That's what our colleagues over at Dealbreaker are reporting. But we just checked in with them, and they don't know whether it was an in-house lawyer at JP Morgan Chase or someone at Wachtell Lipton, JPMorgan's outside counsel on the deal. If you have more details, please email us.

P.S. If you're not familiar with what's going on here, read this earlier ATL post and this earlier Dealbreaker post, which supply the necessary background.

Update: A source at our former firm reports that "everyone at WLRK who worked on JPM/BS is still very much 'with the firm.'" This is consistent with the chatter in the comments, to the effect that the lawyer in question works in-house at JPMorgan Chase.

People Moves: Anyone Need A Lawyer? [Dealbreaker]

Earlier: Wachtell Lipton: Fallible After All?

Corporate work may be a bit slow these days, but deal lawyers are still in demand -- and moving around. Reported yesterday over at Legal Pad:

Four corporate and securities partners are leaving Heller Ehrman for DLA Piper in San Diego. The office has been plagued by instability — and defections — in recent years due to the addition in recent years of attorneys from Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison and the Venture Law Group.

Three of the departing attorneys — Michael Kagnoff, Jeffrey Thacker and Ross Burningham — were among a handful of former Brobeck partners considering leaving Heller’s San Diego office after clashing with a managing partner there, Cal Law reported last May.

Heller Managing Partner Rob Hubbell confirmed on Thursday that the trio, and Brobeck veteran Martin Nichols, had announced their exit. “These guys are leaving, but we have a strong practice in that office and we’re quite confident in that office,” he said....

At least 13 attorneys, nearly all partners, have left the firm in 2008, including four sitting practice chairpersons and one former practice head.

In other Heller news, we've heard rumors of possible merger talks involving the firm. But they're a bit vague right now, so we will refrain from mentioning the few specifics that we have heard. If you have any details, feel free to email us. Thanks.

Heller's Tempestuous San Diego Office Loses 4 [Legal Pad / Cal Law]

A quiet trickle of a rumor last week was that James C. Ho, currently of counsel with Gibson Dunn and a former law clerk to Justice Thomas at SCOTUS, has been tapped to serve as the next Solicitor General of Texas. If this is true, Texas will be in very capable hands as Jim Ho is certainly one of the best appellate lawyers in the state (and the country for that matter), and has demonstrated great and valuable political savvy on the national stage as well.

Moreover, it is interesting to note that, now, three of the four solicitors general have clerked for SCOTUS (Greg Coleman–Justice Thomas; Ted Cruz–the late Chief Rehnquist; and Jim Ho–Justice Thomas). A SCOTUS clerkship now appears to be a prerequisite to the post, which makes eminent sense because one of the OSG’s main functions is to represent the State before SCOTUS–a job we have noted current General Cruz has done extremely well.

That preliminary report appeared on Tuesday; the news is now confirmed. Here are press releases from the Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott, and the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, both praising Ho for his past achievements, and wishing him well in his latest endeavor.

Read more, after the jump.

The Brokeback Lawfirm scandal folded its pup tent months ago. But there's still stuff to cover at one of ATL's favorite firms, the venerable Sullivan & Cromwell.

Here are two items. First, from a tipster:

If I recall correctly, Sullivan & Cromwell sent out a memo in December or January saying that even though they paid the "special bonuses" in December, they still intended to pay additional profit-sharing bonuses in February. [February is over] and as far as I know, not a word from S&C. Can you guys please make a big deal over this?

The tipster's memory is slightly off. From chairman H. Rodgin Cohen's earlier bonus memo:

[T]he Firm will pay senior associates compensation in addition to salary and bonus through our new Senior Associate Supplemental Bonus Plan ("the Plan"). We have decided to accelerate payments under this new Plan to result in the following [market-matching bonuses] being paid on December 14 to our senior associates, with final supplemental payments to be made in the Spring of '08.

We are now officially into spring 2008. So ATL hereby "make[s] a big deal over this." Has S&C paid the supplemental bonuses to its senior associates? If so, can someone please give us the skinny?

Second, here's an interesting rumor of a partner departure from S&C, from a different tipster:

Carlos Spinelli-Noseda is a partner at S&C (do a Google search and check the cached website). At this point, however, you can't find him on the firm's external or internal website anymore. No idea what's up with him, but apparently he [was] involved in a firm event about 10 days ago...

We're intrigued. Partner departures are more common farther down the Am Law 100, but they're rare at a place like Sullivan & Cromwell.

We did some preliminary poking around, but didn't learn anything. A firm spokesperson didn't respond to multiple telephone and email messages. The usual news sources have no stories about his defection to another firm. On LinkedIn, he's still listed as an S&C partner (although it's true, as noted by the tipster, that his bio is gone from the S&C website).

We tried contacting Mr. Spinelli-Noseda directly. Our email didn't bounce back, but we didn't get a response either. When we dialed his direct extension, a receptionist answered the telephone with the firm name, not his name. When we asked to speak with him, the secretary asked us -- in a vaguely hostile tone -- who we were and why we were calling. She took down our contact info, but did not offer to put us into voice-mail, and we never received a return call.

If you know what's going on, please email us. Thanks.

Under the leadership of the beloved Elena Kagan, Harvard Law School continues to raid other schools for law professor talent. Word on the street is that another big hire is in the works. This past weekend, Dean Kagan crowed about her coup before a group of admitted students, saying it would be announced later this week.

We checked for news and gossip over at Leiter's Law School Reports, the definitive source for information about senior-level appointments in legal academia, but didn't see anything. Any guesses as to who will be snatched by HLS next?

In addition to the Harvard name (and endowment), Dean Kagan has other weapons in her arsenal for doing battle in the recruitment wars. She wooed Feldsuk with a million-dollar mansion, and Cass Sunstein with a million-dollar bab[e]. What fabulous prizes will Kagan bestow upon her latest hire?

Feel free to speculate and opine in the comments, or by email. Thanks.

Some minor email amusement, in the spirit of Skadden Arps and Pepper Hamilton, courtesy of the Chicago office of DLA Piper:

This is a pretty cool goof by Bill Rudnick, the new head of DLA Piper's Chicago office. A group of partners just came over from Locke Lord Bissell, and apparently one of them went back to Locke Lord within a week.

Around 8:30 p.m. last Wednesday, three messages went out to the Chicago office all within a couple minutes. The first e-mail below went out first, followed by a "recall" message, and then the last message below.

Read the emails, after the jump.

We greatly enjoyed our recent visit to the University of Chicago Law School. The U. Chicago students were very welcoming and made us feel right at home, even inviting us to their law school musical -- which, by the way, was delightful.

(We added many of them as friends on Facebook before we were mysteriously banned from the site, without notice or explanation. So if you no longer see us on FB, it's not because we "de-friended" you, but because our account was disabled.)

A few Chicago students, however, had a bone to pick with us. They objected to this ATL post, which cast the recently announced departure of Professor Cass Sunstein -- prominent scholar, beloved teacher, and possible Supreme Court nominee under President Obama -- as a hiring coup by Harvard Law School, a triumph by HLS over Chicago. They emphasized that Professor Sunstein's leaving the Windy City for Cambridge was prompted by personal rather than professional reasons.

Professor Sunstein said as much his farewell email (emphasis added; in fact, all emphases added throughout this post, unless otherwise indicated):

I'm writing to say that I've just accepted an appointment at Harvard Law School. It is an understatement to say that I don't take this step easily or lightly. As most of you know, I've been reflecting on this question for several years. I finally decided, for personal reasons, that I need a change.

Since he's a prominent Obama supporter -- as well an adviser to the campaign, but more on that later, since it ties into our tale -- it's not surprising that Professor Sunstein is All About Change.

The law school's popular leader, Dean Saul Levmore, also stressed the personal component to Professor Sunstein's move. As he told the University of Chicago's student newspaper, the Maroon:

“I’m sort of embarrassed that [the story] said that the University of Chicago couldn’t be reached for comment,” Levmore said. “It looks like we didn’t want to talk, but the truth is that this decision [to leave Chicago for Harvard] was based on personal reasons and I respect that privacy. The media will find out about them soon enough.”

With a comment like this, Dean Levmore was basically begging us to go digging. So dig we did.

Let's see, Cass Sunstein's "personal reasons" for leaving U. Chicago... hold on a sec. Isn't Professor Sunstein part of legal academia's most fabulous power couple, together with that renowned philosopher queen, Professor Martha Nussbaum? And didn't Professor Nussbaum just turn down a Harvard offer?

That was then; this is now. What we learned in our investigation is consistent with this ATL comment, as well as this (subsequently removed) Wikipedia edit.

It appears that Professor Sunstein may be part of a new "power couple" -- in the most literal sense. Rumor has it that he's romantically involved with Professor Samantha Power -- a beautiful, brainy professor at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, who is roughly 15 years his junior. She is a Pulitzer Prize winner who has also been profiled in Men's Vogue (see glamorous photo, at the top of this post). What's not to like?

Update: More about Samantha Power here (from a college classmate who tried to hit on her, without success, and just ended arguing politics with her).

Now, please don't give us full credit (or blame) for bringing to light the Sunstein-Power relationship. When we attended the Chicago Law School musical last weekend, Samantha Power got a shout-out near the end of the show, when the Cass Sunstein character announced his departure for Harvard. So the rumor of her romance with Professor Sunstein is already widely known throughout the U. Chicago community (and beyond); it's no state secret. It is already known to hundreds, if not thousands, of people.

We reached out to all three members of this Mensalicious love triangle, which seems to come straight out of a Saul Bellow novel. Find out what we learned -- two of them had no comment, but one of them did -- after the jump.

If we knew anything about sports, we'd say this is the legal academic equivalent of Major Player X leaving Super-Elite Team Y for Super-Elite Team Z. But we don't. So we'll just say it's one of the biggest law school hiring coups since Harvard Law School snatched half of Feldsuk from NYU.

HLS strikes again -- but this time around, the victim of their poaching is U. Chicago (where we'll be making an appearance later this week, by the way). From the Harvard Law School website:

Renowned legal scholar and political theorist Cass R. Sunstein '78 has accepted an offer to join the Harvard Law School faculty, Dean Elena Kagan '86 announced today. Sunstein, currently a tenured professor at the University of Chicago Law School, will begin teaching at HLS in the fall. He will also become director of the new Program on Risk Regulation.

"Cass Sunstein is the preeminent legal scholar of our time -- the most wide-ranging, the most prolific, the most cited, and the most influential," said Kagan. "His work in any one of the fields he pursues -- administrative law and policy, constitutional law and theory, behavioral economics and law, environmental law, to name a non-exhaustive few -- would put him in the very front ranks of legal scholars; the combination is singular and breathtaking...."

Some tipsters' takes:

"I imagine a lot of Chicago alums will be annoyed at the least."

"Yet another high-profile move to HLS. Dean Kagan has done an amazing job these past few years getting big names out to Cambridge. (I’m just annoyed because I decided to take Admin Law this semester.)"

"[W]e just learned that although Martha Nussbaum turned down Harvard and Brown last week, Cass Sunstein ACCEPTED his Harvard Law offer! I'm torn - HUGE get in Sunstein, proving Elena Kagan is unstoppable, but is this trouble for the power couple?"

In December, we attended Professor Sunstein's 2007 Distinguished Lecture at AEI in Washington, DC (where we're currently based). We were mighty impressed by the good professor, who wasn't just brilliant and articulate, but also funny and self-effacing. Congrats to HLS and Dean Kagan on this latest addition to the Cambridge constellation of legal geniuses!

Update: Additional analysis of the Sunstein move from Professor Brian Leiter appears here. It seems that all is well in Sunstein-Nussbaum land. Per Professor Leiter:

[A]s Cass told me, he will be keeping his Chicago apartment and an office at the University of Chicago Law School, and he will also continue teaching part-time at Chicago as the Harry Kalven Visiting Professor of Law (probably in the winter quarters).

Further Update / Correction: Uh, scratch that. As you may have surmised from some of the comments, Professors Nussbaum and Sunstein are no longer an item. Professor Sunstein has a new honey, Professor Samantha Power, of Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. He's moving to Harvard in part because of this new romance. More details here.

Sunstein, Harvard, Chicago [Leiter's Law School Reports]
Nussbaum Declines Harvard, Brown Offers, and Will Remain at Chicago [Leiter's Law School Reports]
Sunstein to join Harvard Law School faculty [Harvard Law School]
Cass Sunstein bio [University of Chicago Law School]
2007 Distinguished Lecture: Extremism [American Enterprise Institute]

If we hadn't already named a Lawyer of the Day, the prize might have gone to Jeremy Pitcock of Morgan & Finnegan. From the American Lawyer:

The former head of intellectual property at Kasowitz, Benson, Torres & Friedman was fired in December for “extremely inappropriate personal conduct,” according to the firm.

Not merely "inappropriate" conduct, but "extremely inappropriate" conduct. We're guessing it was strenuously objectionable.

Jeremy Pitcock, 35, joined Kasowitz in March 2006 after being wooed from Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, where he was a senior associate. Kasowitz named him head of IP not long after. But after less than two years, Pitcock left the 200-plus-lawyer firm for 52-lawyer New York IP boutique Morgan & Finnegan.

Morgan touted Pitcock’s hiring as “an outstanding addition to our successful litigation practice” when it announced his move on January 8. But the Kasowitz firm says he was forced out following an unspecified incident.

“Mr. Pitcock was terminated for cause by Kasowitz, Benson in December 2007 because of extremely inappropriate personal conduct,” name partner Daniel Benson said in a statement.

So what prompted the firm's statement?

Kasowitz’s statement followed the publication of an article in trade publication IP Law 360 last week, which reported that Morgan had lured Pitcock from Kasowitz. In his statement, directed toward the publication, Benson said, “It was inaccurate to use ‘nab’ in your headline, or to use ‘jump ship’ in your opening paragraph.”

“We were not looking to publicize this incident, but because of those incorrect news items, we felt compelled to set the record straight,” Benson said in a press release that the firm distributed online.

We're intrigued -- and the full article in the American Lawyer doesn't offer much more. If you have details on the alleged conduct, please email us. Thanks.

Kasowitz Fired its ex–IP Chief for Inappropriate Conduct [The American Lawyer via Law.com]
Jeremy S. Pitcock bio [Morgan & Finnegan]

Another day, another report of problems for Heller Ehrman. As usual, the bad news comes not from ATL, but from an MSM source -- so don't accuse us of making this stuff up. We're just piggybacking on our friends in the print media.

From the Legal Times:

Like a California Beemer spinning its wheels in Potomac River swampland, San Francisco-based Heller Ehrman just can’t seem to gain traction in Washington.

Last year, the firm’s D.C. head count grew by only one attorney. This year, the office is down eight, from 57 attorneys to 49, a 14 percent decline....

[T]here are also signs of trouble firm-wide. Earlier this month the firm suffered two major losses. Partner Patricia Gillette, who helped anchor Heller’s San Francisco office, jumped to Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe. Gillette, who was a co-chairwoman of the labor and employment practice, brought another partner and four associates with her. Jerry Marks, Heller’s former Los Angeles managing partner, has signed on at Milbank Tweed Hadley & McCloy. In September, the firm also laid off 65 support staff members.

Though the 700-lawyer Heller is still considered a solid firm, its recent losses and its moribund Washington numbers have some observers wondering what is ailing the California power.

Is the Legal Times making a mountain out of a molehill? Or is Heller's D.C. office -- located just down the street from us, with a gigantic silver sign over the door -- really in trouble?

Firm Has D.C. Discontent [Legal Times (subscription)]

Earlier: Prior ATL coverage of Heller Ehrman (scroll down)

In the comments to yesterday's post about Heller Ehrman, there was some debate about how grave the firm's current problems are. Last night, more bad news broke, from Legal Pad (via the super-vigilant Blogonaut):

Another day, another Heller lawyer gone. Corporate partner Kyle Guse has jumped from the firm’s Silicon Valley office to McDermott Will & Emery. Guse told Legal Pad that the current rumblings at the roughly 700-lawyer Heller had nothing to do with his decision to leave....

Guse represents biotech and tech companies and said he’ll be bringing his clients with him to the new firm.

So tell us, loyal reader(s), what is going on at Heller? Are more partners going to leave? Will captain Matt Larrabee guide the firm to safety?

ATL readers: any thoughts?

For the record, we take no pleasure in Heller Ehrman's difficulties; we're just covering a story. When we were in private practice, our experiences with Heller Ehrman were quite positive. We attended several depositions defended by the diva-licious Nancy Sher Cohen, who protected her witnesses like a lioness protecting her cubs. We were most impressed by this badass litigatrix (who is also a community activist and cancer survivor; see this profile).

P.S. And the cookies served in Heller's New York office were delicious! No matter what happens to the firm, we hope that the cookie recipe will be preserved for posterity.

Corporate Partner Exits Heller Ehrman [Legal Pad / Cal Law]
More Bad News for Heller: Yet Another Partner Defection [Blogonaut]
Sher Cohen’s Law & Order: Justice Unit [JewishJournal.com]

Earlier: Going to Heller in a Handbasket? (Part 1)

Back in June, we predicted that veteran litigator Joseph Russoniello, of Cooley Godward Kronish in San Francisco, would be nominated to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Northern District. Months later, no nominee has been named. As the folks over at Legal Pad noted last month, it's a bit strange -- especially since Ruossoniello's background check was apparently completed some time ago.

Meanwhile, the office remains in the capable hands of the well-regarded Scott Schools, who will be officially appointed as interim United States Attorney later this week.

But don't expect Schools to stick around forever. We hear that he'll be heading over to take a high-level job at Main Justice (possibly in the Deputy Attorney General's office).

It seems that Schools will be missed in the Northern District. From a source in the N.D. Cal.:

People seem to like him, and he makes an effort to get to know line AUSAs. He shows up at social events, like baby showers and happy hours, which I think is a huge change from former leadership.

If you have any info on these personnel changes, feel free to drop us a line. Thanks.

Northern District of California Announces Appointment of Scott N Schools as Interim United States Attorney [N.D. Cal.]
Say It Is (or Isn't) So, Joe [Legal Pad]

Earlier: Musical Chairs: A New U.S. Attorney for San Francisco?
U.S. Attorney Joe Russoniello? Not So Fast

Alston & Bird lost four partners from its Washington office to DLA Piper on Tuesday, according to this report from The Lawyer:

Alston & Bird’s Washington office was rocked yesterday (Tuesday 2 October) by the exit of four partners to DLA Piper, including DC co-managing partner and chair of the firm’s executive committee, Frank Rusty Conner.

The departing group also includes the former head of Alston’s legislative and public policy group, Tom Boyd. Boyd joins DLA Piper as co-head of the firm’s government affairs practice in Washington with Governor Jim Blanchard.

The exit of the four partners will be a significant blow to Alston’s corporate ambitions. Conner, at the firm for almost 30 years, was also co-head of its corporate group while the two other, as yet unnamed partners, are understood to be from the corporate group.

Alston lost a fifth partner to DLA Piper in September. If this was the NFL, Alston would be getting compensatory draft picks.

DLA Piper raids Alston for former chair and team [TheLawyer.com]

Are you a Department of Justice employee? If so, why are you at your desk? Shouldn't you be at the festivities in honor of Alberto Gonzales's last day?

DOJ employees are invited to attend the Farewell Ceremony for Alberto R. Gonzales, 80th Attorney General of the United States. The ceremony will be held at 3:00 p.m., on Friday, September 14, 2007, in the Great Hall. For those unable to attend, the ceremony will be aired on JusticeVision and Justice Television Network.

It won't be as riveting as the Monica Goodling testimony. But then again, what is?

Update (5 PM): A tipster who was there writes: "Just came from the 'Farewell Celabration.' Condi, who led the standing ovations, and Chertoff were the only non-Justice ppl from the Administration. Neither spoke."

In other DOJ departure news, Regina Schofield -- the (non-attorney) Assistant Attorney General overseeing the Office of Justice Programs -- recently announced her resignation, effective September 28.

More here from Wonkette, whose commenters described her as "kinda hot." Our Justice Department sources concur, describing her as someone who "takes care of herself" and is always "perfectly coiffed." She's also reportedly on the quiet side, perhaps unusual for an AAG, which makes her seem "alternately shy or imperious." (So she's no Shanetta Cutlar, who's 0 percent shy and 100 percent imperious.)

If you're curious, Regina Schofield's full resignation message appears after the jump.

Top DoJ Official Resigns V Quietly [Wonkette]
Today Is Gonzo’s Last Day At DOJ [WSJ Law Blog]
Gonzales Ready to Leave the Stage [Washington Post]
Assistant Attorney General Regina B. Schofield Announces Departure [U.S. Department of Justice]
Remarks of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales Announcing His Resignation [U.S. Department of Justice]

The Phil Spector trial is almost at its end, but Spector has nevertheless just added a lawyer to his legal team: San Francisco attorney Dennis Riordan.

Riordan comes on as Bruce Cutler departs, though presiding Superior Court Judge Larry Paul Fidler took pains to clarify that Riordan is not replacing Cutler as lead counsel for Spector:

"I think that was a little bit of hyperbole," Fidler said when asked by the prosecution if there was a new chief defense counsel.

"Mr. Rosen is the chief counsel, the one we rely on as I understand it," Fidler said of attorney Roger Rosen, who effectively became leader of the defense while Cutler was often absent for several weeks to tape a TV judge show.

"Mr. Riordan is here to work on jury instructions," Fidler said. He said Riordan would be considered a member of the defense team while assisting with jury instructions.

Riordan, asked if that was his understanding, replied: "As far as I know, 'chief' refers to a Native American. I am not chief counsel."

[CNN]

Yeah, I guess it does, in that it's a racist, derogatory term for a Native American. Could he not have settled for a simple "Yes, your Honor"? Jeez.

At any rate, since Riordan is known as an appellate lawyer, we suspect he's ultimately there for more than the jury instructions.

As stated above, Cutler left because Spector wasn't too happy with him missing so much of the trial, which he was apparently doing to film a TV judge show. Which will be better, his or Larry Seidlin's?

What's up with all these federal judges seeking to leave their life-tenured quarters? We understand that the pay's not great (which is why we urge them to marry rich). But being an Article III judge is still nice work if you can get it.

Despite the power and prestige, two federal judges are moving on -- temporarily or permanently. First, from the Daily Business Review:

In a highly unusual move, U.S. District Judge Martin Jenkins [N.D. Cal. (at right)], a life-tenured federal judge in San Francisco, is prepared to give up his seat and has applied for an opening on the California State Court of Appeal bench.

Jenkins, 54, a moderate Democrat and former state trial court judge in Oakland, Calif., was appointed by President Clinton a decade ago. He confirmed rumors that he has submitted an application with Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger for the vacancy.

We understand the allure of an appellate over a trial court gig. But still, giving up the federal bench for a state court is "highly unusual" -- especially since the state court in question isn't even the California Supreme Court (the move that Judge Morrison England (E.D. Cal.) was contemplating, before he withdrew his name from consideration).

Second, from the Houston Chronicle (via Sophistic Miltonian Serbonian Blog):

U.S. District Judge Sam Kent [S.D. Tex.] will take a four-month leave from his Galveston bench for unspecified reasons, according to an order made public Monday.

No one involved would comment on the order, but students of the federal judiciary said it is unusual.

We smell a story here. A little more about Judge Kent, after the jump.

We're deep into the lazy days of August -- and today is Friday. So of course there's news of a high-profile resignation from the Department of Justice.

From the New York Times:

The head of the Justice Department’s civil rights division announced Thursday that he was resigning, the latest in a long string of departures from the department in the midst of a furor over the leadership of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales.

The department said that the resignation of the official, Assistant Attorney General Wan J. Kim, had nothing to do with the recent controversies over Mr. Gonzales’s performance, and that Mr. Kim had been planning his departure for months.

We can confirm that. Kim's resignation, effective at the end of this month, does not come as a surprise to DOJ insiders. Recall what we wrote in these pages almost two months ago:

Assistant Attorney General Wan J. Kim, who oversees the Justice Department's important (and controversial) Civil Rights Division, will step down from his post before the end of the year. He was sworn in as AAG in November 2005, so by this fall he will have held the job for two years -- a long-enough stint in that position.

So stick with us, kids. We bring you the legal news as -- and sometimes even before -- it happens.

(Another DOJ departure: Bradley J. Schlozman, who preceded Kim in heading the CRD (on an acting basis). We hear that Schlozman won't exactly be missed, even by fellow conservatives at Main Justice.)

Civil Rights Division Head Resigning at Justice Dept. [New York Times]
Statement of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales on the Resignation of Assistant Attorney General Wan J. Kim [U.S. Department of Justice]

Earlier: Musical Chairs: Another Rumored DOJ Departure

Thanks for the reminder. In an earlier post, we wrote: "We've been hearing interesting rumors about some possible departures at the Assistant Attorney General (AAG) level." And since today is Friday, the favored day for DOJ resignations, we figured we might as well squeeze this in before lunchtime.

Some of the rumors have already come to pass -- like the departure of Eileen O'Connor, as head of the Tax Division, and the departure of Rachel Brand, as head of the Office of Legal Policy. But there's one resignation rumor that's still outstanding.

We hear that Assistant Attorney General Wan J. Kim, who oversees the Justice Department's important (and controversial) Civil Rights Division, will step down from his post before the end of the year. He was sworn in as AAG in November 2005, so by this fall he will have held the job for two years -- a long-enough stint in that position.

If Wan Kim does resign from the Civil Rights Division, he can hardly be blamed. Getting scolded on Capitol Hill isn't much fun. Especially when most of the things you're getting scolded about are the fault of your predecessor, former Acting AAG Bradley J. Schlozman (who is allegedly not the nicest guy in the world, according to some people).

Senators Deride Justice Reassignments [Washington Post]

Earlier: Why Did the Prom Queen Leave the Party?
Musical Chairs: Rearranging the Proverbial Deck Chairs at Main Justice?

These aren't the happiest of times for the U.S. Department of Justice. Although the Alberto Gonzales no-confidence resolution probably won't change anything -- if President Bush intended to dump the AG, wouldn't he have done so by now? -- it still can't be fun.

Despite the troubles at the top, there are still numerous Justice Department officials who remain committed to doing the work of the Department, amidst all of the political upheaval. Here are some recent notable moves and promotions at the DOJ (announced internally on Friday):

* Ron Tenpas, formerly an Associate Deputy Attorney General, to be Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division.

* David Hagy, to be Director of the National Institute of Justice.

* Ryan Bounds, promoted to Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Office of Legal Policy (where he will remain Chief of Staff).

The exceptionally well-dressed Mr. Bounds may be best known to ATL readers by his alternate title: head of the Office of Sartorial Counsel.

While we're on the subject of Main Justice, we've been hearing interesting rumors about some possible departures at the Assistant Attorney General (AAG) level. If you have some information to share, please email us (subject line: "DOJ Musical Chairs"). Thanks.

As you may recall (from yesterday's Morning Docket), Eliot Disner is the McGuireWoods partner who criticized the settlement negotiated by his firm in an antitrust class action against Bar/Bri, the giant bar exam prep company.

Actually, make that "former McGuireWoods partner." From today's New York Law Journal:

Mr. Disner, who was a partner in the Los Angeles office of McGuireWoods, said the firm fired him May 23. "I was terminated because [McGuireWoods] said that my work on the BAR/BRI case had hurt the [firm's] reputation," he said. His concerns about the proposed settlement with West Publishing Corp., which offers BAR/BRI bar review courses nationwide, surfaced in an objection to the class settlement that was filed last week by three lead plaintiffs (NYLJ, May 21)....

A hearing before U.S. District Court Judge Manuel Real on whether the $49 million settlement will become final is scheduled for June 18. Mr. Disner's brief, which was not supported by McGuireWoods, argues that the firm ought to press for at least $400 million from West Publishing, as well as for the breakup of BAR/BRI.

We titled an earlier post about the settlement You Are Probably $125 Richer Right Now. But if Eliot Disner is right, maybe another zero belongs on the end of that figure.

Study questions: Is the Bar/Bri settlement fair? Or has Bar/Bri screwed us yet again?

Law Firm Fires Partner Who Questioned BAR/BRI Settlement [New York Law Journal]
Bar/Bri Class-Action Objector is Fired [WSJ Law Blog]
The Intrigue Grows in Bar/Bri Class-Action [WSJ Law Blog]
Lawyer Who Sued BAR/BRI Now Questions the Settlement [American Lawyer]