Milt

So what exactly is an excessive fine? Is it an exact amount or does it differ depending on who has to pay it? The Eighth Amendment to the Constitution says excessive fines shall not be imposed. What does that mean?

I don’t say this very often, but every now and then it seems that a federal judge is being way

I know there is way too much entertainment out there. I can’t keep up with all the wrestling programming, let alone “Better Call Saul” and “The Great British Baking Show.” Work, lunch and sleeping keep getting in the way.

If, like me, you’re a fan of professional wrestling, you know that facts and logic aren’t all that important. Neither is consistency. Wrestling is a reflection of life and life can make very little sense.

It’s heartwarming when a well-meaning person tries to teach someone else a lesson and ends up doing the learning instead of just teaching. Unless, of course, the lesson learned is that you’ll be sued for teaching the lesson.

Shouldn’t obscure people have a right to speak? If you’re going to put on a festival of ideas — an event that might actually educate and expand the minds of the masses — shouldn’t you offer stuff we don’t already know?

Should you be compensated for a shattered illusion? Maybe, but what if the illusion was shattered by a lawsuit claiming

Money probably can buy you love, but can it buy justice? The answer, of course, depends on your definition of justice. If it means getting away with something, the answer is probably yes.

If you’ve been bar mitzvahed, should you get some respect? Why should you wait until you’re 14 before being addressed as “Mr.” or “Ms.”? I ask these questions because of an odd sentence that appeared last week in a ruling from a federal judge in Los Angeles: “Do not address witnesses over age 14 by their first names.” Thirteen-year-olds are fair game.

Hiring people is hard. No matter how good a prospect may look during an interview, your chances of hiring a dud are always going to be high.

If you have nothing better to do and/or you need some summertime reading, you might want to take a look at a Notice of Formal Charges issued the other day by the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission. Feel free to base a novel on the many fascinating tidbits in the 150 pages of exhibits detailing the frantic life of a jurist who doesn’t quite seem to have his act together.

Do experienced lawyers work faster? Is the prosperity of society in jeopardy because of legal fees? Does it make more sense to buy an apartment in Bay Ridge or a house in Elmont?

Here’s a weird fact: New Mexico is the only state that allows the recreational trapping and snaring of cougars. I have no idea why anyone would want to trap and snare a cougar for fun, but if that sounds like a good time to you in America, you’ll have to travel to New Mexico.

Here’s something to think about if you’re bored: If you own a restaurant and you set up a build-your-own burrito bar, are you using a recipe? After all, the customers are the ones doing the burrito building. Aren’t they the ones with personal recipes?

There’s a guy in Tennessee who’s learned that superstitions about numbers are silly. Or maybe he’s learned not to listen to gut instincts. What do guts know?

Never let it be said that I don’t appreciate police. I’m constantly finding things they do that impress me. Note this sentence from a Second Circuit ruling last week: “Officers are trained in the wrist-flick test at the Police Academy, and each of the officers involved in the events giving rise to this case received this training.”

I have a solution for the gerrymandering problem: Stop drawing lines! Of any kind. You know I’m right. None of the political lines we have now make any kind of sense. All you have to do is look at New York and Connecticut sitting right next to each other and getting the same number of U. S. senators.

I just want to say I’m sorry. I’ve been openly skeptical of public apologies in the past — most people are only sorry after getting caught. Hardly anyone who hasn’t been jailed or publicly shamed says they’re sorry.

I love it when something completely weird suddenly appears in the middle of an otherwise serious document. This is from a federal court ruling in Florida last week: “While walking to the car, one of the officers mocked plaintiff, saying, ‘You have lipstick on you sir, you have lipstick on you sir, now you need heels, now you need heels.’”

The California Supreme Court last month approved 69 new and/or updated rules of professional conduct and I know that all of you diligent lawyers out there are already completely familiar with them.