Morning Docket

  • Morning Docket: 10.26.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.26.23

    * Are firms going to start outsourcing associate training? An interesting concept! What if we had “schools” where prospective lawyers could learn the “law” before getting to the firm. We could call them “law schools.” Meh… it’ll never work. [American Lawyer]

    * Comprehensive breakdown of the average workday start and finish times at each UK firm. [LegalCheek]

    * In light of SBF’s decision to take the stand, here are some past instances of high-profile white-collar defendants testifying on their own behalf. Much like crypto, you never know how it’ll turn out but probably not great. [Reuters]

    * Judge Pauline Newman files brief taking her Federal Circuit colleagues to task for their extra-constitutional efforts to remove her from the bench. [Bloomberg Law News]

    * Eleventh Circuit nixes Home Depot’s effort to derail the Blue Cross settlement. [Law360]

    * Apple has joined the right-to-repair effort. [Quartz]

  • Morning Docket: 10.25.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.25.23

    * Mark Meadows has immunity? Well, well, well. [ABC]

    * Meta targeted for hooking kids through algorithms say state attorneys general seeking to increase their reelection profiles with a lawsuit designed to game the Google algorithm . [Law360]

    * New bipartisan push for Supreme Court term limits. Because Harlan Crow should have to buy vacations for other people too. [Reuters]

    * Florida asks Supreme Court to reinstate its anti-drag show law and somehow Clarence Thomas will decide that the ban comports with the original understanding of a bunch of guys who wore stockings and wigs. [CNN]

    * Forget government and academia, former Supreme Court clerks are making bank in litigation finance. [Law.com]

    * NLRB set to consider whether college athletes are properly university employees roughly 50 years after the fact. [Bloomberg Law News]

    * Former Connecticut senate attorney heads to prison. [CT Insider]

  • Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.24.23

    * There are “thousands of trained therapy dogs found in courthouses across the country” to help jurors and attorneys deal with stress. On the one hand, awwwwww. On the other hand, we’re officially too soft as a nation. [Bloomberg Law News]

    * Quinn Emanuel and Latham both earn benchslappings unsealed. [Law360]

    * Tim Scott warns that Democrats want to legalize abortion up to the 52nd week. Ah, the classic “fourth trimester abortion.” [Huffington Post]

    * Speaking of abortion, Ohio’s GOP Attorney General put out his “non-partisan” assessment of the upcoming reproductive rights ballot measure and wouldn’t you know it, returning to the status quo of the prior half century results in fire and brimstone. [Ohio Capital Journal]

    * Folks want digital payments for mass torts, which is so logical I’m sure it will be fought tooth and nail by the courts. [Law.com]

    * The diploma mill model hasn’t worked out. [Reuters]

    * Speaking Portuguese is good for your legal career. [LegalCheek]

  • Morning Docket: 10.23.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.23.23

    * After all the hemming and hawing and stealth layoffs and delayed starts… most law firms are on track to meet 2023 budgets. [American Lawyer]

    * Tech industry lawyer reportedly coordinated letter to Congress asking them not to pass AI regulations. On the one hand, AI probably needs some regulation. On the other hand, maybe it’s best if the tweebs who can’t elect a Speaker aren’t writing those laws. [Politico]

    * Meanwhile, the spread of AI sends a bunch of lawyers back to school. [Legaltech News]

    * Chevron set to buy Hess for $53 billion. Putting aside concerns over consolidation in the energy market, are they still going to keep making the trucks?!? [Bloomberg Law News]

    * Janice Rogers Brown testifies on behalf of John Eastman that he’s “dedicated his life to the preservation of constitutional order,” reminding us that the “serious” conservative legal movement was never serious at all. [Law360]

    * Defense team complaining that prosecutors are trying to paint Sam Bankman-Fried as a cartoonish villain. I mean… are they trying to do that. [Reuters]

  • Morning Docket: 10.20.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.20.23

    * Non-lawyer Stephen Miller continues his bid to be the go-to ambulance chaser of “were your feelings hurt by wokeness?” by suing NYU Law Review for discriminating against white men. [Bloomberg Law News]

    * Cleary facilities manager who sent fake invoices to the tune of around a million bucks heads to jail. [Roll on Friday]

    * Former FTX GC testifies that Sam Bankman-Fried asked him to conjure up possible legal justifications for a bunch of transactions. Normally in-house counsel aren’t asked to play Mad Libs with finances, but welcome to the world of crypto! [Reuters]

    * Supreme Court mulling Missouri’s gun law which “reads like it was drafted by a member of the John Birch Society after a night of heavy drinking.” [Vox]

    * Some clients are pushing firms to get on the AI bandwagon. [American Lawyer]

    * Net neutrality is coming back, baby. [Law360]

    * Kirkland unveils new tech tool for funds attorneys. [Legaltech News]

  • Morning Docket: 10.19.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.19.23

    * Baseball players join bid to overrule MLB’s antitrust exemption because it’s always incredibly stupid and should’ve never existed. [Bloomberg Law News]

    * NY court worker arrested after approaching Donald Trump at his NY trial, saying they wanted to help him. And as we all know, the greatest crime of all is a helpful court worker. [Law360]

    * Wait… that bankruptcy judge was approving $750 fee requests for his girlfriend? [Financial Times]

    * Davis Polk firings putting pressure on more firms to fire students over “grey areas” statements. [American Lawyer]

    * Mississippi’s access to justice problem hasn’t gotten any better since the last time we talked about it. [ProPublica]

    * Not that much doubt remained, but there is now a confession in the Natalee Holloway murder. [Courthouse News Service]

    * In rare move, the Fifth Circuit issued an entirely reasonable ruling, upholding NASDAQ’s board diversity rule after Ed Blum’s Bigot Brigade challenged its constitutionality. [Reuters]

    * Oh look! The independent state legislature theory is somehow back. [Democracy Docket]

  • Morning Docket: 10.18.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.18.23

    * SBF attorneys pursue theory that “cooperating witnesses… changed their tune only in hindsight.” Yeah, that’s how “cooperating witnesses” work. If they weren’t on board at some point they have considerably less valuable testimony. [Law360]

    * Sixth Circuit heard the SLAPPy appeal of the Kathy Griffin case. The majority of the panel appeared appropriately skeptical based on “the law,” but Judge Amul Thapar expressed sympathy for the plaintiff’s case based on “the Judge’s desire to be on Trump’s Supreme Court shortlist.” [Courthouse News Service]

    * Alex Murdaugh free to seek new trial in boon for a true crime genre starved for content. [Reuters]

    * Law school ranking haphazardly melds a bunch of other rankings into a ranking mullet: USNWR up front, wild party in back. [Law.com]

    * The NYU Law student that made headlines for characterizing the Hamas attacks as “necessary” is pushing back against the school’s intimation that it will probe the statements. [New York Law Journal]

    * Report surveys nearly 900 chief legal officers about cybersecurity and data privacy. [Bloomberg Law News]

  • Morning Docket: 10.17.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.17.23

    * Supreme Court nixes lower court rulings that had struck down Biden ghost gun regulations. Surely there’s something in the Federalist Papers that can be twisted into a right to untraceable guns… Thomas is slipping.[CNN]

    * High-profile lawyer accused of using ChatGPT as a fake lawyer. [Daily Beast]

    * Meanwhile the real fake lawyer in Kenya thanks his supporters. [BBC]

    * SBF lawyers demanding more adderall. [Forbes]

    * Viet Dinh blames trial judge for Fox News having to pay over 700M in defamation damages on his watch. Sure buddy. [CNN]

    * Berkeley Law professor goes on rant asking firms not to hire his “antisemitic students.” Not for remarks suggesting sympathy for Hamas, but for generically pro-Palestinian rights stances in the past. [NY Post]

    * Courts set to unravel Zulu line of succession fight, which sounds way cooler than anything over here. [San Diego Union-Tribune]

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  • Morning Docket: 10.16.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.16.23

    * Federal judge resigns after caught living with one of the lawyers in matters in front of him. [Reuters]

    * But no ethics scandal is complete without Alito or Thomas following up with “hold my beer,” so Alito just issued a temporary extension on a facially unconstitutional ruling to help his cronies. [CourthouseNewsService]

    * Could obviously racist thing be racist? A mainstream media review. [ALM.com]

    * Jones Day discrimination suit reaches critical stage. As a reminder, this goes all the way back to this dispute. [WSJ]

    * Might SCOTUSBlog survive? [Law360]

    * Looking to Singapore as a go to market as China continues to impose roadblocks. [FT]

  • Morning Docket: 10.13.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.13.23

    * Law firm grapples with rodent infestation. Now might be a good time to talk about hybrid work policies. [Roll on Friday]

    * Judge asked to approve $125M PACER fees settlement. Hold on, maybe we should put this off until after the shutdown? [National Law Journal]

    * Gordon Rees rebrands as GRSM50 to give off more of a diagnostic manual vibe. [ABA Journal]

    * The Blum Bigot Brigade takes aim at Winston & Strawn, Hunton Andrews Kurth, and Adams and Reese over law student fellowship programs. [Reuters]

    * Judge Newman attended an intellectual property conference and continues to show off that she’s still at the top of her game even if her armchair neurologist colleagues on the bench plot against her. [Bloomberg Law News]

    * UK approves Activision deal after securing a key concession. [Law360]

    * Law firm leadership bolting at an increased pace. Though that may just be returning to normal after years of partners holding on for far, far too long. [Law.com Barometer]

  • Morning Docket: 10.12.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.12.23

    * You know a trial’s going great when bribery and prostitutes come up. [Axios]

    * Supreme Court looks to impose racial gerrymander. [Reuters]

    * Winston & Strawn decision reminds law students of the professional dangers of putting your opinions out there. [Bloomberg Law News]

    * Bill Gates marriage earns blue screen of death. [Yahoo]

    * Trump continues to complain about the lack of a jury in the NY case, but the judge set the record straight. [Law360]

    * Buffalo Bills fire in-house counsel over relationship. [NBC]

  • Morning Docket: 10.11.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.11.23

    * Clarence Thomas decides to push out a quick “the First Amendment should protect me more” opinion for funsies. [Courthouse News Service]

    * Mr. Beast at the center of AI/Deep Fake controversy after cybercriminals pretending to be him proposed giving away something someone might want. [Bloomberg Law News]

    * And here come the intellectual vapid responses to the NYU Law situation. Honestly, how hard is it to endorse the slightest bit of nuance? [National Review]

    * Meanwhile, diplomats are pointing to Israel’s response as already in breach of international law. [Politico]

    * 49 percent of lawyers are satisfied with work-life balance meaning 51 percent of lawyers are deluded liars. [LegalCheek]

    * Opioid special master protected by judicial “what are you, on crack?” privilege. [Law.com]

    * Somehow this headline is “giant gas company has biggest acquisition of the year” and not “oligopoly plays monopoly.” [Law360]

    * Utah sues TikTok in bid to protect children even though they still allow 16 year olds to get married. Priorities! [Reuters

  • Morning Docket: 10.10.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.10.23

    * Treat your significant other the way you’d want to be treated if they’re called to testify against you in a multi-billion dollar fraud trial. [Reuters]

    * Chevron doctrine on the chopping block. Because what this country needs is every mundane detail of government in the hands of the laser-focused geniuses in the House of Representatives. [Bloomberg Law News]

    * Drew Magary calls for an end to the Supreme Court’s soft dictatorship. [SF Gate]

    * A thorough analysis of Ken Chesebro’s effort to overturn the 2020 election concludes that it doesn’t seem like that’s legal. [Just Security]

    * In bid to keep his law license, John Eastman testifies that there’s been “200 years of dispute” over whether the vice president can unilaterally overturn elections. [Law360]

    * Biglaw firms weather economic jitters by showing up in midmarket deals. [American Lawyer]

    * Documentary profiles the attorneys who held Nazi groups accountable. [Daily Beast]

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  • Morning Docket: 10.06.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.06.23

    * Missouri asks Supreme Court to revive law banning local police from enforcing federal gun laws, which is… good? Publicly elected sheriffs shouldn’t be deputized into enforcing federal immigration laws so why should they be enforcing federal gun laws? [CNN]

    * Firms adjusting partner compensation to make way for more blockbuster lateral lurings. [ALM Barometer]

    * Lumpy Pillow Hater Mike Lindell is losing his whole legal team because they say he hasn’t paid them. [Yahoo]

    * SEC goes to court to force Elon Musk to respond to subpoenas in an investigation into potential stock price manipulation occasioned by his filings. [Law360]

    * Bigot brigade takes aim at the Naval Academy. [Reuters]

    * Delaware chancery tosses dingbat investor suit against Disney claiming the company’s mild disapproval of Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” effort harmed shareholders. [Bloomberg Law News]

    * Have you considered Arizona State? ChatGPT has, and ASU admissions has thoughts on the generative AI’s essay. [Law.com]

  • Morning Docket: 10.05.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.05.23

    * Alex Jones put his parent company into bankruptcy in a bid to avoid paying damages. Now he’s fighting the company because they say the bankruptcy process prevents them from paying the who $1.3 million salary he wants while simultaneously trying to declare himself bankrupt. Live by the shady bankruptcy, die by the shady bankruptcy. [Bloomberg Law News]

    * Is it a good thing when the judge bangs the table and calls your questions ridiculous? Asking for Trump’s attorneys. [Reuters]

    * Alex Kozinski doesn’t seem to be persuading his former colleagues to revive Donald Trump’s class action against Twitter for “censorship.” [Law360]

    * Firms wring hands over profitability just in time to manage bonus expectations. [American Lawyer]

    * Biglaw firm sues recruiter when partner bails after three months. [New York Law Journal]

    * North Carolina Republicans vote to make themselves exempt from public records requests. Who do they think they are, the Supreme Court? [Courthouse News Service]

  • Morning Docket: 10.04.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.04.23

    * Alito and Jackson snipe at each other over CFPB funding argument with Justice Jackson focusing on whether the agency violates some part of the Constitution and Justice Alito demanding some historical precedent as if Alexander Hamilton and the Bank of the United States didn’t exist. [Law360]

    * New Twitter will pay legal fees for old Twitter executives as Musk’s effort to escape this specific legal obligation also failed. [The Verge]

    * Gag order issued against Trump after he doxxed a clerk in his case. Let’s start taking bets on how long it takes for him to violate this. [Reuters]

    * Law firm mergers keep on coming and might well accelerate as the “little recession that couldn’t” seems to have only succeeded in revealing prime takeover targets. [American Lawyer]

    * Funniest lawyer in New Jersey [NY Post]

    * When it comes to diversity, the US Supreme Court is not as bad as some. [LegalCheek]

  • Morning Docket: 10.03.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.03.23

    * Supreme Court argues over whether or not “and” means “or” because we’re a very serious global superpower. [National Law Journal]

    * Elon Musk faces defamation claims after he “falsely accused a recent college graduate of being a federal agent posing as a neo-Nazi during a violent street brawl at an LGBTQ event.” That’s a bingo card for you. [Law360]

    * Meanwhile, artist formerly knowns as Twitter sued by legal marketing firm over use of “X.” [Bloomberg Law News]

    * As Trump trial continues, SBF trial kicks off to make downtown Manhattan even more insufferable [Reuters]

    * Alina Habba ready to get a few rounds of Fortnite in between witnesses. [Yahoo]

    * Which university breaks safety laws for years and how did you already know it was going to be Liberty. [Washington Post]

  • Morning Docket: 10.02.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 10.02.23

    * Supreme Court is back in session after a relaxing summer collecting graft. [Reuters]

    * Trump’s NY trial begins. [Law360]

    * Law firms prep strategy for dealing with vexatious lawsuits from anti-diversity groups. [Bloomberg Law News]

    * A proposal to end lockstep associate pay which sounds absolutely miserable. [Law.com]

    * Melania investing in some trusts and estates know-how. [Mercury News]

    * England elevates first woman to run its court system. [Legal Cheek]

  • Morning Docket: 09.29.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 09.29.23

    * Law students are the worst people at the club. [LegalCheek]

    * Lawyer sues Harvard for defamation because… well, you’re not gonna believe this one. [Daily Report Online]

    * ADF just makes up plaintiffs. [Washington Post]

    * Trump can’t stay trial just because his financial house of cards collapsed. [Law360]

    * Don’t know who still needs to hear this, but don’t try to bomb lawyers. [Roll on Friday]

    * Shira Scheindlin moves to Boies Schiller. [New York Law Journal]

    * Longest serving clerk reflects on yet another shutdown. [Bloomberg Law News]

    * Lawsuit against OpenAI to determine if AI training amounts to a copyright violation continues apace. [Reuters]

  • Morning Docket: 09.28.23
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 09.28.23

    * Democrats ask Clarence Thomas to recuse himself from case run by Koch attorneys because they’re under the mistaken impression that Thomas has any shame. [Law360]

    * Adapting trial practice to persuade the TikTok generation. [DBR]

    * Tanya Chutkan politely declines Trump’s bonkers demand that she leave the case. [Reuters]

    * Former MLA recruiter’s bankruptcy estate pursuing sexual harassment claims. [American Lawyer]

    * Just how much has Ron DeSantis cost Florida taxpayers? [New Republic]

    * Law school routinely punching above its perceived weight class. [Bloomberg Law News]