Lehman Brothers

The Federal Circuit may hold to a higher standard trademark applicants that are aiming to profit off good -- or even bad -- will that they did not themselves earn in the marketplace.

* Taking the bar exam tomorrow? Some tips for instant calm. [Health.com]

* Thought experiment: How would the world be different if the federal government had bailed out Lehman Brothers? [Bloomberg Odd Lots]

* This British legal recruiter would rather see applicants with lesser qualifications because otherwise they are too arrogant. [Legal Cheek]

* Attorneys with SCOTUS experience are in high demand. [Empirical SCOTUS]

* Potential upside of law firm mergers? Cybersecurity. [Law.com]

* Mike Sadler, the former Michigan State punter who was heading to Stanford Law in the fall, died in a car crash this weekend along with Nebraska punter, Sam Foltz. [Michigan Live]

* In the case of Merrick Garland, maybe a nice guy could actually finish first. [Washington Post]

* The cases and issues that may result in a 4-4 tie on the Supreme Court. [Jost on Justice]

* Was Sandra Day O’Connor’s vote in Casey v. Planned Parenthood the actual death knell for reproductive freedom? [Slate]

* Chief Justice John Robert plays Carnac the Magnificent, and actually predicted the mess the Supreme Court nomination process has turned into. [Huffington Post]

* I doubt capitalism can really solve for the prejudice behind the anti-LGBTQ legislation that Georgia’s legislature passed, but it can provide enough pressure for the governor to veto it. [Lawyers, Guns and Money]

* Lessons for lawyers whose careers go off the track from former Lehman CFO Erin Callan. [Law and More]

What is going on when a fit of despair on the kitchen floor is such a “relatable” thing?

* Based on the justices’ reactions during oral arguments in Windsor v. U.S., there was no defending the Defense of Marriage Act. Not even the Paul Clement, the patron saint of conservative causes could save the day. [New York Times]

* Alas, the David Boies and Ted Olson Dream Team stole much of the spotlight from Roberta Kaplan, the Paul Weiss partner who argued on behalf of Edith Windsor in an effort to overturn DOMA. Seriously, you go girl! [WSJ Law Blog (sub. req.)]

* Dude, you’re getting a Dell! Alston & Bird and Kirkland & Ellis are the latest firms to join the Biglaw sharks (including Ho-Love, Debevoise, Wachtell, SullCrom, and Simpson Thacher) circling this major tech buyout. [Am Law Daily]

* It looks like it’s time for JPMorgan to face the music for its investments in Lehman Brothers, because a federal judge just ruled that the bank cannot “dispatch plaintiff’s claims to the waste bin.” [Reuters]

* An alleged killer’s sense of mortality: James Holmes, the suspect in the Colorado movie theater shooting, offered to plead guilty and spend life in prison in order to avoid the death penalty. [CNN]

Here are more images from the downfall of Dewey & LeBoeuf -- including a photo of former executive director Stephen DiCarmine, who's quite handsome.

What does the downfall of a Biglaw firm look like? Here are several visual representations of the turmoil at Dewey & LeBoeuf.

* All your base are belong to… Rick Santorum? Error! Malfunction! Super Tuesday was not quite as super as Mitt Romney was hoping for. Looks like it’s time to reprogram the Mitt-bot so he can conquer the true conservatives. [CNN]

* And the Cebulls**t just keeps on coming. Now Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee are calling for a hearing and an investigation on the consequences of the federal judge’s racist email. [Associated Press]

* After wrapping up a Chapter 11 bankruptcy for Lehman Brothers, Weil Gotshal’s bill came to $383M. And sadly, that’s probably going to be the only “spring bonus” associates will see this year. [Am Law Daily]

* Complete pwnage: a handful of LulzSec hacktivists were arrested after their leader, an FBI informant, turned on them. How will this affect the Anonymous movement? More importantly, who cares? [New York Times]

* No postponements for you, Casey Anthony. Try as she might, the acquitted ex-MILF just can’t escape the defamation lawsuit filed by a woman who was only supposed to be make believe. [Washington Post]

* Don’t like Maryland Law’s environmental clinic litigation? Offer another public law school $500K to represent the defendants. Because if anyone would take a bribe, it would be Baltimore Law. [National Law Journal]

Don’t get too comfortable with that shiny new #6 Vault ranking, Weil Gotshal. The firm just got served, Texas-style. The ABA Journal reports: The Texas judge who ordered Microsoft to pay $290 million for infringing a patent included a $40 million enhancement that he said was partly justified because of alleged trial misconduct by a […]