* Hooooo boy, this just got even better! President Trump and his attorney Michael Cohen plan to file a motion to stay the Stormy Daniels suit on the grounds that in the wake of the FBI raid on Cohen’s office and the ensuing criminal investigation, continuing the Daniels litigation could violate Cohen’s right not to incriminate himself under the Fifth Amendment. [THR, Esq. / Hollywood Reporter]
* In other news, President Trump is set to pardon Scooter Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney‘s former chief of staff, who was convicted in 2007 of lying to the FBI and obstruction of justice in the investigation into the leak of former CIA operative Valerie Plame’s identity. [ABC News
* When the AP was investigating a $30K payout that American Media Inc. made to a doorman to keep quiet about a rumor involving President Trump’s love child with a former employee, reporters had some trouble with a Biglaw firm that was recently involved in another sexual misconduct case — Boies Schiller. [American Lawyer]
* HoLove learning to show love? The firm is ditching its “broken” associate performance review system for its new “Pathways” program, which will provide them with “flash feedback” from partners about how they’re doing on a year-round basis. [National Law Journal]
* Your tuition dollars actually at work: Georgia State Law is using predictive modeling and data analytics to identify students who may be at risk for failing the bar exam after their first year of studying law. Administrators at the school want to be able to help students before it’s too late. [Daily Report Online]
* Savannah Law School may not be closing after all? It seems that talks are underway to donate the law school’s charter to another college or university, like Savannah State and Georgia Southern. Savannah Law’s new owner would get everything but the law school building itself. [Fox 28 Media]
* Someone keeps sending pizzas to this German lawyer. He wishes they would stop. [BBC]
* While the Big 4 threaten to invade Biglaw, one possible solution to keep firms relevant is a corresponding invasion of the alternative legal provider space. Like Hogan Lovells partnering with the 1500 lawyer Elevate. [American Lawyer]
* Not content to profit off of unpaid labor for decades, the NCAA is challenging the attorney fees awarded in the O’Bannon case. [Courthouse News Service]
* Where people are most and least likely to follow the law. Apparently, the Vikings have this all worked out. [Forbes]
* The evolving world of lawyer fashion. [ABA Journal]
* Second Circuit upheld a NY law requiring tax-exempt entities to reveal their donors. Citizens United had argued that this would quell speech and that we should just trust entities enjoying tax-emempt status to not engage in fraud. Reality prevailed… so assume this gets overturned. [Law360]
* On her way out the door, Rachel Brand decided to let us all know that the Department of Justice is considering intervening in more class action settlements so the government can undermine private justice too. [National Law Journal]
* “[W]e will do whatever we have to do to properly protect his rights vis a vis the company.” Film producer and accused rapist Harvey Weinstein has hired Hollywood power lawyer Patricia Glaser to represent him in his fight against his own company. [Hollywood Reporter]
* Hogan Lovells has been in the legal press a lot lately for its decision to shut things down, like careers. Now, the firm has decided to shut down an office in a far away land called Ulaanbaatar that you’ve likely never heard of before. [Legal Week]
* What’s the easiest way to get a new practice group running? By acquiring a boutique firm that’s got an “innovative approach.” That’s what LeClairRyan did when it swallowed up Pizzo & Haman, a workers’ compensation firm which is unique in that… its attorneys charge more than others in the same practice area. [Am Law Daily]
* Enrollment has gone up in a major way at the Appalachian School of Law. The school’s new 1L class is about 86 percent larger than last year’s entering class, and its overall enrollment has increased by almost 40 percent. Considering that the school has been struggling in recent years, this must be nice for everyone in Grundy. [WCYB]
* “What Could Equifax CLO John Kelley Have Done Differently?” Literally, anything. [Corporate Counsel]
* The Trump administration asks the Supreme Court to toss the travel ban case on mootness grounds — and to scrub the lower-court rulings against it from the books. [How Appealing]
* Meanwhile, the District of Columbia won’t take the fight over its concealed-carry law to SCOTUS, fearing that the Court might just make the situation worse if called to rule on gun rights. [Washington Post]
* At age 86, Marty Lipton of Wachtell Lipton is still in the mix, issuing influential client memos on important issues of corporate law. [Big Law Business]
* Does the emperor have no clothes robes? Zoran (Zoki) Tasic, a former Seventh Circuit staff attorney, calls out Judge Richard Posner over alleged errors in the judge’s new book (affiliate link) about the treatment of pro se litigants. [How Appealing]
* Support staff at Hogan Lovells seem to love the firm’s buyout offers; the firm’s voluntary-retirement program attracted even more interest than expected. (Expect more on this later.) [Law.com]
* What does the future hold for the Obama administration’s proposed changes to overtime rules? Senators seek guidance from Cheryl Stanton, the former Alito clerk and Ogletree Deakins partner who enjoyed smooth sailing at her recent confirmation hearings to serve as head of the Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division. [Bloomberg BNA]
* In other news about the fate of Obama-era regulations, it looks like the Trump administration will be rolling back the federal requirement for employers to include birth control coverage in their health insurance plans, expanding exemptions for religious objectors. [New York Times]
Miguel A. Zaldivar, Jr., CEO
University of Miami, JD
