[Ed. note: This post is by guest writer LIAM HILL (no relation to Kashmir), who will be writing a series of posts about fashion and style. Fashion is a popular topic these days. See, e.g., the undershirts post (200 comments).

Perhaps it's because Fashion Week is about to get under way in New York. You can follow goings-on over at our sister site, Fashionista, which will be covering the collections live from Bryant Park.]

With the economic downturn, lawyer layoffs, and pushed-back start dates, I've been wondering about the influence that such turmoil has had on -- what else? -- office fashion. I tend to agree with Mark Twain, who said, "Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society." (Well, unless you're in the middle of Times Square, with a guitar and a cowboy hat.)

Leaner times tend to bring out the Brooks Brothers aesthetic, and business casual once again goes where it belongs -- away. Ties and coats return, flip-flops and "commuter shoes" stay home, and "white shoe" again can once mean white shoe (but only on Fridays). Although many will resist the siren song of a more formal workplace, the trend is inevitable. I know you won't believe me, but apparently those who want to take your job already do. At least according to Turnbull & Asser.

Read my interview with James Cook (pictured), Bespoke Manager of Turnbull & Asser, and share your thoughts on the current state of men's fashion, after the jump.

This post is directed primarily at our male readers. But female readers with opinions about men's fashion are also welcome to chime in.

To read the question presented, see this post by Bess Levin, over at our sister site, Dealbreaker. For one style columnist's take on the issue, see here (but it's a bit of a punt).

Then take our poll below, and share your opinion in the comments. The Dealbreaker post has almost 120 comments thus far. C'mon, ATL readers -- we can top that!

This Is Serious [Dealbreaker]
V-neck or crew? The choice isn't so simple [Memphis Commercial Appeal]

Judges who hold people in contempt, or even jail them, for letting their cellphones go off in court -- e.g., Robert Restaino, Diane Boswell -- may be overreacting.

The same can't be said for Judge Janet Booth, of Garrard County, Kentucky. Judge Booth just sent a woman to jail, for three days, for wearing short shorts to court.

This was completely justified. Short shorts do not belong in court. Nor do they belong in the office.

Fashion lesson over. Class dismissed.

P.S. And if you're a guy, don't forget to wear a tie to court -- especially if you're arguing before the Federal Circuit.

Judge jails woman for wearing short shorts [On the beat in the Bluegrass]
Note to West Coast Lawyers: The Federal Circuit Requires a Tie [WSJ Law Blog]

Earlier: Shorts Crack the Code [Dealbreaker]

Alabama state court judges: they love themselves some Ten Commandments.

Just like Roy Moore, former chief justice of Alabama, Judge Ashley McKathan thinks the "higher law" has a place in the courtroom. Four years ago, the county circuit court judge had the Ten Commandments embroidered on his judicial robe. Presumably it's a silent reminder, to himself and to those in his courtroom, of the Really Big Judge upstairs.

Now he's in trouble with the American Civil Liberties Union for invoking the Big Judge in the courtroom again -- this time out loud. The ACLU has filed a complaint against him with the Judicial Inquiry Commission for violating ethics rules and the U.S. Constitution. From CNN:

The ACLU complaint said McKathan dropped to his knees and prayed aloud during a court hearing in February. He told the 100 people in the courtroom that he was not afraid to call on the name of Jesus Christ, witnesses said, and ordered all to join hands and pray, according to the complaint filed soon after the hearing....

In response to the complaint, McKathan told the Mobile Press-Register for a story Thursday: "Whatever comes of all that, I'll continue to have peace." Quoting Romans in the King James version of the Bible, the judge added: "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them that are called according to his purpose."

Amen.

Complaint against judge praying in court [CNN]

We've noticed that the comment thread on the cold offers post has morphed into a fashion advice column. Here are some of the on-campus interview attire questions that have been posed:

-- Is a light gray suit a bad choice for interviews? Dark brown shoes, black, or either?

-- What suit colors are acceptable?

-- For females, do you have to wear a button down under your skirt suit, or can you wear something else?

-- Skirt-suits v. pants suits?

We pajama-wearing ATL bloggers are no longer well-versed in the world of suit fashion, but Corporette has an advice post on interview fashion, in response to a query from a 3L. Their advice for the ladies:

Choose a dark suit. A black or navy suit is always more conservative than a brightly- or lightly-colored suit, and if you have to buy something inexpensive then it will hide the imperfections in the fabric and the seams.

Buy a skirt suit.... Be sure you pull a chair over to a full-length mirror and practice sitting in the skirt suit; you want to see what the interviewer will see and make sure you look appropriate and tasteful.

Is this to prevent a Basic Instinct moment?

Additional fashion tips, after the jump.

[Ed. note: This post is by EXLEY, one of the finalists in ATL Idol, the "reality blogging" competition that will determine ATL's next editor. It is marked with Exley's avatar (at right).]

As anyone remotely familiar with the law knows, the devil is in the details. Similarly, it's the little things that can sometimes make or break a long day at the office. A mouse with a trackball that refuses to roll in a particular direction, for example, or harsh bathroom lighting that gives everyone's reflection a sickly, ghoulish, glow can really mess a girl up. And a half-nod of recognition from a usually impassive lobby security guard can make a dude feel like the office is his second crib.

The dog days of summer present their own set of potential pet peeves.

The major complaint we've heard from female associates is that offices are too damn cold in the summer. Of course, offices are probably the same temperature year-round, but the coolness is more tolerable in the non-summer seasons when people wear warmer clothes. When it is as high as 90 degrees outside, however, it is impossible to commute to work in wool slacks and a sweater set without suffering heat stroke and/or being fingered as a crazy person (especially if wearing a pair of ostentatious cross trainers). Physical and mental health issues aside, it just feels good to be able to change it up sartorially once in a while.

Unfortunately, those who indulge in summer apparel sometimes need to store additional layers of clothing at work or snuggle under company-issued fleece at their desks. And forget about drinking an ice coffee or Jamba Juice inside! You'll need a parka and a hunting cap to be able to do that.

Is your law firm unbearably cold or hot this summer, and have you been able to do anything about it? We've heard suspicions that the thermostats in individual offices at Skadden's New York office don't really do anything at all, and that the office is kept cold "for the computers." Sounds ominous.

Any theories on why offices spend so much money blasting the AC in the summer and possibly lowering employee morale? (Perhaps it's a way to awaken associates from the depths of summer associate food coma, or to indirectly discourage skimpy clothing.)

Summer attire can also chafe against firm dress code policies. Despite the perennial push for "city shorts" by what seems like every single women's apparel retailer, are there any firms out there that actually allow employees to wear shorts to work?

Of course, even the uncontroversial short-sleeve dress shirt can raise issues if it reveals a tattoo, or three. A partner with such a predicament writes:

I'm a 50 year old lawyer in NY, a partner in a law firm. I have tattoos on my arms with images and the names of my two children and my wife.

Check out what happens when he rolls up his sleeves, and share your own summertime firm life experiences, after the jump.

In Flint, Michigan, they've launched a crackdown (hehe) on low-slung trousers. For an informative graphic and commentary, see here.

Someone please notify this guy. Thanks.

Best Newspaper Graphic Ever! [Supreme Dicta]

No, the message below did not come from Winston & Strawn partner Thomas Mills. But our correspondent seems to share some of Mr. Mills's concern over the way that professional women dress these days. The focus is on footwear:

Can we talk about "commuter shoes"? During Barbri, I took the Metro to GW [in DC], and last week I attended some of the sessions at the Mother Hub at 1500 Broadway [in New York]. I have noticed that women have no fear of wearing any old, non-matching, disgusting, flip-flops, shower shoes, running shoes or slippers to work. (My favorite look is the black pantyhose, mid-calf socks, and bright white running shoes.)

I saw these women then walk into buildings of prominent law firms, sometimes without even changing their "CS's" first. Is this acceptable? I understand the need for comfort, but damn, they look terrible.

Well, at least they're not as bad as Crocs.

The last time we offered fashion advice, on the subject of appropriate attire for weekend work, we got lambasted for being out of touch. Also, unlike paralegal / drag queen Jenna Saisquoi, we lack expertise in women's footwear (although we're working on it).

So this time around, we turned to an expert. We presented the reader's inquiry to Natalie Hormilla, editor of ATL's sister site, Fashionista.

Read her response, and offer your own opinion, after the jump.

Res ipsa loquitur; we'll keep our commentary to a minimum. Click here to access a short video about Antonio Haynes / Jenna Saisquoi, "Paralegal by day, drag queen by night." Fabulosity!

Some commenters will surely have irreverent observations. We say: Caveat commentor. Are you sure you wanna mess with Ms. Jenna Saisquoi? Paralegals are talented at hunting people down -- and Ms. Saisquoi has an impressive set of guns (and bazookas).

P.S. At the start of the video, Haynes mentions that he won't mention where he works as a paralegal. Consistent with that, please don't identify or speculate about his legal employer in the comments. Thanks.

Paralegal by day, drag queen by night [Rochester Insider]

Check out the fabulously fun attorney bio page of the North Carolina-based Van Winkle Law Firm. Each of the attorneys has a normal bio, featuring practice highlights and professional affiliations. But the firm has decided to liven up some of their lawyers' profiles with links to an alternate bio -- click on the "Meet [Lawyer Name]" link at the bottom of the page -- which reveals the attorney's hobbies, likes and dislikes. (Okay, there aren't dislikes, but there should be.)

Each attorney with an alternate bio has dual photos. One is the staid, professional photo, and the other is a "character photo," giving visual clues to their interests outside of work. It reminds us of playing dress up with Barbie and Ken dolls.

For example, this one goes from boring lawyer to crazy biker!

Witness the other transformations -- note that you can click on each image to be taken directly to the featured lawyer's webpage -- after the jump.

Summer associates, hopefully this thread has no relevance for you. But for everyone else out there, here's a question for your consideration: What should you wear to work on the weekend?

That's the subject of discussion over at Corporette:

It's the Aughts, and Blackberries and the Internet mean most work can be done from home. Still, there are times when there's just no way around it and you've got to go in. This presents a special challenge: you want to look cute, cool, hip -- but you've also got to look professional. If the hours are long you're going to want to be extremely comfortable. Odds are good the air conditioning will be at full blast, so you also want to be warm.

We've found a bunch of great jackets that have a structured look to them, yet they're made of fleece, jersey, and other fun fabrics -- they're almost as comfortable as your old reliable sweats. With a nice (non-ripped) pair of jeans, and a cute pair of closed-toe shoes (or even nice sneakers) these can maintain your dignity, broadcast your cool, and protect your comfort.

To see the super-cute ensembles they've assembled, click here.

Alas, the Corporette outfits are just for ladies (and maybe Divljan Shatterhand Steele). What about for men?

Our view would be that "extra-casual" business casual would be acceptable if you have to go into the office on a summer weekend. For example, you can probably get away with khakis or cotton trousers -- even if normally business casual means dress pants or wool slacks -- and a polo shirt. Just err on the side of a shirt with a collar.

We wouldn't recommend ripped jeans and a t-shirt. You never know what workaholic partner might be prowling the halls on a Sunday afternoon. Rodge Cohen, holla.

But that's just our view -- and maybe we're out of touch, since we've been working from home for the past few years. Feel free to agree or disagree, in the comments.

Update (4:55 PM): Kids these days. They have sexually explicit IM chats on public computers. They enjoy wrastlin' with the partners. And based on the comments thus far, they wear whatever the heck they want when they go into work on the weekend.

What to Wear To . . . Work on the Weekend [Corporette]

There was some ambiguity about the professional fate of Robert Somma, the Boston-based bankruptcy judge who was arrested for drunk driving while wearing a black cocktail dress, fishnet stockings, and high heels. At first he said he was resigning. But after a groundswell of support, Judge Somma reconsidered his resignation.

We were hoping for his return. Sadly, it looks like that won't be happening. From the Boston Globe:

US Bankruptcy Court Judge Robert Somma, who resigned after his arrest on a drunken driving charge in February and then tried to rescind his resignation, will not be coming back, federal court officials said this afternoon.

"The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and Judge Robert Somma have agreed that he will not resume service on the United States Bankruptcy Court for Massachusetts but is leaving to pursue other endeavors," the Office of the Circuit Executive said in a one-paragraph statement.

We wonder: Was Judge Somma strong-armed into staying away from the bench, by those killjoys on the First Circuit? Stay tuned. Somma's lawyer, Robert Carpenter, told the Globe that "we may have our own statement to come out next week."

As for those "other endeavors," we're curious. Will he become a widely acclaimed drag performer? Or move to Florida and become a television judge? Or maybe combine the two, and become America's first cross-dressing TV judge?

P.S. We're all in favor of drag performance. In fact, we've been described as "the blogging equivalent of a very talented drag queen" -- one of our favorite compliments ever.

After drunken driving arrest, bankruptcy judge agrees to leave [Boston Globe]
Somma: On the Bench or Off? [Legal Blog Watch]

We heard through the grapevine that Judge Brett Kavanaugh of the D.C. Circuit gave ATL a shout out during a Federalist Society lunch earlier this month. According to our tipsters, "his biggest advice to any summer associates in the audience was 'don't show up on David Lat's blog, Above the Law.'"

Well, the first summer associate tale of 2008 has made its way into our tips inbox from Atlanta. A summer associate at Alston & Bird decided to share his quirky sense of humor and alter ego with the rest of his summer class. Our tipster explains:

[This e-mail] was sent by an Alston & Bird summer... (as his cross-dressing alter-ego Divljan Shatterhand Steele) to the entire Atlanta summer class. The email, besides being super weird, is pretty innocuous. However, the pictures on his Facebook account could give him some serious trouble -- besides the multiple pictures of him dressed in drag as his alter-ego, there is a picture of a pie with a gummy-bear swastika...

Needless to say, the email has already been widely circulated. A&B has a progressive reputation, but this might be a bit much. Given the current state of the market, Alston might be regretting hiring such a huge summer class (look at the recipient list, which likely only includes the summers who are working the first half) in Atlanta. This guy isn't doing himself any favors.

The bizarre e-mail, involving tarot cards and multiple personalities, is available after the jump. If you've been wondering about the history of neckties, you'll definitely want to check it out.

We have redacted the SA's name and ask that you not identify the person in the comments. Feel free to refer to him as "Divljan" only. Thanks.

Sigh. We hate it when news breaks late on a Friday before a holiday weekend.

But we won't let the timing stop us from giving this the attention it deserves. We'll do an update post next week, after everyone is back from the Memorial Day holiday weekend. We've also contacted Phil Telfeyan -- we've known he was the Note author for quite some time, thanks to our Harvard Law School sources -- and requested an interview.

We have to head out now. If you're still stuck in front of your computer, instead of enjoying the long weekend, check out the links below.

Comment: Mea Culpa by Phil Telfeyan [comment]
HLS Wins National Appellate Advocacy Competition [Harvard Law Record]
HLS students win national ABA moot court competition [Harvard Law School]
A Man of Many Hats [Harvard Crimson]

Bob Hezzelwood is serious about his beach time -- and serious about his right to spend that beach time in a speedo.

Last year, a sheriff's deputy gave Hezzelwood a ticket for his speedo-wearing ways:

[A] Lee County Sheriff’s deputy stopped by and wrote him a warning for trespassing.

The reason?

“Exposed scrotum,” the notice read. “Never return to Bonita Beach Main Access.”

But it turns out that, belied by his self-proclaimed “super-lazy” lifestyle, Beach Bob (more properly known as Robert Hezzelwood, 61, retired court reporter and Bonita Springs resident of 16 years) is a heckuva fighter.

The Naples Daily News has an extensive report on Hezzelwood's $4,000 legal fight to have the warning dismissed. Now Hezzelwood plans to file a lawsuit against the Lee County Sheriff's Office for violating his civil rights. "I’m a civilian out here who’s been picked on by a little bully deputy and that’s wrong. It’s just wrong," said Hezzelwood.

If you're wearing a speedo and don't have a super-hot bod, that's wrong. It's just wrong.

Beach Bob’s brouhaha: Swimsuit behind lawsuit [Naples Daily News]

We have a longstanding obsession with Judge Janice Rogers Brown, the diva-licious D.C. circuit judge who frequently surfaces as a Supreme Court contender. We first wrote about her almost four years ago, and we've been JRB groupies ever since.

When we attended a lunch talk by her last year, she struck us as quite fashionable. We described her outfit (see blurry photo at right) as "an elegant, impeccably tailored, black wool-knit suit, with gold buttons and trim. The skirt was demure, falling below the knee. We're going to guess it was a St. John."

But maybe we overestimated Judge Brown's sartorial sense. Check out the opening paragraph of her opinion in Aktieselskabet AF v. Fame Jeans Inc. (PDF), an important trademark opinion construing a recent SCOTUS ruling:

BROWN, Circuit Judge: For some reason, a pair of jeans labeled Jack & Jones will sell for the equivalent of $96. Clearly there is magic in the name, and Fame Jeans tried to capture that magic by registering Jack & Jones as a trademark in the United States. Aktieselskabet (Bestseller), which generated the magic by selling Jack & Jones jeans elsewhere in the world, opposed Fame’s trademark application.

Complaining about $96 jeans? "Sounds like something Andy Rooney would say," quipped Natalie Hormilla, associate editor of ATL's sister site, Fashionista. In this day and age, hundred-dollar jeans hardly qualify as "magic[al]."

If Judge Brown finds the notion of $100 jeans offensive, Her Honor should steer clear of 18th Amendment -- the jeans maker, not what ushered in Prohibition -- and sass & bide (an Australian fashion label, not a law firm). Their jeans can retail for as much as $300 a pair, according to Fashionista assistant editor (and resident denim expert) Britt Aboutaleb.

Then again, who needs $300 jeans, when you get to hide the judicial booty underneath a black robe?

Aktieselskabet AF 21. November 2001, v. Fame Jeans Inc. [U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (PDF)]

The company that has a patent on trademarked "Very Sexy" has been hit with a lawsuit accusing it of stealing a bra design. A Long Island paralegal claims that she came up with the original design for the Very Sexy 100-Way Convertible Bra, and has a patent to prove it:

The bra is, according to the lawsuit, the intellectual creation of Katerina Plew, a Long Island paralegal, who registered it under United States Patent No. 6,733,362 in May 2004. Ms. Plew, who is 38, is now contending that Victoria’s Secret stole, then mass-produced, her specialized design.

“The first time I thought of it I was getting ready for a christening,” Ms. Plew said in a telephone interview from her home in Selden, N.Y. “It was an idea that just popped into my head in — don’t know — like March of ’99.”

The bra, with its various hooks and eyelets, is something like the Micronaut of the undergarment world. By a complicated series of maneuvers, it can be worn in as many as 100 different ways.

What kind of outfit was she wearing to that christening?

Plew claims she had a meeting scheduled with Victoria's Secret designers in 2006, but that the appointment was canceled at the last minute.

Victoria's Secret, have you fallen so low as to steal your designs? It's time to come up with some better stuff -- VS merchandise has been subpar in the last few years. But that's a topic for a different blog.

Is Victoria’s Secret a Stolen Bra Design? [City Room / New York Times]
Complaint: Plew v. Limited Brands, Inc. [PDF]

We are not referring to crocodiles, though they are certainly ugly and dangerous too. Instead, we refer to the ubiquitous footwear. The company made headlines over the weekend, because the Japanese Trade Ministry has formally requested a redesign. Because Crocs are just that ugly.

Okay, no -- it's not because Crocs offend the eyes. The redesign has been requested for safety reasons:

Japan has asked the maker of Crocs to look into changing the design of its footwear after complaints that children wearing the colorful plastic clogs have had their feet injured on escalators.

The Trade Ministry said Friday it issued the warning after receiving 65 complaints about Crocs and similar products getting stuck in escalators between June and November last year. Most of the cases involved young children.

A $7 million suit has already been filed against the company in New York this year, on behalf of a three-year-old whose toe was mangled on an escalator. And the company has other trouble on its hands, in the form of shareholder lawsuits.

All this is to say: Crocs are dangerous. And ugly. Do not wear them.

Japan Asks Crocs for Redesign [Washington Post]
Suit: Crocs shoe led to 3-year-old girl's toe accident on JFK escalator [New York Daily News]
Crocs faces shareholder lawsuit [Denver Business Journal]

When state senators weigh in on matters of fashion, they are often pooh-poohed, as was the Virginia Senate when it considered a fine for underwear-revealing baggy pants.

The Tampa Tribune reported last week on legislation being considered by the Florida Senate that deals with car ornaments. Specifically, car ornaments shaped like part of the male anatomy. We don't tend to see this type of ornamentation in the District, but apparently it's a problem down in the Sunshine State.

In some parts of Florida it has become fashionable to attach [replica bull testicles] to the back of pickups, and at least one person, Sen. Carey Baker, is offended.

Baker is sponsoring an amendment that would allow police to give drivers a $60 ticket if they had the object hanging from a vehicle. The amendment was added to a bill Thursday after an awkward discussion in which the Senate tried to debate the issue without being too graphic - with several schoolchildren watching from the galleries.

The provision was attached to a highway safety bill (SB 1992), but earlier this week there was an effort to take the language out of the bill. The discussion got a bit graphic, and Senate President Ken Pruitt told members that if the issue were going to come up again he wanted the discussion a bit more refined.

If any schoolchildren read ATL, we apologize for the graphic photo.

The debate does raise the important issue of freedom of speech. For now, the amendment has been dropped from the bill.

One senator was particularly defensive about the measure. He actually used to have testicles hanging from his vehicle, according to the Florida Sun-Sentinel:

Among those who have had the auto ornaments is Sen. Jim King, R-Jacksonville. Decorated in the garnet and gold of his alma mater, Florida State University, they hung on the back of his Suburban until his wife, Linda, demanded they be removed.

We were relieved to discover that Sen. King got his MBA from FSU, and not a JD.

Bill May Clip Truck Testicles [The Tampa Tribune via The Legal Satyricon]
Legislator crusades to ban rude 'truck-nutz' from bumpers [The Florida Sun-Sentinel]

Earlier in the week, this email went out to all the lawyers in the Restructuring Group at Kirkland & Ellis, from the head of the group:

04/01/2008 10:58 AM
To: #FW Restructuring Attorneys
Subject: Upcoming Dress Code Program

As part of our KIRT [Kirkland Institute of Restructuring Training] programs, I am pleased to announce a "dress for success" program, which will be held on each Monday for one hour for the next four weeks. I have arranged for outside speakers from a number of prominent men's and women's fine clothing stores to lead the programs. In light of the number of button down shirts being worn with suits and the number of associates (mostly, male) wearing boring and mismatched ties and shiny suits, the program is highly needed. Attendance for the program is strongly encouraged.

We've seen how bankruptcy lawyers dress. This is a wise idea. Just don't bring in the Cleary Anti-Afro Lady.

Also -- was the reference to the sartorial dubiousness of wearing button-down shirts with suits a shout-out to ATL? See here.

More after the jump.