The times they are a-changin'! Oh, no they aren't! Oh, yes they are!

A story in Sunday's New York Times noted that the US chief justice John Roberts had quoted Bob Dylan in a judicial opinion in  "an achingly boring dispute between pay phone companies and long distance carriers" – "'When you got nothing, you got nothing to lose.’ Bob Dylan, Like a Rolling Stone, on Highway 61 Revisited (Columbia Records 1965).” (The fact that the orignal lyric is "When you ain't got nothing" is part of the story.)

This is not what struck me as the real story, however. Rather, it was the fact that the article quoted Alex B. Long, "a law professor at the University of Tennessee and perhaps the nation’s leading authority on the citation of popular music in judicial opinions." Is this a competitive field? How many experts are there on the citation of popular music in judicial opinions?

 Professor Long has, in fact, published a study in the Washington & Lee Law Review, showing that Dylan has been quoted in 26 opinions, Paul Simon in 8 (12 if you include  Simon & Garfunkel) and Bruce Springsteen in 5. More here:

This leads me to believe that there is a need for a similar study on animal citations in judicial opinions. If anyone is willing to (generously ) fund such as study, I'd be willing to have my arm twisted to undertake it.  I'd propose starting with three species: say, goats, lemurs and possums. I'd accept substitutions for lemurs or possums. But not goats. That, i'm afraid, would be a deal-breaker.