Animal Law

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 05.09.18

* No collusion! Michael Cohen's shell company -- the same one used to pay hush money to Stormy Daniels -- received more than $1 million in payments from a company that's been linked to a Russian oligarch with close ties to Vladimir Putin. The same oligarch was sanctioned by the Trump administration for election interference. Special counsel Robert Mueller is on it. [New York Times; CNN] * If President Trump does sit down for an interview with the special counsel, he could make history if he decides to plead the Fifth Amendment. No American president has ever used the Fifth Amendment to avoid self-incrimination while still in office. [TIME] * Is your law school following the new law clerk hiring plan? It better be, if your graduates want a chance to clerk with Justice Elena Kagan. The former law school dean says she'll "take into account" in her own clerkship hiring whether law schools and lower court judges have complied with the plan. [National Law Journal] * A former professor and an alumnus from Charlotte Law School have added the American Bar Association to their suit against the defunct for-profit school, claiming in an amended complaint that the ABA negligently certified the school and "failed to act as a reasonable accreditor" -- which makes sense. [Law360 (sub. req.)] * A 15-member panel comprised of Florida State University faculty, staff, students, and alumni want the name of their law school building to be changed. It's currently named after former Florida Chief Justice B.K. Roberts, who worked to keep the University of Florida's law school segregated. [News 4 JAX] * Sorry, Tommy and Kiko, but you're going to have to stay in your cages. The New York Court of Appeals refused to hear a habeus appeal on behalf of the chimpanzees, allowing a ruling that they are not legal persons and therefore have no legal rights to stand. At least the concurring opinion was a little less dour. [Reuters]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.24.18

* The long, drawn out saga of the "Monkey Selfie" case has crossed another milestone with the Ninth Circuit ruling that the monkey can't sue for copyright violations. Reached for comment, the monkey's attorney expressed disappointment in the decision and hurled feces. [Courthouse News Service] * Jones Day loses more partners to the lateral market. We assume they saw the Above the Law Law Firm Rankings and decided they had to get out. [American Lawyer] * Colorado passes "secret prisons" reform bill... in secret. Hurray irony! [9News] * Kimberly Yuracko named the new dean of Northwestern Law. [Northwestern University NewsCenter] * Good news for DLA Piper: the Second Circuit upholds their malpractice victory. [Law360] * K&L Gates adds firepower in Asia. That should serve them well until Trump hears a scary Pokemon Go story on Fox and cuts off all trade to Japan. [International] * Checking in on the finale of the Global Legal Hackathon. So if you got a suspicious request for money from your practice management software the other day, it was probably hacked. [Legaltech News]

By Joe Patrice
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 08.03.17

* NAACP issues travel advisory for Missouri. Having been in Missouri recently... yeah this makes total sense. [CNN] * Trump uses signing statement to tell Putin he's sorry the meanies in Congress want to sanction him. [NPR] * DLA Piper paying some of its associates more money. [Law.com] * Microsoft is moving its work to alternative fee arrangements. It's like what Uber tried to do... but with a much, much, much more successful company. [Law360] * Dr. Dolittle of Schiff Hardin. [Litigation Daily] * Iowa is reforming its juvenile justice system. [Courier] * The best footnotes of all time. [National Law Journal]

By Joe Patrice
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 07.13.17

* Art Linkletter hosted Kids Say the Darnedest Things. Well, the FBI is saying that Linklaters associates say the darnedest things. [Am Law Daily] * How do you know you're in Appalachia? When a law schools says intimidating professors with guns is just obnoxious teasing. Boys will be boys! [Law.com] * Keker suing the Trump campaign over the DNC hack because when it rains it pours. [National Law Journal] * Seventh Circuit upholds Wisconsin's starve the unions law. [Reuters] * Justice Breyer talks about changing his mind [Law360] * MasterCard is helping lead the way in promoting law firm diversity. [Big Law Business] * "He is a monkey." [L.A. Times]

By Joe Patrice
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 02.23.17

* Administration ordered to release the names of all those detained under its ill-considered executive order. This of course rests on the questionable premise that the administration kept any paperwork at all while it ran around nabbing people. [National Law Journal] * ATTACK ROOSTER!!! [Law.com] * Hank Greenberg calls the Martin Act a "very dangerous weapon," which it probably is if you're an unrepentant fraudster. [Law360] * Tips for writing non-compete agreements when you absolutely, positively want to screw your employees. [Corporate Counsel] * Trump nixes transgender protections in schools, opting to leave the issue for the states -- a mantra we should probably get used to hearing about all civil rights protections. [Washington Post] * Suge Knight thinks he needs greater access to his attorneys. Attorneys too scared of Suge Knight to disagree. [Courthouse News Service] * Sidley had a good year -- no matter how they got their money. [Am Law Daily] * IMDb can officially tell you how old stars are again. Our long national nightmare is over. [Fox News]

By Joe Patrice