Crime

* President Trump has added five names to his slate of judicial candidates to fill a nonexistent vacancy on the Supreme Court. Welcome aboard to Judges Brett M. Kavanaugh (D.C. Circuit), Amy Coney Barrett (Seventh Circuit), and Kevin C. Newsom (Eleventh Circuit), as well as Justices Britt C. Grant (Georgia Supreme Court) and Patrick R. Wyrick (Oklahoma Supreme Court). [New York Times]

* Did Trump obstruct justice in the Russia probe? We may soon find out. Special counsel Robert Mueller has requested all manner of documents from the Justice Department related to the firing of former FBI director James Comey. [ABC News]

* In other Trump-related legal news, rather than continuing to have his re-election campaign or the Republican Party foot the bill for his legal representation in the Russia probe, the president has officially started to pay his own legal tab. [Reuters]

* Ohio Supreme Court Justice Bill O’Neill, who was considering running for governor, bragged about the fact that he’d been “sexually intimate with approximately 50 very attractive females.” After much backlash, he told his detractors to “lighten up” and offered a nonpology. He won’t be running for governor anymore. [Washington Post]

* FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is about to pull the plug on net neutrality, and Americans are too distracted by Thanksgiving to care. Luckily for us, Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel wants open hearings to take place before a vote is held. [Slate]

* “Probation is a trap and we must fight for Meek and everyone else unjustly sent to prison.” In the wake of rapper Meek Mill being sentenced to up to four years in prison for violating his probation, Jay-Z is letting everyone know he’s got 99 problems and the way the criminal justice system treats minorities is one of them. [New York Times]

* 41 Cat Pictures That Prove Beyond All Doubt That Being BuzzFeed’s GC Is Freaking Awesome. [Big Law Business]

* Jeffrey Wertkin, the ex-Akin Gump partner accused of trying to sell whistleblower complaints while in disguise, plans to plead guilty later this month. As he said upon arrest, maybe his life really is over… [The Recorder]

* Professor Stephanos Bibas of Penn Law was confirmed to the Third Circuit by the Senate in a 53-43 vote. According to the law school’s dean, Bibas “possesses all the skills to excel on the federal bench.” Congratulations! [Philadelphia Inquirer]

* Justice Joan Larsen of the Michigan Supreme Court was confirmed to the Sixth Circuit by the Senate in a 60-38 vote. If you recall, Larsen was on the original version of President Trump’s Supreme Court shortlist, and was one of his top five finalists for Justice Neil Gorsuch’s position. Congratulations! [Detroit Free Press]

* Cozen O’Connor’s lobbying affiliate, Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies, poached a five-lawyer team of lobbyists from Manatt, and now Manatt no longer has a lobbying practice. [New York Law Journal]

* Former President Barack Obama has been called for jury duty in November, and unlike most Americans, he’s not looking for a way to get out of serving. [ABC Chicago]

* The pivot you’re looking for is in another castle: Now that a grand jury’s approved the first charges in the Russian collusion investigation and someone’s about to be taken into custody, President Trump took to Twitter to demand that Hillary Clinton be investigated. [New York Times]

* Paul Manafort is turning himself in. Surprise! (Is this really a surprise?) [CNN]

* Like it or not, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is planning to be around for the long haul. Don’t count on this “flaming feminist litigator” retiring any time soon. [The Hill]

* Justice Don Willett of the Texas Supreme Court, the state’s Tweeter Laureate, hasn’t tweeted a single time since he was nominated to the Fifth Circuit. How long will this god-awful silence from everyone’s favorite Twitter judge last? [Texas Lawyer]

* So long, borrower-defense rule? Betsy DeVos is thinking about only partially forgiving loans for students who were defrauded by for-profit schools. [AP]