LGBT
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2nd Circuit
Historic First Nominated To The Second Circuit
Joe Biden's been making judicial appointments with “unparalleled speed." -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 12.01.20
* A Long Island lawyer has filed nearly 100 lawsuits alleging that companies are falsely claiming their products contain vanilla. He should go after restaurants unfairly advertising they sell New York-style pizza and bagels… [Inside Edition]
* A Florida lawyer, who dressed as the Grim Reaper on beaches to promote social distancing, is facing legal setbacks in his lawsuit against Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis over COVID-19-related measures. [News Service of Florida]
* A number of court proceedings in Durham County, North Carolina, have been canceled because a substantial amount of local prosecutors are quarantining after being exposed to COVID-19. [WRAL.com]
* A Michigan funeral home recently settled a lawsuit that led to a major LGBT ruling at the Supreme Court. [Star Tribune]
* Massachusetts is paving the way for marijuana delivery, which may prompt legal action from retailers. Guess Mr. Nice Guy might soon be legal in the Commonwealth… [Mass Live]
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Courts
Trump Is Locking In Judicial Homophobia For A Generation
These bigots will be with us for a long time.
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Biglaw
Celebrating Champions Of Diversity And Inclusion In The Legal Profession
Congratulations -- and thanks -- to these inspiring leaders of the bar and change agents. -
Courts
Masterpiece Cakeshop Owner Sued Again For Discrimination
The attempt to right the wrongs of Kennedy's decision starts now. -
Courts
Why Justice Kennedy's Retirement From The Supreme Court Is Not The End Of The World
Yes, it's an important event -- but some of the reactions have been hyperbolic and over the top, and we all need to calm down. -
Courts
Fast Times At 40 Foley: Second Circuit Drama In Zarda v. Altitude Express
This history-making case generated a slew of interesting, funny, and even snarky opinions. -
Gay, Justice
Two Leading Lawyers Who Are Making A Difference
Congratulations to Lisa Linsky and Bernadette Harrigan on this well-deserved recognition! - Sponsored
How AI Is The Catalyst For Reshaping Every Aspect Of Legal Work
Findings from the "Future of Professionals Report," based on a survey of 1,200 professionals from North and South America and the UK. -
Federal Government, Labor / Employment, On The Job
DOJ Reverses Stance On Transgender Workplace Protections
When will this issue will reach the Supreme Court for resolution? -
Television
Megyn Kelly Is Whatever The Opposite Of 'Woke' Is
This shouldn't need to be said: being a lawyer is a choice, being gay isn't. -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 07.28.17
* The Senate rejects the latest GOP effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act — with Senator John McCain casting the decisive “no” vote. [Washington Post]
* Riley Safer Holmes and Cancila continues its rapid expansion, adding 13 new lawyers — including eight from Bryan Cave, led by former managing partner Joseph McCoy. [Law360]
* More bad news for the LGBT community from the Trump administration: the Justice Department takes the position that Title VII doesn’t cover discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. [How Appealing]
* Meanwhile, civil rights and LGBT groups get ready to file suit if President Trump’s plan to ban transgender people from the military becomes a reality (which is not yet the case). [National Law Journal]
* And these groups might just prevail — Michael Richter and Anna Pohl, chairs of the New York City Bar Association’s Military Affairs and LGBT Rights Committees, lay out the case for why the transgender ban is unconstitutional. [The Hill]
* Stephanie Francis Ward takes a long, hard look at the woes of Charlotte School of Law — and the rest of the beleaguered Infilaw consortium of law schools. [ABA Journal]
* Closing statements in the Martin Shkreli case paint very different pictures of the infamous “Pharma Bro.” [Law.com]
* Nuisance claims, or nuisance suits? Judge James Donato (N.D. Cal.) seems skeptical of a purported class-action case targeting Pokémon GO (which recently added Legendaries to the game). [The Recorder]
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Justice, Military / Military Law, Politics
Joint Chiefs To Trump: That's Not How Any Of This Works
If Trump disrespects the military, we're going to have bigger problems. -
Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 07.26.17
* President Trump’s personal legal team: “It’s utter chaos. Sometimes it can be like no one knows who is in charge.” [Washington Post]
* Adam Feldman predicts that the travel ban is going down before SCOTUS. [Empirical SCOTUS]
* The Trump tweets on banning transgender individuals from the military aren’t the only bad news for the LGBTQ community today. [Washington Blade]
* A nice win for the First Amendment and public access to court records. [Volokh Conspiracy / Washington Post]
* Ira Stoll wonders (with good reason): why did the New York Times account of this high-profile gender discrimination lawsuit name the law firm, but not the plaintiff? [Smarter Times]
* Clerkships guru Debra M. Strauss, who has written for our pages on the topic, is out with a second edition of Behind the Bench: The Guide to Judicial Clerkships (affiliate link).
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Biglaw, Health / Wellness
'HIV-Positive, Former DC Biglaw Attorney, Washed Out, Now Living In Midwest'
He's putting his life back together, 'optimistic despite it all,' and willing to share his wisdom with others. -
Gay, SCOTUS, Supreme Court
4 Reasons Why Gay Marriage Is Safe, Even After Justice Kennedy Retires
Calm down, people; Justice Anthony Kennedy's retirement does not spell the end of same-sex marriage. -
Biglaw, Boutique Law Firms, Partner Issues, Small Law Firms
A History-Making Litigator Leaves Biglaw To Launch A Boutique
After 25 years at a top Biglaw firm, this star litigator decided it was time for a new adventure. -
Non-Sequiturs
Non-Sequiturs: 06.28.17
* Very interesting piece by Mark Joseph Stern on Justice Neil M. Gorsuch’s dissent in Pavan v. Smith (aka the “LGBT parents on birth certificates” case). It seems to me that Justice Gorsuch’s statement is technically correct — the Arkansas Department of Health (1) was okay with giving the named plaintiffs their birth certificates and (2) conceded that in the artificial-insemination context, gay couples can’t be treated differently than straight couples (see the Arkansas Supreme Court opinion, footnote 1 and page 18) — but it’s either confusing, at best, or misleading and disingenuous, at worst (the view of Shannon Minter of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, counsel to the plaintiffs). [Slate]
* Speaking of Justice Gorsuch, Adam Feldman makes some predictions about what we can expect from him in the future, based on his first few opinions. [Empirical SCOTUS]
* Professor Rick Hasen has made up his mind on this: “Gorsuch is the new Scalia, just as Trump promised.” [Los Angeles Times]
* The VC welcomes a new co-conspirator: Professor Sai Prakash, a top scholar of constitutional law and executive power. [Volokh Conspiracy / Washington Post]
* Now that Harvard Law School will accept GRE scores in lieu of LSAT scores, what do law school applicants need to know about the two tests? [Law School HQ]
* And what do Snapchat users need to know about the app’s new “Snap Map” feature? Cyberspace lawyer Drew Rossow flags potential privacy problems. [WFAA]
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Family Law, Gay, Health Care / Medicine, Kids, SCOTUS, Supreme Court
Supreme Court Confirms 'Constellation of Benefits' For Same-Sex Couples
What do you call it when the law treats gay women worse than straight men, for no good reason? Unconstitutional. -
Morning Docket
Morning Docket: 06.23.17
* Federal investigators are delving into multimillion-dollar deals involving former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort and his son-in-law, Jeffrey Yohai. [New York Times]
* The Fifth Circuit lifts the injunction against H.B. 1523, Mississippi’s notorious “religious freedom” law that many regard as antigay (but the court ruled on jurisdictional rather than gay-hating grounds). [Texas Lawyer]
* In the wake of a mistrial in the criminal case against him, Bill Cosby plans to educate young men on how to avoid accusations of sexual assault. (My advice: don’t commit sexual assault.) [New York Times]
* The Fourth Circuit affirms almost all the convictions of ex-CIA officer in a leak case — a potentially significant ruling if the Trump administration follows through on its threats to prosecute leakers. [How Appealing]
* The Seventh Circuit declines to reinstate the conviction of Brendan Dassey, the defendant made famous by Making A Murderer. [ABA Journal]
* Martin Shkreli, aka “Pharma Bro,” is gearing up for trial — and, for the record, he is “so innocent.” [New York Times]
* More disturbing news from my ancestral homeland of the Philippines, involving accusations that the police are shaking down families in distress as part of President Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs.” [Washington Post]
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Family Law, Health Care / Medicine, Kids
Mississippi Gets Sperm Wrong
This situation should be a no-brainer after the Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell.