Books
-
Antitrust, Bar Exams, Biglaw, Books, Federal Judges, Job Searches, Law Firm Mergers, Law Schools, Locke Lord, Morning Docket, Murder, Patton Boggs, Sports
* Hot on the heels of news about Pillsbury’s talks with Orrick, we’ve got the scoop on yet another possible law firm merger. Patton Boggs has the urge to merge, and Locke Lord seems pretty receptive. [Reuters]
* Three people who were optimistic about law school graduated with three very different results. One has a job, one is unemployed, and one failed the bar. Sadly, this seems pretty standard. [National Law Journal]
* Lat’s going to be on vacation this week (lucky him), but while he’s gone you can check out his review of a new novel set in a law firm, The Partner Track (affiliate link) by Helen Wan. Enjoy! [Wall Street Journal]
* A judge denied the NCAA’s motion to dismiss Ed O’Bannon’s antitrust lawsuit, noting everyone could “suck her dicta” concerning the Supreme Court’s notion that players cannot be compensated. [ESPN]
* Jodi Arias wants to fire Kirk Nurmi, her lead attorney, claiming in a 12-page handwritten motion that he has an “utter poverty of people skills.” Her words hurt as much as her stab wounds.
[Arizona Republic] -
Ask the Experts, Books, Boutique Law Firms, Partner Issues, Small Law Firms
The ATL Interrogatories: 10 Questions with Jay Edelson from Edelson LLC
Jay Edelson of Edelson LLC answers 10 questions for the ATL Interrogatories (sponsored by Lateral Link).
-
Take Our Ediscovery Fitness Challenge And Enter To Win A Fitbit
Take our quiz and test your knowledge of one of the most crucial aspects of legal tech: Ediscovery.
-
Abortion, Banking Law, Biglaw, Books, Education / Schools, Federal Government, Federal Judges, Law Schools, Money, Morning Docket, Partner Issues, SCOTUS, Sports, Supreme Court, Williams & Connolly
Ed. note: In honor of Columbus Day (and Canadian Thanksgiving), Above the Law will be on a reduced publication schedule today. We will be back in full force tomorrow.
* Justice stops for no one, not even a broken Congress. With the end of days approaching quickly for federal courts in terms of funding (or the lack thereof), many judges are lashing out and declaring all their employees essential. [National Law Journal]
* Legal expenses can be especially “painful,” even for the biggest of banks, but sadist firms like Sullivan & Cromwell, Paul Weiss, and WilmerHale are really getting their rocks off on Jamie Dimon’s suffering. [DealBook / New York Times]
* DLA Piper’s future’s so bright it’s got to wear shades — and appoint a new co-managing partner in New York City, its largest office. Congratulations to Richard Hans, you’ve co-made it! [New York Law Journal]
* “It’s not just about me.” Jim Tanner, a Williams & Connolly partner who represents Jeremy Lin, is leaving the firm to start his own sports management business, and he’s taking people with him. [Bloomberg]
* “I have no apologies to make about anything I did.” Steven Donziger of Chevron/Ecuador infamy will be defending himself in court this week in what’s being called a legal cage match. [Wall Street Journal]
* “Touro is asking a judge to declare the school a diploma mill.” Irony alert: Touro wants Novus University Law School, a school supposedly conferring “worthless law degrees,” to be stopped. [New York Post]
* If you think SCOTUS abused its discretion in the early abortion cases, you’re going to love this book (affiliate link), a “cautionary tale” about consequences of decisions like Roe v. Wade. [Wall Street Journal]
-
Deciding To Go To Law School In One Epic Flowchart
If you’ve been waiting for an infographic to explain why you shouldn’t go to law school, here you go!
-
Ask the Experts, Biglaw, Books, Partner Issues
The ATL Interrogatories: 10 Questions with Terry Conner from Haynes and Boone
The ATL Interrogatories with Terry Conner, managing partner of Haynes and Boone.
-
Books, Non-Sequiturs, Politics, Rape, SCOTUS, Supreme Court, Television
* Sort of, not really spoiler alert: Saul Goodman apparently left New Mexico and joined Covington’s D.C. office. That’ll be a good fit. [Legal Cheek]
* There’s a Broadway version of A Time to Kill? And Fred Thompson is in it, because this is a lot better than putting in that modicum of effort it takes to mount a campaign for president. [A Time to Kill on Broadway]
* A bestselling author is suing USC for discrimination. I find that hard to believe. If USC turned any discriminating eye toward hiring, they wouldn’t employ Lane Kiffin. [Courthouse News Service]
* Check out the new book by former firm partner Liz Brown about the process of leaving the legal profession. [Life After Law (affiliate link)]
* A humorous take on the Supreme Court’s preparations for the new term. Justice Ginsburg is basically a Time Lord. [McSweeney’s]
* Class certification is denied for the Thomas Jefferson School of Law grads alleging the school misled them with false and inaccurate employment statistics. The case was doomed from the beginning, because there’s nothing “typical” about TJSL students! [San Diego Courts]
* A profile of Ted Cruz by Jason Zengerle. It’s unfair to call Cruz a “Wacko Bird from Texas”; he’s a “Wacko Bird from Canada.” [GQ]
* Lawyers defending the accused rapists of a Naval Academy Mid asked the victim to describe her oral sex technique, if she “felt like a ‘ho,’” and if she wore underwear. The goal was to teach Afghanistan to be more like the U.S., not to teach the Navy to be more like the Taliban. [Jezebel]
-
Biglaw, Books, Crime, Violence
You’re Ruthless — But Are You Gangster Ruthless?
Novelist Allison Leotta, author of the just-released Speak of the Devil, compares Biglaw life to the gangster life.
-
Antitrust, Biglaw, Books, Deaths, Divorce Train Wrecks, Douglas Ginsburg, Fenwick & West, Free Speech, Intellectual Property, Law Professors, Law Schools, Media and Journalism, Morning Docket, Partner Issues, Patents, SCOTUS, Suicide, Supreme Court, Technology, Theater
* Congrats to @FenwickWest on landing the big Twitter IPO! #yaylegalfees [American Lawyer]
* The Deal Professor, Steven Davidoff, surveys the legal landscape around the Twitter filing, focusing on the #JOBSAct. [DealBook / New York Times]
* Jamie McCourt, a former family law attorney, strikes out in trying to set aside her divorce settlement with Frank McCourt, former owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers. She’s stuck with $131 million and several luxury homes. #richpeopleproblems [National Law Journal (sub. req.)]
* An inquest reveals that a Hogan Lovells partner who took his own life had warned a colleague that he was going to kill himself the day before his death. [Daily Mail via ABA Journal]
* Good news for the news business: the Senate Judiciary Committee approves a federal media-shield bill. [Washington Wire / Wall Street Journal]
* Nathan Myhrvold, the CEO of a patent holding company, warns that anti-patent-troll sentiment could have unforeseen consequences. [Corporate Counsel]
* Praise in the WSJ for Unprecedented: The Constitutional Challenge to Obamacare (affiliate link), the new book by Professor Josh Blackman (who recently wrote a guest post for us on Supreme Court beauty contests). [Wall Street Journal (sub. req.)]
* Congrats to George Mason Law on its two high-profile hires: D.C. Circuit Judge Douglas Ginsburg and Covington antitrust partner Damien Geradin. [The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times]
* If you’re in New York this weekend, go see Arguendo. Or buy tickets for the 7 p.m. performance on September 22, when I’ll be doing a talkback with artistic director John Collins after the show. Enter the discount code “ABOVE” for $35 tickets (a special rate for ATL readers). [Public Theater]
-
-
KINNEY’S TOP DOGS IN HONG KONG OVER THE NEXT 10 DAYS
For about the 40th time in the last five years, Kinney Recruiting’s got a team flying to Hong Kong for visits with clients and candidates. Please feel free to reach out to Evan and Robert at asia@kinneyrecruiting.com and set up a meeting with them if you would like to discuss your career and the market.
-
Ask the Experts, Books, Boutique Law Firms, BuckleySandler, Partner Issues
The ATL Interrogatories: 10 Questions with Andrew L. Sandler from BuckleySandler LLP
Andrew L. Sandler from BuckleySandler LLP answers 10 questions for the ATL Interrogatories, sponsored by Lateral Link.
-
Biglaw, Books, Constitutional Law, Health Care / Medicine, Maureen Mahoney, Partner Issues, Paul Clement, SCOTUS, Supreme Court, Ted Olson
The Supreme Court ‘Beauty Contest': A Behind-the-Scenes Look
How did the Obamacare litigants select their Supreme Court lawyers? Josh Blackman, author of Unprecedented: The Constitutional Challenge to Obamacare, reveals all.
-
Books, Elizabeth Wurtzel, Gay, Gay Marriage, Law Schools, Non-Sequiturs, Texas, Weddings
* A comprehensive analysis of the New York Times wedding announcements over the years. As the research team frames the question, “What do the world’s most self-important people think is important?” Unsurprisingly, the answer is “where they went to law school.” [News Genius / Rap Genius]
* The National Jurist would like to deceive convince the potential law school class of 2017 that there will be tons of jobs for them. Apparently the legions of unemployed lawyers now will just disappear in some sort of legal industry Carousel. [National Jurist]
* Elizabeth Wurtzel’s mom loves Al Jazeera because she hates pundits and talking heads. Like, for instance, Elizabeth Wurtzel. [The Daily Beast]
* Walter Olson of Overlawyered is going on the road. There are a lot of stops; check if he’s coming to a town near you. You could totally tag one of these venues in a big slip-and-fall case. [Overlawyered]
* The million-dollar-law-degree guys mount another defense. [Am Law Daily via Law School Tuition Bubble]
* In the midst of a slew of law deans stepping down, Dean Patricia Salkin thinks this is the perfect time to become a law dean. Elie already put his hat in the ring for every available position via Facebook. [The Faculty Lounge]
* Military personnel are guaranteed benefits for same-sex partners. Including personnel in state national guard units. But Texas has decided to deny those benefits. Yeehaw! In all seriousness, this is why all those liberals rooting for state marijuana ballot measures against the feds needed a little more foresight. [Dallas Voice]
* An interview with Helen Wan, the author of The Partner Track: A Novel (affiliate link). Keep on the lookout for David’s coming interview with Helen. [CNN]
-
Books, Crime, Fashion, Feminism, Health Care / Medicine, Music, Non-Sequiturs, SCOTUS, Supreme Court, Videos
* Sagging is one of the best anti-crime tools going. Since it stymies people who actually commit crimes, it seems to work better than stop-and-frisk… [Lowering the Bar]
* From an appellate brief in New York: The “’Question Presented’ stated only “’WHAT’S A BOY TO DO?’” What, indeed. [MyCase]
* Geraldo Rivera is out of an upcoming symposium on the Kennedy assassination reviewing the accuracy of the Warren Report. The reason? This half-naked selfie. I know he’s against wearing concealing hoodies, but dude, there’s a middle ground. [Inside Higher Ed via TaxProf Blog]
* Are energy drinks the next tobacco? ::sips from old-school Four Loko:: [Law and More]
* W(h)ither equity partnerships in Biglaw? [Adam Smith, Esq.]
* Professor Josh Blackman discussing his new book Unprecedented: The Constitutional Challenge to Obamacare (affiliate link). [Josh Blackman’s Blog]
* A Blurred Lines parody video made by law students less than thrilled with the date-rapey message of the original. It’s got some language that you don’t want to blast in the office (though, again, it’s fundamentally less offensive than what Thicke actually sings). Embed after the jump…
-
Allen & Overy, Books, Depositions, Magic Circle, Ridiculousness, Sex, Sex Scandals, Sexual Harassment, United Kingdom / Great Britain, Videos, YouTube
50 Shades of Biglaw: Watch This Managing Partner Read Erotica Out Loud
Based on his videotaped deposition, this retired managing partner could have a second career as a reader of erotic audiobooks.
-
The Famous Lawyer Who Never Existed
This star attorney’s autobiography was hailed by the New York Times and the Washington Post; too bad he never really existed….
-
Alan Dershowitz, Books, Constitutional Law, Death Penalty, Quote of the Day, SCOTUS, Sentencing Law, Supreme Court
The Eventual Death of the Death Penalty?
How will the death penalty come to an end in the United States? Alan Dershowitz makes a prediction.
-
Antonin Scalia, Books, Quote of the Day, SCOTUS, Supreme Court
Aww, Justice Scalia Isn’t Such A Bad Guy After All
The good justice is actually willing to compromise with people!
-
Is This Lawyer More Successful In The Bedroom Than The Office?
The book by the lawyer who was a swinger might actually be more interesting if she talked about her legal career.
Sponsored Content
Crimson Blood: Or Murder At The Law School
Crimson Blood or Murder at the Law School is a mystery set at Harvard. Law professor Alex Hershkowitz gets hit. In front of witnesses. First-year law student Julie Amoroso, a former New York cop with enough troubles already, pursues the hitman – or is it a hitwoman? And the chase is on.
Order it in paperback or eBook format on iUniverse or Amazon.
Sponsored Content
What Procurement Departments Want
Attend the Buying Legal Council conference on 2/2/15 in NYC to find out how to best manage legal spending and how to improve collaboration between law firms and clients. Get procurement’s perspective on driving higher value, lower cost law.
See here for information on the program.
To sign up click here.
