Flori-duh
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Deaths, Jury Duty, Labor / Employment, Lexis-Nexis, LexisNexis / Lexis-Nexis, Non-Sequiturs, Paul Clement, Sexual Harassment, Suicide, Twittering, Videos
Non-Sequiturs: 04.26.12
* Paul Clement is a beast, is basically what it comes down to. [The Daily Beast] * This is probably the grossest, most pornographic employment discrimination/sexual harassment/defamation lawsuit I’ve seen. Maybe fans of 50 Shades of Grey (affiliate link) might find it compelling. The writing in the lawsuit is probably better… [Courthouse News] * Predictive coding is good. Now it’s bad. Now it’s good. Make up your mind! [Law Technology News] * A touching obituary about a first-year Reed Smith associate who recently took his own life. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette] * Elie was on Fox News late last night (video embed after the jump). He brought the funny. The hosts of the show… not so much. They did bring the racist, though. [Red Eye] * If you ever get in trouble for tweeting or blogging about jury duty, Davis Oscar Markus is the guy to call. [Miami Herald] * LexisNexis recently unveiled its new, ginormous legal e-book library. It’s just like a normal law library, except you don’t have to ask the pesky law librarian for help. [LexisNexis] (Embedded Elie, after the jump.) -
Attorney Misconduct, Benchslaps, Biglaw, Federal Judges, Kasowitz Benson, Legal Ethics, Litigators, Litigatrix, Partner Issues, Screw-Ups
Greenberg Traurig Gets Dropped By Client After Alleged Misstatement To Court
Did a partner's alleged misstatement cost Greenberg Traurig a client? Or is the partner in question being made into a scapegoat? - Sponsored
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms. -
Bail, Crime, Murder, Quote of the Day, Trials
Quote of the Day: It's Too Late to Apologize
What happened at George Zimmerman's bail hearing on April 20? Get all of the details here.
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American Bar Association / ABA, Biglaw, Billable Hours, Christopher Christie, Law Schools, Money, Morning Docket, Murder, New Jersey, Prostitution, Southern New England School of Law/Umass
Morning Docket: 04.16.12
* * The harsh realities of post-recession practice: will Biglaw leaders have to resort to alternative billing practices in order to survive? Well, they better, or else they’re “not going to have a law firm for very long.” [Washington Post]
* I don’t think “secret service” means what you think it means. Listen up, agents, prostitution might be legal in much of Columbia, but it makes America look bad when you can’t afford a $47 hooker. [New York Post]
* Jessica Recksiedler, the judge assigned to oversee George Zimmerman’s case, may have a conflict of interest thanks to her husband. Somebody’s getting banished from the bedroom this week. [Bloomberg]
* Law firms with ties to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie have seen record profits compared to their take under Jon Corzine’s rule. That said, even if he called them “idiots,” it was totally worth it. [Star-Ledger]
* UMass Law is being reviewed for accreditation by the American Bar Association, and opponents are throwing some major shade. As if Dean Ward’s scandalous resignation wasn’t enough. [South Coast Today]
* Is this house haunted as a matter of law? That’s what this New Jersey couple is hoping that a judge will say about their rental home. Hey, it wouldn’t be the first time it’s happened in the tri-state area. [ABC News]
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Litigators, Media and Journalism, Murder, Quote of the Day
Quote of the Day: It Must Suck to Be the Person Who Lost to Jose Baez
The Casey Anthony prosecutor signals approval of George Zimmerman's defense lawyer... -
Biglaw, Billable Hours, Britney Spears, Celebrities, Copyright, Dewey & LeBoeuf, Divorce Train Wrecks, General Counsel, john quinn, Morning Docket, Pornography, Sex Scandals, United Kingdom / Great Britain, William Burck
Morning Docket: 04.09.12
* The billable hour may be far from dead, but last year, 61% of general counsel worked out alternative fee arrangements with outside counsel, including counsel from elite (read: Biglaw) firms. [Wall Street Journal]
* Dewey need to take lessons on revenge from this firm? John Altorelli, the D&L defector who spilled all the beans to the Am Law Daily, was blasted on Page Six this weekend. More on this to come later today. [New York Post]
* CHECK YOU LATERALS: recent Quinn Emanuel hires William Burck, Paul Brinkman, and Andrew Schapiro, as well as name partner John Quinn, have entered appearances on behalf of Megaupload. [Am Law Daily]
* Copyright infringement suits over porn downloading involving some 3,500 defendants were dismissed because the plaintiffs’ attorney, Terik Hasmi, couldn’t get it in legally in Florida. [National Law Journal]
* In England, there’s no such thing as a no-fault divorce, but instead, you can get one for “unreasonable behavior” — behavior like malicious service of tuna casserole, and speaking only in Klingon. [New York Times]
* This gives “I’m a Slave 4 U” some new meaning. Britney Spears’s fiancé, Jason Trawick, is trying to start their impending rocky marriage off on the right foot. He’ll soon be her co-conservator. [New York Daily News]
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Law Schools, Morning Docket, Murder, Politics, Racism, SCOTUS, Sonia Sotomayor, Supreme Court, Travel / Vacation
Morning Docket: 04.06.12
* “We can’t engage the public in a seminar about health law.” Justice Sonia Sotomayor informed the public at Penn Law that she would not be taking up a post as a Wise Latina civics instructor. [Wall Street Journal]
* Next on Meltdown with Keith Olbermann: this liberal commentator has sued Current TV over getting fired. It is clearly the most irresponsible, homophobic, racist, reactionary, tea-bagging network ever. [Businessweek]
* George Zimmerman has added another lawyer to his soon-to-be defense team — a “veteran criminal defense” lawyer. Why did he need to hire such a hot shot if what he did to Trayvon Martin was legal? [Reuters]
* Step aside TSA: what kinds of rights do cruise passengers have at sea? How about the right not to be interrogated, strip searched, and then forced to pee in front of security guards? [Overhead Bin / MSNBC]
* Jordan Wallick has been convicted of second degree murder in the shooting death of James Wallmuth III, a University of Pittsburgh law student. Wallick is now looking at life behind bars for his crime. [CBS 21 News]
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Cars, Lawyer of the Day, Native Americans
Lawyers of the Day: Native American Tribe Says Their Attorneys Swindled Them for Cars and Nice Furniture
Did two Miami defense attorneys swindle a Native American tribe for millions of dollars? - Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use. -
Fashion, Fashion Is Fun, Labor / Employment, Paralegals, Small Law Firms
The Plot Thickens: Some 'Orange Workers' May Have Been Protesting After All
It's been revealed that some of the orange-shirted support staff at this Florida firm may have been protesting after all. Almost half of them have lawyered up. But what, exactly, were they protesting? -
Biglaw, DUI / DWI, Health Care / Medicine, Law School Deans, Law Schools, Morning Docket, New Orleans, SCOTUS, Supreme Court, U.S. Attorneys Offices
Morning Docket: 03.26.12
* It’s Obamacare week at the Supreme Court, and people have been waiting in line since Friday morning to see the oral arguments. It’s kind of like Black Friday, except more people care about affordable TVs than affordable health care. [New York Times]
* Growth in the NLJ 250 increased by 1.7 percent in 2011. That’s fantastic for Biglaw, but associates at these firms care more about the growth of their bank accounts. Seriously… where are the spring bonuses already? [National Law Journal]
* George Zimmerman’s lawyer says he doesn’t think the “stand your ground” law applies to Trayvon Martin’s shooting. This was just self-defense — against Skittles. [MSNBC]
* The finalists for deanship at Baltimore Law include a Patton Boggs partner, an assistant attorney general, a law school dean, and two law professors. But which will be able to stand up to Bogomolny? [Baltimore Sun]
* Since blogging allows “big personalities” to run free, does the prosecommenter, Sal Perricone, have a bright future ahead of him here at Above the Law? Let’s see what David Lat has to say about that. [Times-Picayune]
* Millionaire John Goodman has been convicted of DUI manslaughter and vehicular homicide charges, and now he’s facing 11.5 to 30 years in prison. Boy is his girlfriend-slash-daughter going to miss him. [CNN]
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Fashion, Fashion Is Fun, Labor / Employment, Paralegals, Small Law Firms
Orange: A Color That Can Get You Fired in Florida
A dozen law firm staffers in Florida had been fired because they wore orange shirts to work, and people really want to know more about this apparent fashion “faux pas.” What happened? -
Crime, Deaths, Guns / Firearms, Minority Issues, Racism
Are 'Stand Your Ground' and 'Defense of Home' Laws Racist?
Now that everybody is being reminded of stand your ground statutes, are we still sure they're a good idea? -
Job Searches, Law Schools
We Don't Care About Your Credentials, But That's Probably Because We Can't Pay You
With all of the hubbub about unpaid internships, you’d think that legal employers would start showing law students the money — but you’d be wrong. Let’s check out a “unique posting” straight out of a law school in Flori-duh….
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Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
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Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
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6th Circuit, Biglaw, Defamation, Fashion, Fashion Is Fun, Morning Docket, SCOTUS, Supreme Court, Television, Tobacco / Smoking
Morning Docket: 03.20.12
* It’s time for the Supreme Court to sound off on the battle over women’s wombs, and you know it’s bad when even a sitting justice calls it “a mess.” Can a child conceived after a parent’s death receive survivor benefits? [CNN]
* Disgusting health warning pictures on cigarette packaging and advertising: now constitutional according to the Sixth Circuit. Maybe this will inspire people to quit a habit that’s almost equally as disgusting. [Thomson Reuters News & Insight]
* When Biglaw is involved, so is big money. Say “aloha” to the largest personal injury settlement in Hawaii’s history. The state will pay $15.4M over the hiking death of Gibson Dunn partner Elizabeth Brem. [Am Law Daily]
* A lawsuit filed against fashionista Alexander Wang over his alleged “sweatshop” has been discontinued, and not because there isn’t a case, but because the lawyers on either side have major beef. [New York Magazine]
* The Better Business Bureau has moved to dismiss a Florida law firm’s suit over its “F” grade. Because sometimes the truth hurts, but that doesn’t mean you can sue over it if you don’t like it. [Orlando Sentinel]
* The biggest bimbo from Wisteria Lane gets screwed again, but this time in court. A mistrial has been declared in Nicollette Sheridan’s lawsuit against the producers of “Desperate Housewives.” [Reuters]
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Airplanes / Aviation, Biglaw, Breasts, Dewey & LeBoeuf, Fashion, Law Schools, Military / Military Law, Morning Docket, Nina Totenberg, Partner Issues, Wall Street Journal, Women's Issues
Morning Docket: 03.19.12
* With 269 partners to go, Dewey need to start panicking yet? Twelve additional partners, including practice group leaders, have jumped ship, bringing the grand total of partner-level defectors to 31 since January. [DealBook / New York Times]
* Late-breaking news: law schools’ numbers still don’t add up. The New York Times has already said its piece on the problem with law schools, so the Wall Street Journal decided that it was time to chime in again. [Wall Street Journal]
* Army Staff Sergeant Robert Bales, the man accused of going on an Afghan killing spree, will be represented by Ted Bundy’s lawyer. In the court of public opinion, that’s equivalent to pleading guilty. [Bloomberg]
* “I have had it with these motherf**king snakes breastfeeding women on this motherf**king plane!” A mother has settled a lawsuit with her airline over being kicked off a plane for nursing her child. [Businessweek]
* Here’s a fashion tip for law firm staff: you wear orange shirts in prison, not at the office. Think twice next time before you wear that color to work, because you might get fired like these folks in Florida. [Sun-Sentinel]
* Let’s face it, there is no escape from the law, not even in your free time (if that even exists). That being said, here’s a lawyerly crossword puzzle, inspired by Nina Totenberg’s reporting on legal affairs. Have fun! [NPR]
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Facebook, Pictures, Police, Quote of the Day, Rank Stupidity, State Judges
Quote of the Day: Florida Has Idiots, Too
Protip: you probably won't be accused of stealing a judge's nameplate in Florida if you don't put pictures of it on Facebook. -
Allen & Overy, Biglaw, Breasts, Facebook, Morning Docket, Police, Stephen Breyer, Technology, United Kingdom / Great Britain, White & Case
Morning Docket: 02.22.12
* Vedel Browne, the man charged with robbing Justice Stephen Breyer, will enter a plea of not guilty. Why turn yourself in and then claim innocence? That makes no sense, mon. [Washington Post] * Guess which Biglaw firms helped to broker the $173B Greek debt deal? Cleary Gottlieb, Allen & Overy, and White & Case. […]
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Biglaw, Chadbourne & Parke, Food, Money, Morning Docket, Partner Issues, Real Estate, SCOTUS, Supreme Court, United Kingdom / Great Britain, Weddings
Morning Docket: 01.30.12
* People like it when the members of the Supreme Court agree with each other, except when the justices forget to tell them exactly what to do. Poor sheeple. [Washington Post] * If you’re wondering why you can’t get a Biglaw job, it’s because the firms don’t need you. Well, they probably do, but definitely […]
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Real Estate, Rudeness
The Flori-duh Version of Charity Towards The Homeless
If you have watched political campaigns all of your life, or if you are just a student of modern political history, you’ll notice that the poor are rarely talked about on the campaign trail. We can talk about the rich (or at least our so-called envy of them), and the middle class is like the […] -
Lawyer Advertising, Small Law Firms, Solo Practitioners
Adventures in Lawyer Advertising: Best Lawyer Billboard Ever
Last week in Non-Sequiturs, we pointed you to a photo essay of some of the sketchiest lawyer billboards out there. From dogs, to eye patches, to crazy nicknames, these billboards are the epitome of what makes local lawyer advertising so painfully bad. It’s tough to say which is worse — these misguided attempts at originality, […]