See photo.

This reminds me of the joke: ‘Mit ihm ist ein erstklassiger Anwalt gestorben.’ – ‘Was, zwei Männer in einem Grab?’

(Via Udo, who also links to this)

If you are going into law and can’t manage the numeracy of the last entry, you might consult this firm (did they not take part in spelling bees?)

(Thanks to Trevor)

Clemens Mayer, 19, about to start as a law student, has won the Deutsche Gedächtnismeisterschaft (German memory championships).

In 30 minutes he learnt 1040 numbers. He associates each number between 0 and 99 with a symbol – a cow, a mouse, a pen.

bq. Der angehende Jura-Student Clemens Mayer, 19, aus Brannenburg hat die Deutsche Gedächtnismeisterschaft gewonnen. Damit löste er Gunter Karsten ab, der diesen Titel sieben Mal in Folge gewann.

He also managed to associate 85 names with faces. He trains for this every day by cutting out hundreds of faces from Quelle or Otto catalogues, under each of which his mother writes a fictitious name.

I suppose it’s good mental training for both of them. I just have this picture of them sitting there with the catalogues and the scissors.

(Süddeutsche Zeitung)

I’m pleased to see a parody online of the dreadful We’re not Afraid (of terrorists) site. It’s the i am fucking terrified site (some offensive language and not all very funny, though).

Via Boing Boing

Roy Stuart was Law Fellow at Hertford College, Oxford, from 1969 until his retirement in 2003 and died in June 2005 aged 68. There is a column by David Pannick in the Times Online law section (registration free) – I haven’t found an obituary.

In one of the untidiest rooms in England, Roy would lead his tutorial pupils towards an understanding of the principles of criminal law, contract and jurisprudence with a mixture of wit, empathy and intellectual rigour, stirred with a measure of cynicism.

When he made an interesting point, or more rarely when one of his pupils made what he considered to be a valuable contribution, he would bounce up and down with excitement. And who could forget his tutorial on the legal problems posed by R v Bourne (the defendant who forced his wife to have sex with their dog), complete with “Get down, Rover!” actions? Roy Stuart told us that he argued only one case as an advocate in Canada and was frustrated that the judge did not understand the point he was making. So he decided that the academic life was more appropriate for him.

Céline reports that the Institute of Linguists got its charter.

bq. The Institute intends formally to commence operating as the Chartered Institute of Linguists from 1st September 2005, falling in line with the start of its financial year. The petition also empowers the new Chartered Institute to confer the status of “Chartered Linguist” upon suitably qualified linguists across the profession. In this regard consultation with professional colleagues in other relevant membership bodies will continue, with a view to offering the distinguished designation in the near future.

The IoL does represent not only translators and interpreters, but also language teachers. I’m suspicious of qualifications for translation and attempts to regulate the profession. I wonder what a chartered linguist is?

bq. Mr. Henry Pavlovich, Chief Executive of the Institute of Linguists, said: “This is a major step forward for the public and people working with or through languages. The award of a Royal Charter is a mark of approbation for the profession. We hope that linguists everywhere will wish to consider individual chartered status in their own right whether or not they become members of the Chartered Institute of Linguists.”

So it could be open to members of the ITI too, perhaps only people living in the UK.