Today marks the third annual Informal Presentation on the Art of Dance, a dance event put on by the Dance Theatre of Harlem and the Dancing Through Barriers Ensemble. The two troupes converge each year in a most unconventional space: The State Supreme Court of Manhattan! Arthur Mitchell (himself a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet in the '50s and '60s) co-founded DTB after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr, and the......

Rensselaer County Clerk Frank J. Merola is unhappy with Gov. Spitzer's plan to issue drivers licenses to illegal immigrants. As an employee of the State, he has no legal discretion over whether he can ignore the plan once it's enacted, so he's filed a lawsuit to block the initiative in state Supreme Court in Albany. In a statement explaining his lawsuit. County Clerk Frank Merola alluded to a recent public opinion poll that showed......

A report from Citizen Action of New York suggests that Manhattan juries have "strong racial and ethnic disparities in the people who show up to serve." While whites are just more than half of Manhattan's population, about three-quarters of juries are made up of whites. The group had some suggestions on how to change that:The report recommends that these steps be taken by court officials on the state and local levels Manhattan County Clerk......

What would Alvy Singer think? ianqui emailed us about a jury summons notice that came in the mail. Only it was directed to someone who lived in "Jew York"! Clearly the Post Office relies on zip codes, as the summons did get to ianqui. Which makes us wonder how many Manhattan residents were told that they suddenly lived in Jew York - or when the County Clerk's office realized the typo. At any rate,......

With so much confusion surrounding voting this year, you might be wondering what you should do if you show up at your local polling place on Tuesday and find that your name isn't on the roster of registered voters. Take this advice from Electoral-Vote.com, a daily, nay hourly, read for political junkies: First, be absolutely sure you are in the correct precinct. If you are in the wrong precinct, in most states, your vote......

Judge and other legal eagles believe that jurors should have better experiences doing their civic duty, according to a report from Chief Judge Judith Kaye and a state commission (Commission of the Jury). They say potential jurors should spend less time waiting in windowless rooms and more time at home if not selected, as well as the fact that lawyers shouldn't use jurors as bargaining tools when trying to settle before trial. Here here! One......