Confederate flag

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.22.20

* A lawyer who got ejected from the Second Circuit last year is asking the Supreme Court to hear his case. Since the high court is conducting arguments by phone currently, maybe he'll just get hung up on. [New York Law Journal] * A lawyer who stole $128,000 from a mentally ill client has been suspended from practice. [Bloomberg Law] * Missouri has become the first U.S. state to sue China over the COVID-19 pandemic. Not sure this is a distinction to be proud of. [U.S. News and World Report] * A Texas judge has been forced to take down a rainbow flag after an attorney filed a complaint and compared the symbol to a swastika and Confederate flag. [Hill] * Attorney General Barr has called stay-at-home orders "disturbingly close to house arrest" and the Justice Department might take actions against states that go too far. [NBC News] * Lawyers are having a difficult time determining if COVID-19 is an act of God. Maybe they should subpoena the Almighty to get more clarity... [Bloomberg Law]

By Jordan Rothman
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 06.24.15

* Justice Thomas parted with his conservative brethren on the Confederate flag case, but was it a product of his experience as an African-American? Don't bet on it. [The Volokh Conspiracy / Washington Post] * A jury awarded $500,000 to a patient after doctors mocked him while anesthetized. For example, the anesthesiologist said, "I wanted to punch you in the face and man you up a little bit." Maybe it's me, but if he sued over that, it sounds like he absolutely deserved that punch in the face. [MedCity News] * This title says it all, "I Am An Adjunct Law Professor Who Teaches Five Classes. I Earn Less Than A Pet-Sitter." [TaxProf Blog] * Have you ever wondered how blind people perceive and experience race? Really interesting findings from Professor Osagie K. Obasogie of UC Hastings Law. [Buzzfeed] * This may come as a shock, but a report finds that prosecutors cared more about securing convictions than protecting the public. [The Times-Picayune] * When we say the immigration system is broken, this is what we mean: 15-year resident with a Columbia Law degree about to be deported. [Vox] * In honor of the anniversary of Jaws last week, an examination of Quint's legal duties to Brody and Hooper. When you consider his potential liability, perhaps he was better off getting eaten. [The Legal Geeks] * Federal government paying to scour sewage in Washington state to learn about pot usage post legalization. Note to federal government: they're the dirty hippies, not you. [Seattle Times]

By Joe Patrice
Celebrities

Morning Docket: 07.16.14

* Per the latest Gallup study, Republican approval of SCOTUS is up, while Democratic approval is down. Gee, considering how the biggest cases of OT 2013 went down, no one should be terribly surprised by this news. [New York Times] * Will our leader make the grade? Law profs wrote a strongly worded letter to President Obama, asking that he not include a religious exemption in his executive order prohibiting anti-gay bias in federal contractor hiring. [National Law Journal] * Hey guys, there’s a new report out that contains some pretty shocking information about the realities of life after law school. Seriously, who knew that would-be lawyers were poor? Oh wait, we did. [CNN Money] * Washington & Lee recently surrendered its Confederate flags to appease its black student population. Here’s an interview with Brandon Hicks, the law student behind the historic movement. [Huffington Post] * “Fret for your latte, and fret for your lawsuit.” Tool hasn’t put out a new album in in almost a decade, and it’s all because of one pesky little lawsuit filed way back in 2007 that just won’t go away. [Rolling Stone]

By Staci Zaretsky
Bankruptcy

Morning Docket: 02.11.13

* “You just sit there, looking stupid.” The justices of the Supreme Court aren’t required to show up and look like “potted plants” at the State of the Union address, but some of them do every year. [CNN] * Well, thanks to the DOJ’s fraud lawsuit filed against ratings agency Standard & Poor’s, it’s starting to look a lot like a litigation gang bang up in here as far as the states are concerned. [Bloomberg] * Dewey know whether D&L’s retirees are still kicking (legally speaking) or if they’ve decided to send their claims to hospice? We certainly do, and we’ll have more on this later. [Am Law Daily] * That “death and taxes” thing may be true, but when you’re trying to navigate the U.S. tax code as a married same-sex couple and the government won’t even recognize your union, there’s an uncomfortable air of uncertainty. [New York Times] * “Have we seceded already? The execution is faster than I thought.” Guess which state in the Deep South accidentally raised a Confederate battle flag over the building that houses its Supreme Court. [Clarion-Ledger] * Mama said knock you out: if you’re trying to figure out how to get a job after graduating from New England Law School, moonlighting as a champion boxer will help you beat down the competition. [Boston Herald]

By Staci Zaretsky
Facebook

Non-Sequiturs: 05.05.11

* Kesha’s publicist really needs to talk to Kesha’s lawyers about filing lawsuits that make Kesha Ke$ha look lame. [Thomson Reuters] * You don’t really think you’re going to get a law school to roll over and pay $40 million to snookered students like a cooking school would? Crappy law schools might not be training […]

By Elie Mystal