Celebrities

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 06.23.17

* Federal investigators are delving into multimillion-dollar deals involving former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort and his son-in-law, Jeffrey Yohai. [New York Times] * The Fifth Circuit lifts the injunction against H.B. 1523, Mississippi's notorious "religious freedom" law that many regard as antigay (but the court ruled on jurisdictional rather than gay-hating grounds). [Texas Lawyer] * In the wake of a mistrial in the criminal case against him, Bill Cosby plans to educate young men on how to avoid accusations of sexual assault. (My advice: don't commit sexual assault.) [New York Times] * The Fourth Circuit affirms almost all the convictions of ex-CIA officer in a leak case -- a potentially significant ruling if the Trump administration follows through on its threats to prosecute leakers. [How Appealing] * The Seventh Circuit declines to reinstate the conviction of Brendan Dassey, the defendant made famous by Making A Murderer. [ABA Journal] * Martin Shkreli, aka "Pharma Bro," is gearing up for trial -- and, for the record, he is "so innocent." [New York Times] * More disturbing news from my ancestral homeland of the Philippines, involving accusations that the police are shaking down families in distress as part of President Rodrigo Duterte's "war on drugs." [Washington Post]

Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 04.14.17

* Eli Manning might be getting burned by discovery. [ESPN] * The Covington & Burling report on sexual misconduct at Choate that is rocking the world of elite boarding schools. [New York Times] * Aaron Hernandez found not guilty of a 2012 double murder. Don't worry, he is still serving a life sentence for a 2013 murder. [Deadspin] * Did Donald Trump's lawyer, Michael Cohen, misplace $350,000? [Buzzfeed] * If only this was what really happened behind the scenes at SCOTUS. [Huffington Post] * DOJ gives up on HB2 litigation. [Slate] * The civil rights of students are... probably not in good hands. [Salon]

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.14.17

* Grammy-winning musician John Legend will be joining the advisory board of the University of Pennsylvania Law School's Quattrone Center for the Fair Administration of Justice. Not to worry, because the Center's director says the decision to add the singer to the board was actually "a substantive thing," not "just a celebrity thing." [Law.com] * In response to its abysmal performance on Florida's February 2017 administration of the bar exam (only 25 percent of those who took the exam passed), Florida Coastal School of Law will not only be changing its curriculum and teaching methods, but it'll also be raising its admissions standards... starting this fall. What in the world took so long? [Jackson Daily Record] * According to court records, Judge Patricia Minaldi of the Western District of Louisiana was ordered by the chief judge of the Fifth Circuit to undergo at least 90 days of substance abuse treatment because her alcoholism was so severe that one of her judicial colleagues believed she could no longer take care of herself. [Associated Press] * Canada is taking steps to legalize recreational marijuana across the country. If this new legislation passes, possession of small amounts of pot will be legal throughout the Great White North as of July 18, 2018. This could understandably create some confusion at the border, so we may need to build another wall. Notify the president ASAP. [USA Today] * Kevin Jones, head of the China labor and employment practice at Faegre Baker Daniels, always wanted to run a marathon and always wanted to visit North Korea, so he decided to kill two birds with one stone by running the Pyongyang Marathon. He finished the 26-mile race in 4 hours and 21 minutes. Congratulations! [WSJ Law Blog]