rubin

My COVID Stuff

My first positive COVID test appeared on Saturday, August 27, 2022. Roughly 30 months after we first learned about this rotten virus.

I traveled to Rochester NY on Tuesday to meet my new granddaughter, Estée Ora. First grandchild, by the way, and a lovely little girl who will be four weeks old on Monday morning. Call me smitten … and angry about my diagnosis.

My flight on Southwest Airlines arrived on time. No luggage issues. Unfortunately, most of the people on the plane did not see fit to wear masks. And, especially on the Phoenix to Chicago flight, the constant coughing and sneezing had me expecting a positive diagnosis. Obviously, I can prove

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The Fifth Amendment and Former Guy (Trump)

August 12, 2022
Mark Rubin

The Fifth Amendment and Former Guy (Trump)

The Fifth Amendment and Former Guy (Trump)

Donald J. Trump

My oh my! Former Guy appeared for a deposition – testimony under oath – on August 10, 2022. He relied on the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution as a basis for providing no substantive responses.

The Fifth Amendment

The relevant language in the constitutional amendment states: “No person … shall be compelled in a criminal case to be a witness against himself … .” I don’t know what Former Guy said, in fact: Reporting suggests that he used the words “same answer” repeatedly. Generally, a witness who relies on the Fifth Amendment says, more or less, “I refuse to answer on the grounds that an answer may tend to

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