Music

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 02.10.16

* Uh-oh! Martin Shkreli may have gotten more than he bargained for when he bought the one and only copy of the Wu-Tang Clan's "Once Upon a Time in Shaolin." An artist whose work appears on the album's packaging has filed a copyright infringement suit against the smug pharma bro. [WSJ Law Blog] * A Texas ADA was arrested this weekend for DWI after crashing into a parked car. According to police, it appeared as if she was trying to leave the scene. She's been a prosecutor for almost a year, and hasn't been put on a leave of absence for her alleged transgressions (yet). [FOX 7 Austin] * "I don't understand why donors should not donate money to the Law School because some moron, some racist decided to put black tape on some portraits." Some alumni (not this guy) are uncertain if they'll continue to donate to Harvard Law. [Harvard Crimson] * President Obama has proposed a cybersecurity plan that'll cost $19+ billion. Americans will learn how to better secure their accounts to prevent illegal hacks. That's a lot of cash to teach people not to use "123456" as their password. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg] * Have your birthday cake and eat it too, because the terms of Warner Music Group's "Happy Birthday to You" settlement have been disclosed, and up to $14 million is up for grabs for those who've had to pay licensing fees to use it. [L.A. Now / Los Angeles Times]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 01.04.16

* In his annual report on the state of the federal judiciary, Chief Justice John Roberts asked that lawyers stop treating each other like garbage and do their best to "avoid antagonistic tactics, wasteful procedural maneuvers and teetering brinksmanship." [New York Times] * Justice Antonin Scalia, the Supreme Court's "lightning rod for controversy," recently said during a small speaking engagement that the government not only can, but should, support religion. After all, "God had been very good to us." [AP] * Albany Law's dean says don't believe the horror stories you hear about law school, especially since "[t]his is a really good time to apply." It's worth noting that she wasn't able to pay off her loans until she was a tenured law professor. [Albany Times Union] * The Arkansas Law (Little Rock) professor who's suing his school over access to public records has added a retaliation claim to his complaint thanks to the "allegations of two rogue, race-baiting professors." Ooh, that sounds juicy! [Arkansas Democrat Gazette] * Is your favorite music streaming service screwing your favorite musicians out of their hard-earned cash? Spotify may soon be facing yet another multimillion-dollar class-action lawsuit over artists' royalty payments (or the lack thereof) in 2016. [Billboard] * Michael G. Oxley, co-sponsor of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, RIP. [New York Times]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 12.23.15

* It's the Miss Universe pageant lawsuit you've all been waiting for: attorneys at a Colombian law firm say they will be filing suit due to Miss Colombia's crowning and de-crowning, noting "the crown is an acquired right that cannot be taken away from us.” [WGNO] * The Federal Circuit handed down a major ruling yesterday, saying that the government can no longer bar the registration of offensive trademarks due to restrictions on free speech. This will likely be appealed to SCOTUS, but the Redskins must be pretty pumped. [Reuters] * In an effort to avoid another Kim Davis fiasco (and to protect clerks' religious beliefs), Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin has signed an executive order directing that his state prepare new marriage licenses without the names of county clerks. [Associated Press] * Lil Wayne may be a "motherf**kin' cash money millionaire," but he reportedly can't spare the cash to pay his attorneys' fees. This marks the second time in recent months that he's been sued for allegedly failing to pay his lawyers what they're owed. [SPIN] * Lakeisha Holloway, the woman accused of using her car to mow down and kill a pedestrian and injure many others on the Las Vegas Strip, has been charged with murder with a deadly weapon. She faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted. [NBC News]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 11.20.15

* Jared Fogle, Subway's former spokesman, pleaded guilty to federal charges related to sex with minors and child pornography, and was sentenced to more than 15 years in prison. His creative defense? Losing weight on the Subway diet made him choose to erm... "eat fresh." Yuck. [Washington Post] * Biglaw firms have been announcing their new partnership classes over the past few weeks, and it goes without saying that the vast majority of new partners attended highly ranked law schools. Take a wild guess at which school was the most represented. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg BNA] * Per the latest report from the NALP, women and African-Americans continue to falter in their career progress at Biglaw firms. James Leipold says it's "troubling" that the numbers are "reversing course." We couldn't agree more. [DealBook / New York Times] * UnitedHealth recently announced that it expects to suffer in terms of its insurance sales under the Affordable Care Act, and has gone so far as to threaten that it may pull out of the exchange. Here are five things you need to know about that. [WSJ Law Blog] * One of the members of Survivor filed a copyright infringement suit against Mike Huckabee's presidential campaign after the song "Eye of the Tiger" was played during a rally held for Kentucky clerk Kim Davis. Now it's stuck in your head. Welcome! [Reuters]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.22.15

* Brush that dirt off your shoulder: Jay-Z may have 99 problems, but this copyright lawsuit about his song "Big Pimpin'" is no longer one of them. The suit filed against the rap mogul in 2007 was dismissed on standing grounds, but the plaintiff says he plans to appeal. [Los Angeles Times] * When it comes to the death penalty, Justice Antonin Scalia says that it "wouldn't surprise [him]" if the Supreme Court were to strike it down as unconstitutional. It seems that a capital punishment case could become the next SCOTUS blockbuster. [CBS Minnesota] * No one is a fan of the Securities and Exchange Commission's in-house court system, and legislation to give financial defendants the right to opt out will be introduced in Congress later this week. Would you rather face trial before a federal judge or jury? [WSJ Law Blog] * Earlier this week, a state-court judge brought a live grenade to the courthouse, but only because he wanted to have it properly disposed of by police. The jurist currently remains unidentified, which is a good thing, because this is pretty embarrassing. [CBS Los Angeles] * Jurors in New York are paid $40 per day for their service, so you may be wondering how the confused members of the jury in the Dewey & LeBoeuf (mis)trial were able to survive on only $2,920 after five months spent in the courtroom. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg]

By Staci Zaretsky