Pro Bono
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Biglaw, Fabulosity, Job Searches, Law Schools, Pro Bono, Public Interest
Congratulations to the 2013 Skadden Fellows
See any names you know? And which law schools have produced the most Skadden Fellows over the past five years? -
7th Circuit, American Bar Association / ABA, Bankruptcy, Barack Obama, Baseball, Deaths, Dewey & LeBoeuf, Disasters / Emergencies, Family Law, Federal Judges, Judicial Nominations, Law Schools, Morning Docket, Pro Bono, S.D.N.Y., State Judges, State Judges Are Clowns, Texas
Morning Docket: 11.15.12
* In a move to “end the vacancy crisis,” one week after being reelected, and one day after the Senate returned to session, Barack Obama nominated seven people for open seats on federal district courts, including two S.D.N.Y. slots. [Blog of Legal Times]
* Dewey know how much the Los Angeles Dodgers will have to pay the now defunct firm for its work on the team’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy case? About $13M — the equivalent of their pitcher’s salary, or 62% of their first baseman’s pay. [WSJ Law Blog]
* Which Biglaw firms in the Am Law 200 are the most LGBT friendly? Overall, of the 145 firms that participated in the Human Rights Campaign’s survey, 71 received perfect scores. Absolutely fabulous! [Am Law Daily]
* The American Bar Association’s Task Force on the Future of Legal Education wants to know what should be done about law schools. This is a time to keep it simple, stupid: change EVERYTHING! [National Law Journal]
* The New York Court of Appeals invoked the Major Disaster Rule for the first time ever, allowing out-of-state attorneys to perform pro bono services for Hurricane Sandy victims. [Thomson Reuters News & Insight]
* William Adams, the Texas family court judge who got caught beating his daughter, returned to the bench yesterday after a year-long suspension. At least he won’t get physical abuse cases, anymore. [Fox News]
* John Coffey, Senior Status Judge of the Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, RIP. [Journal Sentinel]
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American Bar Association / ABA, Biglaw, Disasters / Emergencies, Pro Bono, Public Interest
Lawyers and Law Firms Contribute To Hurricane Sandy Relief and Recovery Efforts
What are lawyers and law firms doing to contribute to Hurricane Sandy relief and recovery efforts?
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Biglaw, Partner Issues, Partner Profits, Pro Bono
Buying In: Partner Meetings (Part 1) - What Happens
What takes place during a partners' meeting? Anonymous Partner pulls back the curtain and reveals all. -
Bar Exams, Law Schools, Pro Bono, Public Interest, State Judges
New York's Pro Bono Requirement Unlikely To Close The 'Justice Gap'
New York's new pro bono rule might not have as great of an impact on the "justice gap" as Chief Judge Lippman thought... -
Copyright, Divorce Train Wrecks, Education / Schools, Family Law, Law School Deans, Libraries / Librarians, Money, Morning Docket, Police, Pro Bono, Public Interest
Morning Docket: 09.27.12
* A former Cravath law librarian is fighting his “effective termination” from Southern Illinois University School of Law over alleged threats to bash a colleague in the head with a crowbar. How déclassé! What, was a champagne flute not available? [National Law Journal]
* Is New York’s new mandatory pro bono requirement for admission to the bar too rigid a licensing rule? Compared to what it could have been, no, but obviously others disagree on this point. [Am Law Daily]
* New York Law School’s dean thinks that experience in City Hall gives him an edge. In other news, after being sued over its employment stats, NYLS had the most applicants ever since 2008. Sigh. [New York Law Journal]
* Jamie McCourt doesn’t think it’s very fair that she only got a $131M divorce payout when her ex-husband, Frank McCourt, ended up with $1.7B after he sold the Dodgers. #filthyrichpeopleproblems [Bloomberg]
* “I’m in shock and I’m angry and I’m hurt and I’m flabbergasted and I’m livid.” You’d feel the same if you saw that your engagement photo was being used in an anti-gay marriage mailer. [City Room / New York Times]
* Don’t mind me, I’m just watering my hippies: in a proposed settlement, the University of California is offering $30K to each of the students who were pepper-sprayed by a police officer at UC Davis last year. [CNN]
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Biglaw, Clarence Thomas, Department of Justice, Federal Government, Job Searches, Law Schools, Morning Docket, Patents, Pro Bono, Public Interest, Rankings, SCOTUS, Supreme Court, Supreme Court Clerks, Technology
Morning Docket: 09.24.12
* Hey, “regular students” with “regular backgrounds,” you may be able to get a job as a SCOTUS clerk, because Justice Clarence Thomas is the Supreme Court’s honey badger in that he doesn’t give a sh*t about rankings. [Seattle Post-Intelligencer]
* Because $1.05 bill wasn’t quite enough, Apple is asking for additional damages in its patent war lawsuit against Samsung. Ohh, come on, Judge Koh, it’s just an extra $535 million. Everyone else is doing it, come on. Just give us the money. [Bloomberg]
* The D.C. Circuit suit about White House visitor logs is kind of like a recurring issue we see with law schools, in that transparency here means “[w]e will disclose what records we want you to see.” [National Law Journal]
* Skadden is teaming up with local legal aid groups to start a pro bono initiative in D.C. We hear they’ll be handing out gift cards as a show of appreciation to those who sign up. [Capital Business / Washington Post]
* Sumner Redstone recently donated $18M to BU Law. Will his successor be as charitable? From Columbia Law to Shearman & Sterling to media mogul: meet Philippe Dauman, CEO of Viacom. [New York Times]
* “The employment statistics really are the collective impact of individual choices.” And one of them was attending law school anyway, despite all of the negative media attention they’ve received. [Cincinnati Enquirer]
* Remember the Harvard Law student who ran for Student Government President and pledged to resign after rewriting the organization’s constitution? Well, he graduated, but at least he got a draft in. [Harvard Crimson]
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Bar Exams, Pro Bono, Public Interest, State Judges
New York Announces the Specifics of the New Pro Bono Requirement -- and They're Actually Not That Bad!
Chief Judge Lippman unveiled the details of his pro bono plan. What's in store for future applicants to the New York State Bar? - Sponsored
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Antitrust, Bankruptcy, Biglaw, Books, Clarence Thomas, Department of Justice, Dewey & LeBoeuf, Football, Law Professors, Law Schools, Money, Morning Docket, Pro Bono, Religion, SCOTUS, Senate Judiciary Committee, Sentencing Law, Supreme Court
Morning Docket: 09.18.12
* “We’re all from the Ivy League. That seems to be more relevant than what faith we are.” SCOTUS Justice Clarence Thomas really knows how to make Article III Groupie’s heart sing. [New York Times]
* Dewey know why this failed firm’s bankruptcy team is cutting special deals with the former D&Lers who worked on the sale of the Dodgers? Like all things Biglaw, it all circles back to money. [WSJ Law Blog]
* What in William Baer’s past might lead the Senate Judiciary Committee to hold a closed meeting on his candidacy to lead the DOJ’s Antitrust Division? [Blog of Legal Times]
* In a heartwarming pro bono project, Proskauer Rose will be representing NYC in its attempts to evict an elderly newsstand operator from his kiosk in Greenwich Village. It really brings a tear to your eye, doesn’t it? [New York Post]
* Jerry Sandusky will be sentenced on October 9, and prosecutors are asking that he be classified as a sexually violent predator. Boy, that’ll be a fun title to have while he’s in jail for the rest of his life. [Bloomberg]
* “[A]t present, the large majority of law graduates — perhaps 80 percent — end up worse off after going to law school that they were before they enrolled.” Paul Campos is so cheerful in his book. [National Law Journal]
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Law School Deans, Law Schools, Pro Bono, Public Interest
New York's New Pro Bono Requirement Succeeds in Pissing Off Law Schools Nationwide
Will New York's new pro bono requirement for bar admission cause law school tuition to rise? -
Bankruptcy, Biglaw, California, Celebrities, Defamation, Dewey & LeBoeuf, Law Schools, Lindsay Lohan, Michael Jackson, Money, Morning Docket, Partner Issues, Pro Bono, Rap, Small Law Firms, Unemployment
Morning Docket: 08.16.12
* Dewey have some false expectations of success for this partner settlement agreement? Only one in four affected partners have signed on the dotted line, but advisers think the plan will win bankruptcy court approval. [Am Law Daily]
* “There comes a point where the prospects of substantially increasing your income just outweigh everything else.” Even on his $168K salary, this appellate judge wasn’t rich in New York City, so he quit his job. [New York Law Journal]
* The middle class needs lawyers, and unemployed law school graduates need jobs. The solution for both problems seems pretty obvious, but starting a firm still costs money, no matter how “prudent” you are. [National Law Journal]
* “This is a time when law schools are trying to look carefully at their expenses and not add to them.” New York’s new pro bono initiative may come at a cost for law schools, too. [Thomson Reuters News & Insight]
* Much to Great Britain’s dismay, Ecuador has announced that it will grant political asylum to Julian Assange of Wikileaks fame. Sucks for Ecuador, because Assange is known to not flush the toilet. [New York Times]
* A smooth criminal gets a break: Michael Jackson’s father dropped a wrongful death suit against Dr. Conrad Murray. It probably would’ve been helpful if his attorneys could actually practice in California. [Washington Post]
* Did Lindsay Lohan’s lawyers plagiarize documents from internet websites in their defamation filings against Pitbull? You can deny it all you want, but his lawyer is out for blood and sanctions. [New York Daily News]
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Hotties, Pro Bono, Public Interest
Why Is This Australian ICC Defense Attorney Being Detained in Libya?
Working for the International Criminal Court is no cushy job, especially when it involves preventive detainment in Libya… -
Abortion, Exercise, Food, Google / Search Engines, John Edwards, Morning Docket, Patents, Pro Bono, Prostitution, Public Interest, Technology, Trials
Morning Docket: 05.24.12
* Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan apologized before a Senate panel for his agency’s prostitution scandal. We bet that you’d be “deeply disappointed” too if your employees were caught stiffing a hooker on her bill. [Miami Herald]
* Day four of jury deliberations in the John Edwards campaign finance trial closed yesterday without a verdict. The former presidential candidate is probably just waiting to pack it in, get this jury declared hung, and call it a day. [CNN]
* “This case is maybe something like a near disaster for Oracle.” A jury ruled unanimously that Google didn’t infringe Oracle’s Java patents in developing its Android software. Maybe they weren’t evil after all. [Bloomberg]
* A record low of 41% of Americans call themselves “pro choice” when it comes to abortions, and only a little more than half think it should be legal under “certain circumstances.” What is this, Roe v. World? [Reuters]
* Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman put together a task force to make recommendations on how to implement New York’s new pro bono prerequisite. Please let them take law school clinic hours. [Corporate Counsel]
* Remember the lawyer who sued his posh fitness club over its failure to provide free breakfast? Not only is his suit now toast, but he also has to fork over some cash to the club’s lawyers. [New York Daily News]
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Bar Exams, Pro Bono, Public Interest, State Judges, Ted Frank
New York Forces Pro Bono Requirements Upon Would-Be Lawyers Because No One Else Cares About Poor People
Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman of the New York Court of Appeals announced yesterday that a new bar admission hurdle would be foisted upon would-be lawyers in the state, in the form of a 50-hour pro bono requirement. What does it mean for you? -
American Bar Association / ABA, Animal Law, Deaths, Law School Deans, Law Schools, Morning Docket, Pro Bono, Real Estate, Trendspotting
Morning Docket: 05.02.12
* Starting next year, if you want to be a lawyer in New York, you’re going to have to work for free. Because nothing says “we care” like indentured servitude. Thank God for law school clinic hours… maybe. [New York Times]
* Mo’ law schools, mo’ problems? That’s what Dean Wu thinks. Here’s a new trend to watch: UC Hastings will be joining forces with lower ranked law schools in an effort to reduce its incoming class sizes. [USA Today]
* MOAR TRANSPARENCY! Support has been shown for the ABA’s proposed changes to law school disclosure requirements. All the better for those “sophisticated consumers,” eh, Judge Schweitzer? [ABA Journal]
* “Dogs are always happy to see you, no matter how you do on your Evidence exam.” Only real bitches would throw shade. Emory has joined the therapy dog pack for finals. [11 Alive News]
* In trying to dismiss a $50M suit against billionaire George Soros, his lawyer claimed that his ex would have had to suffer an “unconscionable injury.” Dude, she did. She banged an octogenarian. [New York Daily News]
* Ann Richardson, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the UDC School of Law, RIP. [Washington Post]
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Attorney Misconduct, Bad Ideas, Breasts, Drugs, Lawyer of the Day, Pro Bono
Lawyer of the Day: Criminal Defense Attorney Accused of Offering 'Pro Boner' Assistance to Female Inmates
A lawyer in Georgia may be more interested in getting serviced pro boner than offering pro bono services. Let’s meet our Lawyer of the Day, a man who stands accused of trading contraband for peep shows from prisoners... -
Associate Bonus Watch 2011, Associate Salaries, Biglaw, Bonuses, Money, Pro Bono
Associate Bonus Watch: Jenner & Block
Bonuses have been announced at Jenner & Block. Managing partner Susan Levy provided us with some information. -
New Orleans, Politics, Pro Bono, Public Interest, State Judges, State Judges Are Clowns
Judge Orders Random Lawyers To Defend Poor People
There is a judge in New Orleans who doesn't want poor people to just go away. There is a judge in New Orleans who wants the larger community to not only see but also defend poor people who appear in his court. He hopes that if some prominent people have to get some skin in the game, maybe they won't be so eager to cut essential legal services to indigent defendants.... -
Celebrities, David Otunga, Pro Bono, Television
Case Closed: David Otunga Steps Out of the Ring to Return to the Courtroom
Harvard Law School graduate and former Sidley associate, David Otunga, has been flexing his muscles in the ring since 2008, but our tipsters were unimpressed, noting, “From Harvard Law School to I Love New York to the WWE. Unfortunately the next stop is probably porn.” Well, sorry to disappoint you, but Otunga hasn't signed up for his porn industry debut just yet. Instead, he took a momentary break from wrestling to make his return to the courtroom.... -
Associate Bonus Watch 2011, Associate Salaries, Biglaw, Billable Hours, Bonuses, Money, Pro Bono
Associate Bonus Watch: Goodwin Procter Makes Good
Tomorrow, associates at Goodwin Procter will receive individualized news of their bonuses. You may recall that last month, when ATL’s new director of research, Brian Dalton, compiled a list of Biglaw’s ten most generous firms — i.e., the ten firms that pay the best bonuses, when measured against their profits per partner — Goodwin did […]