Forum: Forum 2 (Module 3)
You must also reply to at least 2 classmates' threads with constructive feedback that forwards the academic
conversation. Each reply must be at least 150 words. your thread must be supported with at least 1 scholarly
resource (cited in current Bluebook format)
Student #1
H M
Shall I take the job?!
Job offer at MBC
The job offer at Meehan, Boyle, Cohen, and Schafer’s new firm is one that’s extremely attractive. The job is
lucrative, and their proven skillset, successful business model, and the opportunity to join a new, promising
business offers perhaps unlimited potential. Considering these factors strictly from the perspective of an employee
being offered a job at another firm, they are undeniably attractive.
If I were to decide to leave the employment of Parker Coulter, I would need to follow agency law requirements,
and those agreed upon at the time of hiring; likely a notice of resignation wherein I would notify Parker Coulter
within the prescribed time-requirement, and any other (confidentiality, non-compete-style, perhaps) requirements.
Following such, from an agency law and strictly business standpoint, such a move would seem understandable,
acceptable, and even legal.
But there is another ethics-specific factor pertinent to accepting a job at MBC that impacts my decision, and that is
the history behind the founding of this new legal organization. Specifically, I must face the issue of whether I can,
in good conscience, knowledgeably join with a firm that was founded, in part, with a (court-established) breach of
fiduciary duty. I will elaborate…
Three points of complaint were brought against MBC partners by (my current) their former employer, Parker
Coulter. The first two were not upheld by the appellate court, but the third was: that of “unfairly acquiring from
clients and referring attorneys consent to withdraw cases to MBC.” Rodney D. Chrisman, Logia of Business
Organizations Law for Paralegals 33 (2011). Further, with the lies and denial about leaving on the part of the
founders of MBC, they breached a “duty to render true things in relation to partnership.” Id. at 34. Meehan also
delayed providing his partners with a list of the clients he intended to take, and the letters he sent to clients were
unfairly prejudicial: “Meehan and Boyle continued to use their position of trust and confidence to the disadvantage
of Parker Coulter.” Id. Finally, news of their departure created confusion, and, “by engaging in these preemptive
tactics…violated the duty of utmost good faith and loyalty which they owed their partners.” Id.
Further, such practices are inconsistent with a biblical worldview: see 1 Corinthians 4:2: “It is required of stewards
that they be found faithful…” and Proverbs 11:1: “A false balance is an abomination to the Lord, but a just weight
is his delight.” Clearly, such actions are unacceptable to God, which should be our ultimate concern and standard
of determination.
So, wherein these acts show a lack of both biblical and fiduciary duty, a breach of partnership obligations, and
were used to establish the foundation of this new organization, I would choose not to join the MBC firm. If I were
looking for a better job, I would find a competitor whose practice was founded on faithful principles.
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Student #2
S W
Parker Coulter & Meehan and Boyle
As a paralegal working at the firm Parker Coulter, and Meehan and Boyle approached me and asked me to join
their firm there are many things that I would consider. First thing I would consider would be the fact that it would
be a considerable raise and the fact that I thought the firm was going to be successful. Thinking it would be a good
career move, I most likely would accept the offer from Meehan and Boyle.
I would most likely tell my employer as soon as I had decided to take the offer presented to me from Meehan and
Boyle. I would discuss with Meehan and Boyle that I would not be able to join the firm until my contract with
Parker Coulter was up, or they released me early from it. I also would not steal or poach any clients or information
from my current firm not only because of legal and ethical values/ laws but biblical beliefs.
I do believe I would make the transition, but I would do it lawfully and ethically based upon the standards of my
contracts and my personal beliefs. I would not allow the transition to compromise my current firm in any many
whatsoever.
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Bluebook Quick Guide for Government Students
Cases:
A. Citation of a United States Supreme Court decision:
Black v. Orange Inc., 221 U.S. 123, 130 (1987).
(Name of case) (Reporter) (Year)
(Volume No.)
(Page Nos.)
Names of parties to the case
Black v. Orange Inc., U.S. 123, 130 (1987).
Pincite
B. Citation of a U.S. Court of Appeals decision
United States v. Benson, 453 F.2d 204, 209-213 (4th Cir. 2001)
(resting review of the dispositive issue of Habeas Corpus), rev’d 590 U.S. 765 (2004).
United States v. Benson, 453 F.2d 204, 209-213 (4th Cir. 2001)
Note: Use Times New Roman 12 pt. font for all cases
C. Short form of a case name (i.e. United States v. Benson):
Benson, 453 F. 2d at 205.
Note: Shortened case name should be italicized. Also, you do not shorten governmental party’s
name.
D. Citation of a state court decision:
Virginia: Virginia Supreme Court – VA; Virginia Court of Appeals – Va. Ct. App.
Note: You can cite to S.E. or S.E.2d if applicable.
For citation to other states’ courts decisions, look in The BlueBook: A Uniform System of
Citation (20th Ed.)
Paauw v. Goliath, 234 Va. 386, 355-367 (1997).
Other Basic Citation Forms:
i. Unpublished interim order: O’Connel v. Islander Pool, No. 89-341 (D. Mass. 1993)
(order granting preliminary injunction).
ii. Unpublished decision: O’Connel v. Islander Pool, No. 89-341, slip op. at 11 (D.
Mass. Jan. 22, 2011)
iii. Decision available in electronic database:
a. LexisNexis:
Paola v. Brasilla, No. 89-345, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 211489, at *9-14 (D. Mass.
Feb. 27, 2015).
(Name of the case) (Docket No.) (Westlaw (Lexis) Citation) (Court) (Date of opinion)
b. WestLaw:
Paola v. Brasilla, No. 05:14, 2015 WL 5730424 (W.D. VA. Sep. 30, 2015)
(Name of the case) (Docket No.) (Westlaw Citation) (Court) (Date of opinion)
Petition for Certiorari granted: Barber v. Dandanie, 703 F. 2d 102 (1st Cir. 2008), cert. granted,
65 U.S.L.W. 12345 (U.S. June 12, 2010) (No. 91-142).
Differences between the use of a case name in a sentence and in a citation: The only difference is
the italicization of the case name (Rule 2) and the extent to which the case name is abbreviated:
See examples:
In Paauw v. Goliath, 234 Va. 386, 355-367 (1997), Justice Russell highlighted the essence of
judicial notice.
Paauw further holds that the court will take a judicial notice that there are 265 days in a leap
calendar year.
E. For business firm designations: Ignore or omit words like “Inc.”, “Ltd”, “LLC,” “N.A,”
“F.S.B,” and similar terms if the name of the business also contains words like “Co,”, “Corp.,”
“Ins,”, “Ass’n,” “Bros,”, or “R.R.” For example:
i. O’Connell Co. v. Islander Pool, Inc.
ii. Not: O’Connell Co., Inc. v. Islander Pool, Inc.
F. Geographical terms: Do not include terms like “State of,” “Commonwealth of,” or
“People of.” Instead, when citing decisions of that state, you can only use terms like
“State,” “Commonwealth,” “People.”
For example, Mathews v. Virginia, 520 U.S. 149 (2000).
Not: Mathews v. Commonwealth of Virginia, 520
Exception: You can include terms like “State of” when referring to national or larger
geographical areas, i.e. Federal Republic of Nigeria v. Juventus.
Note also: Omit “of America” after “United States”, example: United States v. Clifford
Chance
G. Given Names or Initials: Omit given names or initials of individuals. For example:
i. Bench v. Mansfield
ii. Not: Peter Bench v. Elisie Mansfield.
Exception: Include such given names or initials if they are names of business firms. For
example:
Paul Vincent, Inc. v. Virginia
H. Pinpoint Citation (otherwise called pincite): Pincites are placed after the number on
which the case begins on a reporter, and is separated from the starting page of the case,
by a comma and a space. The essence of pincite is to point the reader to a specific page(s)
in a case.
Paul Vincent, Inc. v. Georgia, 324 U.S. 95, 97.
Constitutions (Rule 11):
Clause information
Abbreviation for “article”
U.S. Const. art. 1, § 9, cl. 7.
Abbreviation of the const. cited
Symbol for the section cited
Abbreviation for amendment
U.S. Const. amend. XVII, § 5.
Va. Const. art. 2, § 43.
Statutes (Rule 12, B6):
2 U.S.C. § 6 (2013)
32. U.S.C.A. § 314 (West 2006)
VA Code § 46.2-716
VA Code § 121 (West 2015)
Procedural Rules:
Fed. R. Civ. P. 17(b)(4).
Rules of Evidence:
Fed. R. Evid. 321.
Books (Rule 15):
General rules governing books:
Elements:
i. Name of author(s); editor(s); or translator(s);
ii. Title;
iii. Page, section, or paragraph (if citing only a portion of a work);
iv. Edition information;
v. Publisher; and
vi. Date
Example: Anthony C. Brown, Sr., Concept of A Child in Being under Wills and Estate Law 185
(2010) Note: Always include any designation of the author, such as Jr., Sr., III, etc., but do not
include titles such as “Dr.” or “Prof.”
Two authors: List the names as they appear on the book, separated by an ampersand.
Example: Anthony C. Brown Jr. & Peters Peterside III, Concept of A Child In Being under Wills
and Estate Law 185 (2000).
Multiple authors: You can either use the names of the first 2 authors, followed by “ET AL”, or
you can list all the names.
Example:
i. Anthony C. Brown, Jr., Peters Peterside III & Tessa Paul, Concept of A Life In
Being under Wills and Estate Law 185 (2000);
Or
ii. Anthony C. Brown, Jr., Et Al., Concept of A Life In Being Under Wills and
Estate Law 185 (2000).
Editor or Translator: Provide the full name of the editor or translator as required under Rule 15.1,
followed by “ed,” or “trans.” Where both applies, use a comma to separate the title of an editor
or translator from other information relating to the cited work.
i. Concept of A Life In Being Under Wills and Estate Law 185 (Anthony C.
Brown, Jr., ed., 2000).
ii. Anthony C. Brown, Jr., Et Al., Concept of A Life In Being Under Wills and
Estate Law 185 (Stephanie Pavel, trans. Calvary Press, 4d ed. 2006) (2000).
Note: The original work was published by Anthony C. Brown and other authors in the
year 2000. It was translated by Stephanie Pavel. The book is presently in its 4th
edition, which was published in 2006.
Editions published by a different author: For a work that has been published by a person other
than the original author,
i. Indicate the editor/translator if any;
ii. The publisher
iii. The edition cited if not the first;
iv. Date of publication of the diction cited; and
v. Abbreviate the name of the publisher according to Rule 15:1(d).
Periodical Materials (Rule 16):
A. Articles published in law journals:
i. To cite the entire article:
Anthony C. Brown, My Bible, Your Quoran, 21 LIB. L. J. 420 (2014).
ii. To cite certain pages of an article:
Anthony C. Brown, My Bible, Your Quran, 21 LIB. L.J. 420, 435-50 (2014)
(describing the pluralistic structure of his democratic society)
B. Newspaper article (Rule 16.6):
Menaret Bowen, Where Do You Come From?, Wall Street Journal, Oct. 17, 2013,
at B12.
C. Signed Student-written law review:
Peter M. Bowen, Note, Criminalization of Marijuana: Where Do You Come
From?, 49 U. RICH. L. REV. 117, 128 (2013).
DISCLAIMER:
i. This author accepts responsibility for all typographical errors.
ii. This document is by no means a comprehensive guide to Bluebook citation. Please
refer to Bluebook for a complete, detailed guide to Bluebook citations. Citation:
Harvard & Columbia Law Reviews, The Bluebook: A Uniform Citation (20th ed.,
2015).
Bluebook Citation Tips
I hope that you have been able to order the Bluebook citation manual for this course
and/or your other PLST courses, if possible. Although it is not required, it is very helpful to
have a physical copy on hand while you are learning this citation method. Since it is a new
citation format for many of you, I have listed some tips for you below. This information is also
included in the Course Content tab under the Assignment Instructions folder. You can also check
out a great Bluebook citation resource here: https://www.liberty.edu/casas/academic-success-
center/bluebook-resources/
Blue v. White Pages
In the Bluebook, the first section is the blue pages, denoted by a “B” followed by the rule
number. Example: “Rule B4” is the rule for short form citation. In this course, you will primarily
use the blue pages. You can also use the back interior cover entitled “Quick Reference: Court
Documents and Legal Memorandum.” If there is a citation that you are unable to find in the blue
pages or in the quick reference, then try the white pages section of the book. For example, a
citation to the Bible is not found in the blue pages. So you will have to reference Rule 15.8 in the
white pages in order to see how to cite to Scripture.
In Text Citation
For this course and for legal memorandum and court documents, you should use in text
citation. This means that the citation should follow the information that you have used from
another author. Each time you use the information of another, whether direct quote, idea,
paraphrase, etc., you should follow the information with a citation. Rule B1.1 will inform you
on how to implement in text citation. For most purposes, a sentence should end in a period, and
then a citation sentence should follow and end with another period. If you are including the
citation in the middle of the sentence, offset the citation with commas. This is known as a
citation clause.
Example: It is true that in most cases advising and representing clients is typically limited
to attorneys, Mary. E Wilson, Family Law for the Paralegal 119 (3rd ed. 2017); however, in
some states paralegals may represent businesses before administrative agencies or in small
claims court. Id. at 45.
For in text citation, be sure to use underlining rather than italics. Italics are used for
footnote citation.
Short Form Citation.
If you choose to use short form citation, see Rule B4. Short form citation may only be
used after the full citation has already been included.
Generally, you will use Id. (for cases and books) to indicate that the cite is referencing the
immediately preceding source, and you will use Supra to indicate a previously fully cited source,
but one that is not immediately preceding the current citation. Remember when using short form
citation, that you must still include the appropriate pincite (page number) for the location of the
information.
Example: Id. at 245.
Example: Wilson, supra, at 11.
Citation to books
Rule B8 covers citation to books, such as your textbook. The citation should include: (1)
the volume number (only if it is a multivolume book), (2) full name(s) of the author(s) followed
by a comma, (if only two authors, write out both names separated by an ampersand “&”) (if
more than two authors, you can write out all names, or list the first followed by “et al.,” (3) title
underlined, (4) pincite (page number of the book that includes the information you are citing),
and (5) parenthesis that includes the (a) name of the editor, if any, (b) the edition (note if 2nd or
3rd, etc., editions, do not superscript the “nd” or “rd” etc.), and the (c) year of publication,
followed by a period at the end of the citation. Example: Mary. E Wilson, Family Law for the
Paralegal 119 (3rd ed. 2017).
Citation to ebooks:
Rule B15.9(c) addresses citations to ebooks. Generally, the printed version of the textbook
should be cited, and ebooks should only be cited if the print copy is unavailable. This rule is
utilized when a print copy is also available.
For ebooks, cite similarly to the printed book format, but include “loc.” to indicate the location of
the information to which you are referring (if there is no page number) and include “(ebook)” after
the publication date and before the period (for citation sentences) or comma (for citation clauses).
Special Note: The textbook in this (and other) courses may not be available to you in print.
Therefore, you may use this rule to cite to the electronic version of the textbook. Utilize the
chapter and section numbers as the location indicator, if the e-textbook does not provide the page
numbers from the original printed text. This textbook does provide page numbers at the lower left
hand of the screen once you select a portion of the writing on the page with your mouse. Below you
will find an example of how to cite using the page number and how to cite if a page number is
unavailable.
Examples:
Mary. E Wilson, Family Law for the Paralegal loc. ch.1 sec.IV A.2. (3rd ed. 2017) (ebook).
Mary. E Wilson, Family Law for the Paralegal 283 (3rd ed. 2017) (ebook).
Other:
Citation to Statutes: Rule B12/Rule 12
Citation to Cases: Rule B10/Rule 10
Citation to Internet Articles: Rule B18/Rule 18.2
- Internet citation should include: (1) author(s) names (if applicable), (comma) (2)
underlined title of the page or article, (comma) (3) title of the main website, (no
comma) (4) date and time the article was written (not the date and time you accessed
the article), if applicable, (comma) and (5) the URL (followed by the date you “last
visited” the website, if no other dates for the article are available) (end citation with a
period if the citation falls at the end of the sentence and comma if it is placed in the
sentence).
- Example: John MacArthur, What’s Your Worldview?, Answers in Genesis (May 2,
2006), https://answersingenesis.org/presuppositions/whats-your-worldview/.
Citation to Periodicals: Rule B16/Rule 16
Citation to the Bible: Rule 15.8
Example: Mark 9:21 (King James).
Citation to Law Journals: Rule B16
- Follow this format: <author(s)>, <title>, <volume number> <abbreviated periodical
name> <first page of article>, <pincite> (<year of publication>).
- Example: Roger Berns, A Biblical Model for Analysis of Issues of Law and Public
Policy: With Illustrative Applications to Contracts, ANtitrust, Remedies, and Public
Policy Issues, 6 Regent U. L. Rev. 103, 108 (1995).
There is no substitute for having the Bluebook citation manual in hand, so please obtain a
copy.
Student 1
I support your thought on the subect. Securing a job at a firm whose principles are not faithful is
a risk itself as a law affirmative no matter how attractive the job offer is. Meehan, Boyle, Cohen
is a beautiful firm that one may not even think twice accepting a job offer from them the skill set
test one might get from them, and the experience opens doors for greater high to explore.
However, I agree with the fact that their fundamental principle was not faithful. Establishing a
firm with a breach of fiduciary duty is absurd and hardly acknowledgeable (Meehan, n.d). The
act of luring the client to withdraw from being represented, Parker Coulter is wrongdoing. When
dug deeper is a violation of the partnership agreement and breaking the Statutory right. I like
how you refer to the unlawful act with the biblical consent of 1 Corinthians 4:2 and Proverb
11:1. If I were to decide whether to take the job offer, I would also be reluctant to accept due to
the non-ethic factor associated with MBC.
Reference
Meehan, 535 N.E 2d at 1255.
Student 2
I agree with you that first expounding your thoughts on whether the firm will grow your
career or not should be considered. With such consideration, one can contemplate whether to
proceed and accept the job offer or not (Meehan, n.d). According to the firm's promising career
growth, I would accept the job offer. I would also inform my employer by writing a resignation
letter at the prescribed time, follow the agency law requirements that were agreed upon at the
time of hiring, and any other non-formality style required. The reason being firstly it would be a
legal move and understandable by my employers. I also like the idea of discussing the reason
why you would immediately join Meehan and Boyle in view of the contract, not expire. Your
principle of not poaching clients from your current firm is commendable.
Reference
Meehan, 535 N.E 2d at 1255.
