Special Masters

September 2, 2022

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

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

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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Search Warrant at Mar-A-Lago

August 9, 2022

Search Warrant at Mar-A-Lago

B-Bye Donald J. Trump

Former Guy

The Federal Bureau of Investigation served a search warrant at Mar-a-Lago, Former Guy’s Palm Beach Palace, yesterday. Let the whining begin!

I expect that the FBI and those in charge at Main Justice obtained the search warrant because they believe Former Guy / others have committed serious crimes. This man deserves no more respect than anyone else when it comes to investigations of criminal conduct. That said, I am confident that the powers that be understand prosecutorial discretion. Yes, if evidence suggests a crime, authorities should investigate. However, reports of a roach in the White House would not and should not generate a criminal investigation of WH occupants for possession of marijuana.

Merrick Garland

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On Reading and Grammar: Rebel with a Clause

July 25, 2022

On Reading and Grammar: Rebel with a Clause

book review

Mostly, I read on my Kindle. Book weight taxes me when I am traveling, when I am reading lying down, and when I am reading more than one book at a time. (By the way, I read less often than I used to, not nearly often enough, and I miss the written word!)

From time to time, though, I buy a hardcover book. Something I want to have, in a primal way. Or a cookbook. (The Kindle works well in the kitchen to follow an online recipe, but I don’t enjoy cookbooks on an E-reader.)

Recently, I heard the very end of a Scott Simon interview with a woman who’s written a

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The Activist U.S. Supreme Court

June 30, 2022

The Activist U.S. Supreme Court

supreme court

Mark Rubin

The activist U.S. Supreme Court brought down the curtain on its shameful, disgraceful, truly mind-bendingly awful 2021-22 Term. Lots of bad, bad decisions: and many more that show a work-a-day Court that resolves complex disputes that get little attention.* Here are the highlights:

Guns

In New York Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen, No. 20-843, the Supreme Court issued its 6-3 opinion, setting aside as unconstitutional a law in effect in New York for more than 100 years. It took the majority and three of its six Justices 77 pages to explain why that 100 year old law was unconstitutional.

The Second Amendment is an abomination as a drafted statement.

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Conservatorship Inventories and Accountings

June 30, 2022

Conservatorship Inventories and Accountings

inventories and accountings

Mark Rubin

Really? Really??? You want to tell us about conservatorship inventories and accountings. And you think anyone will read this piece?

Conservators for adult Protected Persons – different rules exist for certain minor conservatorships – must account for their actions. An accounting starts months beforehand, with an inventory. Arizona law requires inventories in all conservatorships. The Conservator must file certain forms with the court. The Conservator must identify assets “with reasonable detail and indicat[e] the fair market value of each asset as of the date of appointment.”

The relationship between the accounting and the inventory? Here’s a simple example: I am a Conservator. I am accounting from September 15, 2021 through May 31, 2022.

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Facts Don’t Matter Anymore

June 19, 2022

Facts Don’t Matter Anymore

facts don't matter

Mark Rubin

Daniel Patrick Moynihan was a good man. Wicked smart, funny, and he had a good heart! For all of that, though, he should be known most for one statement: Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts. (Senator Moynihan attributed the quote to Alan Greenspan and James Schlesinger may have beaten both of them to the uttered insight.)

The quote deserves consideration as we steep ourselves in January 6, 2021 matters. As of Friday, June 17 – the 50th anniversary of the Watergate break-in, by the way – we know most of Donald Trump’s advisers knew there was No. There. There. No fraud that might come close to changing

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Thank You, Donald Trump

June 13, 2022

Thank You, Donald Trump

thank you

Donald Trump

Thank you, Donald Trump. Thank you for your nonsensical response to the, so far, proceedings of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol. Thanks, also, for being the ignorant fool who tried to break us … and failed. Thanks, too, for serving as the canary in the coal mine, letting us see clearly who we are and what the future might offer. (Personally, I say thank you, for that 12 page response sparked the thoughts that allowed me to write this piece..)

Mr. Trump and those who still slavishly adore him tell us we should focus on inflation. Baby formula. Mental health. (No guns, pretty

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Defending Mark Zuckerberg, Et Al.

June 1, 2022

Defending Mark Zuckerberg, Et Al.

defending zuckerberg

Mark Rubin

I feel the need to put pen to paper – fingers to keyboard, truth be told – to defend Mark Zuckerberg and a bunch of billionaires I admire not at all. Not. At. All. (I do use Facebook to promote my blog posts, but I’d be very happy if the site did not exist. As for Twitter, etc., a pox on all of them.)

Texas passed a law that takes from social media platforms the right to regulate content. Takes it away, plain and simple! (The issue comes up now because the U.S. Supreme Court stayed enforcement of the law for the moment.)

I am no expert on the First Amendment, although I

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