Following months of discussion, a committee reviewing the American Bar Association’s law school accreditation standards has agreed to changes in the way law schools report graduate employment and salaries.

Vision 2020, an equality initiative of Drexel University, announced the naming of former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna E. Shalala to its advisory board, which also includes ABA President-Elect Laurel Bellows and former ABA President Karen Mathis.

A month after an ABA team called for a halt in Kentucky executions because of a high error rate and other issues, state lawmakers are considering forming a task force to study the state’s death penalty system and halting executions while the ABA panel does its work. [Similar items in WXIX-Fox in Cincinnati and Kentucky.com.]

As the Irish government implements judicial pay cuts and other revenue-saving measures, the publication notes that the ABA and the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe sent a letter to the head of the International Monetary Fund that expresses concern about the independence of the legal profession.

At the AALS conference last week, admissions officers spoke of their balancing act: recruiting students without promising more than law school can provide. At some schools, senior administrators discourage admissions officers from releasing more than required by the ABA.

At its annual meeting, the Association of American Law Schools approved four schools for membership, and ABA President Wm. T. (Bill) Robinson III spoke on attacks to legal education.

A summary of an American Lawyer blog post critical of a recent New York Times article on ABA accreditation.

The American Bar Association, Tort, Trial and Insurance Practice Section is proposing the ABA House of Delegates pass a recommendation calling for all political subdivisions to repeal or amend all laws or policies inconsistent with the ADA.

The building housing the ABA’s Chicago headquarters recently received Gold certification (the second highest rating) under the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED for Existing Buildings voluntary system.

A report released earlier this month on a two-year assessment conducted by the American Bar Association [ABA] found that Kentucky’s death penalty system is so broken and unfair that the state should declare a moratorium on executions.

Contested high court elections are held in 21 states, and 32 states elect all or some trial court judges in contested races, according to the American Bar Association. In Alabama, appellate and trial court judges are chosen for six-year terms in partisan elections.

SSC paralegal program coordinator Bill Goren has published three editions of his book, “Understanding the Americans with Disabilities Act,” which is put out by the American Bar Association.