Lawyer Who Subpoenaed Blogger Seidel Sanctioned

Zathras26 writes "Slashdot has previously reported on a lawyer subpoenaing Kathleen Seidel for blogging about him in an unflattering light. Seidel successfully moved to quash the subpoena. In granting the motion to quash, the judge ordered the lawyer, Clifford Shoemaker, to show cause as to why he should not be sanctioned for his behavior. Whatever his response was, if any, it apparently wasn't good enough, because Shoemaker has been formally sanctioned for his actions."

Comments

Another positive sign for the justice system

[Majik Sheff]

It's nice to see a judge with a spine. I love reading stories about lawyers getting called out when they step over the line.

Re:Another positive sign for the justice system

[ScepticOne]

On the contrary, it's depressingly often an excellent substitute for insight.

Unlikely

[Magic5Ball]

There are enough filters between trials and news consumers that it's unlikely you're experiencing a representative sample of any legal system. Of all the cases adjudicated, only a very small portion involve circumstances or individuals warranting media attention. Of all those, a fraction deserve more than local interest. Of those, news outlets and packagers pick up yet a smaller fraction.

It may be that cases involving judges who also sanction lawyers are simply more exciting for some reason, and are therefore their proportion of visible stories is increasing, but that says more about the news media than it does about the judicial system.