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	<title>Law Blog</title>
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		<title>The Outsider Penalty: When Judicial Comfort Matters More Than Truth</title>
		<link>http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/the-outsider-penalty-when-judicial-comfort-matters-more-than-truth/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jason Ostendorf]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Tue, 21 Jul 2026 04:47:49 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Law and Psychology]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/?p=2191</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[We tell ourselves a comforting story about judges. We imagine that once the robe goes on, the human being somehow comes off. The architecture of every courtroom reinforces the illusion: elevated benches, black robes, formal titles, ritualized language, and the command to rise when the judge enters. Every detail quietly suggests that ordinary human judgment has been replaced by something &#8230; <br/><a href="http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/the-outsider-penalty-when-judicial-comfort-matters-more-than-truth/">Read Full Post</a>]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>Power Doesn&#8217;t Need to Be Just or Correct—It Just Needs to Be Obeyed</title>
		<link>http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/power-doesnt-need-to-be-just-or-correct-it-just-needs-to-be-obeyed/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jason Ostendorf]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 20 Jul 2026 02:36:52 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Law and Psychology]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/?p=2175</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[People like to imagine that authority and legitimacy are connected to correctness. We want to believe that the person with the power to decide is also the person who is right. That laws command obedience because they are just. That court decisions carry force because judges have carefully examined the facts, correctly applied the law, and reached the proper result. &#8230; <br/><a href="http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/power-doesnt-need-to-be-just-or-correct-it-just-needs-to-be-obeyed/">Read Full Post</a>]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>It&#8217;s 2026. Why the Hell Are You Still Calling Your Lawyer?</title>
		<link>http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/its-2026-why-the-hell-are-you-still-calling-your-lawyer/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jason Ostendorf]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sat, 18 Jul 2026 21:09:14 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Law and Psychology]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/?p=2169</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[It is 2026. We carry computers in our pockets. We transmit documents across the planet in seconds. Lawyers can search thousands of judicial opinions without leaving their desks. Artificial intelligence can analyze information, summarize documents, and assist with complex research faster than most humans could have imagined a generation ago. And yet, somehow, grown adults still believe the optimal way &#8230; <br/><a href="http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/its-2026-why-the-hell-are-you-still-calling-your-lawyer/">Read Full Post</a>]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>LVNV Funding v. Finch: Maryland&#8217;s Collection Agency Licensing Trap for Debt Buyers</title>
		<link>http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/lvnv-funding-v-finch-marylands-collection-agency-licensing-trap-for-debt-buyers/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jason Ostendorf]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 17 May 2026 17:02:08 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Consumer Protection]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/?p=2165</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Maryland’s debt collection statutes contain a trap that many debt buyers either overlooked or hoped courts would overlook for them. The problem is deceptively simple. If a company purchases consumer debt that was already in default when acquired, and then attempts to collect that debt in Maryland, the company generally must be licensed as a collection agency under the Maryland &#8230; <br/><a href="http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/lvnv-funding-v-finch-marylands-collection-agency-licensing-trap-for-debt-buyers/">Read Full Post</a>]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>How to Deal with a Hostile Judge: Remember, It&#8217;s Theatre</title>
		<link>http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/how-to-deal-with-a-hostile-judge-remember-its-theatre/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jason Ostendorf]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sat, 16 May 2026 19:58:44 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Law and Psychology]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/?p=2160</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Every litigator eventually encounters one. The hostile judge. The impatient judge. The judge who interrupts before you finish a sentence, rolls his eyes at your argument, lectures counsel from the bench, or speaks with such exaggerated certainty that anyone unfamiliar with the law would assume wisdom must be radiating from the robe itself. Young lawyers often make the same mistake &#8230; <br/><a href="http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/how-to-deal-with-a-hostile-judge-remember-its-theatre/">Read Full Post</a>]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>The Legal System Often Cares More About Procedure Than Truth</title>
		<link>http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/the-legal-system-often-cares-more-about-procedure-than-truth/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jason Ostendorf]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Wed, 06 May 2026 21:23:34 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Litigation]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/?p=2145</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Most people enter the legal system believing courts exist primarily to determine what happened and reach the right result. That is not entirely wrong. But it is incomplete in a way that shocks many litigants the first time they encounter it. Because much of modern litigation is not actually about truth. It is about procedure. Deadlines. Jurisdiction. Preservation. Finality. Waiver. &#8230; <br/><a href="http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/the-legal-system-often-cares-more-about-procedure-than-truth/">Read Full Post</a>]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>Why People Think the Law Is Moral (And Why That Can Be Misleading)</title>
		<link>http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/why-people-think-the-law-is-moral-and-why-that-can-be-misleading/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jason Ostendorf]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 20 Apr 2026 13:55:12 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Law and Psychology]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/?p=2141</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[People often assume that if something is legal, it must be fair—and if something is illegal, it must be wrong. That assumption feels intuitive. It’s how most of us were raised to think about rules, authority, and consequences. It’s also not how the legal system actually works. The Intuition Trap From a young age, we are taught that rules exist &#8230; <br/><a href="http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/why-people-think-the-law-is-moral-and-why-that-can-be-misleading/">Read Full Post</a>]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>Do I Have to Go to Court in Person? (And When You Don&#8217;t)</title>
		<link>http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/do-i-have-to-go-to-court-in-person-and-when-you-dont/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jason Ostendorf]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 19 Apr 2026 02:44:51 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Litigation]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/?p=2139</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[If you’ve never been involved in a court case before, one of the first assumptions is this: you’re going to have to take time off work, sit in a courtroom for hours, and wait for your case to be called. That used to be true. It’s no longer always the case. Many Hearings Are Now Remote Courts increasingly allow certain &#8230; <br/><a href="http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/do-i-have-to-go-to-court-in-person-and-when-you-dont/">Read Full Post</a>]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>Decriminalization and Prostitution Law: How Legal Frameworks Influence Safety, Reporting, and Enforcement Outcomes</title>
		<link>http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/decriminalization-and-prostitution-law-how-legal-frameworks-influence-safety-reporting-and-enforcement-outcomes/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jason Ostendorf]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 01 Feb 2026 17:47:02 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Civil Liberties]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/?p=2128</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Public debate about prostitution law often collapses distinct issues into one moral argument. But criminal law is ultimately a tool designed to produce outcomes: reduced violence, improved reporting of serious crimes, and enforcement resources aimed at coercion and exploitation rather than ambiguity. This article does not ask the reader to endorse any particular lifestyle or social norm. It asks a &#8230; <br/><a href="http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/decriminalization-and-prostitution-law-how-legal-frameworks-influence-safety-reporting-and-enforcement-outcomes/">Read Full Post</a>]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>Why Legal Precision Matters: Distinguishing Trafficking From Prostitution Law</title>
		<link>http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/why-legal-precision-matters-distinguishing-trafficking-from-prostitution-law/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jason Ostendorf]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 01 Feb 2026 14:47:05 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Civil Liberties]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/?p=2123</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Sex trafficking involving force, fraud, or coercion is a serious crime and a major human rights concern. Preventing exploitation is a goal shared across political and moral perspectives. That common ground is important. But legal clarity requires recognizing that trafficking and prostitution statutes do not operate identically. Treating them as the same problem may feel morally decisive, yet it raises &#8230; <br/><a href="http://www.ostendorflaw.com/blog/why-legal-precision-matters-distinguishing-trafficking-from-prostitution-law/">Read Full Post</a>]]></description>
		
		
		
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