Don McGahn

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.26.19

* Donald Trump won't stop tweeting about the Mueller report, most recently claiming that he "never told then White House Counsel Don McGahn to fire Robert Mueller." Meanwhile, the president's allies would really like it if he just STFU about it. [POLITICO] * Federal prosecutors have charged Judge Shelley Richmond Joseph of Massachusetts with obstruction and perjury for allegedly allowing an undocumented immigrant to leave a courthouse through a back door to prevent immigration authorities from conducting an arrest. [USA Today] * Reed Smith, which represents Concord Management and Consulting, the Russian company indicted in special counsel Robert Mueller's probe, has asked that both Mueller and AG Bill Barr be held in contempt over the redacted release of the Mueller report. [National Law Journal] * The ugly side of fashion law: A senior in-house attorney at LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton Inc. has filed suit against the company, claiming that she was sexually harassed by a male coworker and punished for reporting it. [New York Law Journal] * Weil Gotshal is willing to pay big money to pre-law students who've been accepted at certain T14 schools for doing nonprofit work. The Biglaw firm is planning to fork over $1 million a year so these up-and-coming law students can work at public interest jobs. [Big Law Business]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.24.19

* Impending constitutional crisis alert: President Trump is opposed to his White House aides -- especially former White House Counsel, "real lawyer" Don McGahn -- testifying before Congress because they already cooperated with special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. [Washington Post] * Meanwhile, fake lawyer Michael Cohen, who served as legal counsel to Trump for about decade, will soon report to his Federal Correctional Institution - Otisville, which has been referred to as a "castle behind bars." At least he'll get to hang out with The Situation. [Daily Beast] * Bill Cosby is suing Quinn Emanuel over its "unconscionable fees," claiming that the firm overstaffed his case to the tune of $8.55 million over the course of nine months. Maybe stop checking you emails so much? [American Lawyer] * George and Amal Clooney will be on campus at Columbia Law tomorrow for the official launch of TrialWatch, an initiative that will monitor trials acros the globe to protect human rights and eventually create a global justice index. [Law.com] * Another happy ending for Robert Kraft (for the time being): Prosecutors have been blocked from releasing footage that allegedly shows the New England Patriots owner receiving sexual favors in a massage parlor. [Reuters] * On the next episode of "Empire," Olabinjo and Abimbola Osundairo, the brothers who helped stage a racist and homophobic attack against Jussie Smollett, will file a defamation lawsuit against the actor's attorneys. [Big Law Business] * Cooley Law has a new president and dean following the departure of Don LeDuc. James McGrath will join the school from Texas A&M Law, where he serves as associate dean of academic support and bar services. Good luck! [WMU Cooley Law]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.23.19

* Government wants jurors told that prosecution entirely over the NCAA's rules and overarching structure isn't about the NCAA. [Law360] * Don McGahn joins the ranks of "people getting subpoeaned. [Washington Post] * Speaking of McGahn, he reportedly told people that as White House Counsel he represented "pictures on the wall" and not Trump. What's impressive about this story is this means Trump hasn't replaced the entire White House art collections with Jon McNaughton. [National Law Journal] * Chalking tires for parking enforcement declared unconstitutional. [NBC News] * Wilmer partner joins forces massing near Winterfell. [American Lawyer] * Bob Kraft has inspired other massage guests to sue authorities. Given recent revelations that this may not have been a human trafficking operation as the cops originally suggested, the moral high ground momentum is swinging to Kraft and the gang's side. [Courthouse News Service] * Iowa facing challenge of its comically bad "Ag-gag" law. [Minneapolis Star Tribune]

By Joe Patrice
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.22.19

* Impeachment proceedings are “possibly coming”: It’s got a little less oomph than the Game of Thrones tagline that the president is a fan of commandeering, but House Democrats are working on it in the wake of the Mueller report’s findings. [NBC News] * Per Trump’s personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, there’s “nothing wrong with taking information from Russians.” And besides which, “Who says it’s even illegal?” But would he have done the same when he was running for president? “I probably wouldn’t. I wasn’t asked.” Good to know. Thanks for clarifying, Mr. Mayor. [Washington Post] * “Why in the world would you want to put your enemy on the payroll?” Donald Trump is so pissed off at “real lawyer” and former White House counsel Don McGahn that Jones Day will be kicked off campaign work that could have been worth millions. [POLITICO] * According to the latest data from the American Bar Association, the bar pass rate for first-time exam takers in 2018 was 74.82 percent, down from 77.34 percent in 2017. Hopefully things will get better in 2019. [ABA Journal] * Less is now more when it comes to Supreme Court briefs. Thanks to a new rules change, appellate advocates will only have 13,000 words to work with, down from 15,000. [National Law Journal]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 03.04.19

* Was Michael Cohen involved in any talk about potential pardons? Lawmakers are now very interested in exploring this topic to find out if anyone was allegedly obstructing justice. [Washington Post] * As we've been hearing for a while now, special counsel Robert Mueller will submit his final report soon, and it's going to turn into a political firestorm. [Bloomberg] * Meanwhile, Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, says it’s "very clear" that President Trump obstructed justice in Mueller's probe, and he’s sending out document requests for his own investigation. [Chicago Tribune] * Thomas Reid is out as the managing partner of Davis Polk after accepting the role of general counsel at Comcast. Congratulations and best of luck! [Corporate Counsel] * No one could have possibly seen this one coming: After his stint as White House counsel, Don McGahn will be returning to Jones Day. [National Law Journal] * Michael Cohen was disbarred just days ago, but it's possible he could practice law again the future. It won't be easy, of course, but it could happen. [Big Law Business] * Yay, more law schools... Concordia Law and Lincoln Memorial Law were granted full accreditation by the American Bar Association this weekend. [KTVB 7; WATE 6]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 11.21.18

* President Trump pardoned two turkeys yesterday with a stern warning that "House Democrats are likely to issue them both subpoenas," and that he couldn't "guarantee that [their] pardons won't be enjoined by the Ninth Circuit" since it "[a]lways happens." [NBC News] * In case you missed it, and we're pretty sure that's exactly what was intended here given the timing, President Trump submitted written answers to special counsel Robert Mueller's questions regarding Russian interference with the 2016 election. [Washington Post] * That's our Trumpy! He also wanted to order the Justice Department to prosecute his 2016 opponent Hillary Clinton and former FBI director James Comey, and reportedly only backed down when he heard he could be impeached. [New York Times] * Biglaw partners are leaving their firms to become judges, and it's because ex-White House counsel Don McGahn picked people just like him -- "traditional, conservative, blue-ribbon, white-shoe law firm lawyers" -- to fill vacancies. [American Lawyer] * Retired Justice Anthony Kennedy, a staunch defender of LGBT rights who helped keep a woman's right to choose legal, will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Lawyer next month. Congratulations, Your Honor! [American Lawyer] * Seattle University School of Law has suspended its externship program with ICE after students signed a petition stating that the agency goes against the school's mission to "empower[] leaders for a just and humane world." [Seattle Times]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 11.15.18

* Michael Avenatti arrested on domestic violence charges. There's not a lot of detail yet -- initial reports indicated his ex-wife made the call, but when reporters talked to her, she debunked that. [Vox] * We should be seeing a CNN case ruling today. Does anyone else feel like Don McGahn's absence looms over all of this? Like, he'd have put a stop to this nonsense out of the gate, wouldn't he? [National Law Journal] * This was, literally, a sitcom. [The Recorder] * Law firms aren't up to snuff when it comes to cybersecurity. [Law360] * Jeff Flake says he'll block all judicial nominees until he gets some guarantees about the sanctity of the Mueller probe. We're all looking forward to watching him cave on this like he has everything else. [Courthouse News Service] * You can't copyright a cheese. In case you were wondering. [Washington Post]

By Joe Patrice
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.05.18

* Don McGahn may be leaving the Trump administration, but he still wants his Supreme Court nominee to be confirmed. Sources say it was the outgoing White House counsel who advised Judge Brett Kavanaugh to "show his emotions and true feelings" during his Senate hearing. [Wall Street Journal] * And it was Judge Kavanaugh's "emotions and true feelings" which led him to write an apology piece of sorts, where he admitted that he "might have been too emotional at times." Not to worry, because we can still "count on [him]" if he's confirmed since he's an "independent, impartial judge." [Wall Street Journal] * Meanwhile, a procedural vote to limit debate on Kavanaugh's nomination will be held today at 10:30 a.m., which will set the stage for a confirmation vote to be held. The final vote may have to be rescheduled to get a majority, however, because one Republican senator will be at his daughter's wedding. [CBS News] * Dawn Knepper, the former Ogletree partner who is suing the firm in a $300M gender bias suit, is speaking out about what motivated her to sue the firm in the first place, and whether she thinks the case will affect her legal career. [American Lawyer] * "It’s absolutely shocking." According to a new study conducted by two law professors and an economist, plunging law school enrollment between 2010 and 2016 caused schools to lose about $1.5 billion in tuition each year. Yikes... [Law.com]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 09.12.18

* Law schools in North and South Carolina have canceled classes for the foreseeable future so that students, faculty, and staff can evacuate the area and hunker down before Hurricane Florence arrives. Please be careful and stay safe, everyone. [Law.com] * President Trump is eager to choose Emmet Flood to succeed Don McGahn as the next White House counsel. Ty Cobb, one of Trump's former lawyers, is in Flood's camp because he's "battled investigations from the White House before—[and] that’s what will be coming." [Wall Street Journal] * Earlier this week, Bob Woodward said that former Trump attorney John Dowd told the president he couldn't testify in the Russia investigation because he's "disabled" and "can't tell the truth." That sounds just about right. [People] * The University of California Berkeley School of Law may soon be doing away with almost all references to John Henry Boalt thanks to his racist views. Public comment on the issue will close on Halloween, and then Dean Erwin Chemerinsky may formally apply to dename Boalt Hall. Let's see what happens with this one. [ABA Journal] * "This is clear interference with an ongoing criminal investigation." Representatives from the New York state tax department reportedly met with Michael Cohen's attorney yesterday over the objections of Southern District of New York. [CNN] * A family of conspiracy theorists: Donald Trump Jr. says he's not worried about going to jail as a result of Robert Mueller's Russia probe, but "[t]hat doesn't mean they won't try to create something" that could put him in jail. [USA Today]

By Staci Zaretsky