  Using the covariant constituent quark model previously developed by us we
calculate the differential rate and the forward-backward asymmetries on the
lepton and hadron side for the rare baryon decays Lambda_b -> Lambda l+ l-
(l=e, mu, tau) and Lambda_b -> Lambda gamma. We use helicity methods to write
down a three-fold joint angular decay distribution for the cascade decay
Lambda_b -> Lambda (-> p pi-) + J_eff (-> l+ l-). Through appropriate angular
integrations we obtain expressions for the rates, the lepton-side
forward-backward (FB) asymmetry and the polarization of the daughter baryon
Lambda leading to a hadron-side forward-backward asymmetry. We present
numerical results on these observables using the covariant quark model and
compare our results to the results of other calculations that have appeared in
the literature.
