Federal Judges
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4th Circuit, Federal Judges, Hotties, Judicial Nominations, Vicious Infighting, William Wilkins
Chief Judge Wilkins Makes Way for "Miss Karen"
Last week was a busy one in legal news, so we apologize for our tardiness in bringing you this news. As first reported at the South Carolina Appellate Law Blog, and later picked up by The State, Chief Judge William Wilkins is retiring as chief judge of the Fourth Circuit. William “Billy” Wilkins of Greenville […] -
Federal Judges, Judge of the Day, Plaintiffs Firms, William Lerach, You Go Girl
Judge of the Day: Melinda Harmon
People pay attention to a judge’s reversal rate — how often that jurist gets reversed by a higher court. And a high reversal rate is usually regarded as “not a good thing.” But we kinda admire judges who aren’t overly concerned with their reversal rate. We respect judges who are willing to go out on […] - Sponsored
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5th Circuit, Federal Judges, Judicial Nominations, Lee Rosenthal, Senate Judiciary Committee
More Fifth Circuit Scuttlebutt: Lee H. Rosenthal
Before the Thanksgiving break, we wrote a fair amount about some possible nominees to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. We’ll now pick up where we left off, and continue with more detailed profiles of some of the potential nominees we mentioned. But first, a request. A number of ATL readers have […]
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8th Circuit, Fabulosity, Federal Judges, Morris Arnold
Wherein We Receive An Email from Celebrity Judge Morris Arnold
We’re on a roll today in the correspondence department here at ATL. This morning we brought you an email message from Professor Tim Wu, aka “Genius Wu,” young superstar of the legal academy. And this afternoon, we proudly present this cyber-missive, typed by Article III fingers: From: Judge Morris Arnold [email address redacted]Sent: Wednesday, November […] -
8th Circuit, Federal Judges, Morris Arnold
Wishes for a Speedy Recovery to Judge Morris Arnold
Earlier this month, Judge Morris Arnold, one of the most respected federal appellate judges in the country, suffered a heart attack. From the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette: Morris S. Arnold of Little Rock was hospitalized Wednesday night in St. Louis, where he is a judge on the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, after having a heart […] -
7th Circuit, Fast Food, Federal Judges, Food, Frank Easterbrook, SCOTUS Potential
It's Official: Say Hello to Chief Judge Easterbrook
Back in September, we reported that Judge Frank Easterbrook — “a veritable judicial hottie, a possible SCOTUS nominee, and brother of well-known author and ESPN.com commentator Gregg Easterbrook” — would be taking over in November as the chief judge of the Seventh Circuit. The passing of the torch has now come to pass. From a […] -
10th Circuit, Alberto Gonzales, Anthony Kennedy, Brett Gerry, Department of Justice, Eyes of the Law, Federal Judges, Feeder Judges, Kellogg Huber, Neil Gorsuch, Office of Legal Policy, Rachel Brand, SCOTUS, SCOTUS Potential, Supreme Court
The Eyes of the Law: Judge Neil Gorsuch's Investiture
Last week, an investiture ceremony was held for Judge Neil Gorsuch, recently confirmed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. And it was a star-studded affair. From the Denver Post: Seven-year-old Emma and 5-year-old Belinda helped their father, Neil Gorsuch, into his judge’s robes Monday after the newly appointed 10th Circuit Court […] -
Federal Judges, G. Thomas Porteous
Send That Robe Out for Dry Cleaning
You may recall Judge G. Thomas Porteous, Jr. (E.D. La.), recently named an ATL Judge of the Day. He’s currently the subject of a federal criminal investigation, and he’s on an extended leave from the bench (to focus on the investigation and to mourn his recently deceased wife). Judge Porteous has now applied to extend […] - Sponsored
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Federal Judges, Federalist Society, Patricia Wald, Politics, Senate Judiciary Committee, State Judges
From the Belly of the Beast: Eating Judicial Independence for Lunch
One highlight of this year’s Federalist Society National Lawyers Convention was the annual convention luncheon, held on Saturday, November 17. During the luncheon, a panel of distinguished judges addressed the very hot topic of judicial independence. The panelists: Judge Carlos T. Bea (Ninth Circuit),Chief Judge Danny J. Boggs (Sixth Circuit)Judge Timothy B. Dyk (Federal Circuit)Judge […] -
Arlen Specter, Federal Judges, Federalist Society, Judicial Nominations, Politics, Senate Judiciary Committee, Supreme Court
From the Belly of the Beast: Senator Arlen Specter
Last week we briefly discussed the appearance at the Federalist Society convention of Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA), outgoing chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. We also described our exchange with him during the question-and-answer session. We now provide you with a somewhat more detailed account of Senator Specter’s remarks. We found them surprisingly funny; but […] -
5th Circuit, Edith Jones, Federal Judges, Federalist Society, Judicial Divas, Old People, SCOTUS Potential
Judge Edith Jones: And She Brakes for Small Animals, Too
For years we’ve been huge fans of Judith Edith H. Jones. She had a reputation as a tough, smart, conservative judge. She was known as as a badass of the bench, more than capable of eviscerating counsel or colleagues who crossed her. Her dramatic nickname — “horsewoman of the right-wing apocalypse” — pretty much said […] -
5th Circuit, Federal Judges, J. Michael Luttig, Judicial Nominations, Politics, R. Ted Cruz, William Rehnquist
More Fifth Circuit Scuttlebutt: R. Ted Cruz
In our detailed review of possible nominees for the two open Fifth Circuit seats in Texas, we mentioned Texas’s Solicitor General, R. Ted Cruz, as a possible nominee. After we dropped his name, a number of you wrote in to share your thoughts about him (as frequently happens after we mention someone in these pages). […] -
Arlen Specter, Federal Judges, Federalist Society, Judicial Nominations, SCOTUS, SCOTUS Potential, Senate Judiciary Committee, Supreme Court
At the Federalist Society Conference: Senator Specter
Today’s sessions at the Federalist Society annual conference kicked off with a speech by Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA), the current (but outgoing) chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. His remarks, which focused on the judicial nominations process, were engaging and informative. The crowd enjoyed his dry wit. We may have more to say about Senator […]
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Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
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Federal Judges, Judicial Nominations, Michael Wallace, Peter Keisler, Senate Judiciary Committee, Terrence Boyle, William Haynes, William Myers
President Bush Sticks Thumb in Eye of Chuck Schumer
Not literally — but he might as well have. From the Washington Post: President Bush renominated six previously blocked candidates for federal appeals court yesterday, triggering the first real battle with ascendant Democrats since the midterm elections and signaling what could be the start of a fierce two-year struggle over the shape of the federal […] -
5th Circuit, Alberto Gonzales, Federal Judges, Gregory Coleman, Harriet Miers, Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Elrod, Judicial Nominations, R. Ted Cruz, Senate Judiciary Committee, State Judges, White House Counsel
Some Fifth Circuit Scuttlebutt
Thanks to everyone who responded to our request for gossip about possible Fifth Circuit judicial nominations. Your tips were very helpful to us, as was this piece in the Texas Lawyer. (And thanks to Peter Harrell, a current law student and former political reporter for Congressional Quarterly, for this insightful comment. A good point. With […] -
5th Circuit, 9th Circuit, Federal Judges, Judicial Nominations, Michael Wallace, Peter Keisler, Politics, Senate Judiciary Committee, Terrence Boyle, White House Counsel, William Haynes
Some Ruminations on Nominations
In the wake of the Democratic victories in the midterm elections, people are wondering: How will federal judicial nominations be affected? The answer is unclear. On the one hand: “It’s going to be much harder to get hardline conservatives through,” says Michael Seidman, a professor at Georgetown University Law Center. Mr. Bush’s “history isn’t to […] -
Brett Kavanaugh, Federal Judges, Janice Rogers Brown, John Paul Stevens, Maureen Mahoney, Peter Keisler, SCOTUS, SCOTUS Potential, Supreme Court
The Boy Who Cried Wolf Justice Stevens Is Retiring
Rumors that Justice John Paul Stevens is about to step down from the Supreme Court are a recurring feature of the legal gossip landscape. As we previously observed, JPS retirement rumors “return each spring, with the birds and the flowers.” But hey, we’re good sports, so we’ll blog about them. ‘Cause one of these days, […] -
9th Circuit, Benchslaps, Federal Judges, Jay Bybee, Stephen Reinhardt
Bench-Slapped! Reinhardt v. Bybee
Judge Stephen Reinhardt (left), perhaps the most prominent liberal appeals court judge in the country, is buddies with his conservative colleague on the Ninth Circuit, Judge Alex Kozinski (right). But we suspect that Judge Reinhardt feels less warmly towards Judge Jay S. Bybee (far right). You can always count on the Ninth Circuit for a […] -
Federal Judges, G. Thomas Porteous, Judge of the Day, Legal Ethics
Judge of the Day: G. Thomas Porteous Jr.
Judge Thomas Porteous Jr., of the Eastern District of Louisiana, is no stranger to bad publicity. We’ve written about this New Orleans judge before (see item 2(b)). Well, Judge Porteous’s exploits continue. From the New Orleans Times-Picayune: In 2003, a seaman named Robert Hanna sued his employer, an offshore drilling company, after stairs on one […] -
5th Circuit, Confirmations, Craigslist, Crime, Federal Judges, Holidays and Seasons, Kids, Romance and Dating
A Quick Post-Halloween Linkwrap
We hope that you’ve recovered from any Halloween festivities you attended last night. For those of you who took your children trick-or-treating, we hope the kids have come down from their sugar highs. We didn’t receive much in response to our request for funny, law-related Halloween stories. But we can offer you a few random […]