Texas

Non-Sequiturs: 04.15.13

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* Thoughts go out to all those in Boston. [CNN]

* I hope you’ve all got your taxes finished. Here’s a fun fact: most tax cheats live in the South and the West. The two areas of the country filled with people who think taxes are evil cheat more? Go figure. [NBC News]

* Remember, it’s not polite to say “thank you.” [Las Vegas Law Blog]

* And now the rare, “self-benchslap.” [Associated Press]

* A detailed look at how the Federalist Society became so powerful in American law schools. Unfortunately, it neglects the “they tend to order better pizzas for their events” gambit. [Chronicle of Higher Education]

* Remember the new, depressing, public domain Happy Birthday song? The sponsor of that contest, WFMU, is at it again with a new contest to create modern, entertaining covers of public domain ditties. Despite my ragging on the birthday song, this is a pretty cool idea. [Free Music Archive]

* Are you a young lawyer complaining about your lot in life? You’re at this site, so statistically you are. Well, quit your bitchin’! [Associate's Mind]

* The Texas Supreme Court does not value emotional attachments to dogs. This is surprising because I can think of at least 10 country songs on this very point. [Law and More]

* Mocking law school couples with a GIF from Veep? Get out of my head, UChiLawGo! [UChiLawGo]

* Boob-induced failure. [Legal Juice]

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Gender Discrimination Suit Alleges Men and Women Couldn’t Be ‘Alone Together’ at This Texas Law Firm

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‘Alone? With a man? Oh my, I just couldn’t!’

When it comes to equal opportunities in the workplace, women working in law firms have an especially raw deal. In most cases, men are the top earners, and they’re given more chances to bring in business than their female counterparts. Some claim that male lawyers have even gone so far as to purposely exclude women from client pitches and after-work bonding activities.

These observations aren’t new; women have been getting the shaft for decades in the good ol’ boys’ club we call the practice of law. But one law firm allegedly went a step further to shut out its female employees.

Deep in the heart of Texas, a female partner claims that men and women at her firm weren’t even allowed to work in the same room alone together with the door closed….

UPDATE (4/12/2013, 5:00 p.m.): Now with a statement from the firm, posted after the jump.

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15 Comments
  • 08 Apr 2013 at 4:45 PM
  • Events

When Energy Meets Law in Houston: Registration Still Open!

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We are pleased to invite you to Above the Law’s “Where Energy Meets the Law” reception from 6 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 10th, in Houston, Texas. We will be celebrating Breaking Media’s launch of Breaking Energy, our new site devoted to news, analysis, and discussions about the top stories in the energy sector today.

Our guest speaker will be Peter Gardett, the Managing Editor of Breaking Energy. Peter will offer some remarks on the latest trends in the energy sector and their impact on law, policy, and business. Attendees will also have the opportunity to meet the Above the Law editors, connect with peers, taste great cocktails, and sample delicious hors d’oeuvres. The event is sponsored by our friends at Access Data. Please RSVP below.

Peter Gardett

Peter Gardett, Managing Editor, Breaking Energy, has spent over a decade covering all areas of the energy industry including coal, electricity, and renewable fuels. As Senior Correspondent, and later Bureau Chief for Argus Media, he led teams developing new editorial, analytical, and pricing products for the energy and commodities industries and also covered financial news for an audience of high-level energy executives. Gardett is a graduate of St. Andrew’s University in Scotland, and is based in New York.

  • 03 Apr 2013 at 3:46 PM
  • Events

When Energy Meets Law in Houston: Join ATL for Drinks on April 10

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We are pleased to invite you to Above the Law’s “Where Energy Meets the Law” reception from 6 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 10th, in Houston, Texas. We will be celebrating Breaking Media’s launch of Breaking Energy, our new site devoted to news, analysis, and discussions about the top stories in the energy sector today.

Our guest speaker will be Peter Gardett, the Managing Editor of Breaking Energy. Peter will offer some remarks on the latest trends in the energy sector and their impact on law, policy, and business. Attendees will also have the opportunity to meet the Above the Law editors, connect with peers, taste great cocktails, and sample delicious hors d’oeuvres. The event is sponsored by our friends at Access Data. Please RSVP below.

Peter Gardett

Peter Gardett, Managing Editor, Breaking Energy, has spent over a decade covering all areas of the energy industry including coal, electricity, and renewable fuels. As Senior Correspondent, and later Bureau Chief for Argus Media, he led teams developing new editorial, analytical, and pricing products for the energy and commodities industries and also covered financial news for an audience of high-level energy executives. Gardett is a graduate of St. Andrew’s University in Scotland, and is based in New York.

Another Texas Prosecutor Is Killed in Cold Blood

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Mike McLelland Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland

In an age of highly sophisticated criminal investigation techniques, showcased in CSI and similar shows, it would appear to be increasingly difficult to commit a murder and get away with it. This would be especially true for murders targeting people who work in law enforcement — individuals who know a lot about crime and who often take measures to protect themselves.

This is one of the reasons why the killing of Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland and and his wife Cynthia, which we noted in Morning Docket, is so shocking and so chilling. But there are others….

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Morning Docket: 04.01.13

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* Can you DIG it?! Well, SCOTUS can’t, at least when it comes to the Prop 8 case, but perhaps that’s what the conservative justices planned all along. You can probably expect a judicial punt on this one. [New York Times]

* The case for cameras at the high court became even more compelling last week, because people just now realized that having to “spend money to see a public institution do public business is offensive.” Damn straight. [National Law Journal]

* Justice Sandra Day O’Connor’s new book, Out of Order (affiliate link), didn’t exactly get a glowing review from the NYT’s Supreme Court correspondent, Adam Liptak. It’s a “gift shop bauble”? Ouch. [New York Times]

* Oh, Lanny Breuer, you tried to be all coy by saying you were interviewing elsewhere, but we knew you’d return to Covington. That “vice-chairman” title is a pretty sweet new perk, too. [Legal Times]

* DLA Piper’s bills may “know no limits,” but in-house counsel claim that while the firm’s emails were “flippant,” they won’t have an impact their already meticulous billing review. [New York Law Journal]

* The true love’s kiss of litigation: Bingham McCutchen’s Sleeping Beauty may have found her prince in Judge Vincent O’Neill Jr., because he ruled that the firm won’t be able to compel arbitration. [Recorder]

* It’s really not a good time to be a prosecutor in Texas. Two months after the murder of ADA Mark Hasse, DA Mike McLelland and his wife were gunned down in their home. RIP. [Dallas Morning News]

* Good news, everyone! The class of 2012 — the largest on record, according to the ABA — was only slightly more unemployed than its predecessors. Cherish the little things, people. [National Law Journal]

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3D Printers Don’t Kill People, Guns Made With 3D Printers Kill People.

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A while back, we wrote an article about Cody Wilson, the University of Texas law student on a quest to use the new technology of 3D printing to design assault weapons that can be constructed in the comfort of your own home, evading normal regulations.

Wilson has made major inroads since that article, as revealed in a short new documentary featuring his design project, his interaction with federal authorities, and a demonstration of his homemade, printed AR-15…

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19 Comments
  • 27 Mar 2013 at 2:05 PM
  • Events

When Energy Meets Law in Houston: Join ATL for Drinks on April 10

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We are pleased to invite you to Above the Law’s “Where Energy Meets the Law” reception from 6 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 10th, in Houston, Texas. We will be celebrating Breaking Media’s launch of Breaking Energy, our new site devoted to news, analysis, and discussions about the top stories in the energy sector today.

Our guest speaker will be Peter Gardett, the Managing Editor of Breaking Energy. Peter will offer some remarks on the latest trends in the energy sector and their impact on law, policy, and business. Attendees will also have the opportunity to meet the Above the Law editors, connect with peers, taste great cocktails, and sample delicious hors d’oeuvres. The event is sponsored by our friends at Access Data. Please RSVP below.

Peter Gardett

Peter Gardett, Managing Editor, Breaking Energy, has spent over a decade covering all areas of the energy industry including coal, electricity, and renewable fuels. As Senior Correspondent, and later Bureau Chief for Argus Media, he led teams developing new editorial, analytical, and pricing products for the energy and commodities industries and also covered financial news for an audience of high-level energy executives. Gardett is a graduate of St. Andrew’s University in Scotland, and is based in New York.

Morning Docket: 03.21.13

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* The Senate approved a bill that will keep the government running through September, and it will likely pass in the House, but much of the sequester is still in place. I think we’re supposed to be excited about this. Uh… yay? [Wall Street Journal (sub. req.)]

* Douglas Arnsten, the former Crowell & Moring associate who embezzled $10.7M in client funds and spent it at fancy restaurants and strip clubs, has been officially disbarred in New York. But he was just trying to support single moms. Sigh. [Am Law Daily]

* Sorry, folks, but you’re going to have to continue taking the LSAT in order to get into law school because the ABA says so. Drop that $118 into the burgeoning money pit that is law school, stat! [National Law Journal]

* For all of that work allegedly spent trying to protect their yield rate, UVA Law didn’t even make the Top 10 list of the most popular schools. You might be surprised at some of the schools here. [U.S. News & World Report]

* You must remember that time when the University of Texas Law School Foundation authorized $5.5M in forgivable loans to faculty. Well, now the regents are calling for a probe. Yikes! [San Antonio Express-News]

4 Comments

Dallas DA Learns You Don’t Mess With Texas… Judges

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When the gavel fell yesterday, Dallas District Attorney Craig Watkins found his office’s high-profile mortgage fraud case dismissed. What’s worse, Watkins found himself held in contempt of court by Judge Lena Levario.

The judge did not issue a sentence for the contempt charge, but jail time is not out of the question. I’d imagine District Attorneys are not popular in jail.

The trouble for Watkins revolves around the charge that he trumped up a case against a litigious spendthrift backed by a portion of a multi-billion dollar fortune, who nonetheless took out a giant mortgage that may or may not have been fraudulent. Blast you, adversarial legal system! Can’t we find a way to punish everyone in this case?

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