Above the Law

Morning Docket: 05.01.26

* Lawyer will stand trial over dog breeding facility break-in. Forget Fort Knox, try breaking into a place that’s just wall to wall watchdogs. [ABA Journal]

* Gavin Newsom’s defamation suit against Fox News survives another hurdle as court rules the complaint plausibly alleges that the cable channel knew it was lying when it made false statements about the governor. [Law360]

* Committee advances non-qualified judicial nominee because of course they did. [Reuters]

* Fidelity and Vanguard cast their lots with Trump administration and cut off donations to the Southern Poverty Law Center. [NY Times]

* Lawyers argue that Kennedy Center could end up like the East Wing without intervention. [NPR]

* Judge in India adopts novel approach to vexatious litigants… delay their hearings until they’re long dead. [Roll on Friday]

* Former judges discuss the grave abuse of the presidential pardon power. [Law.com]

Goodbye Skadden, Hello OnlyFans!– See Also

Former Skadden Partner David Eisman Makes A Huge Career Shift: Don’t worry — he’ll still be on the legal side of things.

The Biggest In Texas: See if your firm places on this regional prestige list.

Charging Is Easy; The Collecting Is Hard: The most important part of getting paid is the collection cycle.

Drake Law Shuts Down Their Wrongful Convictions Clinic: All over a $154k estate dispute.

Reconsider The Reconsideration: Judge Brown puts the ball back in the DOJ’s court.

Bipartisan Bill Seeks To Strengthen Oversight Of Medicare Advantage

Lawmakers introduced the Medicare Advantage Improvement Act of 2026 to tighten prior authorization rules, boost transparency, and curb practices that delay care.

Legal Marketing Association President Rachel Shields Williams On AI, Innovation, And Why People Still Come First

A conversation on how AI is reshaping the work of legal marketers, and why the marketing community is uniquely positioned to help law firms with AI.

Non-Practicing Lawyers — Visible And Invisible

It’s all about the NPLs, baby!

A Judge Just Turned The Government’s Own ‘Reconsider’ Motion Against Them And It’s Glorious

Paradoxically, it is now the court's turn to ask the government to reconsider. They should. They won't, but they should.

Law School Shuts Down Wrongful Convictions Clinic After Accusing Professor Of Misappropriating Funds

Horrible news.

Small Firms Can Train Great Lawyers Too

A small or midsize firm’s training program should begin with a simple question: What must a lawyer here know how to do to serve our clients well?

Biglaw Discovers That Charging $2,000/Hour Is Easier Than Actually Collecting It

Wells Fargo report delivers mostly good news for Biglaw, but a negative trend lurks.

The Most Prestigious Biglaw Firms In Texas (2027)

Yeehaw! Check out the top Biglaw firms in Texas.

The Capacity Gap: Why Scaling Legal Operations Doesn’t Have To Rely On Headcount

It's time to rethink how to scale contract work.

OnlyFans Goes Deep On Biglaw Talent, Pulls Out 20-Year Skadden Vet

Website once again looks to Biglaw for leadership.

The World Cup Is Coming. So Is A New Kind Of Tax.

If a tax is described as targeting visitors but predictably falls on residents, is it still a tourism tax?

ILTA EVOLVE: Sometimes Less Is More — A Focus On Leadership

The program will include two really good keynote speakers and over 20 educational speakers. This year's session is limited to only three topics.

Morning Docket: 04.30.26

* Elon Musk gets into argument with OpenAI’s lawyer during cross. So things are going great over there. [Law360]

* Jeopardy! law student finally leaves show after hauling in $880K. [ABA Journal]

* Emory Law expels student plaguing classmates. [Daily Report]

* The majority of the Supreme Court proved they don’t need to eliminate the Voting Rights Act to obliterate the Voting Rights Act. [One First]

* Former Latham partner joined Paramount Skydance and made more in three months than any other chief legal officer made all year. [Corporate Counsel]

* Trump administration continues its quid pro quo with judges, handing a federal judicial nomination to state judge who ruled in Trump’s favor in frivolous Pulitzer case. [Reuters]