Barry Friedman

* What does the future hold for the U.S. Supreme Court? Analysts (including yours truly) opine. [Bloomberg BNA via Storify]

* Another prediction of ours has come to pass: congrats to Sullivan & Cromwell partner Brent McIntosh on his nomination as general counsel for the Treasury Department. [Corporate Counsel]

* Is it time to break up the Ninth Circuit (as President Trump recently called for)? Professors John Eastman and Brian Fitzpatrick say yay; Judges Sidney Thomas, Carlos Bea, and Alex Kozinski say nay. [House Judiciary Committee]

* Anthony Kronman: from dean of Yale Law School to “born-again pagan” (affiliate link). [New Yorker via How Appealing]

* Looking for smart, timely takes on the Trump Administration, from an all-star cast of law professors and legal experts? There’s a site for that. [Take Care]

* Guess who: “Cat-loving judge makes case that has nothing to do with cats all about cats.” [Chicago Tribune]

* Professor Orin Kerr chats with Professor Barry Friedman about Friedman’s latest book, Unwarranted: Policing Without Permission (affiliate link). [Volokh Conspiracy]

* The current SCOTUS Term isn’t super-sexy — but there are a few interesting cases on the docket, as Adam Feldman points out. [Empirical SCOTUS]

* Attention 2Ls & 3Ls, here’s a cool contest — with $100K in scholarships as prizes! [PR Newswire (press release)]

* It really isn’t okay that there are children that go hungry. Harvard Law student Thomas Tobin knows there is something that can be done to alleviate the problem. [Arkansas Online]

* The Supreme Court rejected requests for expedited audio in today’s two big cases: Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt and U.S. v. Texas. When are we going to be able to force them to put cameras in there and be done with it? [Fix the Court]

* Are the lawyers to blame for the giant Sharp / Foxconn deal falling through at the last second? And what can be done to salvage it? The clock is ticking and stock prices are falling. [Quartz]

* Remember a few months ago when Republican governors were all butthurt about Syrian refugees? U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Walton Pratt ruled Indiana Governor Mike Pence was way outta line about the whole mess. [Wonkette]

* The EEOC is going after employers that discriminate on the basis of sexuality, saying such actions are banned under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. About time. [Buzzfeed]

* Looking back at one of the worst Supreme Court decisions of all time to understand how important filling Justice Scalia’s seat really is. [Huffington Post]

* A Sikh officer in the Army is suing, complaining his religious observations have subjected him to increased testing. [New York Times]

* For those of you who missed last week’s event at NYU Law, here’s video from “Love, Law, and… Clerkships,” featuring Professor Barry Friedman, Judge Alison Nathan (S.D.N.Y.), and our very own David Lat. [YouTube]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjX6wLQmMIM&index=1&list=PLBC7DDA1DA3578169

Hopefully this conversation will give law students a better roadmap for their upcoming exams.

* We’re getting closer to being able to unlock our phones legally. Soon you can accidentally brick an iPhone without fear of reprisal. [The Guardian] * The Wall Street Journal thinks law student résumés are nearly identical (?) and recommends cultivating “quirky interests” like serving as a college mascot. Because national law firms just feel safer with Furries on staff. [The Legal Watchdog] * A judge who already faces overlapping ethics proceedings is about to add a couple more to his plate. This time the allegations include sleeping with a law student, not disclosing when she appeared before him, and “misappropriating” marijuana evidence. He doesn’t seem to get that the whole “What happens in Vegas” thing only works if you’re not living there. [Las Vegas Law Blog] * Someone tries to fight Larry Lessig on copyright. They lose. [IT-Lex] * An applicant withdraws his application to a law school because they do not allow gay or lesbian wedding ceremonies on campus. While that’s a noble decision, did he really think a Catholic school was going to be having gay and lesbian weddings? [The Ivy Coach] * Professors Chris Sprigman and Barry Friedman employed a cool tool called ReplyAll to have a public discussion about the NSA. [Just Security] * Redeployment (affiliate link) is a new collection of stories by Phil Klay focusing on the transition of Iraq veterans to stateside living. One story focuses on a Marine going to law school. Apparently he wanted to trade one brand of PTSD for another. [New York Times] * Wow, it looks like San Diego has a real problem policing its police. [Voice of San Diego] * If you’re in the Boston area next week, check out Disruptive Innovation in the Market for Legal Services, a cool symposium on March 6. [Harvard Law]

* J. Lo has apologized for singing Happy Birthday to a repressive dictator. Many are questioning the decision to serenade an alleged violator of international human rights law, but I’m just confused why J. Lo didn’t opt for the new, copyright-free birthday song? But people are being way too tough on the President of Turkmenistan. Don’t be fooled by the rocks that he got, he’s still Gurbanguly from the block. [Breaking Energy] * NYU Law Professor Barry Friedman and Dahlia Lithwick wonder if the progressives have another liberal agenda item to push after marriage equality. The authors cite issues like voting rights and opposition to the death penalty as traditionally liberal causes marginalized by progressives. It strikes me this article makes a lot more sense if you replace the word “progressive” with “Justice Kennedy.” [Slate] * DLA Piper’s decision to hire Lee Smolen has raised more than a few eyebrows given the firm’s commitment to ethical billing policies. [Hellerman Baretz] * Did the ABA just recommend an ethical violation? [New York Personal Injury Attorney Blog] * After a week of landmark rulings and Biglaw layoffs, the importance of clerking cannot be understated. [Judicial Clerk Review] * The Supreme Court Term feels like a distant memory, but now’s a good time to look back on it with added perspective. Courtesy of MoloLamken, here’s a great guide to the big business cases of the Supreme Court Term just ended. Download or print it, then read it at your leisure. [MoloLamken] * An attorney left the rat race to open a pea company. But these don’t look like the peas you tried to hide under your mashed potatoes, they look like serious snack food. [Kickstarter]

* Are you still trying to make sense of the conflicting opinions in United States v. Jones, the GPS tracking case recently decided by the Supreme Court? Professor Barry Friedman has this helpful round-up. [New York Times] * Elsewhere in law professors opining on SCOTUS, what do Professors Richard Epstein and John Yoo predict the […]

We’re already into the middle of October. In the law firm world, associates are starting to think about bonuses. Meanwhile, at law schools, exams will be here before you know it. If you’re a law student looking for guidance about preparing for and taking exams, you might want to check out Open Book: Succeeding on […]