Daniel Hemel

Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 10.14.18

* Adam Feldman examines the historical record to look at how Justice Brett Kavanaugh's brutal confirmation process could affect his jurisprudence. [Empirical SCOTUS] * And Joel Cohen looks at how Justice Kavanaugh's confirmation fight might affect his judging of the accused. [Law and Crime] * Meanwhile, David Oscar Markus argues that criminal defendants in federal court get treated much worse than Justice Kavanaugh. [The Hill] * Jemele Hill points out the support and sympathy for Justice Kavanaugh from a possibly surprising quarter: African-American men. [The Atlantic] * Packing the Supreme Court? There ought to be a constitutional amendment about that, Jim Lindgren says. [Volokh Conspiracy / Reason] * In fact, is it time for progressives to fight against, rather than within, the courts? Howard Wasserman offers thoughts on the recent Slate debate between Daniel Hemel and Christopher Jon Sprigman. [PrawfsBlawg] * Patrick Gregory reports on the latest controversy in the world of lower-court nominations: the ABA's "not qualified" rating of Eighth Circuit nominee Jonathan Kobes. [Big Law Business] * Edmund Zagorski has multiple legal challenges to his execution (which is now on hold); former federal defender Stephen Cooper looks at the one based on the method of execution. [Tennessean] * Congratulations to Pedro Hernandez on the dismissal of his case -- and to his counsel, Alex Spiro of Quinn Emanuel, on the great result. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2YPLmtwkug

By David Lat
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 06.17.18

* Are you paying too much in mutual-fund fees? If you're paying more than zero, then yes -- or so argue Professors William Birdthistle and Daniel Hemel in this interesting and persuasive op-ed. [Wall Street Journal] * James Comey, FBI director turned author (affiliate link), responds to the criticisms of him in the Inspector General's report. [Althouse] * It's complicated -- but just how complicated? Adam Feldman uses word counts and citations to measure opinion complexity during the current Term of the Supreme Court. [Empirical SCOTUS] * Judge Alex Kozinski (Ret.) pays tribute to the memory of his late colleague on the Ninth Circuit, Judge Stephen Reinhardt. [Concurring Opinions] * If you're confused by why the latest Obamacare litigation over the individual mandate matters, since the mandate was rendered toothless by the recent tax reform, Professor Ilya Somin can help. [Volokh Conspiracy / Reason] * Ethics expert Steven Lubet reviews Ryan Holiday's book (affiliate link) about the Hulk Hogan/Gawker case -- and argues that Peter Thiel's financing of the litigation might have violated legal ethics. [American Prospect via PrawfsBlawg] * Thomson Reuters, a leader in applying artificial intelligence in the law -- we're partnering with them on our Law2020 series, exploring how AI is affecting the legal profession -- also utilizes machine learning to help people trade cryptocurrencies (among many other use cases). [Artificial Lawyer]

By David Lat
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 01.12.18

Ed. note: We will not be publishing on Monday, January 15, in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. * Will Geoffrey Berman, acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, recuse from Deutsche Bank matters? It sure sounds like he should.... [Bloomberg Politics] * Judge Shira A. Scheindlin and Joel Cohen offer advice to companies on how to handle sexual harassment allegations in a manner consistent with due process. [Guardian] * And Glenn Reynolds has this modest proposal, also related to the problem of sexual harassment (in the federal judiciary): abolish clerkships. [Wall Street Journal] * A quartet of tax law professors explain how a proposal to transform state and local tax payments into deductible charitable contributions to state and local government organizations could actually work. [Slate] * From Biglaw to big bucks: former associates Stephen Scanlan and Travis Leon sell their law-related startup, XRef, for a cool $10 million. [RollOnFriday] * Professor Eugene Volokh: "There's a fine line between being a 'badass' and...." [Volokh Conspiracy / Reason] * "Appeals court OKs F-Bombs for federal trademark protection." F**king finally. [Techdirt] * The Dewey & LeBoeuf criminal case ends with a whimper: former accounting manager Victoria Harrington just got sentenced to unconditional release (i.e., no prison time). [Law360]

By David Lat