Black Lives Matter

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.04.16

* "[G]reed is not a component of the law of fiduciary duty anywhere." Donald Trump's campaign may have claimed he has "a fiduciary responsibility to his business, his family and his employees to pay no more tax than legally required," but legal experts found that assertion pretty laughable, seeing as there's no such thing as a fiduciary duty to oneself. [DealBook / New York Times] * An attorney who serves as an advisor to the ABA's Standing Committee on Gun Violence says he accidentally shot and killed his wife when his gun went off after hitting a speed bump. He claims he had the gun out because they were in an area where Black Lives Matter protests had been held and was afraid they were about to be carjacked. [People] * For the first time since the days of Abraham Lincoln, the Supreme Court opened its new term with a vacancy on the bench certain to be filled in the upcoming presidential election. Without the late Justice Antonin Scalia's voice, the Court is left split along ideological lines, with four conservative justices and four liberal justices. [Reuters] * According to Chief Justice John Roberts, "judges are not politicians, even when they come to the bench by way of the ballot," but that doesn't mean elected judges behave as judicially as they're expected to when retention elections are near. In fact, "[a]ll judges, even the most punitive, increase their sentences as re-election nears." [New York Times] * The EEOC has filed a suit against Denver Law, alleging that female full-time professors are paid less than their male counterparts. Nine female professors work at the school full-time, and on average, they're paid about $20K less than full-time male professors. Denver Law says it stands by its "system of evaluation and merit pay." [Denver Post]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 08.04.16

* Jason Greenblatt, an NYU Law grad, is Donald Trump's chief Israel advisor; so what if he is a real estate lawyer and has no foreign policy experience? Trump has no political experience, and now he's the GOP standard bearer. [Politico] * The Paul, Weiss investigation into Roger Ailes has allegedly grown in scope. [Law and More] * Apparently you can be suspended from legal practice for sexting -- well, if the sexts are unwanted and sent to a client. [Legal Profession Blog] * A look at the Supreme Court's historic disregard for black lives. [Huffington Post] * An eight-member Court is really putting a crimp in SCOTUS's style. [Empirical SCOTUS]

By Kathryn Rubino