Movies

If you’d like to be a part of a stunning cinematic experience, take a break from your billable hours to watch Bridge of Spies.

Sure, we are used to thinking of Disney villains as in the wrong, but what if they aren't?

Culture columnist Harry Graff wonders: why is this decade so bereft of quality legal films?

Winning a case is a good thing, but getting some Oscar swag out of the deal is even better.

* The two-tiered partnership model turns out to be much more complicated than firms expected. That’s why we’re seeing moves like BakerHostetler’s proposed elimination of non-equity partners. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg BNA]

* Graffiti artist files suit claiming fashion designer violated his copyright in his work. [The Legal Artist]

* On the unpaid internship front, the Olsen twins have been sued by a former intern who claims she clocked 50-hour weeks and didn’t earn a penny from her multimillionaire bosses. [New York Daily News]

* Before the 25th Amendment, the ill-defined line of succession could have landed one of these guys in the White House. [Constitution Daily]

* Who said it: Justice Scalia or a YouTube commenter talking about Magic Mike XXL? [Suited Gladiators]

* There’s a big gap between law school graduates and practice-ready skills. Somewhere the ABA is scheming about how to turn this into the case for four-year law schools. [LexisNexis]

* California is removing the word “Alien” from the labor code. Because symbolic gestures are still important gestures. [Associated Press via NBC]

* With the accusations mounting, and the stunning New York Magazine cover feature 35 women alleging Bill Cosby sexually assaulted them, the comedian’s legal team is changing tactics. [CNN]

* Does ideology play a role in conferring honorary degrees? One conservative law professor says yes. [National Law Journal]

* Ever wonder why there are so many iconic movie roles that are lawyers? [ABA Journal]

* Citizens United actually loses a legal battle, this time courtesy of New York’s own Amazing Schneiderman. [Wall Street Journal]

* Need more evidence that campaign finance laws are a joke? [Huffington Post]

* China’s first lawsuit over pollution is a go. [Jurist]

* What will the long term impact be of legally classifying Uber drivers as employees? [Law.com]

* Conan O’Brien faces a new lawsuit alleging that he stole jokes from a Twitter user’s feed. Meanwhile, Conan mulls suit against Tinder for ripping off Pimpbot 5000 character. [The Hollywood Reporter] * Snoop blames racial profiling for his arrest on suspicion of marijuana possession in Sweden. Others say it’s “celebrity profiling,” suggesting that racial […]

* Cocaine-swiping judge out on work release. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]

* Autozone settles $185 million suit over firing a pregnant worker. [Jezebel]

* Once Donald Trump shuts up about illegal immigrants, maybe the adults in the room can start talking about the horrific conditions facing legal migrants, specifically those with H-2 visas. [BuzzFeed News]

* It sounds like this guy deserved more than a 30-month license suspension. [Legal Profession Blog]

* Things you can’t tell your employees: that they look “quite f**kable.” [Legal Cheek]

* A new report focuses on disabilities in the legal profession. [BWB Solutions]

* If you write off “trigger warnings” as an assault on academic freedom, you might be missing the point. [TaxProf Blog]

* More on why a ban on T-14 hires is stupid. [Break Into Biglaw]

* Kaye Scholer’s Michael Solow discusses his experiences with the real-life Professor Kingsfield. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg BNA]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmtJ3bC0INo

Which law school did the gunman attend?

You'll never guess the answer to this question.

* After closing arguments in the Dark Knight movie massacre trial, the case against accused shooter James Holmes now goes to a jury. He’s facing 165 criminal charges, and if found guilty, he may be sentenced to death. [NBC News]

* A federal magistrate judge ordered the NCAA to pay almost $46 million in legal fees and costs to lawyers representing student-athletes in their antitrust suit against the organization, and he even likened the case to Game of Thrones in his decision. This is a monumental win. [Reuters]

* Last night, SCOTUS denied a stay of execution for Mississippi death row inmate David Zink, even though his lawyers cited Justice Breyer’s recent death penalty dissent in Glossip with high hopes that the Court would act in their client’s favor. [National Law Journal]

* For your information, the gender gap in the legal profession extends far beyond pay and partnership prospects. According to a recent study by the American Bar Association, about two-thirds of all attorneys who appeared in federal civil trials were men [WSJ Law Blog]

* Going to law school in an underserved community that isn’t overflowing with lawyers is great for résumés, because the University of New Mexico School of Law is seriously bucking the trend of its students having difficulty finding jobs after graduation. [KOB 4]

* Justice Thomas parted with his conservative brethren on the Confederate flag case, but was it a product of his experience as an African-American? Don’t bet on it. [The Volokh Conspiracy / Washington Post]

* A jury awarded $500,000 to a patient after doctors mocked him while anesthetized. For example, the anesthesiologist said, “I wanted to punch you in the face and man you up a little bit.” Maybe it’s me, but if he sued over that, it sounds like he absolutely deserved that punch in the face. [MedCity News]

* This title says it all, “I Am An Adjunct Law Professor Who Teaches Five Classes. I Earn Less Than A Pet-Sitter.” [TaxProf Blog]

* Have you ever wondered how blind people perceive and experience race? Really interesting findings from Professor Osagie K. Obasogie of UC Hastings Law. [Buzzfeed]

* This may come as a shock, but a report finds that prosecutors cared more about securing convictions than protecting the public. [The Times-Picayune]

* When we say the immigration system is broken, this is what we mean: 15-year resident with a Columbia Law degree about to be deported. [Vox]

* In honor of the anniversary of Jaws last week, an examination of Quint’s legal duties to Brody and Hooper. When you consider his potential liability, perhaps he was better off getting eaten. [The Legal Geeks]

* Federal government paying to scour sewage in Washington state to learn about pot usage post legalization. Note to federal government: they’re the dirty hippies, not you. [Seattle Times]

Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, we look back at a lawsuit surrounding Jaws.

* Hank Greenberg won his lawsuit against the government for illegally seizing insurance giant A.I.G. as part of a bailout. But the court awarded no damages, finding that shareholders weren’t harmed by the takeover. So, to translate this, the court basically said to Greenberg, “You were so bad at running your business that a cabal of bureaucrats acting illegally did better for shareholders than you.” That’s… gotta sting. [New York Times]

* Lost in the excitement of today’s Baker Botts decision was the Supreme Court declining to save North Carolina’s struck-down abortion law that would have required doctors to bend over backwards to dissuade women from getting an abortion. Over the dissent of Justice Scalia, the Court killed the law without giving it a chance. [Jezebel]

* If you’re going to Richmond, California, make sure you’ve left your Ultimate Nullifier at home. [Lowering the Bar]

* Something finally goes wrong for wealthy people moving into Brooklyn. SPOILER: it’s other wealthy people moving into Brooklyn. [Brownstoner]

* Justice Ginsburg tells the crowd at the annual ACS Convention that Natalie Portman held up the upcoming RBG biopic, On the Basis of Sex, demanding that the film have a female director. Men’s rights activists can take heart that a man will be directing the inevitable porn version. [The Week]

* Alan Dershowitz worries that the Zivotofsky decision gives the White House too much power over foreign policy as opposed to some myopic former water commissioner awash in lobbyist money from AIPAC and apocalyptic-minded Evangelicals Congress. [The Blaze]

* Do you hate patent trolls? Good. Consider supporting this feature comedy film trolling patent trolls. [Indiegogo]

* If you’re in D.C. Thursday morning, come hear our own David Lat discuss the future of the Roberts Court with some other people who are nowhere near as important. Like congresspeople and former federal judges and such. [Politico]

Whom would you cast to play our current Supreme Court justices? Arts columnist Harry Graff makes his nominations.

If you see Megan Fox walking around your law school, don't be too surprised.

Rather than considering the message, Chartier turned around and called the helpful emailer a "moron" and a "thief." This is someone who has quite a strong view on what he believes is his "property."

This is why you can't (legally) watch the best version of Star Wars.

* The New Jersey legislature is considering a law decriminalizing slingshots. Finally, New Jersey’s leaders looked at a map and realized the word “Philadelphia” looks suspiciously like “Philistines.” [NJ.com]

* The case for drone-based graffiti. People have complained of drones invading the privacy of innocents for a while now and nothing’s happened. Now that drones can deface corporate property, what do you bet regulation comes fast and furious. [The Legal Artist]

* Over a quarter of Harvard Law grads don’t practice law. [Tax Prof Blog]

* Sentencing reform may be coming, but that’s not going to keep private prison companies from raking in the cash. [Sentencing Law and Policy]

* Professor Campos on the role of government subsidies on the rising cost of higher education. [Lawyers, Guns & Money]

* As a follow-up, here are even more tips for 0Ls researching law schools. [Law and More]

* A legal analysis of Avengers: Age of Ultron. Apparently creating a genocidal death machine is not frowned upon as much in the Marvel Universe as it might be here. [Law and the Multiverse]

Justice Ginsburg is a woman of many firsts, and now she can add "first female justice to have a biopic starring an Oscar winner" to her résumé.