Media and Journalism

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 06.19.17

* Hot on the heels of the news that Amazon would be purchasing Whole Foods, legal nerds wanted to know which firms would be handling the $13.7B transaction. SullCrom is representing Amazon and Wachtell is representing Whole Foods in Bezos's bid to sell asparagus water on Prime. [Texas Lawyer] * Governor Andrew Cuomo has nominated Appellate Division Justice Paul Feinman to replace the late Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam on the New York Court of Appeals. If confirmed, Feinman will be first the first openly gay judge to be seated on the bench of New York's highest court. Congrats! [Journal News] * But her his emails! The state of Indiana will be paying "small-town firm" McNeely Stephenson $100K to handle a backlog of public records requests having to do with the contents of then Governor Mike Pence's private AOL account from which he conducted state business over email. [Chicago Tribune] * Shortly after a mistrial was declared in Bill Cosby's sexual assault case, his spokesman had some sarcastic remarks to share with those who represented the comedians accusers: "For all those attorneys who conspired -- like Gloria Allred -- tell them to go back to law school and take another class." [FOX News Insider] * Legal documents related to the dissolution of annoying jingle firm Cellino & Barnes are currently under seal, but several media outlets are trying to convince a judge to unseal the records because the "litigation over the dissolution of [the firm] is an issue of local and national importance." [New York Daily News] * "They’ve been great at dodging this. But they know they’re not going to be able to dodge it for much longer." New York City may finally do away with its nearly century-old ban on dancing in restaurants, bars, and clubs thanks to a proposed a bill seeking the repeal of the city's 1926 "Cabaret Law." [New York Post]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 05.18.17

* Congratulations to Howard Bashman and our sister site How Appealing on 15 great years! [How Appealing] * Roger Ailes, RIP. [Instapundit] * Fellowships for training law professors are now a thing -- but are they a good thing, wonders Professor Paul Horwitz? [PrawfsBlawg] * "Immigration, Freedom, and the Constitution" -- reflections on these timely topics from Professor Ilya Somin. [Volokh Conspiracy / Washington Post] * Professor Leah Litman breaks down Rod Rosenstein's appointment of Robert Mueller as special counsel in the Trump/Russia investigation. [Take Care] * Tips from cyberspace lawyer Andrew Rossow for victims of the recent "WannaCry" ransomware attack. [Huffington Post]

By David Lat