Morning Docket

Morning Docket — 04.21.25

* Surprise twist! Late night ruling from the Supreme Court was very unusual (in lots of ways), but actually good for those that care about the constitution and due process. [Slate]

* Sam Alito finally drops his dissent in the rendition case, and he's big mad for someone on the bottom of a 7-2 decision. [Law 360]

* Biglaw's lack of a unified response to attacks from Donald Trump has left a black eye on the industry, and the partner lateral market might be to blame. [New York Times]

* Biglaw's cowardly reaction to Trump's Executive Orders hasn't changed partner recruitment much -- yet. [Law.com]

* Bill Barr's D.C. litigation boutique is growing. [Bloomberg Law]

* Cancer screenings and other preventative care under the Affordable Care Act is facing scrutiny at the Supreme Court. [Reuters]

Morning Docket: 04.18.25

* Facebook says it makes no sense to characterize their market as connecting friends and family. But being bad at your market doesn't mean it's not your market. [Law360]

* Law schools move summer associate interviews up to May. [Reuters]

* James Ho explains that district judges cannot go against the results of an election, a strongly held view he developed exactly three months ago. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Former DOJ lawyer involved in "one of the largest kleptocracy schemes in history." As opposed to the current DOJ lawyers who are involved in the biggest right now. [ABA Journal]

* New front in trade war could make legal AI more expensive. [Legaltech News]

* Lawyer founds firm after being mocked for being too nice. [Roll on Friday]

* Social media age verification law blocked because... well, because it's not remotely constitutional. [Ohio Capital Journal]

Morning Docket: 04.17.25

* Chief Judge Boasberg raises prospect of contempt charges if the Trump administration doesn't offer pathway to habeas petitions for people sent to El Salvador gulag. [Washington Post]

* Law firms preparing for recession. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Administration seeks to rescind tax emempt status for Harvard specifically. [CNN]

* Zuckerberg identifies TikTok as his greatest competitive threat. Stop making us root for TikTok! [Law360]

* The Supreme Court's deference to managing sovereign relations when it comes to immigration comes as a shock to everyone who watched the United State of Amarillo micromanage U.S.-Mexico diplomatic negotiations the last few years. [Slate]

* Lasting law firms require solid foundations. [American Lawyer]

* Cute renderings of some goofy in rem case names. [AI Weirdness]

Morning Docket: 04.16.25

* Trump administration fires lawyer for admitting Abrego Garcia deported accidentally. This fact was repeated by the immigration agent in charge and the Solicitor General but they want everyone to forget about that. [CNN]

* Everything else you need to know about the Abrego Garcia hearing. [Lawfare]

* Judges who have ruled against Trump administration overreach are getting phantom pizza orders in the name of Judge Salas's murdered son. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Finding a middle ground in dealing with the administration without selling out. [Law.com]

* Sarah Palin's suit against the New York Times moves forward and it's all fun and games until she manages to overturn Sullivan. [Law360]

* Law students sue over crackdown on firm DEI reporting. [Reuters]

* Government given guidance on spotting AI submissions. [LegalCheek]

Morning Docket: 04.15.25

* Trump administration refusal to honor 9-0 Supreme Court ruling to facilitate the release from custody of a Maryland man mistakenly deported becomes gravest crisis for federal judiciary since the apocryphal "John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it" moment. [The Atlantic]

* Hot mic catches Trump declaring that he's planning to sell American citizens to El Salvador next. That's... not legal. [Dorf on Law]

* "With Trump Obtaining $940M in 'Free Legal Services,' Will 9 Big Law Firms Now Face Talent, Brand and Conflict Issues?" Spoiler alert: Yes. [American Lawyer]

* "Linking Friends No Longer Meta's Focus, Zuckerberg Says," is a perfect exemple of Cory Doctorow's concept of "technological enshittification." [Law360]

* AI training opens exciting new avenue for copyright trolling. [Bloomberg Law News]

* El Salvador blocking access to attorneys because that's the whole point of selling people to a fascist slave state. [Reuters]

* Legal reporter Mike Sacks announces congressional run. [LoHud]

Morning Docket: 04.14.25

* DHS tells U.S. citizen lawyer to self-deport. [Boston Globe]

* Diddy lawyers interested in "potential jurors' sex trafficking views." Prosecutors are probably curious about that one too. [Reuters]

* Law firms backing Jenner and WilmerHale now top 800. [American Lawyer]

* The next "obey in advance" fear: law firms walk away from pro bono work that might raise White House ire. [NPR]

* Former Wisconsin Supreme Court justice agrees to suspended license over misleading 2020 election fraud investigation. [ABA Journal]

* "Alvin Bragg Set to Try Weinstein Again in Changed #MeToo Climate." I mean... there's less publicity around it than there once was, but has the "rape bad" climate actually changed? [Bloomberg Law News]

* Girardi CFO gets 10 years. [Law360]

Morning Docket: 04.11.25

* Top schools are still boycotting the US News rankings. [Law.com]

* SEC lawyer investigating Musk resigns since securities enforcement doesn't really exist anymore. [Yahoo]

* Elie Mystal explains that the Supreme Court will throw lower courts under the bus to ensure that the Supreme Court and only the Supreme Court gets to decide these issues. Sort of like the Chief's voting rights stance. [The Nation]

* Students sue over revoked immigration status. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Davis Polk enjoyed a strong year. [American Lawyer]

* Quietly stripping diversity language reaches the recruiting world. [Roll on Friday]

* The curious case of the press leak and the multimillion dollar Biglaw job. [Law360]

Morning Docket: 04.10.25

* UK judges set to receive new guidance on service animals in the courtroom. [Legal Cheek]

* House Republicans vote to limit nationwide injunctions... which they viewed as a bedrock principle of justice circa 6 months ago. [Reuters]

* DOJ guidance appears to advise federal agencies to ignore court orders. [PBS]

* Senate confirms new SEC chief to NOT investigate the fact that the volume of SPY calls were conveniently spiked right before Trump reversed the tariff decision. [Law360]

* Former Deputy Solicitor General and Watergate lawyer explains the grave danger of the government cracking down on lawyers for representing unpopular clients. [Bloomberg Law News]

* How to avoid boredom in retirement. Have you considered crashing the market and then immediately reversing it? That would keep a retiree engaged! [ABA Journal]

* Author and former Biglaw partner Steven J. Harper sees this as the modern legal industry industry's McCarthy moment... and some firms aren't meeting the challenge. [Crain's Chicago Business]

Morning Docket: 04.09.25

* "Like Oprah Handing Out T14 Titles." A shocking expression of no confidence in US News and World Rankings. [Law.com]

* Great news for the law firms who caved to Trump! Some coal lease business. That oughta do it. [Law360]

* The Office of the Solicitor General is becoming a ghost town as attorneys bail for the private sector rather than try to defend the indefensible. [Washington Post]

* Jenner and WilmerHale move to end the executive order nonsense permanently. [NY Times]

* Government has a day to show any evidence for deporting Columbia protester. [Reuters]

* Former Skadden attorney outlines why she left. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Lawyer announces million dollar giveaway. [NDTV]

Morning Docket: 04.08.25

* Supreme Court decides Trump can continue disappearing people to El Salvador as long as he gives the people snatched off the street by masked agents and spirited away to interstate holding areas a de minimis opportunity to file a fully sufficient habeas petition. [One First]

* Senate Dems probe Biglaw firms for allegedly trying to poach Paul Weiss clients and talent while it was under Trump's executive order. What they don't understand is that after the settlement, the firms almost certainly turned around and tried to poach clients and talent on the basis of its cowering. It's not political, it's just shameless capitalism. [National Law Journal]

* Does Biglaw have such a short memory that these settlements will fade away? I don't know... I seem to remember some big tobacco company firms that you don't see anymore. [American Lawyer]

* NCAA's attempt to resolve NIL issues falls apart. [Law360]

* Trump aims to win AI with coal. China cannot stop giggling. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Lawyer detained at the airport for representing a protester. [Detroit Free Press]

* Government uses US Marshals to intimidate whistleblower. [Reuters]

Morning Docket: 04.07.25

* Are the Biglaw settlements legally enforceable? Obviously not, but that's not really the point of bribes. [American Lawyer]

* Hundreds of law firms signed onto the amicus brief in the Perkins Coie case... with a lot of notable absences. [Law360]

* Attorney General won't dismiss possibility of third Trump term. [Newsweek]

* DOJ places attorneys on leave when they wouldn't lie to the court. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Texas investigating Kellogg over breakfast cereal health claims. Also Texas has a massive measles outbreak brought on by vaccination skepticism pushed by its elected officials for years. [Reuters]

* Doug Emhoff blindsided by his firm's capitulation. [CNN]

* Obama sends "I'm not mad, I'm just disappointed" vibes toward surrendering law firms. [Washington Post]

Morning Docket: 04.04.25

* Heritage Foundation goes to gutless law firms demanding pro bono legal services under the terms of Trump settlement. [ABA Journal]

* Chemerinsky lays out the obvious, explaining that firms and law schools standing up for each other would make them all safer. [Washington Post]

* HSF and Kramer push back merger date as economy melts down. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Man who conned 12 NBA players sentenced to 12 years. Man who conned Dallas into Luka trade still at large. [Law360]

* Quinn and Gibson representing firms tagged in EEOC retaliation. Since any of them caving could compromise the case of the others, any jointly represented firms must all be planning to fight or all planning to cave. [American Lawyer]

* Copyright suits against OpenAI consolidated. [Reuters]

* Law firm tells attorneys to "avoid physical ticks." [Roll on Friday]

Morning Docket: 04.03.25

* The Eric Adams case got dismissed. To celebrate, he's heading to Istanbul. [Law360]

* Skadden's spineless retreat goes international as the firm deletes UK recruiting materials discussing diversity. [LegalCheek]

* Random Florida insurance lawyer helms Trump administration effort to purge Smithsonian. In case you were worried that we'd skipped over the Degenerate Art phase of this speedrun. [ArtNet]

* "KFC Legal Chief Flies the Coop for Chicken Chain Bojangles." A+ headline. No notes. [Corporate Counsel]

* Biglaw cowardice harms the profession. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Amicus filings won't have to disclose that they're financially backed by parties in the case. So feel free to buy extra briefs if you have the resources! [Reuters]

* Court rules that 3-year-olds can't actually represent themselves. [ABA Journal]

Morning Docket: 04.02.25

* M&A work is down. Who could have foreseen a chaotic, ill-conceived economic policy could chill business? [American Lawyer]

* Democrats win Wisconsin Supreme Court race and whatever one thinks of the race, we can all agree that the Rebecca Bradley's insane dissents are going to be wildly entertaining for the next couple years. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Tesla argues that attorneys shouldn't be paid $176M just because they saved shareholders billions. [Law360]

* Workplace abuse reported by 8 percent of federal judiciary employees. [Reuters]

* Donna Adelson murder trial prosecutors can ask Wendi about her book where the main character feels "stuck in a small Florida town because of her husband’s job." [ABA Journal]

* Law firm puts up a million to encourage AI adoption. [LegalCheek]

Morning Docket: 04.01.25

* Willkie Farr appears to be the next firm to face the "surrender or fight" choice. [NY Times]

* Am Law 100 firms still mostly keeping their heads down as rule of law crumbles. [American Lawyer]

* Another baby powder bankruptcy shenanigans loss. [Law360]

* Visa holders may still want to avoid crossing the border at this point. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Voting laws can't be changed by executive order... and yet here we are. [Reuters]

* Congress targets Northwestern over law school clinic work. [Chicago Sun-Times]