Above the Law

Morning Docket: 07.10.26

* OpenAI accused of hiding evidence in NY Times copyright case. Reached for comment, ChatGPT said, “I’m sorry, you’re right, I was supposed to produce that.” [Law360]

* Lawyer dressed as police officer to spy on ex-girlfriend at Nando’s. [Roll on Friday]

* Ninth Circuit judge Ryan Nelson will have his parking lot tussle with another motorist heard by the Fourth Circuit. Here’s a helpful guide for him. [LA Times]

*Every federal judge in the Middle District of Tennessee recused themselves from defamation case against Candace Owens. No reason given. [MSN]

* After killing Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, ICE says there’s no bodycam footage because of “back-to-back Democrat shutdowns.” [Houston Chronicle]

* And now the federal government is pressuring witnesses to Araujo’s killing to quickly self-deport — which is what we generally call witness tampering. [Eliza Orlins]

*ABA successfully connected a death row inmate to pro bono attorneys who got him freed. [ABA Journal]

* Accounting firms see problems with SEC’s proposal to drop quarterly reporting. Like, you know, the fraud. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Simpson Thacher heading to malpractice trial in Florida. [Reuters]

* Judge wants to hear more about how the DOJ suddenly decided to drop its case against Sullivan & Cromwell client Gautam Adani as soon as he promised investment projects. [Bloomberg]

Donald Trump Doesn’t Understand The Adage About Catching Flies With Honey — See Also

Discovery Really Is The Best Part Of Litigation: ABA wants the deets on the Trump Biglaw executive orders.

The World’s Best Law Schools: Of course the USA features prominently on this ranking.

CSI Agentic: Exterro releases an agentic AI tool for forensics. Courts will take a while to come to grips with this.

Born To Lose: Donald Trump asks Supreme Court for big favor by calling them insane.

The Biglaw Associates Billing The Most

These are some pretty busy associates.

On The Other Side Of The 4th

Legal and ethical issues abound after 250 years.

Lawyers’ Use Of AI Notetakers And Client Conversations: Ethics Rules, Risks, And Best Practices (2026 Update)

Now with guidance from NYC Opinion 1270 on ethical issues related to attorneys using AI transcription, and more.

Trump Calls Supreme Court ‘Absolutely Insane’ And Then Asks For Birthright Citizenship Do-Over

Bold strategy Cotton, let's see if it pays off for 'em.

The Leader Is Not The Point: Serving Organizations By Serving Their Members

Leadership starts with service.

New Study Confirms Your First Law Firm Probably Won’t Be Your Last

Per NALP, today's young lawyers are changing jobs so frequently that reciprocity has become a career necessity.

The ABA Wants The White House’s Receipts On The Biglaw Executive Orders

The 'law firm intimidation policy' suit just entered its 'show us the memos' phase.

The Best Law Schools In The World (2026)

Is your law school one of the best in the world? Find out here.

Agentic AI For Forensics Investigations Is Fast, Auditable, And About To Bloody Daubert

Exterro's ARMOUR for FTK brings agentic AI to digital forensics.

Patience Is Not Passive

You can be direct without being blunt.

Job Of The Month: Senior Title Insurance Underwriting Counsel

In-house, hybrid roles in Stamford, Connecticut, and Tarrytown, New York.

Norm Ai Hits Unicorn Status With $120M Series C At $1.2 Billion Valuation

The New York-based legal and compliance AI company joins a growing but still select club of legal AI companies valued at $1 billion or more.

Fractional General Counsel: A Win-Win Proposition For Certain Clients, And Certain Lawyers

With the advent of AI, it becomes much more realistic for a fractional GC concept to work.