Securities Law

Uh-oh! Trouble in paradise? It looks like Martin Shkreli’s lawyer — who also happens to be his co-defendant — has turned on him.

* Florida has released the results from its administration of the February 2017 bar exam, and they were not pretty. The percentage of those who passed dipped a bit since 2016, but students at both Orlando law schools were more likely to have failed. But which law school did the worst of all? We’ll have more on this later. [Orlando Sentinel]

* Trouble in paradise? Martin Shkreli’s former lawyer, Evan Greebel — who also happens to be his co-defendant — has turned on him, accusing the pharma bro of submitting false documents to the Securities and Exchange Commission and engaging in illegal stock trading. Greebel, of course, now wants to be tried separately from Shkreli. [Bloomberg]

* “I never in my wildest dreams imagined I would be back.” Five women who once worked at Davis Polk and had been gone for at least two years to raise their families have returned to the firm for one-year stints with a program called “Davis Polk Revisited.” If all goes well, they may be able to return for a longer period of time. [WSJ Law Blog]

* A former Hunton & Williams partner who spent 20 years on the lam as a fugitive has finally been caught. Scott Wolas, who was disbarred in 1999, was most recently accused in a $1.5 million real estate investment fraud scheme. Over the course of his alleged criminal career, Wolas reportedly assumed a number of other aliases. [Am Law Daily]

* Each year around Easter, the ABA Journal hosts a Peeps in Law diorama contest. It’s time to cast your vote for your favorite, and this time around, the competition is pretty stiff. We’re particularly partial to the entry that’s been dubbed “State of Peepington v. Trump,” but “Peepsburg and Sugarmayor” is also very cute. Vote! [ABA Journal]

* A Wisconsin judge has ordered that Brendan Dassey, one of the subjects of “Making a Murderer,” be freed from prison while the state appeals a ruling overturning his conviction, as authorities have “failed to demonstrate that Dassey represents a present danger to the community.” The date of his release is not yet known, but the state plans to file another appeal. [USA Today]

* “If you have baseball commissioner to offer me, then I can tell you what my plans are.” Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Mary Jo White is stepping down from her position even though she still has two years left before her term is up. The departure of the former Debevoise partner and federal prosecutor will make way for President-elect Donald Trump to start dismantling the Dodd-Frank Act. [DealBook / New York Times]

* For a man who seems to be completely obsessed with all things tremendous, big league, great, and yuge, the vast majority of the judges on President-elect Trump’s Supreme Court shortlist have at least one thing in common: They didn’t go to Ivy League law schools. That being said, just like his outsider campaign as a whole, the names on Trump’s Supreme Court pick list are a “revolt against the elites.” [New York Times]

* While he was still on the campaign trail, President-elect Trump pledged to “open up our libel laws” so celebrities and public officials can “sue [the media] and win lots of money,” but it might not be so easy to do. The Supreme Court doesn’t seem to have any designs on overturning the precedent set in New York Times v. Sullivan, and the only other way to change libel laws would be to amend the Constitution. [WSJ Law Blog]

* Chadbourne & Parke has filed a motion for summary judgment in the $100 million gender discrimination class-action suit filed by one of its current partners and one of its former partners, contending that not only are their claims “utterly baseless,” but that the plaintiff partners are not or were not employees of the firm who fall under employment discrimination laws. We’ll have more on this news later today. [Big Law Business]

* According to a new survey published by legal search firm Major Lindsey & Africa, on average, female Biglaw partners make 44 percent less than male Biglaw partners, and the pay disparity is largely due to who receives origination credit for business. We’ll have more on this study later today. [DealBook / New York Times]

* Uh-oh! This Australian law firm may be going even further down under… Following a restructuring and several rounds of layoffs, Slater & Gordon, the world’s first publicly traded law firm, has found itself on the receiving end of a class-action securities case on behalf of its shareholders over its continually tumbling share prices. [WSJ Law Blog]

* “Today’s ruling marks an end to Mr. Paxton’s almost year-long attempt to avoid being judged by a jury of his peers.” Even though a federal judge tossed out similar charges last week, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will face trial on state securities fraud charges. Paxton’s lawyers plan to appeal the ruling to a state appellate court. [Big Law Business]

* The last time your jeans were cool was when they were a lyric in “My Humps”: After falling out of fashion, True Religion has hired Kirkland & Ellis to explore some debt restructuring options. With about $500 million in debt to deal with, the company may have to file for bankruptcy or hope for kind negotiations with its lenders. [Reuters]

* “What is he thinking? Already his conduct is going to make him a pariah in many law school contexts — and this just fuels the flames.” Former Berkeley Law Dean Sujit Choudhry’s next court hearing for his racial discrimination case is on November 3. What is the law school’s latest argument against his claims? [San Francisco Chronicle]

* Jack Greenberg, former leader of NAACP Legal Defense Fund, RIP. [New York Times]