Crime
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Crime, Drugs, Sentencing Law
Criminally Yours: Obama's Pardons Are A Band-Aid On The Problem, But At Least A Start
Obama's week of initiatives with regard to drug sentencing is a great start, much awaited and much needed, but it's a drop in the bucket. -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 07.20.15
* “I would hope that we’ve already hit the bottom.” America’s legal educators and admissions deans are wishing, hoping, and praying that the upcoming school year will be the last year that merely having a pulse is a prerequisite for law school admission. [National Law Journal]
* Bankruptcy court, here we come: We all know that right now, exorbitant law school debt can’t be discharged in bankruptcy, but judges have started to rally in favor of student debtors, noting that the Brunner test is simply incompatible with today’s high tuition costs. [New York Times]
* “A professional education will never be cheap,” and the ABA has finally decided to give the appearance of caring about the average graduates of private law schools with six figures of loans. Enhanced financial counseling for all! [Big Law Business / Bloomberg]
* Indiana Tech Law School won’t be appealing its denial of accreditation by the American Bar Association. Before you get too excited about a law school accepting failure and throwing in the towel, it seems that the school is just going to reapply instead. [KPC News]
* “[O]ne’s face may determine one’s fate, at least in the judicial domain.” Per a new study, the more untrustworthy a criminal defendant looks, the more likely it is that he’ll receive a harsher sentence. Boy, Dewey know defendants in need of a makeover. [WSJ Law Blog]
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Crime, Technology
Judge Kozinski: There's Very Little Justice In Our So-Called 'Justice System'
Judge Kozinski is not a fan of this busted system.
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Crime, Sentencing Law, White-Collar Crime
Kozinski On Juries, Sentencing, and Justice
Judge Kozinski has some ideas for fixing our criminal justice system. -
Crime
Did You Know Vermont Uses A 'Chastity Belt'?
Do you know what a "sexual relationship" is? Are you sure? Because a state supreme court just had a hell of a time figuring it out. -
Attorney Misconduct, Crime
Harvard Law Graduate Arrested In Strange Kidnapping Scheme
In a bizarre case of kidnapping that police initially called a hoax, a Harvard Law grad is charged with the crime. -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 07.14.15
* With sagging enrollment and disappointing job statistics, offering students some tuition reimbursement if they’re still unemployed nine months after graduation is a great way to put asses in seats. We’ll have more to say about this news later today. [New York Times]
* Testimony in the Dewey & LeBoeuf criminal trial got a little more interesting when jurors learned that the plan to cook the firm’s books to the tune of more than $50 million was hatched after a pricey steak dinner at Del Frisco’s. Don’t all evil Biglaw plans come together after an expensive steak dinner? [DealBook / New York Times]
* These people just won the criminal justice reform lottery: In case you missed it, President Barack Obama commuted the sentenced of 46 nonviolent drug offenders in order to shine a light on punishments that didn’t fit the crimes committed. [POLITICO]
* Pay close attention to this information, gunners, because it probably applies to you. Per a new study conducted by two Colorado Law professors, LSAT scores are an “overvalued predictor” of future law school grades and résumé builders don’t matter. [WSJ Law Blog]
* Osvaldo Miranda Diaz, the lawyer who called Cuba’s criminal justice system “disgusting” during a presentation he gave to visiting U.S. lawyers, secured a full ride for Duke Law’s LLM program thanks to one of his audience members. Congrats! [Daily Business Review]
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Crime, Legal Ethics
Lawyer Arrested With A Whole Lot Of Cocaine Hidden In A Very Uncomfortable Place
This lawyer reportedly tried to go above and beyond for his imprisoned client. - Sponsored
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Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 07.10.15
* The slashing of the Quinn Emanuel summer program gets the Dr. Seuss (a great legal inspiration in his own right) treatment. And from what we hear, John Quinn likes this cartoon so much he wants to buy the image. [The Recorder] * Prosecutors subpoena a 3 month old girl to testify. When informed of […]
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Biglaw, Crime
You Won't Believe Why This Biglaw Partner Was Arrested
Sometimes the passion and energy that make a great lawyer can bite you in the ass -- sometimes it can get you arrested. -
Crime, Law Schools, Money
Law School's Ex-CFO Arrested After Spending $50K At Hooters And Other Inappropriate Expenses
Guess what, Barry Law students? Your tuition dollars really were being put to work! -
White-Collar Crime
Why Judges and Prosecutors Don't Care If They're Right
Judge Alex Kozinski explains that a lot of fault for our messed-up criminal justice system lies with judges and prosecutors. -
Crime, Law Schools, Money
Law School's Chief Financial Officer Arrested For Grand Theft
This is an active criminal investigation, and the CFO has been charged with a felony.
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Crime, Jury Duty
Criminally Yours: Waving The Freedom Flag
It’s getting tougher to find jurors who understand and embrace the very rights the Constitution put in place to protect us all when it comes to criminal defendants. -
Crime, Divorce Train Wrecks, Violence
Lawyer Seriously Injured After Bomb Explodes At Firm
Be careful out there, lawyers; we bet you didn't know your job could be so dangerous. -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 07.01.15
* Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner are getting divorced — even she couldn’t stand the thought of him being Batman. Celebrity divorces don’t come cheap, and you know what that must mean: high-powered lawyers and even higher rates for their billable hours! [CNN]
* “[H]ow young would you go…I’d do 5[,] [b]ut 0-12 is hot.” Well, that’s absolutely disgusting. Matthew Gigot, an attorney who does doc review in the D.C. area, was charged in a child pornography case for sexual performance using a minor. [FOX 5 DC]
* The main line of defense as of late in the Dewey trial for the former head honchos of this failed firm is that everyone sends out embarrassing — and potentially incriminating — emails from time to time. We know all abput that here at Above the Law. [WSJ Law Blog]
* “Put down the bong, throw out the vaporizer and lose the rolling papers.” If you’re hoping to land a job at any federal agency any time in the near future, then you better quit your toking as soon as possible, even if it’s legal in your state. [New York Times]
* Here’s some sad news for women who are interested in taking home their apparently delicious and nutritious placentas to feast upon after their children are born in hospitals: it’s only completely legal in three states — Hawaii, Oregon, and Texas. [The Stir]
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Depositions, Murder
A Deadly Deposition: Attorney Murdered At His Firm
The lawyer's assailant has been charged with murder. -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 06.30.15
* Which Biglaw firm is going to be changing up the way that it recruits new attorneys? That would be Quinn Emanuel. It’s planning to majorly scale back on summer associates and do something completely different. We’ll have more on this news later today. [WSJ Law Blog]
* An undergrad who once had high hopes for law school decided to ditch his legal aspirations in favor of stand-up comedy. His mom is mad since it’s a “path that has no specific stability.” She obviously hasn’t read up on law school job stats lately. [Indy Channel]
* Justice Kennedy should consider trading in his robes for a superhero’s cape, because he just swooped in to the rescue, again. With a 5-4 vote, SCOTUS stayed the Fifth Circuit’s decision regarding the closure of the majority of abortion clinics in Texas. [NPR]
* Damn you, Dewey leaders! Per recent testimony in the criminal trial of the failed firm’s former top brass, but for news of the criminal probe spreading like wildfire throughout the profession, D&L could’ve merged with any number of firms to save itself. [Am Law Daily]
* Some pretty major firms think they have better things to spend their Biglaw bucks on than donations to legal aid organizations. Only five firms were willing to publicly disclose more than $1 million in donations. [DealBook / New York Times via American Lawyer]
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Crime, Marijuana
Marijuana Legalization: Bad For The Cartels, Better For All
What does legalization of cannabis in the United States have to do with helping Mexico eliminate its cartels? -
Crime
Criminally Yours: Negotiating With Kidnappers
Ending the threat of criminal prosecution levels the playing field so that the U.S. isn’t the only country whose families are prohibited from direct contact with their child’s captors.