Harvard Law School

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 01.08.15

* Here’s some JOLTing news: Megon Walker, the Harvard Law graduate who claims her life was ruined because the school accused her of being a plagiarist, just lost her defamation suit against her alma mater. [National Law Journal] * "You have a party like this and it's as though you're handing out hand grenades as party favors.” Jeff Lake, a California lawyer, was arrested and faces social host liability issues thanks to his kid's Playboy party. [Denver Channel] * Congress is back in session, and President Obama resubmitted his nomination of Loretta Lynch for U.S. attorney general, along with other judicial nods. She’ll be a “terrific attorney general,” so get this show on the road. [Legal Times] * “How many clinics do you have to close before the court says, ‘Enough’?” Lawyers for abortion clinics and Texas state attorneys faced off before the Fifth Circuit over the viability constitutionality of the Lone Star State’s abortion laws. [New York Times] * It’s a new year with new laws in effect, and it looks like 27 states, plus D.C., have made major moves with regard to weed, be it through the legalization medical marijuana or decriminalization of its possession. Do you know your rights? [CNN]

By Staci Zaretsky
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By Barbri
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 01.02.15

* In his year-end report, Chief Justice Roberts wrote about the high court's belated adoption of the latest technological advances, but promised SCOTUS briefs and filings would be online... next year. [New York Times] * It's been recommended that J. Michael Farren, the former White House lawyer who attempted to murder his ex-wife -- a former Skadden Arps attorney -- be disbarred in D.C. Apparently the bar considers a conviction for something like this a big no-no. [Legal Times] * Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's terrorism trial for his involvement in the Boston Marathon bombings will begin in Boston on January 5, despite his legal team's best efforts to avoid the inevitable. At least fangirls won't have to travel to admire him. [Bloomberg] * Here's one law prof's thoughts on Harvard Law's lame response to sexual assault complaints: "I believe ... that Harvard University will be deeply shamed at the role it played in simply caving to the government’s position." Well then. [WSJ Law Blog] * Remember the Idaho prosecutor who recited the lyrics to "Dixie" during closing arguments at a black man's trial? The defendant's conviction was overturned because the prosecutor "inject[ed] the risk of racial prejudice into the case." [NBC News] * "People asked me what I want as an epitaph: He tried." Mario Cuomo, the three-term New York governor and Willkie Farr alumnus who was once considered to replace Supreme Court Justice Byron White, has passed away. RIP. [New York Times]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 12.31.14

* Per the Department of Education, Harvard Law sucks at handling sexual assault and harassment complaints. As it turns out, the DoE only found out about the misconduct because a faculty member from New England Law snitched on the Ivy League school. [Boston.com] * Everything's bigger in Texas, including the penalties for pot possession. One state legislator wants to change that in the new year, and hopes his colleagues will puff, puff, pass his bill in favor of small civil fines instead of jail sentences. [VICE] * "If the court has been waiting until the country is more comfortable with gay marriage, they’ve waited long enough." The first SCOTUS conference of 2015 will focus on gay marriage cases. It'd be fabulous if they took one. [Supreme Court Brief] * Latham and Fried Frank are going to be advising on Shake Shack's initial public offering. Hungry attorneys working on the IPO will be disappointed to learn that their client doesn't have any public offerings for consumption on Seamless. [Am Law Daily] * The bankruptcy trustee for the late, great, defunct firm of Howrey LLP keeps lining up big settlements for its remaining creditors. This time, Wiley Rein will contribute $1 million to the failed firm's coffers. Howrey like dem apples? [Wall Street Journal]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 12.17.14

* Rudolph sues for discrimination. This is why you should always let guys play in your reindeer games. [Bolek Besser Glesius LLC] * Congressional gridlock may call off... the Super Bowl? At least the Bears have other things to worry about than planning for the post-season. [Redline] * Hot damn, Keith Lee. "ABA 509 Matriculant Data On All Ranked Schools." That's... wow. [Associate's Mind] * The Senate torture report may be an ugly, but there's an argument that it hides a silver lining. [What About Clients?] * What isn't the D.C. Circuit doing today? [Constitutional Accountability Center] * Document reviewers may have known that emails weren't really private for years, but other professions understood the lack of true privacy much longer. [Law and More] * David is interviewed about Supreme Ambitions (affiliate link). [ABA Journal] * Bill O'Reilly invites on an "HLS student" -- who is also a conservative commentator -- to say a bunch of racial codewords under the guise of exam extensions. Look, I wouldn't ask for an exam extension if my leg were caught in a bear trap, but you know what? I couldn't care less if other people got extensions. Quit your whining (and appearing on TV) and go study for your own damn self! [Fox News]

By Joe Patrice
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 12.10.14

* We know all about the ridiculous lawyer with three Harvard degrees who is apparently considering suing a mom-and-pop Chinese restaurant over a $4 overcharge. We'll have more on this absolute absurdity later. [Boston.com] * An English court ruled that a girl with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder couldn't be awarded damages against her mother because the harm occurred in utero. Remember folks, the unborn aren't people, only corporations are. [Daily Beast] * A Foley & Lardner IP partner may be facing sanctions for a rather unorthodox petition for a writ of certiorari that he submitted to the Supreme Court. [Legal Times] * Someone at Harvard Law taped fliers containing the last words of unarmed African-Americans who shot by police over portraits of their law professors. [ABC News] * Per a recent study, the vast majority of law students have suffered from some sort of mental health issue while in law school. This isn't at all shocking. [Yale Daily News]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 12.08.14

* The NAACP Legal Defense Fund took to Twitter to name every unarmed person of color killed by the police since 1999. Gawker compiled short bios on each. [Gawker] * Texas planning to ban the "affluenza" defense. [Lowering the Bar] * Pillsbury just moved into a cozy little office. Emphasis on "little." [The National Law Journal] * Georgetown Law students of color raise similar concerns as Columbia students. Again, I don't understand emotional trauma and I definitely think extensions should be measured in days and not weeks, but it strikes me all the people complaining about the extensions are just exposing themselves as bad students. If you think your neighbor getting 2 more days will hurt your grade, you're the one with the studying problem. [Georgetown Law Coalition] * And now Harvard. [Harvard Law Coalition] * If you rent a refrigerator, you consent to an arbitrator hearing your case after a repairman robs and beats you. Sounds about right. [Public Justice] * Uber ban after rape allegations. [Redline] * The Supreme Court told BP that no matter how much it tried, it can't slip out of its settlement agreement like an oil-soaked seagull. [Think Progress] * Finally, in the wake of the Eric Garner case, it's worth looking back at what Justice Marshall told us about police chokeholds. [Mother Jones]

By Joe Patrice
Drinking

Non-Sequiturs: 11.17.14

* ADA complaint filed by former TV anchor fired for drunkenness. On behalf of the ATL staff, we’re watching this one closely. [Chicagoland Radio and Media] * Some of these made their way into the pages of Above the Law before, but this is an excellent compilation of “12 Unbelievable Courtroom Moments Caught on Tape.” [Robert Reeves Law] * Rhinos, sharks, and the Secretary of Commerce walk into an Elie post… [Redline] * A look back at FedSoc’s 2014 National Lawyers Convention. It sounds like it ended with Bailey’s and hot chocolate with Justice Don Willett, so that can’t be bad. [Wonkette] * Butthurt police detective suing defense lawyer for criticizing the investigation. [Washington Post] * BP argues that fining them more than they’re willing to pay for poisoning the Gulf of Mexico would be “legal chaos.” As opposed to that regular chaos of dumping millions of barrels of oil into the water and getting a slap on the wrist for it. [Breaking Energy] * Banker with ties to Linklaters, Skadden, and Latham & Watkins awaiting trial for murdering two prostitutes in Hong Kong. Just go ahead and put whatever American Psycho joke you think of here. [Roll on Friday] * Should litigation financing be disclosed? [Litigation Funding Central] * A collection of stories about the diversity issues at Harvard Law School. Sounds like a delightful place if you’re white, male, and heterosexual. [Socratic Shortcomings]

By Joe Patrice
Books

Non-Sequiturs: 10.15.14

* Looks like someone took a lesson from ATL’s Worst Law School bracket and put out a Worst Colleges in America list. We provide a very important service. [NPR] * Converse is suing over 31 alleged Chuck Taylor imitators. Are they mounting a “full court press”? Get it? Yeah there was pretty much no way around that one. [Fashionista] * Lawsuit reveals that struggling business couldn’t keep stores open but could shell out to keep CEO in her 4,560-square-foot home. [Seattle Times] * Harvard Law faculty members join a statement protesting the university’s new sexual harassment policy. [Boston Globe] * Is a sheath dress acceptable interview attire? Asking for a friend. [Corporette] * An interesting review of Lat’s upcoming novel Supreme Ambitions viewing the characters through the lens of William Deresiewicz’s Excellent Sheep (affiliate links) [Huffington Post Books] * Which is more galling? That the magistrate tried to weasel out of performing a legal same-sex marriage or that the newspaper felt this worthy of a poll? [The Virginian-Pilot (Hampton Roads)]

By Joe Patrice
Marijuana

Non-Sequiturs: 09.23.14

* City Attorney Pete Holmes is dropping all Seattle marijuana tickets for public smoking. Apparently most of them were issued by a single officer who just disagrees with the new pot law in Washington. I mean, respecting “laws” is certainly not a prerequisite for being a cop, right? [KOMO] * With the premiere of Gotham last night, The Legal Geeks have added the show to their regular list of pop culture phenomena that they examine though a legal lens. This should be hard, because I’ve never understood the Gotham Penal Code and the insistence on placing recidivist mass murderers in a revolving door asylum like Arkham. At some point isn’t it time for Supermax? [The Legal Geeks] * The SEC hands out a $30 million whistleblower award. Toot toot. [Fortune] * State Senate candidate accused by his old firm of falsifying his bills to the tune of $2 million. Sounds to me like he’s ready for higher office. [NY Daily News] * More follow-up to Elie’s piece on the Harvard kid who is so sure that making tons of money makes the world a better place. [Washington Post] * A comprehensive infographic of expert witness fees gathered from more than 5,000 experts. Spoiler: if you’re concerned about cost you want your case in Montana. [The Expert Institute] * Apple isn’t really trying to fight the U.S. government. Really. [Slate] * IP Lawyer/Rapper — whom we’ve profiled before — produces an ode to Australians to the tune of Fancy. Yeah there’s not much to add to that.

By Joe Patrice