CIA

* Man tried to rob a convenience store so he could go back to prison. And he almost screwed that up… [KMOV] * The CIA’s former lawyer explains how torture came to be a go-to national policy. According to John Rizzo, author of the forthcoming Company Man (affiliate link), George W. Bush basically had no conception of what was going on, which makes a lot of sense anyway. [The New Yorker] * Brooklyn Law’s Dean Nick Allard makes predictions for law schools in 2014. “[P]eople will look back at 2014 and say it marked the start of the new world of law: a renaissance where the respect and reputation of lawyers and law schools began to rise by measurable benchmarks.” Go ahead and laugh, I’ll wait. [TaxProf Blog] * Paul, Weiss picks up tax partner Scott Sontag from Weil Gotshal. (Congrats to both firms, by the way, on tying for the #9 spot in our list of top-ranked law firms for 2013.) [Paul, Weiss] * Nooooooooooooo! Judge Richard Kopf is ending his blog. [Hercules and the Umpire] * And the hits keep on coming. Professor Kyle Graham is also leaving the blogosphere. [Non Curat Lex] * The Ninth Circuit will start streaming all of its oral arguments next week. If you want to help them out, tune in. No promises that the panel will excoriate any prosecutors this time. [Ninth Circuit]

Conservatives, liberals, and reporters alike have little room to seriously complain

[Ed. note: As we recently mentioned, we’re looking for someone to write Morning Docket, on an alternating-week schedule. To those of you who have already applied, thanks for your interest; we’ll review the applications and pick a writer this weekend. If you’d like to apply, there’s still time — just follow the application instructions contained […]

* Gov. Romney wins Michigan. [CNN] * Sen. Clinton faces challenge from “uncommitted.” [CNN] * NV Supreme Court overturns decision allowing Rep. Kucinich to debate. [MSNBC] * Criminal prosecutions of Blackwater security guards would not be easy. [New York Times] * Did CIA lawyers and officials implicitly sign off on the destruction of interrogation tapes? […]

* So, it’s gonna be illegal now, which means the CIA can’t do it, right? [Washington Post via How Appealing] * New Jersey gets rid of the death penalty; now if they could just tackle that disgusting odor. [BBC] * Prosecutors go 0-1-6 in Sears Tower trial. [CNN] * Hey, look everybody! International law! They’ve […]

Ok, that’s not exactly right. Technically, he’s not ok with torture, he just defines torture in a manner that allows him to be ok with stuff that most of us would call torture. Would you expect anything less of a CIA lawyer? John Rizzo, acting GC for the CIA and Bush’s nominee for the permanent […]

Every time we step away from our computer, big news breaks. Here’s a thread for discussion of the verdict in the Scooter Libby case. We’ll update this post with comments and links as we read the coverage. *************************** Okay, so here’s the Washington Post lede (which we like better than the NYT and AP ledes […]

We’re reading Tony Mauro’s super-juicy article as fast as we can. Highlights and discussion will follow shortly. Okay, we’re done. Here are some excerpts: The late Chief Justice William Rehnquist’s Senate confirmation battles in 1971 and 1986 were more intense and political than previously known, according to a newly released FBI file that also offers […]

New Partners: * Proskauer Rose: Fourteen new partners, three new senior counsel. Names here. * Baker Botts: Eighteen (!) new partners. Names here. * Wilson Sonsini: Thriteen new partners. Names here. (Only two members of the class of 1998. How long is the WSGR partner track as a practical matter?) At Risk: * Some are […]

* When committing a robbery, try not to target a master of illusion. [CNN] * Another legal show goes the way of “The Law Firm.” [CNN] * Dahlia Lithwick begins this article, “Chief Justice John Roberts is the Dr. McDreamy of the federal bench.” [Slate] * Dismissal sought in the CIA leak case. [AP] * […]

* Another day, another deepening of the doo-doo over at HP. Now the plot is taking on a “made-for-television-movie” feel: “[D]etectives tried to plant software on at least one journalist’s computer that would enable messages to be traced.” [New York Times] * National security adviser Stephen Hadley indicates that the White House is trying to […]