Christine Quinn

As we all await a vote on gay marriage in New York, the New York Observer came out with a wonderful list: the 50 most powerful gay people in New York. They’ve called them “power gays,” and that, my friends, is just fun to say. Here, I’ll use it in a scene.

OLD GUY: Is that guy over there… a gay?
ELIE: No. He’s a POWER gay.

The number one most powerful gay person in New York is City Council Speaker Christine Quinn. That makes sense. Christine Quinn could well be the next mayor of New York City, and unlike other potential NYC mayoral candidates, she doesn’t have a penis that can be photographed and disseminated over Twitter.

But, more relevant for our purposes, the power gays include a number of lawyers….

There are a number of power-gay lawyers, according to the NYO. The kids will want to become familiar with Peter Lyons. He’s the managing director of Leeds Private Equity, the firm that recently acquired Bar/Bri.

You can certainly be a powerful gay man or woman and make it in Biglaw. Check out the profiles of Marc Wolinsky of Wachtell Lipton, or Lisa Linsky of McDermott Will & Emery.

And, of course, there’s Ken Mehlman, the recently out of the closet, powerfully gay Republican strategist. I guess we’ll see if his newfangled Republican gay is more powerful than old-school donkey gay over the next election cycle.

There are also some power-gay judges on the list: U.S. District Judge Deborah Batts and District Court nominee Paul Oetken, both of the S.D.N.Y. So those two can look forward to having their judgments questioned by raging homophobes. Hopefully they’re powerful enough to overcome the bigotry.

Fifty power gays, and we’re very close to gay marriage in New York. It most definitely does get better, for gays and lesbians and all lovers of civil rights.

The New Power Gays: NYC’s Top 50 [New York Observer]

* Five ways to write like David Boies and Ted Olson. [Legal Writing Pro (PDF)]

* Speaking of legal writing, do you share our love of corny Bluebook jokes? If so, read this. [Laws for Attorneys]

* And speaking of gays, and litigation, and people named Olson, Judge John Olson — a bankruptcy judge in Florida — just issued a saucy order, denying a recusal motion based on the fact that the judge’s fiancé (male) works for the firm representing the plaintiff. [South Florida Lawyers]

* Professor Stephen Bainbridge on summer associate programs: “When I was a kid, we didn’t get any stinking $150 cab rides.” [Professor Bainbridge]

* Vivia Chen doesn’t have much sympathy for the now openly gay Ken Mehlman. [The Careerist]

* Thanks to the kind folks at Abbey Spanier for making Above the Law their recommended blog of the week. [Twitter]

Ken Mehlman: Yup, he's gay.

Back in June, we wrote about the fabulous Chelsea apartment snapped up by prominent Republican lawyer Ken Mehlman. Although his résumé is strewn with achievements — he’s a 1991 graduate of Harvard Law School (just like President Obama), a former partner at Akin Gump, and a current executive vice-president at Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (ka-ching!) — Mehlman is most well-known as former chairman of the Republican National Committee.

Because Mehlman settled in Chelsea — and took up residence in the Chelsea Mercantile building, home to such A-list gays as Marc Jacobs and Lance Bass — we couldn’t resist a little innuendo. Despite his status as a leading official of the Republican Party, which hasn’t always been down with the gays, Mehlman has long been dogged by rumors that he is a homosexual.

Now we don’t have to worry about Mehlman suing us for defamation — and litigating the interesting issue of whether calling someone a big old nelly queen constitutes defamation per se in New York. Mehlman just publicly admitted that he’s gay, in an interview with Marc Ambinder of The Atlantic. (The publication of the interview may have been accelerated, thanks to a nudge from Mike Rogers of BlogActive.)

Let’s take a closer look at the pink elephant in the room….

Why did Mehlman decide to come out of his (fabulous walk-in) closet? Recent legal developments, including Judge Vaughn Walker’s striking down of Proposition 8, apparently played a role:

[Mehlman decided to come out] because, now in private life, he wants to become an advocate for gay marriage and anticipated that questions would arise about his participation in a late-September fundraiser for the American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER), the group that supported the legal challenge to California’s ballot initiative against gay marriage, Proposition 8.

But it wasn’t just politics; it was also a deeply personal decision:

“It’s taken me 43 years to get comfortable with this part of my life,” said Mehlman, now an executive vice-president with the New York City-based private equity firm, KKR. “Everybody has their own path to travel, their own journey, and for me, over the past few months, I’ve told my family, friends, former colleagues, and current colleagues, and they’ve been wonderful and supportive. The process has been something that’s made me a happier and better person. It’s something I wish I had done years ago.”

We have no doubt, Mr. Mehlman. Imagine how much action you could have been getting over the years!

But still, even though you’re coming out at 44, which is positively geriatric in the gay world — belated happy birthday, by the way (it was on August 21) — we think you’ll do just fine in the dating world (assuming the rumors that you’re single and looking are true). You’re smart, successful, and reasonably attractive. And, perhaps most importantly in our community, you’re rich, and famous, and have a great apartment. A $3.8 million condo in the heart of Chelsea will go a long way towards dispelling the animosity that some Manhattan gays — you know, the super-liberal, self-righteous types — might harbor towards you as a Republican.

To read more about Ken Mehlman’s coming out process, as well as the tension between his personal life and his political work — he explains that he tried, behind the scenes, to keep the Republican Party from attacking same-sex marriage — check out the full interview in The Atlantic. It’s a very interesting read.

P.S. Speaking of the gay legal community, Lavender Law, the National LGBT Bar Association’s annual conference and career fair, is taking place this week in Miami. It’s a fun and informative event, as well as an excellent networking opportunity. I’ll be moderating a Friday morning plenary panel on LGBT issues and the Obama Administration. Hope to see you there — yes, you too, Ken!

Bush Campaign Chief and Former RNC Chair Ken Mehlman: I’m Gay [The Atlantic]
Ken Mehlman is coming out [BlogActive]

Earlier: Lawyerly Lairs: Ken Mehlman Moves to Chelsea

So how much did he pay for his place? And what does it look like?

Let’s take a peek….

Ken Mehlman's gourmet kitchen, where the former RNC chairman can cook up lots of red meat.

Mehlman bought a high-floor condo in the buzz-generating Chelsea Mercantile building, home to such A-list gays as Marc Jacobs and Lance Bass. Some details about his pad, via Curbed:

Mehlman just paid $3.775 million for a 2,200-square-foot 2BR/3BA loft on the 17th floor, and according to the listing (still viewable on the rather spectacular website of broker/designer Fionn Campbell), that’s the highest apartment in the building’s best line. The apartment was only on the market for a month, and Mehlman paid $100k above the asking price. Aggressive move, but as his old boss would say, he’s the decider.

Nice. Partners at Mehlman’s former firm, Akin Gump, rake in plenty of cash — profits per partner clocked in at $1.455 million in 2009 — but Mehlman is probably doing even better in his current job. For the past two years, since spring 2008, Mehlman has served as a managing director of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, the private equity powerhouse.

To see photos of Mehlman’s (confirmed) bachelor pad, check out Curbed and the Huffington Post, which have extensive slideshows.

A Republican in Chelsea? Now We’ve Seen Everything [Curbed]
Mehlman Buys Condo in Chelsea [New York Times]
Ken Mehlman, Former RNC Chairman, Buys In Chelsea [Huffington Post]
Closeted Former RNC Chair Ken Mehlman Buys $4M Loft In NYC Gayborhood [Joe. My. God.]