Beauty Pageants

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 08.02.16

* "This feels like an agency that is out of step with a crisis in its profession." The transcript from the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity is finally out, and those who voted to suspend the ABA's power to accredit law schools sought to "send a signal" about student loans and accreditation enforcement. [ABA Journal] * "Having a woman reach this milestone opens the door for us. We are allies in the struggle and we can't do this by ourselves." Women in the law fight to break through the glass ceiling every day, and Hillary Clinton's nomination as the Democratic presidential candidate has served as an inspiration to continue the battle. [Big Law Business] * Which are the best law schools for getting federal clerkship a after graduation? Aside from the incredibly obvious ones, you may actually be surprised by some of the schools that made the list. For those of you who are interested in getting a clerkship bonus when you head to your firm, we'll have more information on this later. [Business Insider] * Sorry, but your law review note might get preempted... Thanks to a split between the First and Second Circuits, in its upcoming term, the Supreme Court will decide what type of benefit must be provided to prove a quid pro quo arrangement, which could likely redefine insider trading law as we've come to know it. [DealBook / New York Times] * Talk about some expensive beauty queen drama: Genesis Davila, who was crowned as Miss Florida USA last month and then stripped of the title for allegedly using professional hair and makeup stylists in violation of the competition's rules, has filed a $15 million defamation lawsuit against the pageant's owners. [ABC Local 10 News]

By Staci Zaretsky
B for Beauty

Morning Docket: 07.05.13

Ed. note: We hope that you had a great July 4th — and that you’re enjoying a four-day weekend. But if you’re at work today and looking for diversion, check us early and often — we will be posting today (although on a reduced publication schedule). * Lawyer of the Day Long Weekend: Christopher Kirby, who reportedly launched a profanity-laced tirade at the mother of a special-education student during a school board meeting. Stay classy, Chris. [New York Daily News] * Speaking of classy, if you make Donald Trump look good, you’re doing it wrong. The $5 million arbitration award against former beauty queen Sheena Monnin just got upheld by Judge J. Paul Oetken (S.D.N.Y.). [New York Law Journal] * Have you been injured in an accident? Call a New York State legislator, who might be earning a six-figure income by moonlighting at a personal-injury firm. [New York Times] * Who doesn’t love rule by lawyers? Adli Mansour, chief justice of the Supreme Constitutional Court of Egypt, takes over as the nation’s interim leader. [New York Times] * Nationwide layoff watch: Dickstein dismisses seven partners in New York. [WestlawNext Practitioner Insights (sub. req.)] * If you’re feeling the heat in D.C. these days, lawyer turned ice cream entrepreneur Victoria Lai can help. [Washington Post]

By David Lat
Adam Liptak

Morning Docket: 01.14.13

* “I’m a New Yorker, and I jaywalk with the best of them.” Don’t be fooled by the rocks job that she’s got — she’s still, she’s still Jenny Sonia from the block. The Supreme Court’s very own wise Latina, author of a new memoir (affiliate link), is proud of her city. [New York Times; 60 Minutes] * If you’re looking for an M&A adviser, you’d be wise to seek out counsel from Skadden Arps. The firm sweeped three separate rankings lists based on the total value of its clients’ 2012 M&A transactions. [Am Law Daily] * Only in the world of legal education could the dean of a law school that isn’t even numerically ranked by U.S. News have the highest salary of all law deans nationwide. (We’ll likely have more on this later.) [Boston Globe] * Arizona schools will allow 3Ls to take the bar exam, but New York schools may soon do away with 3L year altogether. Of course, the ABA will find a way to muck it up, but still, hooray for progress! [National Law Journal] * Remember “Made in Jersey,” the show about a stereotypical Jersey girl who made the jump to Biglaw? Yeah, neither does anyone else. Hopefully “Staten Island Law” won’t face the same fate. [New York Daily News] * “Sexiness is all about being a woman of character.” Our congratulations go out to DaNae Couch, the Texas Tech law student who advanced to the Top 10 of the Miss America competition. You go girl! [Lubbock Online] * Aaron Swartz — Reddit co-founder, friend of Larry Lessig, felony hacking defendant — RIP. [New York Times]

By Staci Zaretsky
Andrew Cuomo

Morning Docket: 01.04.13

* The Department of Justice has reached yet another settlement in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill case, this time with Transocean Ltd. for $1.4 billion in civil and criminal penalties and fines. [National Law Journal] * “[W]ith success comes regulatory scrutiny.” Google convinced the FTC to close its ongoing antitrust probe by promising to change its allegedly shady patent usage and purportedly skewed search terms. [Bloomberg] * According to Littler Mendelson, federal contractors might want to consider sending out sequestration-related layoff notices to employees in order to comply with the WARN Act. America, f**k yeah! [Government Executive] * Governor Andrew Cuomo will have a major impact on the New York Court of Appeals when appointing new judges. It could be a partisan decision, but his father, former Governor Mario Cuomo, insists his son will leave politics at home. [Capital New York] * When you write in defense of the value proposition of law school, you wind up in the op-ed pages of the NYT. When you tell the truth about it, you wind up in the opinion pages of the WSJ. [Wall Street Journal (sub. req.)] * Remember Danae Couch, the Texas Tech law student who was crowned as Miss Texas? She’ll compete for the Miss America title next weekend. If you’d like to help her become a finalist, you can vote for her here! [KFYO]

By Staci Zaretsky