Law Firm Diversity

* Paul Weiss really showed its “commitment to putting the white in white shoe” with its new partnership class, and the New York Times is on it! See our coverage from December here. [New York Times]

* President Donald Trump recently met with a group of right-wing activists led by Ginni Thomas, wife of Justice Clarence Thomas, where they criticized transgender people and women serving in the military. Trump reportedly looked “taken aback“ during the meeting, which is a bit of a rarity. [New York Times]

* Some pretty major lateral moves for some pretty major players when it comes to appellate practice: Lisa Blatt is returning to Williams & Connelly where she’ll lead the firm’s Supreme Court practice, and Kannon Shanmugam is leaving Williams & Connolly to lead a new Supreme Court practice at Paul Weiss. Congrats! [NLJ; NLJ]

* “I’m here to speak for the people who don’t have a voice.” Rappers Jay-Z and Meek Mill have launched the Reform Alliance, an initiative for criminal justice reform, with the goal of dramatically changing laws and policies to reduce “unreasonable” probation, parole, and prison terms. [CBS News]

* What happened to the people who were told that they passed the D.C. bar exam, when in reality they actually failed? “Just shock. I didn’t think that could happen. I never heard of a bar committee changing the results.” Here’s a bit of a depressing update. [Washington Post]

* Sexual misconduct allegations against Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh were recently brought to light and while he may be spending his time “hoping and praying” before the vote, his supporters say it’s highly likely he’ll be confirmed anyway. [Big Law Business]

* Well, except for the fact that senators are calling for the delay of Kavanaugh’s confirmation vote now that his accuser has come forward to reveal the details of the judge’s alleged attack on her when they were students in high school. [NBC News]

* And was Judge Kavanaugh a member of Judge Alex Kozinski’s sexually explicit “Easy Rider Gag List”? Kavanaugh says he doesn’t remember receiving any of those emails, but Heidi Bond, one of Kozinski’s former law clerks, thinks that there could be a very easy way to find out if the would-be SCOTUS justice is lying. [Slate]

* The most controversial Biglaw firm? Federal prosecutors are considering bringing charges against former Skadden partner Greg Craig and taking action against the firm itself in a probe related to Paul Manafort. Will the prestigious Biglaw firm wind up with a civil settlement or a deferred prosecution agreement? [CNN]

* Shearman & Sterling has announced that the firm will soon bring Sandra Bang, its first-ever chief diversity and talent strategy officer, into its C-suite. She’ll be leading a new global task force aimed at increasing diversity at the Wall Street firm. Congratulations! Perhaps additional firms will follow their lead. [American Lawyer]

* The body of Brian Lewinstein, the rising second-year student at Berkeley Law who crossed a safety line and fell while trying to get a picture of Toketee Falls from above, has been found. More than a month had passed since the accident occurred. Our sincere condolences go out to all of his family and friends. [SFGate]

Ed. note: We’re sure you already know this, but there’s a total eclipse today. If you’re planning to watch the eclipse, make sure you do so safely. Enjoy and have fun!

* More than 30 percent of law students are minorities, but only 15 percent of lawyers and less than 9 percent of partners are attorneys of color. Racial diversity in law firms seems to have flatlined, but some law firms are doing a little better than others when it comes to recruiting and retaining minority lawyers. We’ll have more on this sometime soon. [Law360 (sub. req.)]

* Is “Google” undeserving of trademark protection thanks to genericide? “There is no single word other than google that conveys the action of searching the Internet using any search engine,” and perhaps that’s why Chris Gillespie, who lost his case at the Ninth Circuit when he attempted to have Google’s trademark invalidated, has applied to the Supreme Court for certiorari. [Ars Technica]

* Judge Jim Hinkle of Gwinnett County, Georgia, who was suspended after posting some controversial remarks about Charlottesville on Facebook — i.e., comparing “snowflake” counter-protesters to ISIS because they were “destroying history” — has officially resigned from the bench. [Atlanta Journal-Constitution]

* James Alex Fields Jr., the 20-year-old accused of ramming his car into a group of counter-protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia, killing one and injuring numerous others, has been charged with five additional felony counts on top of the five he was already facing, one of which was second-degree murder. [CNN]

* Some law schools are doing more than others when it comes to helping students with mental health and substance abuse issues. While some law schools are offering students and professors an impressive suite of awareness, reporting, and counseling services, others are a bit behind the eight ball. [Daily Report]

* In what could very well be one of the first virtual law firm mergers, FisherBroyles and Ntellect Law, two cloud-based firms, have tied the knot, combining to form the largest law firm of its kind. Kevin Broyles, the firm’s co-founder, thinks the firm will join the Am Law 200 by 2018. [Am Law Daily]

* Remember Chris Sevier, the man who, in an effort to protest same-sex marriage, filed suit against Florida, Texas, and now Utah because he alleged he was denied the right to marry his computer? A federal judge has refused to dismiss his case because some of his wild claims ought to be heard in court — and not just for the judge’s entertainment. Surprisingly, this wasn’t an April Fools’ joke. [FOX 13 News]

* “It is plausible that Trump’s direction to ‘get ’em out of here’ advocated the use of force. It was an order, an instruction, a command.’ President Trump once again has his bold language to blame for his lawyers’ inability to get a lawsuit dismissed. Because free speech isn’t a viable defense, a federal judge has refused to toss out allegations that Trump incited violence against protesters at one of his campaign rallies. [NBC News]

* “[W]e do not intend to give any professional organizations special access to our nominees.” Breaking with tradition, the Trump administration has decided to forgo the American Bar Association’s pre-nomination assistance when it comes to evaluating and rubber-stamping candidates for the federal judiciary. We’ll have more on this later. [New York Times]

* Facebook is requiring that women and ethnic minorities account for at least 33 percent of law firm teams working on its matters. In addition, those firms must “actively identify and create clear and measurable leadership opportunities for women and minorities” who represent the social networking giant. Love. ❤ [DealBook / New York Times]

* The ABA may eliminate a requirement that full-time faculty teach at least half of all upper-level courses offered at their law schools. Hmm, if law professors worked half as much, then perhaps their salaries would decrease along with their work load and there would be less of an excuse to keep student tuition so absurdly high. [Inside Higher Ed]

* Somebody cry Justin Timberlake a river, because the pop star is currently under investigation for taking a ballot selfie in his home state of Tennessee. He may face up to 30 days in jail and a fine of $50 for posting a picture of himself at a polling station on his Instagram account, where it was seen by his more than 37 million followers. [Reuters]

UPDATE: Amy Weirich, District Attorney General of Shelby County, Tennessee, said the following as to Timberlake’s alleged violation of the state’s ballot selfie law: “No one in our office is currently investigating this matter nor will we be using our limited resources to do so.”

* If Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump were to win the election, he’d be entering the presidency with an unprecedented number of unresolved legal cases. At present, Trump has at least 75 pending lawsuits, and they’d follow him to the White House where he’d continue to be dogged by them, leaving him distracted. [USA Today]

* “Diversity is the future; embrace it or you’re obsolete.” According to Andrew Glincher, Nixon Peabody’s managing partner, his firm has tried to increase its diversity because while the legal profession itself is “focused on past and precedent,” his firm is “future-focused,” and he finds that a diverse workforce makes his teams better overall. [Forbes]

* Want to attend a law school that will teach you about real-life music issues? Want to attend a law school that’s produced some of the most well-known music lawyers in the country? Then you may want to attend one of these 10 law schools (many in the T14), handpicked by Billboard for their elite alumni practicing in the music field. [Billboard]

* Citing changes in donor participation, Big Bend CrimeStoppers has reduced the reward being offered for information leading to an arrest in the 2014 killing of Florida State law professor Dan Markel. Considering three suspects have been arrested and charged — and one of them has already taken a plea deal — this isn’t so bad. [Tallahassee Democrat]