Scooter Libby’s stable of legal thoroughbreds failed him. Moments ago Judge Reggie Walton ruled that Libby does not get bail pending appeal. It’s jail time.
Update / clarification: Libby wasn’t taken into custody today. It will take at least six to eight weeks for the Bureau of Prisons to determine where Libby will be imprisoned and to set a reporting date for him to show up to prison. No. Bail. [The BLT: The Blog of the Legal Times] Judge Won’t Delay Libby Prison Term [Associated Press via Washington Post]
Wouldn’t it be nice if a kind reader were to nominate Above the Law in this contest?
We realize ATL isn’t always a laugh riot. But c’mon, folks — it’s a competition for most amusing LEGAL BLOG.
(We’re reminded of Justice Breyer’s recent quip, in which he compared being the funniest Supreme Court justice to being the tallest dwarf.) Top 10 Funniest Law Blogs [Legal Antics]
If you’ve been feeling bad for Jin Nam and Soo Chung, the dry cleaners sued by crazy-ass pseudo-judge ALJ Roy Pearson for $54 million — over a pair of pants — now you can help:
As for what’s going on in the case, Marc Fisher has this update in today’s Washington Post. The trial is over; expect a ruling from Judge Judith Bartnoff sometime next week. Wearing Down the Judicial System With a Pair of Pants [Washington Post] Custom Cleaners Defense Fund [official website]
First, King & Spalding is now on the $160K salary scale in Washington, DC. We hear that the associates back in Atlanta, who have not seen any raise action, aren’t happy campers. Memo after the jump.
Second, with respect to the rumor that Hogan & Hartson has raised salaries for its lower-hours track, we’d appreciate it if someone would send us confirmation and/or a memo. Thanks.
We’re nearing the end of graduation season. Sadly, we received hardly any responses to our request for examples of odious graduation gifts. This was the best one:
Worst graduation gift ever: My dad asking me why I only came second in my class and not first. And then no gifts!
If that’s not a recipe for several years of therapy, we don’t know what is. Due to the lack of submissions, we have picked out our own worst graduation gift: Nina Totenberg as your graduation speaker.
Because Nina Totenberg, the distinguished legal affairs reporter for NPR, is one of the country’s most celebrated journalists, one would expect graduates — especially law school graduates — to appreciate her as a speaker. But La Totenberg didn’t win many fans with her recent Georgetown commencement address.
Here’s a less-than-favorable review of her speech, from a 2007 graduate of Georgetown University Law Center:
I worked very hard, for an extended period of time, to graduate from law school. For better or worse, it represents one of the great achievements I will have in life. And her speech seemed as if she wrote it on the cab ride over from NPR.
I’m disappointed that Totenberg chose to be so lighthearted during what I feel is, for lack of a better word, a “solemn” occasion. It was so lighthearted that it wasn’t even cogent! Ask me how I really feel, right?
I have heard nothing but negative reviews from [my classmates]….
We welcome your suggestions of legal markets to cover in our grand tour of these here United States. We won’t necessarily adopt them (and we can’t cover every single market in the entire country). But we do appreciate your recommendations, which we often follow.
A recent commenter had this idea:
How ’bout the upper midwest in one shot (Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Detroit and maybe Cleveland)?
We previously covered Cleveland as part of our Ohio post. But we are happy to devote today’s post to the Upper Midwest.
How does one define the Upper Midwest? Apparently there’s some disagreement. Per Wikipedia:
The Upper Midwest is a region of the United States with no universally agreed-upon boundary, but it almost always lies within the US Census Bureau’s definition of the Midwest and includes the states of Minnesota and Wisconsin, as well as at least the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
The Upper Midwest often includes the rest of Michigan, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois, and sometimes extends further southwest to include Missouri, east to Ohio, and sometimes west to North Dakota and South Dakota, and the parts of Montana east of the Rockies.
We’ll adopt the definition that includes Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa, Indiana, and Illinois. This includes the cities of Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Detroit, and Indianapolis (but not Chicago, which we cover extensively as part of our national coverage).
With this definition in mind, please discuss associate compensation at Upper Midwest law firms in the comments. Thanks. Upper Midwest [Wikipedia] Related: Open threads focused on Denver, Hartford, Philadelphia, Seattle, New Jersey, Phoenix, Atlanta, Charlotte, Ohio, Miami.
* It’s hard out here for a suburban, country club dwelling, former porn star pimp. [Atlanta Journal-Constitution]
* And by “reshape” we mean “slowly eliminate altogether.” [New York Times]
* House closes VT gun background check loophole. [Jurist]
* Only difference is, once I get my pants on, I make gold records! [CNN]
* It’s also hard out here for a disabled, middle-aged, drug-dealing pimp. [Atlanta Journal-Constitution]
Hey everyone, remember those things called clerkship bonuses? After a long period of radio silence — the most recent news was from before Memorial Day — we have more information to share.
We just got off the phone with a Fried Frank spokesperson, who informed us as follows:
1. The firm has raised its clerkship bonus to $50,000.
2. This bonus doesn’t change depending upon whether you have one or two years of clerkship experience. (Most of the firm’s clerks join the firm from one-year clerkships.)
Are you aware of any recent clerkship bonus announcements that we haven’t mentioned in these pages? If so, please email us (subject line: “Clerkship Bonus”). Thanks.
* ATL readers, meet Modern Bride of the Year, future defender of battered women. [Modern Bride; lots of "In Defense of"s in Slate's Wedding Report] [FN1]
* I hate to repeat myself and every other local politician, but what do you expect from New York City public school teachers? (I mean, what does it say when an atheist donates millions to help the needy send their kids to parochial schools?) [CBS News]
* Even highly evolved, quietly progressive Sweden is not immune to the realities of displacement. [New York Times]
* Feel free to direct your anger at me, but foie gras is a traditional part of my family’s Christmas spread. I blame over- and mass-production for the spectacular extent of bad press. How would you feel if turkey were outlawed? And what happened to the veal controversy? I’m glad I don’t live in Chicago. [Fox News]
* Paris has famously vowed not to act stupid anymore, but she should put her money where her mouth is. Sadly, Tehran will probably nix the idea of The Simple Life: Behind the Burqa. [CNN]
[FN1] Brides and grooms-to-be, please forgive me for this gratuitous laugh at your expense. But I can’t help myself, and somehow I am comforted that such sentiment does not spring from bitterness or a Gawker-esque superiority/inferiority complex. I’m just in a state of utter disbelief that earnestness seems genetically intertwined with blondeness and nasality.
So this is the 21st century? Where courts award punitive damages for offensive words and pictures? Isn’t “the scummiest kind of sexually offensive tripe” exactly what we always used to say people had to put up with in a free country? Man, that was so 20th century!
3. Suing Autodmit [Instapundit]
Professor Glenn Reynolds — who kindly links to our post, by the way — largely agrees with Professor Althouse. He sarcastically observes: “Stuff that offends dumb hicks in the heartland is constitutionally protected. Stuff that offends Yale Law Students must be stamped out!”
More links, after the jump.
The holiday season is upon us, and yet again, you have no idea what to get for the fickle lawyer in your life. We’re here to help. Even if your bonus check hasn’t arrived yet, any one of the gifts we’ve highlighted here could be a worthy substitute until your employer decides to make it rain.
We’ve got an eclectic selection for you to choose from, so settle in by that stack of documents yet to be reviewed and dig in…
Ed. note: The Asia Chronicles column is authored by Kinney Recruiting. Kinney has made more placements of U.S. associates, counsels and partners in Asia than any other recruiting firm in each of the past six years. You can reach them by email: asia@kinneyrecruiting.com.
We currently have a very exciting and rare type of in-house opening in China at one of the world’s leading internet and social media companies. Our client is looking for an IP Transactional / TMT / Licensing attorney with 2 to 6 years experience. The new hire will be based in Shenzhen or Shanghai. Mandarin is not required (deal documentation will be in English) but is preferred. A solid reason to be in China and a commitment to that market is required of course. This new hire will likely be US qualified (but could also be qualified in UK or other jurisdictions) and with experience and training at a top law firm’s IP transactional / TMT practice and could be currently at a law firm or in-house. Qualified candidates currently Asia based, Europe based or US based will be considered. The new hire’s supervisors in this technology transactions in-house team are very well regarded US trained IP transactional lawyers, with substantial experience at Silicon Valley firms. The culture and atmosphere in this in-house group and the company in general is entrepreneurial, team oriented, and the work is cutting edge, even for a cutting edge industry. The upside of being in an important strategic in-house position in this fast growing and world leading internet company is of the “sky is the limit” variety. Its a very exciting place to be in China for a rising IP transactional lawyer in our opinion, for many reasons beyond the basic info we can share here in this ad / post. This is a special A+ opportunity.
If your firm is in ‘go’ mode when it comes to recruiting lateral partners with loyal clients, then take this quiz to see how well you measure up. Keep track of your ‘yes’ and ‘no’ responses.
1. Does your firm have a clearly defined strategy of practice groups that are priorities of growth for your office? Nothing gets done by random chance, but with a clear vision for the future. Identify the top practice areas for which you wish to add lateral partners. Seek input from practice group leaders and get specifics on needs, outcomes, and ideal target profiles.
2. In addition to clarifying your firm’s growth strategy, are you still open to the hire of a partner outside of your plan? I’ve made several placements that fit this category. The partner’s practice was not within the strategic growth plan of my client, but once the two parties started talking with each other, we all saw how it could indeed be a seamless fit. Be open to “Opportunistic Hires.” You never know where your next producing partner might come from, so you have to be open to it. I will be the first to admit that there is a quirky element of randomness in recruiting.
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From The BLT, shortly before 2:00 p.m.:
