New York Times

American Bar Association / ABA

Morning Docket: 04.25.12

* Arizona’s immigration law is heading to the Supreme Court today. Meanwhile, former Senator Dennis DeConcini lobbed the worst insult ever against his state. How embarrassing for you, Arizona. [New York Times] * Will Wal-Mart regret not disclosing its bribery investigation sooner? Not when the delay saved millions in criminal fines. What Wal-Mart will regret is being forced into disclosure by the NYT narcs. [Corporate Counsel] * Delete all the oil from ocean, and then maybe we’ll care about this. A former BP employee was charged with obstruction of justice for deleting texts having to do with the Deepwater Horizon disaster. [Bloomberg] * The Tennessee Board of Law Examiners has granted Duncan Law an extension on its bid for ABA accreditation. Woohoo, five more years of allowing students to “negligently enroll.” [Knoxville News Sentinel] * “Once you cross the six-figure mark, you think, what’s a few thousand dollars more?” You’re doing it wrong: you’re supposed to be bragging about a six-figure salary, not a six-figure debt obligation. [Baltimore Sun] * New Jersey residents don’t always have the great pleasure of nearly being killed by two high-speed Lamborghinis, but when they do, they prefer that police officers be suspended and sue over it. [ABC News]

By Staci Zaretsky
Job Searches

Morning Docket: 04.24.12

* Low prices. Every day. On everything. Except bribes. The NYT handed the feds an FCPA case against Wal-Mart on a platter, but the discount superstore might soon have a SOX problem to worry about. [Reuters] * The John Edwards campaign finance trial is already off to a dramatic start. It seems that the prosecution’s key witness is just as shady as the former presidential candidate is alleged to be. [Boston Herald] * Career services offices might not know how to find law students jobs at small law firms, but luckily, it seems like they’re finding them just fine on their own. At least in New York. [New York Law Journal] * An “abuse of process”? Looks like it’s time to #OccupyTwitter. A New York judge has approved a subpoena for tweets belonging to an Occupy Wall Street protester. [Bloomberg] * And I am telling you, I’m not going — to help your case. Yesterday, Jennifer Hudson testified at the trial of the man accused of killing her relatives. Wonder if she took some tips from her fiancé, David Otunga. [CNN] * “I decided to become a kidney donor to my boss, and she took my heart.” A lesson in why you should reconsider donating organs to your boss: you might get fired before the wound heals. [New York Post]

By Staci Zaretsky
Crime

Elie Draws Jury Duty: Day One — Voir Dire

Elie Mystal has successfully avoided jury duty since he moved back to New York in 2003, but this week they finally caught up with him. This week, he had to perform his civic responsibility of sitting in judgment of his peers (like he doesn't do that enough already). Today he got an up-close look at the voir dire process in a criminal trial. While he was not picked, he feels like his McMurphy-esque fingerprints will be all over the case.

By Elie Mystal
Admin

On the Legality of Unpaid Internships
(And: ATL seeks a paid intern.)

I recently participated in a Room for Debate forum for the New York Times on the controversial subject of unpaid internships. Critics of these positions argue that such exploitative arrangements contribute to “constricted social and professional mobility, growing inequality, and an economy whose top tier is becoming less and less diverse” (in the words of […]

By David Lat
Law Schools

Lawyerly Lairs: The 99 Percent Edition

Most installments of Lawyerly Lairs, our inside look at the nests of legal eagles, involve residences of utter fabulosity. We realize that most Americans, or even most lawyers, don't live in such luxury. And we're interested in learning about how the other half lives. We'll get the 99 percent ball rolling with a look at two current law students who braved the brutal renters' market here in New York. What school do they attend, and how did their hunt turn out?

By David Lat
9th Circuit

Non-Sequiturs: 01.26.12

* Greg Kelly stands accused of an alleged rape that supposedly took place at a “lower Manhattan law firm.” While we wait for the tips machine to fire up, who’s up for kegs and eggs and Good Day New York tomorrow morning? [Gothamist] * Classes in space colony law coming in 3… 2… 1… [Buzzfeed] […]

By Elie Mystal
Books

Fun Fact of the Day: Talk Dirty to Me

Prosecutable hate speech in 17th-century Massachusetts included calling people “dogs,” “rogues” and even “queens” (though the last referred to prostitution); magistrates took serious umbrage at being labeled “poopes” (“dolts”). — John McWhorter, the noted linguist, in his New York Times review this past weekend of Speaking American: A History of English in the United States. […]

By David Lat