HAPPY CHRISTMAS 2025

 In England we say HAPPY CHRISTMAS. 

For today, as you're celebrating around loved ones, spend a few minutes debating this important Christmas question: 

What is the best Christmas movie? 

1. It's a Wonderful Life. 

If you want to claim the title you gotta knock off the champ, which this movie is. 

A timeless reminder that an ordinary life can have extraordinary impact. Frank Capra’s classic turns Christmas into a meditation on purpose, community, and the quiet heroism of showing up. A movie that starts with despair (not unlike the feeling we frequently get seeing the REGB judge assigned to a new case), flirts with catastrophe, and ends by reminding you that showing up for other people is the whole ballgame—Christmas or otherwise. If this one doesn’t move you, the problem isn’t the film.

2. Miracle On 34th Street 

A warm, witty defense of belief in a skeptical world.  A federal trial for Santa Claus, complete with evidence, Jencks, witnesses, and a judge who understands that the law occasionally needs a nudge from common sense. (We need more Marcia Cookes on the bench is our Xmas wish for 2025).  Something that would never happen these days which is why liking the movie is an automatic disqualification from membership in the nattering nabobs of negativity known as the federalist society It’s a Christmas movie that believes institutions matter—but only when they abandon balls and strikes for faith, decency, and a little magic.

3. Love Actually

A messy, charming, thoroughly British mosaic of romance, loneliness, and connection, all unfolding in the weeks before Christmas. It insists—sometimes awkwardly, sometimes beautifully—that love really is all around. Nine stories, several questionable life choices, and at least one Xmas Eve visit that could have resulted in a restraining order if it took place in Hialeah.  And yet—it works. A chaotic reminder that love is inconvenient, imperfect, and often embarrassing, which makes it feel honest enough to pass the Christmas test. Mr. Bean in two small scenes quietly makes a play to steal the movie from a large, talented ensemble cast. 

4. Christmas With The Cranks. 

An exaggerated cautionary tale about what happens when you try to opt out of the holidays—and your neighbors take it personally. Loud, broad, occasionally silly, but it lands on a familiar truth: Christmas is less about what you want than what the community expects you to survive together.

5. Die Hard. 

Stop the nonsense. This is a Christmas movie. "Now I have a machine gun. Ho Ho Ho" on a sign on a body in a Santa Claus Cap ends the discussion. A high-octane action movie disguised as a Christmas classic. Set during a holiday office party, it proves that reconciliation, sacrifice, and even explosions can belong under the Christmas tree. Yes, it’s a Christmas movie. It takes place at a Christmas party, reconciliation is the emotional engine, and goodwill is literally defended with bare feet and bad intentions. If explosions disqualify it, then so should family dinners.

Trivia Q: name the one actor that appears in two of the movies on the list. Ho Ho Ho. 

NEW BOND SCHEDULE 2026

 You wanna dance you gotta pay the band. 

You wanna borrow, you gotta pay the man. 

Rocky Balboa. 

Without further ado, here is the much anticipated (only if you're a legal nerd) Florida Supreme Court administrative order on Bonds effective January 2026. 

Practice Tip; The State of Florida objected. To any bond, Any time. For any reason. Victim wants max. 

Aosc25 69 Bond by Anonymous PbHV4H

We gave you Carolina over Tampa and Steelers over Lions yesterday. No thanks necessary. We will be opening an Opus One rather than a Trulia on Christmas this year. 

Coming this week. What you have been waiting for all year. Best Christmas Movies and Best Christmas Songs. 

NFL WEEK 16 2025

 Quick post- we are running to catch a flight. 

Thank you Bears winning in OT last night and giving Rumpole's account a nice boost. 

Dolphins starting a new rookie QB. We are sticking with the one bet that has made us more money this year than any other. Achane over in rushing yards. Today it is high- 82.5 (oh for the days a few weeks ago when the line was in the 60's and we crushed it).  Bengals will be trying to stop the run and make the rookie QB throw the rock. And the Steelers stopped Achane last week. We are betting on a bounce-back game at home in the warm weather. The A train can bu$t one for 80 at any time. 

Speaking of Steelers- Rodgers is humming (20 TDs this year so far, or almost half his age) and has a great record against the Lions. PGH is getting 7 on the road. We are taking the points. 

Game of the day is in ....wait....Carolina??!!  Yup. Panthers battle Tampa Bay twice in the next few weeks for the division title. Tampa in free fall. Roll with the home dog Cats +2.5. 

Oh we forgot. Thank you Hurricanes for the strong D yesterday and keeping your matchup with Texas AM under. Big time under. Was never close. 

MEL BLACK HAS PASSED AWAY

 The very sad news reached us this morning that one of the giants of our profession- Mel Black - has passed away. 

You were not a criminal defense attorney in South Florida for the past nearly sixty years (Mel was a lawyer for 58 years!) without crossing paths with Mel Black. And when you did you came away thinking that he was both as good a lawyer as it gets, and a true gentleman. He was from the generation where a lawyer's word was his bond. He was a lawyer's lawyer- the person you went to with a question or problem - and he always had time for you.

When you tried a case with him on your side you had no worries. It was like walking into a schoolyard fight with your big brother who knew karate. Just wait until the other side saw him in action! And he was just great to work with and watch prepare a case. 

Mel was a mentor to young lawyers; admired by all of his colleagues, and a gentleman to all whom crossed his path. The word often used to describe him is mensch. We believe he spent part of his later years on his sailboat sailing the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. He enjoyed life and that was always evident when you spoke with him. 

We have lost yet another giant in our profession. We will not soon see his likes again.  

HO HO HUM

 Our Decembers have been the same for nearly 40 years. Calendar seems clear, then judges start rushing to clear matters that have sat for months on their docket and holiday stuffed plate. And suddenly we are busy. Which is why next December will be different. But we currently find ourselves racing from court to court, State to State, handling matters that should have been addressed in July or August, when the judge was on their Carnival Caribbean Cruise (with the all drinks included add-on, naturally). 

So as we trudged to court in Chicago this morning, which is truly freezing, we paused for a moment in a local coffee shop to throw up a post. And never fear, we have a full holiday  series of posts ready to go and entertain next week. 

So until then. Ho Ho Hum... we were not invited, and we would not attend. But if you want some cookies and hot choc, and happen to be in the REGJB, then wander up to the 5th floor of the REGJB (remember to use the escalators unless they are broken. Nothing bothers us more than to get on an REGJB elevator for 7-9 and have people press 1-6. Grrrrr. 😠).

True story- a good friend and colleague was in Tallahassee for an interview to be appointed a DeSantis Drone. And some 30 something MAGA moron interviewing her/him asked the following legal question- the kind of question that would cause the deepest of legal scholar thinkers to think long and hard about the law- the kind of question that clearly is designed to find the very best and brightest amongst us- 

How do you define a man and a woman?

Idiots. 

And if you have ever wondered how some of the people we practice in front of became judges, therein lies your answer. 

Enjoy the cookies and hot choc.  And tell your fav judge we said HI!

NFL 2025 WEEK 15

 We start our post with some sad notes, remembering that we live in a violent and dangerous world. On Saturday two students were killed and several remained hospitalized, one in critical condition,  in the second shooting incident at Brown University. 

And in Australia, Jewish families who had gathered at a local beach in Sydney to celebrate Hannukah were attacked and multiple people were killed. Australia, which has the highest community of Holocaust survivors outside of Israel, has recently become a hot bed of antisemitism and anti-sematic violent attacks. The thought of families with children gathering to celebrate a joyous event only to be victims of a planned attack is not only sobering and so very sad, but it is a story that has been tragically occurring over and over these past few years- not that it has ever really stopped since the end of WWII. 

Take a moment and reflect that as John Kennedy said, "We all inhabit the same planet, breathe the same air, and we are all mortal."  When will learn to let all our brothers and sisters live in peace? 

Okay, here we go. 

A family member who is an NBA fanatic called us last night- we just had to take Jaylen Brunson of the Knicks to score more than 25 points ( he ended with 40) and then roll that money (a bet called If...then) on  a parlay: the Spurs money line over OKC and  De'Aaron Fox over 2.5 three pointers (he got three of them).  So as we used to say over the phone to our dear departed friend and bookie 52nd Street Irwin :  "If Two dimes on Brunson over 25 then Spurs money line plus Fox over two and a half threes."  There was something romantic about making a surreptitious phone call and using lingo that the average person could not decode. It was much more exciting that tapping a stupid app. 

Ah, to go back to the days when we were a hustling law student roaming the halls of the local courthouse, ostensibly interning for a local criminal defense attorney legend, but in reality taking bets from judges, lawyers, and clerks for Irwin and getting 15% of the profits.  We carried rolls of quarters, medical wipes for the payphones, and a beeper, and competed with the local small-time drug dealers for the payphones:

 "Hey you want some weed or blow?"

"Nah. But we can get you the Jets plus five over the Dolphins tonight if you want. The rest of the books have it at plus four and a half." 

Judge us if you wish, but it not only paid for law school (it was A LOT cheaper back then), it also allowed us to pick up checks at the Palm and these new places that served something called sushi, for our struggling comrades in law school. 

Enough reminiscing. Here we go. There are some very interesting games today. 

Bengals at home over the fading Ravens and getting 2.5? Oh yeah, we like Cincy today. 

Browns at Bears in brutally Chicago cold weather. The under 38.5 looks so tempting, so we will go light on the over. And just a bit on Bears -7.5. This could be a last second FG win, or a 38-10 thumping. 

Here's the marquee matchup: Bills (-1.5) at the Cheaters. Buffalo has not had the season it wanted, but we see them as getting things together and getting hot at the right time. Take Buffalo over NE.  (But let's hope for NE running back Henderson to have a big day for one of Rumpole's FF team). 

A $25 parlay Bengals and Bills money line pays $105 on the Hardrock app- so we are placing this bet, but with more digits at risk.  

And finally THE game everyone will be watching. 74 (actually 44) year old Phillip Rivers starting for the Colts against perhaps the best defense in the NFL: Seattle. Apparently Dan Marino had a scheduling conflict, was not available, and Broadway Joe Namath wanted too much money. Seattle is going to win. BUT Rivers passing for over 155 yards? Yeah, sign us up to root for the old guy every time. 

We are enjoying our third Survivor championship and are sad to report that in our big Vegas contest, we had to pick two teams last week in an effort to narrow the field. One of our picks was Tampa Bay- the team that knocked out Dan Tibbet in our league, and 35% of the remaining players in our Vegas contest- and Rumpole is sadly out just on the bad side of the bubble and we are not cashing anything. Better luck next year. 

LAST GOOD WEEK OF THE YEAR TO TRY A CASE

 The last good week of the year to try a case is next week. Everyone, including jurors, are in a holiday mood.  Answer ready for trial. 

The prior post answer to the quiz (RCA 1929 report) also yielded the nugget that Rumpole is reading Andrew Ross Sorkin's bestseller 1929 on the 1929 crash. The book reads like a mystery thriller. And this is the perfect subject for our Financial Thursday ( (c) Rumpole & REGJB Blog 2025) blog post. 

Want to make money? Be a contrarian. Go left when everyone goes right and remember Warren Buffet's great lines about his philosophy: When people are greedy, be fearful. When people are fearful, be greedy.

We are NOT in 1929 with the AI stocks. We are looking at this time with Nvidia, AVGO (Broadcom), Marvel, Taiwan Semi Conductor, and AMD, similar to the time of Microsoft and Apple circa 1995. We are on the cusp of a revolution that will change everything from how you practice law, to how McDonalds gets you your Big Mac, fries, and coke, and everything in between.  Heart surgery; creation of movies; travel; house cleaning; investing; restaurant reservations; medical decisions; schooling- you name it- AI will change it. 

Without anyone knowing, we have sprinkled our posts these last few months with those created entirely by AI. Chat GBT is given this blog address and then asked to create a post on farming in our voice, and it does such a good job, even we were fooled. 

So here is the thing. Find your AI stock. A chip stock, a software stock for AI, a switch stock like Arista Networks, an energy company or a construction company that is constructing the buildings housing the AI centers. Slowly accumulate a nice position and then email us in 2030 thanking us for helping you make your first ten million.  Buying Apple or Amazon in 1999 would not have made you tens of millions in 2002, but it would have done so by now, and even earlier- like 2015. So pick your horse and get on and ride. 

FYI Here's your AI generated post on farming in our voice: 

Ah, farming, dear reader — that ancient profession far more honest than anything occurring on the ninth floor of the Justice Building. While we lawyers till our briefs and sow our motions in the stony soil of judicial temperament, the humble farmer rises with the sun, not to face a docket of squabbling counsel, but to coax life itself from the earth. No discovery disputes, no surprise witnesses, no ASA claiming “Your Honor, the victim wants the max.” Only weather, soil, sweat, and the eternal hope that this year’s crop will fare better than last term’s trial schedule. And between you and me, if judges possessed half the patience of a man waiting for his corn to grow, we’d all get out of hearings in time for a Cafecito.