The Jeffersonian

Here is a list of what San Diego has to offer for all you love birds on Valentine's Day.

From the moment you stepped into this school, law students, lawyers, and others whose lives seem to revolve around TJSL and the practice of law surrounded you. Quickly, school becomes a place to make friends, socialize, study, eat, and it controls many other aspects in your life. 

Suddenly, perhaps before you actually realize what is happening, you may have been sucked into a very small world, with very small pieces of drama that all of a sudden take precedent in your life. Everyone has an opinion and wants everyone else to know that opinion; so many opinions start floating around that you just want to be heard, and it sounds like “Oh My Goodness, can you believe . . .”

Law school is important. Friends at the school are important. Focusing on whatever helps you get through the day is important. But at the end of the day if you are sitting at home, stressing about something someone said, you get to decide whether or not you are going to lose sleep over it.

We should all be adults at school, but I’ve seen it quite a bit in three years, we lose track of our adulthood somewhere along the way. 

I like to use the five-year rule. In five years, is this going to matter to me? In five years is anyone going to care about what happened in this specific instance? If the answer is no, then I do not need to lose sleep over it at night. 

The things that are going to matter in five years to me are not the politics of law school. The things that will matter are the relationships I have made and how much effort I put into my own successes and failures. 

Every now and then, we need to remember that the world is bigger than law school. We need to expand our horizons and our thinking. When everything starts bearing down on us, take a deep breath and ask whether or not it will matter in five years. And if it won’t? Let it go, and look beyond the minutia.

This year Barristers Ball doesn’t fall on Valentine’s Day, which means we have to come up with our own plans for celebrating Valentine’s Day. Here are 5 romantic ideas to get the wheels in your head turning (on things not related to law school related). 

Remember, Valentine’s Day is a HUGE day for the hospitality industry so be sure to make reservations early and if you want to beat the crowds try to go for an early dinner. The sun is to set at 5:30 p.m. which means dinner at 4:30 p.m. would be totally acceptable.

1. La Jolla Cove Grab or make an early dinner and watch the sunset at the cove. Follow it up with a long walk on the beach and some cuddling. La Jolla is a great place for dates and has restaurants on all ranges of the pricing spectrum. If you can’t afford one of the steak houses, there is an awesome crepe place that would be perfect for a post-sunset dessert!

2. Hotel Del Coronado Few places are more romantic than the Hotel Del Coronado. Partner that with the beautiful beach and tons of outdoor dining and drinking, and you’ve got the perfect date idea. Additionally, you can woo your partner with dreams of post-law school debt grandeur. If you don’t want to eat at the hotel, Coronado Island has tons of beautiful restaurants that are right on the water and make for another nice backdrop for your date, I recommend Il Fornaio Coronado.

3. Balboa Park For Balboa Park I would recommend eating at the Prado. The food is fantastic and the atmosphere is great. Plus, after dinner you can walk around the park and listen to the musicians playing or walk through one of the museums. It is such a beautiful place and you don’t have to worry about running out of things to talk about.

4. Bertrand at Mister A’s Bertrand is on every romantic dining restaurant list I have seen. It’s in Bankers Hill and has breathtaking bay and skyline views. It’s pricey but apparently it’s the best of the best. After this I would suggest a Netflix marathon and maybe a back rub for whoever bought dinner.

5. Gondola Rides on Mission Bay Take your significant other for a Gondola ride on Mission Bay. Companies give private hour-long rides daily that go until 11 p.m. Watch the sunset and then take your date to see a movie. I can almost guarantee she wants to see 50 Shades of Grey and you probably do too, then go home and reenact the scenes. My suggestion would be the one where she gets hired for a job right out of college.

In the Old Testament of the Bible, there is a story of a very wise and powerful king named Samson.  Jealous and power hungry, many detractors began conspiring to kill him.  After some years his bride Delilah inquired after the source of his un-earthly power, “Tell me the secret of your great strength and how you can be tied up and subdued.”  Samson replied, “No razor has ever been used on my head . . . If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any other man.”

Professor Susan Bisom-Rapp does not purport to have un-earthly powers, nor are there people out to get her. She has, however, been teaching law at TJSL for more than 18 years, and if the opinion of her students carries any weight, she has been doing it very well. I recently stopped by her office to pick her brain, and see if I could discover the source of her longevity and classroom prowess. If you don’t know who she is, or you haven’t had the privilege of taking one of her classes, you’d surely recognize her. The “Silver-Fox” as she is colloquially known on Ratemyprofessor.com,  shares a unique attribute with Samson . . . the hair. “I happen to believe that having good hair can take you a good distance in life in general . . . maybe it’s because my hair has become my signature. Most people assume its platinum blonde, and it is nothing of the sort. It’s something that began in my teens, and I never associated it with aging . . . it’s completely natural . . . what you see is what you get.” 

Professor Bisom-Rapp is not frustrated by the fact that many people believe her hair is dyed, or is some type of stage-makeup; in fact, she uses this confusion to fully engage her students in class. “A lot of it is an act . . . within most of the first semester is to create a diabolical persona and some horrific hypotheticals that we can apply legal rules to make it entertaining and fun. Law school in the first semester is stressful enough, and people need a chance to laugh. I have found people are less likely to check Facebook during class, if I keep them entertained.”  This act, however, is something that developed over time, and just like many first year students, Professor Bisom-Rapp has learned to adjust, and fine-tune her approach to the law, a lesson many of us can learn.  She explained that similar to a law school exam, she learned that “amazing things begin to happen” when you know the law, have three to five bullet points to work with, and speak from the heart.  “You figure out who you are, who your audience is, what the judge wants...what your client wants ... and I also discovered that I was funny.” 

Beyond the nuggets of wisdom she dropped regarding success in the legal profession, Professor Bisom-Rapp is also a living example to those juggling law school and a family, or those like me; staring down an un-eventful and potentially lonely Valentine’s Day. She is married to her high-school sweetheart, traveled across the country with him to teach here, and completed her LLM and JSD while raising a child.  “Relationships are mutualistic . . . it’s not all about you, but you can’t affiliate yourself with someone who is going to make exorbitant demands that make it impossible for you to do what you need to do as a law student. There are a lot of people who did successfully meet their true love at Thomas Jefferson . . . some of them have gone on to have children, and even people who have named their kids after our school.”  Short of giving advice, she explained that being in a relationship during law school will definitely help you decide if the person you are with is the right person to partner with,  a concept that bleeds very neatly into the practice of law itself.

However, at the end of the day (or the end of the semester) it is all about perspective, and our conversation made that abundantly clear. “It can’t be ALL about the law ALL the time,” she said.  Most of our doctrinal courses deal with weighty subjects, with real and sometimes life altering results, and it is essential in legal study, and indeed in legal practice, to be able to step back from the monotony. Professor Bisom-Rapp practices what she preaches and is a living testament by smiling through the ups and downs of life, love, and the law. So, with both Valentine’s Day and the Barristers Ball coming up, it may behoove us all to take a page from Professor Bisom-Rapp and Samson’s playbook. Go out, get your hair done (no scissors), throw your head back and laugh diabolically. After all, we law students are a rare breed and as Professor Bisom-Rapp can attest to, it may not seem like it now, but these three years will go by in a flash. “You may not like all of your classes, or professors for that matter, but you will miss some of them.”  Indeed, with such memorable professors like Professor Bisom-Rapp, I already have a first candidate in mind.

[1] Judges 14:18.

[2] Id.

[3] Id.

[4] Id.

[5] Rate My Professors, http://www.ratemyprofessors.com/ShowRatings.jsp?tid=453458 (last visited Feb. 6, 2014).

[6] Interview with Susan Bisom-Rapp, Professor, Thomas Jefferson School of Law, in S.D., Cal. (Nov. 17, 2014).

[7] Id.

[8] Id.

[9] Id.

[10] Id.

[11] Id.

[12] Id.

[13] Id.

[14] Id.

Jordan, the brand coined by and around Michael Jordan, who is arguably the greatest thing to ever happen to the NBA and undoubtedly the greatest basketball player of all time, has helped turn Nike into a household name that is synonymous with sports and professional athletes.

Jacobus Rentmeester, a freelance photographer, is bringing a copyright infringement claim against Nike in an Oregon federal court. Rentmeester alleges Nike used and continues to use a photograph he created of Michael Jordan for their Jumpman logo. Rentmeester says that in 1984, he took a picture of the then college-aged Jordan in his Olympic warm-ups for an issue of Life Magazine.

Nike later approached Rentmeester about using two 35mm transparencies of the photo for a marketing campaign. Nike paid Rentmeester $150 for the limited use and a few months later Nike gave Rentmeester an additional $500 to continue using the image. In 1985, Nike reshot the Jordan Jumpman photo and Rentmeester threatened to sue, claiming Nike used his work when they recreated the shot of Jordan in Bulls gear with the Chicago skyline in the background. Rentmeester was awarded $15,000 and Nike was given a two-year license to continue using their reshot for billboards and posters in North America. That image became the basis for the modern Jordan logo we all know today. Since the job was a freelance assignment Rentmeester retained the rights to the image.

The lawsuit claims that for the original photo Rentmeester directed Jordan to pose in that specific position while dunking. Rentmeester created the pose, which was inspired by a ballet technique known as a “gran jete,” a long horizontal jump during which a dancer performs splits in mid-air. The pose was conceived to make it appear that Jordan was in the process of dunking, but the pose is not reflective of Jordan’s natural jump or dunking style. Rentmeester declares Jordan practiced the desired leap because it was an unnatural move for him since he typically held the ball with his right hand.

That logo first appeared on a pair of shoes in 1987 for Nike’s third version o the Air Jordan. Nike has since trademarked various of the logo, in 1989, ’92, and ’98.

Rentmeester is asking for profits associated with the Jordan brand, which generated $3.2 billion in retail sales in 2014, and is also seeking to stop current sales and end any plans in the brand’s future. “Nike spokesman Greg Rossiter told The Associated Press that the company is not commenting on the lawsuit.” 

Federal copyright law allows copyright claims to be brought within three years of an infringing act.  In May 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court in Petrella v. MGM ruled that delay in filing a copyright claim isn’t a bar to seeking damages as long as the copyright infringement continues. 

Bert P. Krages is an Oregon-based attorney specializing in intellectual property law and photographers’ rights.

His opinion in Rentmeester’s claim is “One of the elements of copyright infringement is that an ordinary observer would have to find the works to be substantially similar.”

At one level, the Nike photo and logo are similar to the Rentmeester photo in that they depict a basketball player in midair with extended legs and holding the ball high over his head with his left arm.

On the other hand, the Nike photo and the logo show Jordan with straight legs and arms whereas the Rentmeester photo shows some curvature in the legs and left arm. Also, in the Rentmeester photo the right arm is held near shoulder level instead of at waist level.

So the major issue in this case could come down to whether the Nike photo and logo are seen substantially as copies or as independently-created variations of a jumping basketball player.

[1] Darren Rovell, Nike Sued Over Michael Jordan Logo, ESPN (Jan. 23, 2015, 10:37 PM), http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/12218091/photographer-sues-nike-michae....

[2] 17 U.S.C. § 507(b) (2014).

[3] Petrella v. MGM, 134 S. Ct. 1962, 1967 (2014). 

May 16 is just a few months away, and that means the bar examination is not far behind. I know, I can hear you hissing at me. I’m sorry, but I think we will all be better for sharing as much information about our upcoming graduation and the bar examination as possible.

Graduation applications should be turned in, to the 6th floor, as soon as possible. Also, if you want pro bono recognition, fill out the pro bono form and turn that in to Randy Ward on the 7th floor. Check your transcript and make sure all of the requirements that you have fulfilled are accounted for.  If they are not, check with the registrar. If you are in a fellowship program chances are you need to turn in an application for a certificate, do that now.

I am sure you have already decided where you are going to take the bar, but if you haven’t now is the time to make sure you have looked at the state’s bar examination requirements and register. If you are taking the California bar, check http://admissions.calbar.ca.gov/Requirements.aspx for the requirements. Registering with the state bar costs about $100.

Most people have already taken the MPRE, but if you haven’t, you must, and you have to get an 86. Scores for other jurisdictions vary, so check with them. The next California test is on March 28, and there is another one in August and November. You can take the MPRE post bar, but if you, you may have your license held up and will not be sworn in on the November date. Registration for the MPRE is $80.

To prep for the MPRE check out TJSL’s Academic Success Program & Writing Center on the TWEN page. There you will find a posted lecture and handout. Additionally, all bar prep programs (Barbri, Kaplan, etc.) have MPRE books they will generally let you have for the cost of your email address. But you should prepare for the test, no one wants to have to do it again or pay another $80. You can find dates and deadlines at http://www.ncbex.org/about-ncbe-exams/mpre/test-dates-deadlines-and-fees/.

The moral character application . . . cue scary music. It’s a lot of information. This is why they tell you to do it in the summer between 2L and 3L, but if you haven’t done it, now’s the time. Determinations can take anywhere from 6-10 months. Your license is held until all the discrepancies are cleared. You will need addresses of ALL the places you have lived and worked since you turned 18, references including at least one attorney, and other information such as your education. The moral character application costs $500.

In addition to the moral character application, you must complete a Live Scan – finger printing. The Live Scan must happen within 6 weeks of filing your moral character application or you will have to do them again. Be sure to fill out and bring the form included in the moral character application with you when you are finger printed. There are several places to complete a Live Scan. San Diego Community College Police, located at 1536 Frazee Rd., is close and takes walk-ins Monday through Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Fridays from 7:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., and the cost is
 $20.

Bar prep courses, whatever you decide to do you have to go all in! Do not rely on anything but the hard work and dedication you will put into bar prep. Just because you are in the top 30% of the class does not mean you will pass the bar. There are Barbri, Kaplan, Themis, and a variety of other courses available, and representatives are always on the 2nd floor just itching to talk to you about their course. Search the Internet, check out Facebook and Twitter, but whatever you decide has to be the right fit for you. Each course generally allows you to go on their site and do some type of simulation, and the reps always have sample outlines for free. Keep in mind these books are not the actual bar prep books. Courses range in price, but some have payment plans, and TJSL has a new bar scholarship you can apply for this semester. You can pick up an application on the 6th floor or download the application at http://www.tjsl.edu/sites/default/files/files/TJSL_bar_study_scholarship.... In March bar applications will become available online. You can find information at http://admissions.calbar.ca.gov/Examinations/DatesDeadlines.aspx. But there will be an application fee of $614, and a laptop fee of $139. Until then happy studying, here is a link to past Cal Bar questions http://admissions.calbar.ca.gov/Examinations/DatesDeadlines.aspx.

It is an innate thought to associate educational, uplifting and groundbreaking television sitcoms such as “Fat Albert,” “A Different World,” and most notably, “The Cosby Show” with the prominent comedian, actor, author and activist Bill Cosby. Since the 70’s, Cosby has impacted and influenced families and cultures in a positive light filled with levity for decades. His once popular commercial as the Jello-O Pudding Man, made him a favorite among many. Further, Mr. Cosby has given his time and funds to aid and benefit students through academic programs and scholarships at Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCU) such as Spelman College and Morehouse College. 

As we look to present day, there has been an insurmountable round of allegations as to whether Bill Cosby drugged, sexually assaulted, and/or raped a plethora of women between 1965-2004. In November 2014, approximately sixteen women, including model Janice Dickinson and actress Louisa Moritz, have spoken to press alleging the claims as true. Subsequently, in December, Supermodel Beverly Johnson joined the list of women by telling her story in a Vanity Fair article describing her encounter with Bill Cosby as an invite to his home and later drugged from a cappuccino drink.  “I knew by the second sip of the drink Cosby had given me that I’d been drugged—and drugged good.”  This sent a tidal wave of news correspondents, bloggers, radio shows, etc. into a pool of heightened speculation of Cosby’s innocence. Presently, at least 34 women have come to the forefront accusing Cosby of sexual assault. The outpour of women coming forward through public interviews and various media outlets has caused a round of scrutiny that gradually diminishes Mr. Cosby’s character in the public eye.

This leads to the significant question: does public opinion overshadow and tarnish one’s legacy? The probable answer to this has been exuded through the mainstream media, social media, and from Cosby’s colleagues in the industry. You can take a glance at a friends’ Facebook page and you may see a status referencing their viewpoints, continuous comments, and/or debates on why Bill Cosby is guilty or not guilty in their eyes, or why each women’s claims may indeed be truthful if so many are raising a voice. There are even instances of audience members attending Mr. Cosby’s comedic stand up shows and shouting “rapist!” or other demeaning terms toward him.  Cosby’s colleagues in the comedy and film industry have also shared their comments filled with support regarding the allegations. Actress Keshia Knight Pulliam, known as young precocious Rudy Huxtable from “The Cosby Show,” recently was a contestant on Donald Trump’s Celebrity Apprentice. After her elimination on the show, she did an interview on the “Today Show” stating, "All I can speak to is the man I know and I love the fact that he has been such an example [and] you can't take away from the great that he has done.”  His once onscreen wife, actress Phylicia Rashad also commented on her thoughts as a “destruction of a legacy.” The most important woman in his life, Bill Cosby’s wife, Camille, has released a statement supporting her husband on the matter, "He is a kind man, a generous man, a funny man, and a wonderful husband, father and friend. He is the man you thought you knew." 

On the contrary, a source close to legendary actor Sidney Poitier has recently stated, “I can tell you that Mr. Poitier is terribly disgusted by what Bill Cosby has done, and he feels sorry for him.” Actor and comedian Jerry Seinfield expressed his disdain at a red carpet event, "It's sad, and incomprehensible." The television network TV Land has even pulled reruns of “The Cosby Show” off of the air because of all the continuous news surrounding the situation, which makes it extremely difficult to win public sympathy. Is it now difficult for some to watch an episode of “The Cosby Show” or even his standup comedy engagements without a cringe-worthy reaction. Many are giving Cosby a verdict of guilty through a “court of public opinions” but we live in a country where a person is innocent until proven guilty in the court of law. In addition, a majority of the claims presented by a number of women are barred by the statute of limitations because some of the accusations happened over two decades ago. However, this does not turn a new leaf as far as how society feels after numerous women have come forth after years with stories of despair, shame, and hurt. As sides are being chosen, gradually the public is deterring away from what the great Bill Cosby has done.

Amongst all of the comments that have transcribed since the spotlight of the tumultuous claims, Bill Cosby has continued to perform standup comedy in different cities and refraining from addressing the sexual assault allegations. However, on January 16th, he praised fans for loyalty before a Denver show stating, “Hey, hey, hey — I’m far from finished.” Cosby has been able to maintain a face of optimism in a declining view of which millions of other fans once loved.

Will there always be a gray cloud over the once highly respectable man in entertainment history? It is extremely difficult to deny his contributions to society or the variety of lessons and laughs provided in homes throughout the years yet he is no longer seen in this manner. Bill Cosby’s credibility should not be at a loss but the vast amount of commentary from the public stifles it. As the numerous women stand behind their statements, the cloud continues to hover over what was once a clear sky for Cosby.

[1] Beverly Johnson, Bill Cosby Drugged Me. This is My Story., Vanity Fair (Dec. 2014), http://www.vanityfair.com/unchanged/2014/12/bill-cosby-beverly-johnson-s....

[2] Id.

[3] Robyn Ross, Keshia Knight Pulliam Weighs in on Bill Cosby Scandal After Awkward Celebrity Apprentice Premiere, TV Guide (Jan. 5, 2015, 10:16 AM), http://www.tvguide.com/news/keshia-knight-pulliam-1091395/.

[4] Bill Cosby’s Wife Camille Releases Statement in Support of Husband, FOX News (Dec. 15, 2014), http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2014/12/15/bill-cosby-wife-camille-....

There has been a lot of discussion about Seth Rogen and James Franco’s new movie, The Interview, regarding First Amendment protections and freedom of speech. Funny enough (no pun intended), a heightened discussion of Sony’s perceived negotiations with cyber-terrorists became front-page news. Privately owned movie studios are not responsible for setting or applying U.S. foreign policy, which is the President’s responsibility. It has been observed that certain media outlets and movie studios have protected aspects of free speech and press despite that this is the job of the Legislature. As much as the United States or Kim Jong-Un would like us to believe that the movie is a groundbreaking piece of anti-dictator propaganda… it is just a movie that parodies a current hot-button issue. Sure, it highlights both real and perceived human rights issues, cultural dichotomies, real anti-American sentiments, and a damn good impersonate-Un (pun intended), but all of these topics have already been exhaustively discussed in many documentaries through the years. For a man who reportedly loves so much of what America has to offer, he knew, or should have known that a movie like this would probably be made…if anything, the making of this movie was at least plausible.

This presents an interesting quandary: Why after so many public indictments by the U.S. government and trusted media sources, would Kim Jong-Un decide that this outrageous slap-stick comedy is more deserving of his wrath? The answer, I believe, is that this movie is so well made that Franco and Rogen inadvertently presented an extremely plausible situation where covert agents could infiltrate North Korea and assassinate Kim Jong-Un (a la: Dennis Rodman?).

[Spoiler Alert] A quick breakdown for those of you who do not have internet access, or maybe don’t have a friend with a Netflix account: Seth Rogen produces a nightly celebrity news show called Skylark Tonight, which James Franco hosts.  Tired of reporting on issues like actor Rob Lowe’s hidden male-pattern-baldness, Franco’s character tells Rogen’s character that Kim Jong-Un is a huge fan of the show, and that this would be the perfect opportunity to interview him and subsequently, vault both men into journalistic superstar-dom.  After the FBI learns about the interview, an FBI agent tells them that the FBI would like the men to use the interview as an opportunity to assassinate Kim Jong-Un using a Ricin laced band aid, to be applied when Franco and Un first shake hands.  Eventually, Kim Jong-Un is killed in a fiery helicopter crash due to the ineptitudes of the two “journalists.” 

No matter how you feel about Kim Jong-Un, Franco and Rogen, or freedom of speech, the keyword-takeaway from the movie itself, as well as the ensuing commentaries is: plausibility. From beginning to end and every nuance in between, the movie is a series of plausible circumstances played out in a classic Franco-Rogen-esque style. Take for example the opening scene where rapper Eminem “comes out” as a homosexual on Skylark Tonight.  It is only because of Eminem’s sarcastic and perceived mean-spirited song lyrics regarding homosexuality that make the moment so funny, and subsequently, why so many fans and critics alike actually thought it was a real admission. Perhaps the most telling scene is when Franco’s character dim-wittedly presents a hilariously ridiculous escape scenario to the FBI agents, which comes to fruition and leads to Un’s assassination. 

This plausibility is essentially what has inflamed the passions of the Supreme Leader of North Korea. We have after all, covertly attempted to assassinate the likes of Fidel Castro through covert CIA operations such as Operation Mongoose. We have learned in law school thus far, that knowledge, desire, and apparent ability to effectuate harm are sufficient to make a variety of tort claims, and this situation is no different. I have already dropped Dennis Rodman’s name, and if you were to replace Franco’s character with Rodman (the only American in recent memory to actually be invited to North Korea), what you have is a wholly plausible assassination scenario, not lost on the Supreme Leader. I am not advocating sympathy towards Kim Jong-Un or his seemingly oppressive regime, nor am I vindicating Rogen and Franco from over-lampooning the man, but Chris Rock said it best when discussing the Orenthal James Simpson case: “I’m not sayin’ he shoulda’ done it…but I understand.”

[1] The Interview (Point Grey Pictures & LStar Capital 2014).

[2] Id.

[3] Id.

[4] Id.

[5] Id.

[6] Id.

[7] Id.

On Thursday, January 29th, SBA and TJSL partnered with the San Diego Blood Bank for our first annual blood drive. TJSL registered 22 people and collected 18 units, which will touch the lives of at least 54 people. Additionally, the majority of the blood collected from our drive has already been distributed to patients. It is great that blood drives like these can keep San Diego blood recipients alive and able to enjoy their lives.

TJSL had 17 people that donated blood for the very first time. We encourage new donors to support our next blood drive on Friday, March 6th, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. At least 400 donations are required daily to meet the need for our San Diego community, so the San Diego Blood Bank is very appreciative of our lifesaving efforts.

To schedule your appointment for our March 6th blood drive log onto www.mysdbb.org and under donate blood and appointments type “TJSL” as the sponsor code. If you have any questions please email sepulvj@tjsl.edu.