SCOTUS

Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 03.24.16

* You may have heard about North Carolina’s new anti-LGBTQ law (and the inauspicious circumstances surrounding its passage), but it seems unlikely to withstand constitutional muster. [Slate] * In the latest case before the Supreme Court over the Affordable Care Act’s contraceptive provision, the conservative justices -- all male, natch -- fail to grasp the basics of contraceptives, insurance. [Talking Points Memo] * Previewing the issues in United States Army Corps of Engineers v. Hawkes surrounding finality under the Clean Water Act. [SCOTUSblog] * Republicans are in favor of open-carry laws, but what about at their own convention? [Gawker] * Vice President Joe Biden has some biting words over Congress’s obstructionist plan over Merrick Garland’s nomination. [Huffington Post] * Is there really strong opposition to free trade? Has the U.S. plunged into a policy without caring about the repercussions of said policy? [Lawyers, Guns and Money] * Jian Ghomeshi was acquitted on sexual abuse charges, and now the complaining witnesses are talking about their experiences with the justice system. [Jezebel]

By Kathryn Rubino
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 03.24.16

* "If you give a judge a meeting, he’s going to ask for a glass of milk, because he is probably very thirsty from that one time you compared him to Idi Amin." In light of the stranglehold Republicans have on Chief Judge Merrick Garland's fate when it comes to his confirmation hearings, Dahlia Lithwick composed this cute riff on the children's book, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. [Slate] * In an attempt to get with the times, Vermont Law is offering a Reduced-Residency Juris Doctor program, where students will be able to take up to 15 credits online in an off-campus location. Unfortunately, this flexibility comes at a price -- the same exact price as the school's regular J.D. program. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg] * Considering the high tensions during oral arguments yesterday in Zubik v. Burwell, a legal battle having to do with the ACA's contraceptives mandate, the Supreme Court seems poised to issue another 4-4 split decision in one of the most controversial cases this term. If that happens, the lower court ruling would be left intact. [New York Times] * The ABA Journal wants to know how much you paid in law school tuition. If you graduated before the cost of a three-year legal education was akin to a mortgage, please take a moment to reflect on how lucky you are. If you're a recent graduate, you've got plenty of people to commiserate with about your hefty debt burdens. [ABA Journal] * "Did the Supreme Court make weed legal across America?" No, no it did not, and you must be stoned if you think that's what the high court did in its decision, or lack thereof, in the Nebraska v. Colorado case that it begged off on earlier this week. For now, the federal legalization of marijuana is nothing more than just a pipe dream. [Inquisitr]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 03.23.16

* The Supreme Court is behind some of the epic lines voters have experienced during the primaries. [The Nation] * Did Justice Kennedy just reveal himself to be hostile to the contraception mandate accommodation in today's oral arguments in Zubik v. Burwell? [Slate] * Senator Pat Toomey may be caving on the Merrick Garland front -- the Pennsylvania Republican has agreed to take a meeting with the judge. [Politico] * This is the actual problem with the most recent interpretation of Superman. [Lawyers, Guns and Money] * Making the connection between reproductive freedom and LGBTQ rights. [Huffington Post] * Opining on the ultimate fate of Edward Snowden. [Law and More] * Charting the spread of marijuana legalization. [Pacific Standard Magazine]

By Kathryn Rubino
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 03.23.16

* International Biglaw firms in Brussels are "just trying to soldier on" in the wake of the terror attacks that rocked the city yesterday morning. A White & Case secretary was on the metro train that was bombed, but she managed to escape from the wreckage unscathed. All lawyers and staff members have been accounted for and are alive and well. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg BNA] * Singer Kesha has appealed the decision of a judge who declined to void her contract with Sony Music, a record label where she claims she'd be forced to work with a producer who allegedly raped her. This time, her lawyer, Mark Geragos, has likened the pop star's situation to slavery. Hmm... let's see how well that goes over for her in court. [Reuters] * “The judgment is affirmed by an equally divided Court.” For the first time since Justice Antonin Scalia's death, the Supreme Court issued a 4-4 split decision along ideological lines. That very sentence could have a huge impact on some of the high court's more significant cases for a year or more if Merrick Garland isn't confirmed. [WSJ Law Blog] * Professor Melissa Murray of UC Berkeley Law has been tapped to stand in as the school's interim dean in the wake of Sujit Choudhry's resignation following the news that he'd been named as a defendant in a sexual harassment suit. Law students chose Murray as their "overwhelming choice" for dean in a poll. [L.A. Now / Los Angeles Times] * Since the GRE is regarded as an easier test than the LSAT, and at least one school will no longer require it for admission, some pre-law students may be wondering whether they should bother to take the LSAT at all. Don't be silly. Much like the word "fetch," the GRE isn't going to happen. [Law Admissions Lowdown / U.S. News & World Report]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 03.22.16

* No matter what your right-wing uncle posts on Facebook, or what that drunken Bernie Bro tried to convince you of at a bar, no: Hillary Clinton is not getting indicted over her use of emails while at the State Department. Don’t believe me? Ask a law professor. [Media Matters] * If you’re wondering what Mitch McConnell is thinking, overtly being an obstructionist over President Obama’s Supreme Court nomination of Merrick Garland, you aren’t alone. But here is some insight as to why he is playing this political game. [Guile is Good] * We told you the Gawker verdict was no damn good. [Gawker] * Will it take a Cesar Chavez to takedown rideshare giants like Uber and Lyft? [Casetext] * Now that Donald Trump is within striking distance of the GOP nomination for president, will that impact potential sanctions against these lawyers? [Wise Law] * Columbia Law hosted a conference about Asian-Americans in the law, with our own David Lat, about demystifying the model minority myth and the "Bamboo Ceiling.” [Columbia Law School] * Can you make pre-packaged marketing materials work for you? [Reboot Your Law Practice] * Federal Trade Commissioner Julie Brill will be leaving public service and heading to Biglaw. She leaves the FTC effective March 31 and will then join Hogan Lovells. [Reuters]

By Kathryn Rubino
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 03.22.16

* WHATCHA GONNA DO, BROTHER, WHEN THIS JURY'S PUNITIVE DAMAGES AWARD RUNS WILD ON YOU?!? Gawker was hit with an additional $25M in punitive damages yesterday in Hulk Hogan's sex-tape lawsuit, on top of the $115M award the jury had already slapped the media company with last week. That loud typing sound you hear is the appeals being furiously written. [Reuters] * They were gonna grant you leave to file, but then they got high? The Supreme Court has puff, puff, passed on the opportunity to hear a challenge posed by Nebraska and Oklahoma to Colorado's legalization of marijuana. Justices Thomas and Alito dissented, contending that the case fell within the Supreme Court's original jurisdiction. [NPR] * This took longer than the iOS 9 download: Hot on the heels of the announcement of new Apple products, we got the news that the tech giant and its rival, Samsung, will face off next term before SCOTUS in a patent case that's been going on since the iPhone 4 was still considered the latest and greatest in smartphone technology. [WSJ Law Blog] * "Once you start seeing leading law firms offering this, it's going to become more prevalent and pretty rapidly, because it's going to be required to compete." Lawyers with law school debt will probably jump at the chance for their firms to pitch in to repay their loans, but don't forget, all of that assistance will be taxable as income. [U.S. News] * "My job is to enforce the law, and starting today, DraftKings and FanDuel will abide by it." In a settlement reached with New York AG Eric Schneiderman, the sports betting daily fantasy sites will cease operations in the state, and in exchange, the AG will hold off on additional litigation that could force them to pay restitution to their losers. [ESPN]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 03.21.16

* Just because you showed up drunk for jury duty, it doesn’t mean you should have to go to jail for it -- at least according to the Florida Supreme Court. [Daily Business Review] * George Will on why Republicans may wind up wishing they’d confirmed Chief Judge Merrick Garland when they had the chance. [Washington Post] * Amal Clooney, speaking at a government communications summit in the United Arab Emirates, urges governments to be vocal, consistent, principled, expedient, and transparent when dealing with human rights issues. [Yahoo News] * High academic achievement now linked to... failure in the workplace? Well, that's simultaneously depressing and comforting. [Law and More] * A former U.S. State Department employee faces up to 8 years in jail for a massive phishing scheme aimed at getting young women to share nude photos. [CS Monitor] * Check out The Merrick Garland Project by NYU Law Review. It’s a curation of select opinions written by Chief Judge Garland, organized by topic. [The Merrick Garland Project] * The obstructed Supreme Court nomination process gets a children’s book treatment. [Slate]

By Kathryn Rubino
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 03.21.16

* What's the difference between the late Justice Antonin Scalia and Chief Judge Merrick Garland, his potential replacement? "[He] always sounds the same. Most of the time, he is very even-toned, not aggressive.” For starters, Scalia's dissents were usually fiery and entertaining, while Garland's dissents tend to be very respectful and courteous. [Washington Post] * "[T]here were errors and flaws in the way Thomas Jefferson carried out their research." An expert retained by Anna Alaburda in her suit against Thomas Jefferson Law testified that the methods the law school used to collect grads' job data were improper and could have caused some inaccurate info to be reported. [Courthouse News Service] * Donald Trump's presidential campaign -- and his path to the White House -- may be interrupted by a pesky fraud trial over his now defunct real estate school. The Donald will likely be asked to testify by New York AG Eric Schneiderman, and if he pleads the Fifth, it could have YUGE implications on his defense strategy. [WSJ Law Blog] * “When someone — or something — is going away, there are usually some people that want to get it before it goes away, for whatever reason." Racist memorabilia? Harvard Law is trying to quickly eliminate all ties to its controversial shield, but its bookstore will be slowly selling off all remaining merchandise bearing the symbol. [Boston Globe] * "The average graduate cannot expect to make enough in the years following graduation to even hope to make a dent in the student loans they take on from going to law school. And that's if they can even pass the bar and find a job as an attorney." Law profs face buyouts, but their students aren't in a much better position. [Northwest Indiana Times]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 03.18.16

* What legal nerds really want to know about Merrick Garland: an analysis of his opinion-writing style. [Legal Writing Pro] * The UK’s most followed law student on Instagram talks about people's expectation of who she is based solely on the images she posts, rather than on the reality of who she is. [Legal Cheek] * Did Donald Trump miss an opportunity? Sure, he's been playing the American people like a goddamn fiddle, but maybe he should be threatening to fund the plaintiffs in potential lawsuits, not the defendants. [Medium] * Looking to the Federalist Papers to shame Republicans for their failure to consider President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee. [Brennan Center] * Law school just got a little bit easier to pay for: Gabe Levin, a hockey player for Denver University is the first ever recipient of the NCHC Post-Graduate Scholarship and intends to use it to go to law school. [USCHO] * Attorney learns lying in order to get a table at an exclusive restaurant may have more consequences than he thought. [Legal Profession Blog] * Oh, my. A criminal defendant sings a song, inspired by Adele, to express his apology for his crimes. [YouTube] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N37TIk2puD8&app=desktop

By Kathryn Rubino
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 03.17.16

* Shocker! North Carolina's voter ID law primarily impacted young voters of color. (Actually, I am not surprised at all.) [Democracy Now] * Embrace the nerdiness of Merrrick Garland, you know you want to. [Comic Book Resources] * Does the #HulkvGawk case mean that being an internet smart-ass isn't cool anymore? God, I hope not. [Law and More] * It is easy to blame the poor for their lot in life, much harder to do anything about the underlying issues. [Lawyers, Guns and Money] * Merrick Garland: theater critic. [The Crimson] * It's science! Here is what data science tells us about Merrick Garland. [Ravel Law] * Looking for an easy way for your clients to pay? A new option is coming your way. [My Case] * Fingers crossed! GOP opposition to President Obama's SCOTUS nomination is cracking. [Huffington Post]

By Kathryn Rubino