Public Defender

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.08.21

* A lawsuit alleges Florida police used excessive force after mistaking Star Trek memorabilia for weapons. They should have set their phasers to stun... [Hill] * The Trump Organization has hired a criminal defense lawyer. [Wall Street Journal] * A public defender is suing her boss for allegedly being told to dress more modestly to avoid the sexual interest of male prisoners. [Daily Mail] * Three Michigan lawyers have been charged in a scheme to collect debts on money that was allegedly never owed. [Fox News] * Check out this article on how Originalism is being used by state court judges. [Juris Lab] * A man's death after participating in a taco-eating contest has spawned a lawsuit against a minor-league baseball team. [Washington Post] * The Biden Administration is asking a judge to dismiss a climate change lawsuit filed on behalf of kids. Hope they can handle the heat... [Hill]

By Jordan Rothman
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By Barbri
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 05.25.16

* Sorry to ruin your childhood, but a Pennsylvania judge found that there is enough evidence for Bill Cosby to stand trial for his felony assault charge in the Andrea Constand case. Cosby has waived his right to a formal arraignment, and could face up to 10 years in prison if he's convicted. Cosby has been free on $1 million bail since December. [Associated Press] * "You need to have order in a courtroom. And there needs to be proper decorum with attorneys." A Las Vegas Justice of the Peace ordered that a deputy public defender be handcuffed for interrupting him as she tried to represent a client. A tipster has referred to this judge as "demented." We may have more on this. [Las Vegas Review-Journal] * According to inside sources, Hunton & Williams is in advanced merger talks with Addelshaw Goddard, a London-based firm. These talks have reportedly been going on for months, and Addelshaw partners supposedly met last night to discuss the tie-up. If successful, the combined firm would have more than 1,300 lawyers. [Big Law Business] * Silicon Valley staple Fenwick & West is opening up an office outpost in New York City. The firm's clients in Manhattan include BuzzFeed, FanDuel, Blackrock, Citi, and JPMorgan. Associates will be working around the clock in the city that never sleeps -- with a roster like that, they won't be getting shuteye anytime soon. [WSJ Law Blog] * AG Loretta Lynch announced yesterday afternoon that the Justice Department would be seeking the death penalty against Dylann Roof, the suspect alleged to have gone on a shooting spree in a Charleston church last summer, killing nine and wounding numerous others. It's said Roof hoped to incite a race war as a result of the massacre. [USA Today] * Carl Buchholz, managing partner of DLA Piper's Philadelphia office, RIP. [Philadelphia Business Journal]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 05.05.16

* Florida public defender disbarred over sex and drugs with inmates. Amazingly, this is not just an update of this story about... a Florida public defender allegedly caught banging an inmate. What's going on with these Florida public defenders? [NY Daily News] * Law firms know they need to radically change their model and yet haven't done anything about it. But they're telling GCs it's the clients' fault for not pushing firms harder to change. Holy blame the victim, Batman. [Law360] * As some of you may have heard by now, Milbank Tweed is ditching its downtown home for relatively law firm-free Chelsea. Cue Steve Winwood: "Back on the High Line again..." [Real Estate Weekly] * Law school rechristening its building over its namesake's KKK ties. Political correctness run amok -- remember when you could support lawless acts of terrorism against minorities and be venerated by institutions of higher learning? [CBS News] * Judge Alan Simon has already received a suspension after a commission found a "history of bullying and verbally abusing court staffers" and now he may be losing his job. [Law360] * Cass Sunstein explains the Constitution with Darth Vader's help. As it turns out he's got a book about it too (affiliate link). [National Law Journal] * A panel discusses the labor and employment implications of legalized marijuana. Pretty sure Afroman already covered these when he intoned: "I was gonna go to work but then I got high/I just got a new promotion but I got high/now I'm selling dope and I know why yea hey/cause I got high/cause I got high/cause I got high." [Corporate Counsel] * A breakthrough, "gotcha" moment on cross-examination in a big case is such a holy grail achievement of Matlockian proportions that we should celebrate it whenever it happens. Skadden managed to net one in a $2.1 billion suit this week. [Litigation Daily] * Kirkland & Ellis offering "emotional fitness training" at its offices. Pretty sure the curriculum for Biglaw attorneys should be a primer on Wheaton's Law and this video with the word "baseball" replaced with "law." [Kirkland & Ellis]

By Joe Patrice