After allegedly blowing huge sums of money on a variety of scams to secure college berths for their less-than-spectacular children, the defendants in the wide-ranging college admissions scandal affectionately known as “Operation Varsity Blues” have begun to lawyer up and — as one might suspect given the bank accounts involved — they’ve gone straight to Biglaw according to American Lawyer.
By the way, why are we naming this affair after Varsity Blues? The only memorable thing about that movie is a kid telling his loser dad, “I don’t want your life.” But isn’t that the opposite of this scandal? Isn’t this a bunch of successful parents pulling strings to ensure their kids have exactly the same cushy life?
In any event, Biglaw’s own Gordon Caplan of Willkie Farr — whose Caplan test prep plan was less successful than Kaplan’s — has hired Joshua Levy and Michael McGovern of Ropes & Gray. Both were former AUSAs — as you’d expect in a case like this — and Levy served in the District of Massachusetts, the office leading this case. Unsurprisingly, the prosecutorial team includes Ropes alumni. Caplan has also retained another former AUSA in Patrick Smith of Smith Villazor.
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Felicity Huffman went with Foley Hoag’s Martin Murphy out of the Boston office. Meanwhile, Aunt Becky is working with BJ Trach, Sean Berkowitz, and Perry Viscounty of Latham & Watkins — opting for a “coast-to-coast” strategy with the California-based Viscounty, Chicago’s Berkowitz, and Boston’s Trach. All of the lawyers have impressive résumés, ranging from Enron to Whitewater.
Still, it’s hard to imagine this is going to be much more than a negotiating job for these sterling attorneys. There’s not a ton of wiggle-room on those wiretaps and there isn’t anyone left to flip on with the supposed mastermind fulfilling the role of Cooperating Witness Number 1. It’ll be interesting to see if any one of the accused tries a Hail Mary effort or if everyone quietly tries to get their people off with as little fuss as possible.
Willkie’s Caplan Looks to Big Law to Represent Him in College Admissions Case [American Lawyer]
Earlier: Co-Chair Of Biglaw Firm Charged In College Admissions Scandal
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Joe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.