Yesterday we reported on this announcement by Brooklyn Law School:

This semester we have received several warnings from our Internet service provider that copyrighted movies and TV shows are being downloaded illegally via our wireless network. The Information Technology office is now ascertaining who is doing this. Once we have names of the individuals involved, we intend to give them to the copyright holders for enforcement purposes.

This stance proved unpopular with BLS students, as well as ATL readers. In a poll, about 75 percent of readers answered “yes” when asked, “Should Brooklyn Law School do more to protect its students from being sued for illegal downloading?”

It seems that Brooklyn Law School has had a change of heart. Check out the email that went out this afternoon, plus selected reader comments, after the jump.

Apparently so. From a student at Brooklyn Law School:

Today we received this e-mail from the administration, which is causing quite an uproar among the student body.

The gist of it seems to be that, contrary to the practice of other schools, BLS will begin actively investigating [illegal] downloading and proactively providing names of people to media [companies] so [the individuals in question] can be sued.

I believe the typical practice at other schools (graduate and undergraduate) and institutions is to wait for a subpoena and either cooperate or fight the subpoena, not to go out of their way to inform on their students.

The total cost of attendance at Brooklyn Law for the 2009-2010 academic year, for full-time students not living with their parents (God forbid), is a shade over $66,000. Shouldn’t that buy BLS’s silence?

Or is the law school in the right here? Shouldn’t law students, i.e., future lawyers, know and follow the law?

UPDATE: Brooklyn Law has announced a change in this policy.

Read the email and take a poll, after the jump.

Despite their ideological differences, Justices Antonin Scalia and Ruth Bader Ginsburg bond over their shared love for the opera. Both judicial luminaries attended Saturday’s opening night performance of Ariadne auf Naxos, at the Washington National Opera. If you’re into Article III celebrity sightings, the D.C. opera house is where it’s at.

Not only did the justices attend the opera; they also participated. An eyewitness evaluation of their performances, plus a photo of Justice Scalia with a sexy soprano in his lap, after the jump.

Mainly we’re posting this because it’s a Friday afternoon and rainy (at least here in New York). We figure you need some entertainment to launch you into the weekend.

But there is a legal angle to this music video. It might have spawned intellectual property litigation, if Disney — and Miley Cyrus — didn’t have such a good sense of humor. Enjoy!

(If you like, feel free to discuss “fair use” issues in the music video context in the comments.)

Disney Allows a Gay Miley Cyrus Knock-Off Video to Flourish Online [Media Decoder / New York Times]
Finally, an Excuse to Post This Video of Fire Island Gays Lip-synching to Miley Cyrus [Daily Intel / New York Magazine]
Fire Island Gays Get the Attention of Miley Cyrus With ‘Party’ Video [Towleroad]

If you’re leaving Biglaw and moving to New England to innkeep is not your thing, maybe you should consider moving to Los Angeles to promote music.

The American Lawyer has an interesting piece on a laid-off first-year associate, Brandon Dorsky. He was among the batch of Pillsbury Winthrop associates whose departures were inadvertently leaked by a garrulous partner on the train from D.C. to New York.

Dorsky was doing IP work in Pillsbury’s Los Angeles office. The Ohio native had moved to California with the intent to get into the entertainment industry and so he seized the opportunity provided by being laid off:

After leaving Pillsbury, Dorsky decided to build a practice geared to entertainment clients, while also managing musical acts. He e-mailed friends and business contacts looking for leads. Just three days after leaving the firm, he landed his first client, TRG Sports and Entertainment. A friend from the University of Michigan recommended him to the management company, which was looking for a lawyer to draft a recording contract….

“I’m out most nights,” Dorsky says. “I see five concerts a week. I’m out there looking for new clients and looking for opportunities for existing clients.”

Dorsky’s tale might provide inspiration for other laid-off first years. In addition to working with bands, he’s drafting recording contracts and doing trademark work. Read more about the secret to Dorsky’s success and the importance of being a “hustler” at the American Lawyer.

After the Layoffs [American Lawyer]

Earlier: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to New York
(Or: Pillsbury associates, brace yourselves.)

You learn a few things when you survive a major outbreak of alleged racism before you even graduate from law school. One thing you learn is that you don’t have to step aside quietly when million-dollar judgments go against your client.

Last month, we reported that Jammie Thomas-Rasset — who is represented by K.A.D. Camara — was hit with a $1.92 million judgment for illegally downloading 24 songs. When we spoke to Camara about the verdict, he expressed his belief that the high penalty could be problematic for the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA):

I think a verdict this high may backfire against the RIAA. It makes clear that there’s a problem with the statute. And there are many grounds for appeal in Jammie’s case.

The problem is that Jammie Thomas-Rasset has already been tried twice.

But that isn’t going to stop the law firm of Camara & Sibley. Threat Level reports that Camara has asked U.S. District Judge Michael Davis to set aside the $1.92 million verdict, declare the Copyright Act unconstitutional, or at least order a new jury trial to assess damages.

Put another way, we’ve gotten to the “kitchen sink” point of this litigation.

More details after the jump.

Legendary entertainer Michael Jackson, aka the King of Pop, wasn’t a lawyer. But he certainly generated lots of work for them, thanks to his child molestation charges and financial woes. Not every pop culture icon has their own ATL category tag.

(Sure, MJ didn’t always pay his legal bills on time. But it’s the thought that counts.)

Michael Jackson was 50 at the time of his death. May he rest in peace.

Update: Read Marin’s thoughts on the Gloved One over at True/Slant (here and here).

Michael Jackson Has Beat It [True/Slant]
Michael Jackson Dies [TMZ.com]
Pop icon Michael Jackson is dead [Los Angeles Times]

The members of Dangerous Communication Device (Williams & Connolly), celebrating their victory.

Last night we reported on the Battle of the Law Firm Bands, held last week in Washington, DC. The evening raised over $80,000 for Gifts for the Homeless, a non-profit, all-volunteer organization supported by the city’s legal community to help the homeless.

Eleven bands competed, and one was victorious: Dangerous Communication Device, from Williams & Connolly. They won by raising more money than any other band: over $15,000. (The vote was conducted “Chicago-style,” with each vote requiring a dollar contribution to GFTH.)

Read our interview with the band, after the jump.

Lining up outside The Black Cat for the Battle of the Law Firm Bands. The evening was sold out — 1,000 tickets in all.

We just got back from Washington, DC, where we spent a few days attending the 2009 convention of the American Constitution Society (ACS). We may have a post or two about the conference later.

While in the nation’s capital, we also attended this fun event: the sixth annual Battle of the Law Firm Bands. A description:

Lawyers from prominent area law firms will compete in a hotly contested sixth annual Battle of the Law Firm Bands to benefit Gifts for the Homeless, Inc. (GFTH), a non-profit, all-volunteer organization supported by the city’s legal community to help the homeless. The Black Cat, a premier hot-spot in DC’s historic U Street district, has partnered with GFTH to host “Banding Together 2009” on Thursday, June 18, from 7:00 pm to midnight.

At the stroke of midnight, one band will be crowned champion for having raised the most money from the crowd through “Chicago-style” voting (each dollar equals one vote - vote early and often!). GFTH will use 100% of the money donated to purchase thermal underwear, sweatshirts, sweatpants, hats, gloves, underwear, socks, blankets and other essential new clothing items for homeless men, women, and children; the clothing is distributed to more than 30 shelters throughout the metro area. GFTH has already raised over $100,000 in connection with Banding Together 2008.

It doesn’t surprise us that Biglaw denizens would be willing to help the homeless. There but for the grace of God….

Our belated account of the evening — The BLT wrote it up in more timely fashion — after the jump.

Yesterday, the Exquisite Rap Duo dropped a new album. What’s especially exquisite about the album is that it’s the work of Anthony McNamer, an IP attorney in Portland, Oregon.

McNamer is a ‘95 Stanford Law grad who has worked for Bingham McCutchen and for Davis Wright Tremaine, clerked in American Samoa, and founded his own small three-person firm, McNamer and Company, five years ago. The firm does IP work and media, entertainment, and sports law.

“I’m probably the biggest music lawyer in Portland… but that’s not saying much,” McNamer told us. He is also on the short list for most extreme athletes looking for a lawyer, he said, representing them when sponsorship deals go awry or in “right of publicity” cases.

McNamer sent us an e-mail last week to let us know about his “rap group” and debut album:

You don’t hear about many big firm lawyer to rap group transitions. Word.

Apparently, McNamer is unaware of his East Coast rival, Mekka Don, who went from being a Weil first year to being a self-proclaimed savior of hip hop. Word.

We surfed over to his website and listened to some of the songs. As for our favorite, we’re torn between the one about not being able to look tough on a BMX bike and “Best Friends with a Gay Dude” about his college best friend coming out after graduation, which McNamer informed us is 100% autobiographical. The latter includes samples from Cher’s “Believe.” If you haven’t guessed yet, McNamer’s rap has a funny side. But he doesn’t consider his work to be pure novelty. “I don’t want to be Weird Al,” said McNamer.

We also watched the music video for Calculator Watch; the humorous approach reminded us strongly of Law Revue videos. We followed that hunch and discovered during our interview that McNamer was once a lead writer for Stanford’s version of Law Revue. None of the songs on Nine Mile (We Go The Extra Mile) employ legal humor, though. “I know from doing [Stanford’s Law School Musical] that law stuff isn’t very funny,” said McNamer.

We spoke to McNamer yesterday about his music, founding his own law firm, and how his legal career will help boost his musical stylings. Check out his video and the beauty of having your own firm in Portland — HINT: his target for weekly billables is 15 hours — after the jump.

Ed. note: This is a guest post by Keith Chapman, a lawyer with more knowledge of BitTorrent and all things tech than the regular crew on the ATL ship.

Avast ye hearties! Especially if you’re one of those hearties using a BitTorrent client to purloin copyrighted materials. Today marks the fourth day in the highly publicized trial against The Pirate Bay, a Swedish company that organizes and facilitates online file swapping. At the heart of the matter, Swedish prosecutors have charged The Pirate Bay’s three chief administrators, Hans Fredrik Neij, Gottfrid Svartholm Warg and Peter Sunde, as well as media savvy Swedish businessman Carl Lundström, with 33 instances of assisting in and preparing to commit copyright infringement. With potential jail time looming on the horizon, not to mention hefty fines and damages estimated north of $14 million, the Times of London has dubbed the case the “Internet piracy trial of the decade.”

If you are just tuning in, find out what you’ve missed — after the jump.

We’ve previously reported on law firms having difficulty getting clients to pay their bills. It’s not just happening to firms working on deals that go bust; it has also happened to a firm representing a celeb after his marriage went bust. From Am Law Daily:

Blank Rome is suing rapper/actor/activist Mos Def for over $60,000 in unpaid legal bills stemming from his 2006 divorce from Maria Yepes.

The couple ended their 10-year marriage that year in a Brooklyn court, with Judge Sarah Krauss pleading with them to settle their differences outside her courtroom.

Reports say that the Brooklyn-born Mos Def (real name: Dante Smith) owes the money to Blank Rome in the form of unpaid fees and retainers. The Emmy, Golden Globe, and Grammy award-nominated entertainer retained lawyers from the firm’s well-regarded matrimonial practice, which advises high-end clients on divorce, mediation, property distribution, paternity, visitation rights, and trusts and estates.

This is Mos Def’s second month in a row of legal troubles. In November, Las Vegas police issued an arrest warrant after Mos got in a scuffle with a photographer. In more bad news, his portrayal of Chuck Berry in the recently released music biopic extravaganza Cadillac Records was panned by the Los Angeles Times.

We wonder if this will make him rethink the title of his upcoming album, rumored to be titled Ecstatic.

Some good news for Mos Def, after the jump.

Notorious B.O.A.L.T. is a UC-Berkeley law school student who enjoys setting law school lessons to music. He appeared on our pages before, rapping his way through CivPro.

Now he’s back. Notorious has gone acoustic, but this song embraces the rebellious roots of rock & roll. Notorious writes, “As a protest against the lunacy of the Socratic Method and the staggering lack of imagination on the part of the Boalt Hall administration in clinging to a cobwebbed curriculum, I will not be taking any final examinations this semester.”

“Do the Torts Shuffle” is his submission to Professor Patrick Hanlon in lieu of a written final exam. He asks that Hanlon consider giving him a “sub-standard pass in the course.” Here it is:

We think rapping lends itself more easily to talkin’ ‘bout the law, but this is a worthy effort. The question is: is it a sub-standard pass level effort?

A lyrical excerpt, and speculation about the future of Notorious B.O.A.L.T., after the jump.

Law students and lawyers get starstruck when they meet U.S. Supreme Court justices. And Supreme Court justices get starstruck when they meet… opera singers! From the New York Times:

Justice Antonin Scalia has a reputation as an intimidating jurist who poses withering questions during arguments before the Supreme Court. But on Friday afternoon, when the soprano Leontyne Price entered the West Conference Room at the Court to attend an honorary luncheon hosted by the National Endowment for the Arts, Justice Scalia, an avid opera fan, visibly melted.

Was Nino as excited as when he met Sarah Jessica Parker? (Oh wait — AS wasn’t that excited to meet SJP.)

“It’s a great honor to meet you,” [Justice Scalia] told Ms. Price, his face crinkling with warmth and delight. When Ms. Price complimented him on the elegance of the luncheon’s setting — a paneled salon, its walls lined with portraits of past chief justices — he replied, “Yes, these are pretty nice rooms,” adding, “And they’re yours today.”

And might you perhaps like a clerkship, Leontyne? Reviewing cert petitions is much easier than singing the title role in Aida. Just deny, deny, deny.

Speaking of SCOTUS clerkships, does anyone have news to report on that front? If so, please email us (subject line: “Supreme Court clerk hiring”).

More about Leontyne Price’s visit to One First Street, after the jump.

Having just discussed Janet Jackson (or her breasts), we’re going to remain on the subject of music. This installment in our continuing series of open threads on career alternatives for attorneys — i.e., “things you can do with a law degree other than Biglaw (or contract attorney work)” — is inspired by lawyer turned rapper Mekka Don.

There are many attorneys out there with musical side projects. When do you decide to take the leap and dive into your music career full-time? According to Mekka Don, the answer is “after one year at Weil.” He wrote to us in March:

My name is Emeka Onyejekwe (aka Mekka Don) and in the spring I left my job at a top ten law firm in order to help save Hip Hop. I graduated from NYU in 2006 and worked at the firm for a little less than a year. Many people (probably including you, lol) think I’m crazy, but I believe it was a calling from God. I’ve begun to memorialize what I am doing through a reality show.

He may be too late. According to Nas, hip hop is dead! But good luck with that.

ABA Journal’s July issue has a profile piece on the “legal hustler.” Taking the struggling artist career route sounds challenging. To make ends meet, Onyejekwe is “modeling, event planning and sports marketing along with running a small legal practice with his sister.”

Does a legal background help much in this career? Once you make it big, those contracts classes may come in handy. It also looks to be useful in the comments on the ABA piece. Someone questioned Mekka Don’s use of “Law & Order” for the title of his mixtape, and he responds by citing the “fair use” doctrine.

More on Mekka Don, after the jump.

Diva-licious D.C. Circuit Judge Janice Rogers Brown may be upping the musical reference ante placed by SCOTUS Chief John Roberts. Roberts cited Bob Dylan in a recent SCOTUS dissent.

We’ve had an eye on Brown for a while (see previous coverage here), and she often surfaces as a Supreme Court contender. Perhaps following Roberts’ musical legal reference lead will improve her chances. As reported on Slate’s legal blog Convictions:

D.C. Circuit Judge Janice Rogers Brown has taken this trend to a whole new level: Today she opened the court’s opinion in K&R Limited Partnership v. Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency [PDF] with a line from … Jimi Hendrix:

“Forty years ago Jimi Hendrix trilled his plaintive query: “Is this love, baby, or is it … [just] confusion?” JIMI HENDRIX, Love or Confusion, on ARE YOU EXPERIENCED (Reprise Records 1967). In this False Claims Act case, we face a similar question involving a mortgage subsidy program initiated in that era: Is this fraud, or is it … just confusion?”

Though Hendrix is arguably “cooler” than Dylan, we are declaring Roberts the winner of the musical reference contest since he actually cites Dylan’s original meaning, while Brown uses the Hendrix quote for a turn of phrase. If she is able to somehow reference Hendrix’s wicked on-stage distortion in a future opinion, we may reconsider.

Janice Rogers Brown Is Experienced [Convictions]
Opinion for the Court filed by Circuit Judge Brown [PDF]
Love or Confusion [YouTube]

Earlier: SCOTUS Is All Tangled Up in Dylan
Judge Janice Rogers Brown

The legal (and music) world is abuzz in response to Chief Justice John Roberts citing Bob Dylan in his dissent in Sprint v. APCC Services. From the New York Times:

Four pages into his dissent on Monday in an achingly boring dispute between pay phone companies and long distance carriers, John G. Roberts Jr., the chief justice of the United States, put a song lyric where the citation to precedent usually goes.

“The absence of any right to the substantive recovery means that respondents cannot benefit from the judgment they seek and thus lack Article III standing,” Chief Justice Roberts wrote. ” ‘When you got nothing, you got nothing to lose.’ Bob Dylan, Like a Rolling Stone, on Highway 61 Revisited (Columbia Records 1965).”

Alex B. Long, a law professor at the University of Tennessee and perhaps the nation’s leading authority on the citation of popular music in judicial opinions, said this was almost certainly the first use of a rock lyric to buttress a legal proposition in a Supreme Court decision. “It’s a landmark opinion,” Professor Long said.

Rolling Stone named “Like a Rolling Stone” the best song of all time. Roberts, or the clerk who provided the citation, has good taste, but poor attention to detail. A double negative has gone missing; when Dylan sings it, it is “When you ain’t got nothing…”

Rolling Stone points out that Roberts is the first baby boomer SCOTUS chief. It may be true that we’ll see more musical legal citations by those raised on the political music of the 60s:

In the lower courts, according to a study Professor Long published in the Washington & Lee Law Review last year, Mr. Dylan is by far the most cited songwriter. He has been quoted in 26 opinions. Paul Simon is next, with 8 (12 if you count those attributed to Simon & Garfunkel). Bruce Springsteen has 5.

Both Dylan and Springsteen had three songs nominated for ATL’s Top Ten Law Songs list, though Dylan was the only one to make the final cut with “Hurricane.” Johnny Cash had the most songs nominated. Why aren’t the courts showing Cash citation love?

The Chief Justice, Dylan and the Disappearing Double Negative [New York Times]
Chief Justice John Roberts (Almost) Quotes Bob Dylan [Rolling Stone]

There was a fierce battle for #1 law song between The Clash’s “I Fought the Law” and Warren Zevon’s “Lawyers, Guns, and Money.” The Clash took home the prize. See poll results here.

There was some bellyaching about who should get credit for songs: the original creator or the performer. We think how you sing it matters. Bobby Fuller 4 pleasantly fight the law, while the Clash punk-rock the law, earning them the top spot. The song was originally written by Sonny Curtis and The Crickets. If you’ve actually listened to that version, kudos to you. You’re a true music connoisseur, even if you don’t rock.

Thanks to everyone who voted. Here’s the official ATL Top Ten Law Song list:

1. I Fought The Law - The Clash [ Lyrics│YouTube ]
2. Lawyers, Guns, and Money - Warren Zevon [ Lyrics│YouTube ]
3. 99 Problems - Jay-Z [ Lyrics│YouTube ]
4. Folsom Prison Blues - Johnny Cash [ Lyrics│YouTube ]
5. We’re All Winners, as arranged by Nixon Peabody [ Explanation]
6. Law and Order theme song [ YouTube │Dance Remix ]
7. Hurricane - Bob Dylan [ Lyrics│YouTube ]
8. Alice’s Restaurant - Arlo Guthrie [ Lyrics│YouTube ]
9. I Fought The Law - Bobby Fuller 4 [ Lyrics│YouTube ]
10. The Road Goes on Forever - Robert Earl Keen [ Lyrics│YouTube ]

A little background on the songs appears after the jump. Warning: This is Above The Law, not Rolling Stone, so set your expectations for music analysis accordingly.

Last week, we were inspired by the intersection of music and law in the R. Kelly trial, so we launched a call for best songs about the law. We had lots of songs thrown our way. We’ve rounded them up after the jump, so you can vote for the best. We’ll take the top ten and anoint them “ATL’s Top Ten Law Songs.”

Now, back to R. Kelly, who could rightfully do a cover of “I fought the law (and the law I won).” He was acquitted Friday in his child porn trial. The Chicago Tribune has a profile piece on one of his lawyers, Sam Adam, Jr., who “delivered a largely improvised monologue filled with pop culture references, biblical quotations and a glimpse at how much the trial’s outcome meant to him personally.” Kelly’s spokesperson is quoted as saying Adam is on his way to “becoming a superstar.” Nice to see a lawyer getting rock-star-esque media coverage.

On to the voting. Check out the massive poll after the jump.

As the jury deliberates in the R. Kelly trial, our minds are turning to music and the law. During the trial, Chicago lawyer Mike Roman earned an ATL Lawyer of the Day mention for trying to pawn his band’s cd off on Kelly mid-trial. When that didn’t work, he tried to sell the “Cha Cha” cd to Kelly’s attorney for $15.

Judges like to have musical side projects too. The Washington Post did a profile piece on the D.C.-based Deaf Dogs and the Indictments last year. They’re a “Motown-inspired group of seven Superior Court judges and their psychologist-drummer.” And for you D.C. folks, we hear they’re playing the Grog and Tankard this Saturday.

With music on the brain, we’re inviting you to nominate songs for an ATL “law and music” best-of list. The ones that leap out to us are The Clash’s “I fought the law,” Jane’s Addiction’s “Been caught stealing,” and Bob Dylan’s “Hurricane.” What would you put on the list?

What the R. Kelly jury is figuring out [Chicago Tribune]
UPDATE: Kennedy Center Gig Booked, Judges’ Band Is on a Roll [Washington Post]