Munger Tolles

  • Morning Docket: 05.13.19
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 05.13.19

    * According to President Donald Trump, former White House counsel Don McGahn “had a much better chance of being fired” than special counsel Robert Mueller because Trump claims he was “[n]ever a big fan” — but that’s probably because McGahn refused to issue a public statement saying he didn’t believe the president obstructed justice. [Washington Post]

    * President Trump wants to stop federal judges on lower courts from issuing nationwide injunctions that are screwing up his plans to make America gross again. Even VP Mike Pence hopes the Supreme Court will step in to put an end to the practice. [The Hill]

    * Ronald S. Sullivan Jr., the Harvard Law professor who is representing accused rapist Harvey Weinstein, has lost his job as a faculty dean at an undergraduate house thanks to his controversial client. [Boston Globe]

    * “ I know that when I walk into a room that I’ll be underestimated. I’m aware that I need to prove myself. It doesn’t bother me.” Hailyn Chen, a 43-year-old litigator of Chinese descent, is the new co-managing partner of Munger, Tolles & Olson. Congratulations! [American Lawyer]

    * Professor Ian Samuel of Indiana Law has resigned from his job following the conclusion of the Title IX misconduct probe against him, which “probably had the side effect of saving [his] life” because he “was becoming an ugly man.” [Big Law Business]

    * Now that its managing partner is taking his business to Blank Rome, Morris & McVeigh, one of New York City’s oldest law firms, will be closing its doors after about 157 years in business. [New York Law Journal]

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  • Morning Docket: 04.07.16
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 04.07.16

    * “Every rape is not a gender-motivated hate crime.” New York Justice Shirley Werner Kornreich dismissed part of singer Kesha’s claims against producer Dr. Luke because the pop star’s allegations of rape and abuse were time barred and happened outside the state. Tick tock on the clock for a similar suit she filed in California. [WSJ Law Blog]

    * Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley has scheduled an appointment to meet with Judge Merrick Garland for breakfast next Tuesday, despite his opposition to President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee. Senator Grassley’s courteous refusal to perform his job presumably pairs well with eggs and bacon. [Quad-City Times]

    * The Department of Justice has filed suit against Halliburton and Baker Hughes, seeking to block the oil-field services companies’ pending merger. According to Attorney General Loretta Lynch, completion of the deal would “eliminate vital competition, skew energy markets, and harm American consumers.” [DealBook / New York Times]

    * Panama papers law firm Mossack Fonseca seems to have pulled off the perfect magic trick. Shortly after the firm’s exploits in hiding client assets in offshore accounts were revealed via hack, its U.S. operations all but disappeared. The firm’s website has now been scrubbed completely clean of any connection to its Miami office. [USA Today]

    * Bart Williams, a top partner at Munger Tolles — a firm that’s been likened to the Wachtell of the West — will be leaving the place where he’s called home for 21 years to become the co-chair of Proskauer Rose’s Los Angeles litigation department. This is a real coup for Proskauer, since partners rarely leave Munger. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg]

  • Morning Docket: 03.18.16
    Morning Docket

    Morning Docket: 03.18.16

    * “In 2 to 4 years, a University administration will shut down a top law school and we may never see it coming.” Uh-oh! Is a top law school really going to close? This law professor seems to think so, and she’s pointing the finger at Minnesota Law, which has been experiencing a slew of financial troubles due to its enrollment issues. [Forbes]

    * “The employment numbers were very high in a huge economic downturn and it just felt suspicious. I decided to stand up for myself and others.” Anna Alaburda, who sued Thomas Jefferson School of Law over its allegedly deceptive job statistics, took the stand this week, where she spoke about her failed legal career. [Courthouse News Service]

    * “The record number of deals in 2015 is a reflection of the intense competition among law firms for new work, and we expect the market to remain hot in 2016.” Oh boy! If you think 2015 set a merger record, you ain’t seen nothing yet. We should apparently be expecting even more law firm merger mania this year. [Chicago Daily Law Bulletin]

    * Why on earth would a partner leave a firm like Munger Tolles, with profits per partner of $1.9 million, to go to a firm like Dentons, with profits per partner of $680,000, a considerably lesser amount? What’s in that Biglaw behemoth’s special sauce that’s so amazing? It’s the “irresistible” opportunities. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg BNA]

    * As many of our readers have had the displeasure of experiencing firsthand, law school tuition can be absurdly expensive. If you’re wondering which school took home the prize of being the most expensive for the 2015-2016 school year, it’s Columbia Law, with a shocking sticker price of $62,700. Ouch, that’s painful. [U.S. News & World Report]