SCOTUS

Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 04.20.16

* Well, this warms my calloused heart: Chief Justice Roberts learned some sign language to swear 12 deaf and hard of hearing lawyers into the Supreme Court. [Washington Post] * An enlightening interview with an attorney that proves lawyers can have entrepreneurial spirit, Richard Nacht. [Law and More] * Professor Rick Hasen's analysis of the Supreme Court's decision in the Arizona redistricting case. [Election Law Blog] * An interview with Matt Delmont, author of Why Busing Failed (affiliate link), on the continued segregation of schools. [Lawyers, Guns and Money] * Did lawyer Linda Shi just help design a revolution in air conditioning? The product is being funded through Kickstarter, and the size of the unit makes me think it'd be welcomed in many NYC apartments this summer. [Kickstarter] * Economists and tax law professors are getting behind Elizabeth Warren's tax filing simplification bill. [MassLive] * An in-depth look at black sites -- CIA secret prisons, used in the U.S.'s War on Terror. [Slate] * Our very own David Lat shares cybersecurity tips with host David Lesch on "Today's Verdict." [BronxNet]

By Kathryn Rubino
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 04.19.16

* Watch out, law students! Democratic politician Darren Soto is in hot water for what he wrote as part of Law Revue. [Gawker] * Bernie may be complaining about Hillary's fundraising, but according to election law expert Rick Hasen, "legally this seems weak." Well, when you are alleging someone is breaking the law, "legally weak" is good enough. [The Atlantic] * Fourth Circuit to the rescue! Today, the court held that federal law prevents public schools from banning students from using bathrooms that align with their gender identity. [Slate] * Predictions on how the justices will wind up voting in U.S. v. Texas. [Empirical SCOTUS] * A new day, a new lawsuit against Trump. Filed yesterday, Cheryl Jacobus is suing for defamation, and Michelle Fields seems like she might not be far behind. [The Slot] * ICYMI, here's our own Elie Mystal talking elections on Morning Joe. [MSNBC] * Need more time to focus on business development? Delegate your work. [Reboot Your Law Practice]

By Kathryn Rubino
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.19.16

* "My album will never never never be on Apple. And it will never be for sale ... You can only get it on Tidal." Uh-oh! Kanye West and music-streaming service Tidal are facing a proposed $5 million class-action lawsuit over the availability of the rapper's album, The Life of Pablo, on other streaming services when it was supposed to be exclusive to Tidal. [Rolling Stone] * Eighteen-year-old Marina Lonina stands accused of livestreaming her friend's rape on Periscope, and faces charges of rape, sexual battery, and pandering sexual matter involving a minor. The prosecutor alleges the teen hoped the broadcast would stop the rape, but she "got caught up in the likes" instead. [The Cut / New York Magazine] * Given that "Americans are less likely to support the court when it is portrayed as a political body -- as it is during confirmation proceedings -- and not a legal body," it may not be wise for Chief Justice Roberts to enter the debate about nominee Judge Merrick Garland, especially since the SJC's chair has already criticized him. [New York Times] * Think twice before you hack a Biglaw firm's computers, because it'll cost you a pretty penny. A former IT employee who wreaked havoc upon Locke Lord's computer network by disabling and deleting hundreds of user accounts was sentenced to more than nine years in prison and ordered to pay $1.69M in restitution. [Courthouse News Service] * He's biased, but Dr. Arthur E. Snyder, the president of Indiana Tech, says there is a resounding need for a "different kind of law school" in Indiana. He calls out other schools for growing too large and having to perform layoffs, and says Indiana Tech Law is dedicated to remaining small (likely because no one knows it exists). [News-Sentinel]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 04.18.16

* If Justice Scalia had lived to July, he may have undone all of the advances of the Obama administration, which probably explains why the Republicans are so hard up about Merrick Garland's nomination. [Slate] * Feeling inspired by HBO's Confirmation? Get the skinny on what it's like to try a discrimination case. [Forensis Group] * The Office of the Solicitor General has had quite the heavy workload this term. [Empirical SCOTUS] * The Supreme Court won't hear the Authors Guild appeal to the Second Circuit ruling in favor of Google for its book scanning project. [Techdirt] * Gay republican confronts Ted Cruz over religious-freedom inspired laws. Let's just say Cruz didn't come off as a defender of LGBTQ rights. [Huffington Post] * An illuminating interview with Wendy Davis, on what's next following her defeat in the Texas Gubernatorial race. [Jezebel] * St. Mary’s law professor David Grenardo on why the NCAA system is unfair, and as a former college football player, he knows what he is talking about. [San Antonio Express-News]

By Kathryn Rubino
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By Barbri
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.18.16

* Later today, the Supreme Court will hear its "last great case of the Obama era" when arguments are presented in U.S. v. Texas, the biggest immigration case to come before the high court in a century. Given the current makeup of the Court, this case may be resolved with a 4-4 split, which would mean the president's deportation-relief plan will be blocked in Texas. [Los Angeles Times] * HBO's "Confirmation," a film about the Anita Hill and Clarence Thomas Supreme Court hearings, was an excellent presentation of the media mob that ravenously feasted upon a law professor's sexual harassment allegations against America's most silent justice. The fact that our country is in the middle of yet another highly politicized battle over a SCOTUS confirmation only made this more enjoyable to watch. [New York Times] * Did Barnes & Thornberg help Avid Life Media defraud Ashley Madison subscribers? This is what plaintiffs allege in a consolidated lawsuit that's been filed against the extramarital affairs website, and they're seeking access to attorney-client privileged emails between the firm and the company to prove their case. [Big Law Business] * A new partnership between Fresno City College, Fresno State, and San Joaquin College of Law will allow students to purchase a "one-way ticket to law school." That ticket won't be worth much after graduation, though, because San Joaquin Law's most recent bar passage rate for first-time takers was a shockingly low 29 percent. [Visalia Times-Delta] * Thanks to the popularity of hip-hopera Hamilton, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew has scrapped plans to replace Alexander Hamilton's face on the $10 bill with a woman's. Instead, it will be Andrew Jackson whose face is replaced with a woman's on the $20. Not to worry, Jackson fans -- the new bill won't be issued until around 2030. [CNN] * Bill Cosby's wife is scheduled to be deposed for the second time in a defamation suit filed by women who claim her husband called them liars after they came forward with sexual assault allegations against him. This time around, lawyers for the plaintiffs will be limited in that they'll be prohibited from asking her "improper questions." [ABC News]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.15.16

* Ted Cruz may not like dildos, but he doesn't seem to mind legal weed. Earlier this week, the Republican presidential candidate said that while he opposes federal legalization of cannabis, states should be free to experiment because the Constitution allows for it. Colorado's legalization of recreational marijuana is safe and sound, for now. [Denver Post] * "It was a very pleasant meeting, but it has changed nothing." Senate Republicans may want nothing to do with confirming D.C. Circuit Chief Judge Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court, but they've sure been taking their sweet time telling him "no" during their courtesy meetings with him. Some of these seemingly pointless meetings have gone on for more than an hour. [New York Times] * Chief Judge Garland may be wasting his time with these lengthy meetings, though, because if the jurist isn't confirmed before the upcoming presidential election, Senator Bernie Sanders said during last night's Democratic debate that if he wins, he'd ask President Obama to withdraw his nomination, as he doesn't think that Garland would pass his progressive litmus test on Citizens United. Are you still feeling the Bern? [TIME] * Lawmakers in several states have passed bathroom bills that enable bigotry in the name of protecting religious rights, but what you may not have known is that there is one lawyer behind them all. Mathew Staver of Liberty Counsel -- who was recently in the news for representing Kentucky clerk Kim Davis -- says he's doing it to push back against the Supreme Court's Obergefell ruling legalizing same-sex marriage. [CBS News] * Professor Richard Sander of UCLA School of Law, whose claim to academic fame is his "mismatch" theory of affirmative action, has been trying to get more than 30 years' worth of data from the State Bar of California for quite some time in an effort to continue his research into the "large and persistent gap in bar passage rates among racial and ethnic groups," and now he's finally going to get his day in court. [WSJ Law Blog] * David Gherity, a former Minnesota lawyer who was falsely accused of setting his girlfriend on fire using accelerants like alcohol, lotion, hair spray, and fingernail polish remover, has filed a civil rights suit against the police and prosecutors who kept him in jail for about two months. Gherity, who was suspended from practice in 2004, alleges a violation of the "protected interest in his good name." [Twin Cities Pioneer Press]

Staci Zaretsky is an editor at Above the Law. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments. Follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 04.13.16

* Led Zeppelin doesn't want drug or alcohol evidence coming into the upcoming "Stairway to Heaven" suit. Good luck... it's not possible to talk about that song without drugs. [National Law Journal] * A lot of small and solo lawyers are shy about big bills. They shouldn't be. [Business of Law Blog / LexisNexis] * "10 Supreme Court Novels to Get Your Mind Off the Nomination Battle." Great, now we've got to wait until Senator Grassley gets through all of these before he sets up a hearing. [ABA Journal] * Speaking of Judge Garland, Fix the Court sees this nomination as an opportunity to generate some momentum around the concept of Supreme Court term limits. [Fix the Court] * Apparently the key to getting good grades from narcissistic professors is to be a narcissist yourself. That seems odd because you'd expect narcissists to chafe at someone striving to steal the spotlight but "game recognize game," I guess. [TaxProf Blog] * Remember when we said that the Florida bar exam results were bad? They were really bad. [Bar Exam Stats] * A Rutgers Law professor is in hot water over allegedly mishandled funds. [Legal Profession Blog] * BarBri Law Preview has a $10k scholarship for a lucky 1L this coming year. If you want it to be you (or someone you know), then act fast because the deadline is Friday. [BarBri Law Preview]

By Joe Patrice
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.13.16

* You may think that your law school graduation speaker is cool, but you should think again, because your law school graduation speaker probably isn't Vice President Joe Biden. This spring, the Veep will be delivering the commencement address at Syracuse Law, his alma mater. [Syracuse.com] * Bill Mateja, one of Polsinell's finest white-collar criminal defense attorneys, will be representing Texas AG Ken Paxton in his latest foray into the wrong side of the justice system. How do we know Bill Mateja is good at getting his clients off? "Unlike many attorneys, Bill Mateja does not expect repeat business." [Big Law Business] * The Supreme Court may be behind the times when it comes to technology (cellphones are typically banned inside the courtroom's walls), but the justices will allow a group of about a dozen deaf and hard-of-hearing lawyers to use them to see a live transcript during their swearing-in ceremony next week. Congratulations to all! [ABC News] * FBI Director James Comey acknowledges similarities between arguments made in the gun-control debate and Apple's quest to maintain privacy through encryption, but says "[w]e can't resolve these really important issues that affect our values -- technology, innovation, safety and all kinds of other things -- in litigation." [WSJ Law Blog] * "There's a plaintiff who's sure, his tunes could've made gold, and he's buying a lawsuit in C.D. Cal." Ever seen a cause of action for the falsification of rock n' roll history? It's taken about 40 years to happen, but now Led Zeppelin is going to trial over a copyright claim to its hit song "Stairway to Heaven." [THR, Esq. / The Hollywood Reporter]

Staci Zaretsky is an editor at Above the Law. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments. Follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 04.12.16

* Gauging the importance of Supreme Court decisions this Term based on media coverage. [Empirical SCOTUS] * Georgia is changing state law because UGA's football coach thinks it might help the team cover up a scandal and somehow the legislature thinks this makes sense. [SB Nation] * Did President Obama outthink himself on the Merrick Garland pick? [Guile Is Good] * Using expert witnesses to defeat class certification... an emerging tradition. [The Expert Institute] * Some graphics cross-referencing the laws around "burners" and global terrorism. [imgur] * Restraining order be damned! Montgomery Blair Sibley is releasing D.C. Madam contacts for our viewing pleasure. [WTOP] * What lawyer Scott Limmer learned from a yoga retreat. [Law Reboot]

By Joe Patrice