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Jail Break 2010!

2010-08-19T04:32:00.000-07:00

So it is safe to say, this year's Jail Break event was a complete success!!!

It took place on Sunday the 15th of August, starting at the Old Star pub opposite St James Park tube station. After all twelve teams had paid their entry fee's, decided on their team names and enjoyed a swift pint of Dutch courage each team was set off at two minute intervals.

My team, 'Charlie's Angels', met at the pub rather calm and collected, however, this all changed the second we were let loose. We shot up the stairs of the pub and frantically begun our mad rush to find the first clue. The clues ranged from relatively easy to difficult, and each clue had two parts, one to find the next destination and another to figure out the cryptic clue. Each clue was worth either one or two points depending on the difficulty, and the fastest team received an extra ten points, the second fastest received eight points and the third fastest received six points. The 'treasure hunt' took us up to Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery, Embankment, Hungerford Bridge and then Southbank. Charlie's Angels had run around like headless chickens frantically trying to find the clues (much to the delight of the public I'm sure). I even had a run in with a man dressed up in period costume!

The 'treasure hunt' ended up on Southbank at the BFI, but not before finding the answers to the last few clues. The last task was to find Ian Brownhill, who was sat awaiting in the bar. Charlie and the Angels were searching among the stools of books frantically trying to find Ian, when I suddenly heard Charlie scream 'ANGELS!!!!!!' I turned and looked to see Ian and made a last minute dash to the finish line!!!

So Charlie and his three Angels were the winners, completing the treasure hunt in an hour, being the fastest team. We received not only the cup donated by Allen and Ovary but also a week long stay in a luxury cottage in the Lake District! Topping off a truly fun, exciting and memorable day.

Thank you to Ian Brownhill and the Fundraising Committee at Amicus for putting on the well organized, professional and fun event!

Vicky Armstrong

2 Rock n Roll 2 Die Gig

2010-08-10T03:44:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

This is a heads up that we are going to be having another awesome music gig organised by the great Sarrah Kerslake!! It will be on Friday, November 19th so save the date in your diaries as this was a sold-out show last time.

'2 Rock n Roll 2 Die' will take place at Parkers Rock n Roll Club, Denmark Street, WC2. The full line-up has been announced. Check it out at http://www.myspace.com/dierocking and hear snippets of music from the featured bands!

'2 Rock n Roll 2 Die' will feature a new headline act coming in all the way from Belgium.. the amazing Romano Nervoso .. and don’t worry .. yes by popular demand .. Headspace WILL be rocking us out again- but under their new name “Race Car Ya Yas” !! There are also a few treats in store with homage paid to Motown in the form of “John Landau & The Giants” as well as amazing sets promised again from Scotland’s finest Rebel Underdog & Mark Corbett!!

Tickets now on sale on the myspace page. Only £6 if you book in advance! And look forward to a rocking good time!!

Jail Break Fundraiser!

2010-07-29T06:26:00.000-07:00

Everyone is busy preparing for one of the biggest fundraising events of the year, the Amicus Jail Break! This event involves a treasure hunt around London following cryptic clues to break your team out of jail! There are lots of prizes to be won, such as a guided tour around the House of Lords lead by Lord Patel!

We are pleased to also announce that our media partner for the event is totallylegal http://www.totallylegal.co.uk/ . totallylegal is the UK's leading job site for legal professionals looking to make their next career move. Using this great site, you can search for the latest opportunities including private practice, in-house, public sector, paralegal and legal secretaries, as well as finance, marketing and HR legal roles. There is a great search tool that allows you to specify location, experience, sector and practice area. They also have career advice and job alerts! It is wonderful site for anyone working in the legal arena! Check out their blog: http://blog.totallylegal.com/

Starting from the Old Star pub at 12pm, adjacent to the Broadway exit from St. James Park tube station, your escape will be completed in the vicinity of the South Bank, close to London Waterloo, finishing at the ‘British Film Institute’ who have agreed to support us for this event. Your team, we hope, will have completed the course by 2.30pm at the latest and we welcome you to join us for lunch and a drink before heading off.

Event details

Date: Sunday 15th August 2010

Price: £50 or £25 per team

Location: The Old Star Pub, Westminster (next to St James's Park station).

Contact details Website: http://www.amicus-alj.org/

Email: admin@amicus-alj.org
Please email us for a booking form.

We look forward to seeing you all there, ready to break out from jail!

The Summer Interns Files-Lauren

2010-07-09T08:51:00.000-07:00

I have been getting involved with the Without Prejudice Project that Anna Ling has been heading up with representatives from UCL and UPenn. Coincidentally, I attend UPenn in the states so it was a great way for me to meet those representatives and establish a relationship with them to hopefully do more work with Amicus when I return to campus. The central question that this project examines is: What, if any, racial and/or geographical factors correlate with the decision to sentence defendants to death? After several meetings, we came to the conclusion that we would begin by focusing on Louisiana and then hopefully use that as a template for further states. An important part of the study will require an in depth legal analysis of the death penalty laws within Louisiana including an understanding of the statutory aggravating circumstances for a homicide that would warrant a death sentence. After meeting with a statistician at UCL, he pointed out that our proposal needs to demonstrate more about the innovative nature of the project. Over the past few weeks I have been researching the death penalty system in Louisiana and writing up important points to sufficiently prove that Louisiana is a unique state that would make this research project a worthwhile and valuable resource.

The Amicus Summer Interns Files-Lauren

2010-07-09T08:39:00.000-07:00

The new Amicus website will be going live within the next few days. Thanks to Shivani's excellent expertise, the Amicus team have designed a great and easily navigable website. The website has needed an update for quite some time so we are all very excited for the new one to be launched. Nicole and I have been working on it for the past few weeks to ensure all the information is correct and the pages are user-friendly. This will be a great resource for finding out more about the organization, finding forms for membership and training as well as information about internships in the U.S and death penalty news. Please look out for the new website coming soon. We are all very proud of the outcome and want to give a big thank you to Shivani for her tremendous work.

Upcoming Amicus Events

2010-07-06T07:38:00.000-07:00

Want to know what is happening at Amicus over the next few months? Below is a list of all our exciting upcoming events:

August 15- Jail Break fundraiser
September 15 - End of Summer Party/ State Research Briefs Launch
October 1-3, 30-31- US Death Penalty Training Programme
October 10- World Against Death Penalty Day
October 11- No Human Way to Kill Panel Discussion
October 31 - Casework Training
November 8-12- National Pro Bono Week
November 11- Celebrity Reading Night at Inner Temple

If you would like to know more about any of these events or if you would like a booking form for the Casework Training or Death Penalty Training please email Margot at admin@amicus-alj.org or the Amicus office interns at amicus.training@googlemail.com.

The Summer Interns Files-Lauren

2010-06-30T07:07:00.000-07:00

For the past few weeks I have been helping Emma Shafton organise our summer Pub Quiz fundraiser that took place last Thursday, June 24th. I helped advertise the event to members, set up the event with our venue, the Punch Tavern on Fleet Street and I scoured the streets of London for raffle prizes. The event was not as successful as we hoped but it was a great night and a fairly good attendance with guests from Carmelite Chambers, Debevoise & Plimpton, Mitre House as well as barristers from various other chambers. The animated quizmaster Ian Brownhill, chair of the Amicus Executive Committee, kicked off the event around 7 pm. He prepared very challenging questions, especially in the 'Name that Footballer' round, which seemed to stump everyone. In an exciting final round, the Carmelite Chambers team won the Quiz by one point! The successful event also included a raffle with great prizes generously donated by Lush, Wagamama, Toni & Guy and Nandos. The centrally located Punch Tavern on Fleet Street was an excellent venue to host the event. For an entrance fee of £7 per person, the pub provided delicious canapés between rounds and they kindly donated 10% of the bar tab to Amicus. Overall, the Amicus fundraising committee headed by Emma Shafton organised a great night that raised valuable funds to support the running costs of Amicus. With the newly expanded fundraising committee, Amicus is looking forward to launching bigger events this autumn such as our much anticipated Celebrity Reading Night in November.

Amicus Summer Interns Files-Nicole

2010-06-29T05:33:00.000-07:00

June 7th, 2010
Court Case at Old Bailey for Manslaughter

Lauren and I went to the Old Bailey to sit in on trials. We entered the court for a manslaughter case in which the defendant killed a biker with his car. We saw the prosecution's questioning of the defendant. We sat behind the witness stand and had a clear view of the lawyers and judge. We were facing the jury and were able to see their reactions to the defendant. The prosecution concentrated a lot on setting up a record of the defendant's various run-ins with the police and history of lying to the police. The barrister constantly repeated questions in order to catch the defendant in lies. They had a great deal of evidence in huge binders, including police interviews with defendant from current and past cases, pictures of car accident, CCTV footage of the defendant after the accident. The jury was supplied with a binder of evidence to share with the person next to them. The defense only had one objection. There was not much interaction with the judge; he was mostly just observing the case. Overall, it was an extremely interesting and exciting case to watch.

Amicus Summer Interns Files-Lauren

2010-06-29T03:44:00.000-07:00

On May 20th Sade and I made our way to the Old Bailey and the Royal Court Justice to sit in on trials. We were very excited as this would be our first experience in a British courtroom. Many of the cases we wanted to sit in on were closed upon request of the family. After passing through security and waiting for a trial to begin we were finally let into a court. The defendant entered the courtroom and stood behind a glass window. He required a translator but we were unsure of his nationality. There was little interaction from the lawyers and the trial proceeded very quickly. The defendant had beaten his wife and was charged for two common assaults by beating and he plead guilty to both accounts. The defendant was dismissed and was told to return at a later date to receive his sentencing. The judge told him he was not allowed to return to his house in the meantime because of the risk to his wife. Thereafter, we briefly sat in on another case but it was difficult to understand what was occurring because we arrived in the middle of the trial. From what we could gather, there were three defendants standing behind the glass window. They seemed very anxious and embarrassed by their situation. One of the barristers was presenting evidence to the court as well as the twelve-person jury. From what we could see, there were photos of a body with very severe burns. Soon after entering the courtroom the jury required a break so we were asked to leave.
We then made our way over to the Royal Court Justice, which had many noticeable differences to the previous court. After wandering through the long, confusing corridors we entered an appeal court involving a white collar crime. It was unclear what crime the defendant had committed but it seemed as though he was facing a lengthy time in prison. The defendant represented himself in front of a panel of six judges. Sade and I were impressed by how much free speech he was exercising in front of the Lords. The defendant was trying to argue that it was preposterous that the Lords are allowed to create or change laws as cases occur. Thereafter, we sat in on a divorce trial. We listened to a barrister present the case to the judge but it was very difficult to understand the case. However, it was still interesting to view this type of trial.
Overall, Sade and I had a very interesting morning and really valued the opportunity to be exposed to the British court system and to make comparisons to the U.S court system.

Update 23rh May 2008

2008-05-22T08:02:00.000-07:00

The Amicus Committee is seeking an additional member to be their Casework Team Leader.

AMICUS CASEWORK TEAM LEADER - THIS IS A VOLUNTARY ROLE (UNPAID)

Please email admin@amicus-alj for more information about this position.

Update May 22nd 2008

2008-05-22T07:50:00.000-07:00

- October booking is now open - go to our website to download the booking form

- US Embassy visa interviews are now very slow - so interns wanting to leave this summer please contact Margot ASAP

- Amicus needs some volunteers for boring office tasks this summer - you give two full days (14 hours) - in exchange for - coffee and lunch! (And that warm feeling inside that you have helped us out) You must have fabulous IT skills - it is mostly data entry! Please send CVs and June/July availability to admin@alj.org if you are interested.

- Forthcoming events - Speed dating, Wine tasting, Alumni Reunion, Film screenings

- Have you signed onto backpack lately? Amicus Members - Get onto your backpack account to access the latest journal, the monthly e-newletter and pre-booking for training and other events!

Amicus Update 12

2008-03-27T06:40:00.000-07:00

Second training weekend 29th-30th March could all attendees please arrive promptly at Freshfields.

Dates for October training course 3rd- 5th and 25th-26th October 2008, booking form available shortly.

Amicus has recently met with the Criminal Justice Initiative in India, The Death Penalty Project and The Law Society to discuss death penalty initiatives in India.

Amicus currently has several casework projects. If you are interested in getting involved please send casework application (available to download from our website) to admin@amicus-alj.org.

Amicus have started a new placement with the Habeaus Corpus Resource Center, CA. This is a post conviction capital defence litigation office and interns will be mostly research based.

Please check backpack for the latest Amicus journal and the new E-newsletter (coming soon).

Amicus is currently recruiting a new editor for the Amicus journal and a new treasurer who would sit as a trustee. For more information please email admin@amicus-alj.org

Amicus Update 11

2007-10-17T01:38:00.000-07:00

The College of Law Amicus Student Society has arrived! Contact the Society President Catherine Kelly if you are a college of Law student and would like to join.

There is now a new LIME website http://www.amicus-lime.com/ this celebration of our 15th anniversary is set to be one of the social highlights of the year. Check out the website for further information - former interns go half price! Contact Margot for more information.

Don't forget that the second half of Fall training is 27-28th October for those attending, please make sure you are on time.

Any volunteer former interns that are available 27th and or 28th October please contact Margot as we need some volunteers for training.

Management Committee and Trustees - don't forget the next meeting is 27th October 2007 to be held at Freshfields.

Amicus Update 10

2007-07-17T06:10:00.000-07:00

Margot is back from honeymoon and in the office Monday, Wednesday and Thursday.

There is now a new LIME website www.amicus-lime.com this celebration of our 15th anniversary is set to be one of the social highlights of the year. Check out the website for further information.

I have had many enquiries about training dates for the Fall session; I will publish them here and on the Amicus website www.amicus-alj.org as soon as they are finalised.

This week:

LIME 2007 website launched
The Amicus Committee met
Amicus presentation at Baker & McKenzie for their summer clerks

Amicus Update 9

2007-06-20T02:02:00.000-07:00

Office closed for two weeks (25th June to 12th July)

Margot Ravenscroft (Executive Officer) gets married on 23rd June, and is then on honeymoon until 12th July.

Post and emails will be checked periodically.

Apologies for any delay in responses during and immediately after this period.

Amicus Update 8

2007-06-20T01:48:00.000-07:00

This Week 18th June to 22nd June

Monday: Amicus attended the British Intitue of Human Rights Annual Conference. The theme of this conference was a human rights insight on equality laws.

Wednesday: Amicus presented to the Summer Clerks at Baker & McKenzie LLP. Margot (Executive Officer), Ramanjit Kang (former intern) and Deirdre Jackson (Office of Capital Post-Conviction Counsel, Mississippi) talked about Amicus and the work we do of 14 clerks from a variety of backgrounds.

Other things this week.
Amicus hosted a visit by Nanci Clarence, Chair of the San Francisco Bar Association

Amicus Update 7

2007-06-06T02:51:00.001-07:00

Margot is now in the office at least three times a week. She will also be checking emails daily, so please feel free to email with any queries, or just to introduce yourself.

This week Amicus will be at the Young Solicitors Group Awards Launch and "The Great Pro Bono Debate", if you are attending this event please pop by the stand and say hello!

Searching for former interns - who are available on the 20th June, 11th July or 1st Aug to give a short presentation on their internship experiences. If you have any of those dates available please contact Margot at admin@amicus-alj.org

Amicus Update 6

2007-05-14T01:35:00.000-07:00

The new Executive Officer (Margot) will start offically June 4th.

In May she will be popping into the office a couple of times a week and checking emails reguarly; so please feel free to email admin@amicus-alj.org.

Amicus Update 5

2007-05-09T04:55:00.000-07:00

It's finally time for me to say farewell to Amicus and wish all the best to my successor - Margot. I'm sure Margot has lots of new ideas of things to achieve with Amicus but I'll leave it to her to settle in and then tell you all about them. In the meantime please make her feel very welcome - former interns are encouraged to email the amicus email address to say hello and introduce themselves properly to her.

Anybody wishing to contact me will be able to do so via the Amicus group on Facebook (I'm in there!) or via my new role running the pro bono site www.legalternatives.co.uk As I doubt I will ever be able to escape the reach of Amicus, many of you will still see me around from time to time - I'll still be around helping to organise LIME 2007 in November this year...

Everyone have a lovely summer and I'll see you around - Rebecca Greenhalgh

Amicus Update 4

2007-05-08T01:04:00.000-07:00

Just to let everybody know that the existing Executive Officer, Rebecca Greenhalgh, is leaving Amicus on Wednesday 9th May. Her replacement has been found and will be gradually easing her way into the role over the coming weeks. However it does mean that queries (postal, phone and email) are likely to take longer to be dealt with during the handover period, so please bear with us!

Amicus update 3

2007-04-16T02:42:00.000-07:00

Hope you all had a good Easter break - the office is now open although I have a nice mountain of things to get through.

For those of you booked onto the training programme, a reminder that the second weekend of training is this coming weekend.

Amicus update 2

2007-04-04T05:55:00.000-07:00

The office is closed from 5th to 15th April.

If your query is urgent, please send an email with the subject line "Urgent". We will try to check emails during the closure and deal with genuine emergencies during this time. All other queries will be dealt with on 16th April.

Amicus Update 1

2007-04-03T05:52:00.000-07:00

So, the first real post. Some bits and pieces to pass on:

(1) Many of you may know that the current Executive Officer (me! Rebecca) is leaving in early May. As I have to take my remaining holiday before I go, the office will be closed from 5 to 15 April, reopening on Monday 16th. You won't be able to leave voicemail during this time but can still send emails that will be dealt with on my return. Any emergencies should still be dealt with during the holiday though!

(2) We now have an Amicus group on Facebook for everyone (current /former students /or anyone in fact) to join.

(3) A new Casework Team leader is just about to take over which means that some new projects we've been looking at should now begin to take off. Anyone keen on casework should ensure they have sent in a form so they have your contact details (and remember you need to be a member to participate in casework)

(4) A Save the Date for you all: 13 November 2007. A special day for Amicus.

(5) You can now help Amicus by carrying out your searches using www.EveryClick.com - each search generates funds for us :-) Make sure you specify Amicus....

(6) Membership renewals have been sent out and anyone who hasn't received one should email us to ask for a form or download a new form off our website (any Student members from the previous 06-07 membership year, who didn't join Backpack to access the Journal, should email the office by the end of April to receive access to the previous year's Journals).

I think that's it for now.
Rebecca

I've sent something to you and not heard back...

2007-04-03T05:45:00.001-07:00

Membership Forms are dealt with every couple of weeks so you may not get a letter immediately.

Internship Applications get an instant acknowledgment and are sent off to the Intern team who will then be in touch.

Casework Applications will also be dealt with every week or so - we currently send an acknowledgment letter although this may change with our new volunteer coming on board (watch this space).

I'm trying to get hold of someone in the office..

2007-04-03T05:44:00.001-07:00

The Exec Officer works Monday-Wednesday, 9am-4pm - but she also has to attend meetings, careers events, photocopy... so the fact that she's working doesn't guarantee she'll be in the office or near the phone! Your best bet is to either email or to ensure you ring during office hours and keeping ringing until you get through. Try emailing at any time as she does check email outside these hours in case of emergencies.

Can you visit my law school?

2007-04-03T05:43:00.003-07:00

We do try to help arrange intern talks, speaker events, film screenings and more at universities around the country, but this is dependant on volunteers. On the bright side we do have lots more volunteers coming out of the woodwork :-) so if you are based in London and are happy to help organise an event or two then get in touch. If you live outside London the main issue will be covering travel expenses - if you think your uni could do this then do get in touch.

Your website's out of date, the last training posted was in autumn!

2007-04-03T05:43:00.001-07:00

Training only happens twice a year so we only update it a few weeks beforehand :-) Also since training is proving so popular at present we often fill it up before we even have chance to update the site! This blog should hopefully help with letting you see more up to date bits of news, fingers crossed....

I've sent something to you and not heard back...

2007-04-03T05:42:00.000-07:00