Anthony Kennedy

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 08.01.16

* If you thought you were going to be making $180K after graduation, then you better lower your expectations by quite a bit. Be prepared to make less than $65K! The National Association for Law Placement has released its annual edition of the bi-modal salary distribution for recent law school graduates, and the wide chasm between peaks on the bell curve looks more unhealthy than ever. [Big Law Business] * In the wake of the Democratic National Convention, everyone wants to know the names on Hillary Clinton's Supreme Court shortlist. It might surprise you that insiders say President Obama's nominee, Merrick Garland, is at the top of Clinton's list of eleven potential candidates. We'll have more information on this later today. [The Hill] * "What we're seeing is a sort of shift around social norms. Kennedy is the best Geiger counter. He's a very good instrument for measuring that." SCOTUS seems to be cutting back on its defense of religious freedom in favor of supporting government regulators, and the high court's swinger has led the way in the wake of Scalia's passing. [USA Today] * Federal prosecutors from the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's Office and the DOJ are now investigating whether Mossack Fonseca, the infamous firm behind the Panama Papers, knowingly assisted its clients in laundering money and/or evading taxes. A firm spokesperson has denied all accusations of criminal wrongdoing. [Wall Street Journal] * "You can sentence me to whatever you want, I guess. This sentence, I won't outlive it." Convicted murderer Drew Peterson was sentenced to an additional 40 years in prison in a murder-for-hire plot to kill prosecutor James Glasgow. In 2047, Peterson will be 93 years old, and he'll be up for parole for the murder of his third wife. [Chicago Tribune]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 03.23.16

* The Supreme Court is behind some of the epic lines voters have experienced during the primaries. [The Nation] * Did Justice Kennedy just reveal himself to be hostile to the contraception mandate accommodation in today's oral arguments in Zubik v. Burwell? [Slate] * Senator Pat Toomey may be caving on the Merrick Garland front -- the Pennsylvania Republican has agreed to take a meeting with the judge. [Politico] * This is the actual problem with the most recent interpretation of Superman. [Lawyers, Guns and Money] * Making the connection between reproductive freedom and LGBTQ rights. [Huffington Post] * Opining on the ultimate fate of Edward Snowden. [Law and More] * Charting the spread of marijuana legalization. [Pacific Standard Magazine]

By Kathryn Rubino
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 03.03.16

* Polsinelli has gutted Novak Druce by hiring away 44 lawyers from the firm in a mass lateral move, including two of its name partners. The suffering IP boutique will shutter its doors and wind down its legal practice for good. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg BNA] * A source says that Judge Jane Kelly of the Eighth Circuit is being vetted as a potential nominee to replace Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court. The Iowa judge could make Senate Republicans squirm since she was confirmed unanimously just three years ago. [New York Times] * "You're making a commitment that has very little room for escape." Kirkland & Ellis increased its notice period to 120 days, and partners are wondering whether other firms will follow suit and make it even harder for them to leave. [Crain's Chicago Business] * SCOTUS watchers say the justices appeared "deeply divided" during oral arguments in the Whole Woman's Health case, but some think Justice Kennedy may decide to punt it -- perhaps giving time for Justice Scalia's replacement to be confirmed. [USA Today] * Attention sports fans: The NFL's Hail Mary appeal of the Deflategate case will be heard by a three-judge panel of the Second Circuit today. At an estimated $20 million total, the legal bill on this action could be one for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. [WSJ Law Blog] * Louisiana is a state with notoriously harsh punishments for marijuana-related crimes, but it may be considering legalizing weed for recreational use. Dealing drugs seems like it'd be a quick and easy way for the state to get out of its $850M debt. [Daily Beast]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 02.29.16

* It looks like SCOTUSblog's Tom Goldstein was onto something, because Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson is reportedly being vetted to fill Justice Antonin Scalia's seat on the Supreme Court. The D.D.C. judge once clerked for Justice Stephen Breyer, and may wind up working alongside him on the high court as an associate justice (which could be a first). [National Law Journal] * Justice Scalia's death quickly affected some SCOTUS litigants: Dow Chemical settled an antitrust class-action suit for $835M because "[g]rowing political uncertainties ... and increased likelihood for unfavorable outcomes for business involved in class-action suits have changed Dow's risk assessment of the situation." [Big Law Business / Bloomberg] * Abortion returns to the SCOTUS this week, and litigants are wondering which version of Justice Kennedy they'll receive when a decision is made. If Gonzales v. Carhart Kennedy makes an appearance, states across the South in the Fifth Circuit could kiss abortion goodbye. Here's hoping for Planned Parenthood v. Casey Kennedy. [MSNBC] * Student activists from Harvard Law and Brandeis University protested an awards ceremony where Dean Martha Minow was honored for "making a lasting contribution to racial, ethnic or religious relations." The protestors felt the award's timing was ironic considering the ongoing racial divisiveness at the law school. [Harvard Crimson] * Career alternatives for disbarred attorneys who "knowingly misappropriated client funds": chief compliance officer of one of the largest banks in the world by market capitalization? Ritu Singh is lucky compliance is so hot right now, because accusations of past financial crimes apparently aren't dealbreakers in terms of hiring. [New York Post]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.26.15

* “Cases swing. I don’t." Justice Anthony Kennedy would really like it if folks would stop referring to him as the high court's swinger swing vote. In other news, the Supreme jurist thinks Legally Blonde is a "pretty good movie." [Harvard Gazette] * Hey, everyone, it's high time we did something about this law school debt crisis. Have you somehow never heard about or experienced this before (despite reading Above the Law for eons)? Not to worry, because the New York Times is on it! [New York Times] * "She’ll still be fighting for the things she cares about. But this time, she’ll be asking us to join her." Irin Camron, co-author of Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg (affiliate link), thinks we'll see more Badass Bader this Term. [New York Times] * The Pennsylvania Senate is trying to kick embattled Attorney General Kathleen Kane out of office because she's working with a suspended law license. Come on, it must be pretty embarrassing when your AG can't even refer to herself as a lawyer. [Morning Call] * According to Professor Paul Campos, the law school scam will keep on trucking thanks to the for-profit institutions -- Arizona Summit Law, Charlotte Law, and Florida Coastal Law -- that are run by InfiLaw. Well, at least they're good at one thing, right? [The Atlantic] * Toke the vote! The next states that will likely legalize recreational marijuana by ballot referendum come November 2016 include California, Maine, Massachusetts, and Nevada. Vermont, on the other hand, may pass marijuana-friendly legislation. [Rolling Stone]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 09.24.15

* Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Anthony Kennedy, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg will be in attendance during Pope Francis's Congressional address. Here's hoping a certain someone doesn't nod off in the middle of it. [National Law Journal] * This courthouse clerk is accused of trying to go out with a little too much style after being fired from his job. He allegedly tossed thousands of pages of court documents in the garbage before leaving the building, and he now faces up to 10 years in prison. [Houston Chronicle] * Lawrence Mitchell, the former dean of Case Western Reserve University School of Law, was supposed to return to the school this year after taking a sabbatical. Instead, he resigned. When it comes to this creeper, maybe that's a good thing. [Cleveland Scene] * Sorry to burst your bubble, law schools, but if you think spending millions to complete major building projects during a serious downturn in applicants will result in a "Field of Dreams" type of situation, you're flat-out wrong. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg BNA] * Good news, everyone! Thanks to this appeals court decision, registered sex offenders in Wisconsin will now be able to take pictures of children in public. Child predators have never, ever been so excited to assert their First Amendment rights. [WSJ Law Blog]

By Staci Zaretsky