Edward Snowden

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.23.20

* A lawyer for Edward Snowden claims the whistleblower has received permanent residency from Russia. Guess he'll be going without Hot Pockets for a while longer... [New York Daily News] * A judge has thrown out the Trump Campaign's lawsuit against New Jersey's mail-in-voting plans. [Politico] * A Pennsylvania lawyer who was disbarred in 2000 for substance abuse issues and criminal convictions was denied reinstatement, even though he completed rehabilitation. [Bloomberg Law] * President Trump has seemingly selected his pick to replace Judge Amy Coney Barrett on the Seventh Circuit. [Chicago Tribune] * Walmart has sued the federal government in anticipation of being litigated against for opioid claims. [Wall Street Journal]

By Jordan Rothman
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 09.18.19

* The Judicial Conference of the United States convened yesterday, but not one word was said about the allegations against Justice Brett Kavanaugh or the procedures in place to address misconduct for those of his ilk (i.e., appellate judges who are elevated to the Supreme Court). So much for that... [National Law Journal] * "He does not want to sue the New York Times. That's going to open up a Pandora's box for him." But if he did, could Justice Kavanaugh sue the Times for libel and win? Unlikely. [Fox News] * The Justice Department filed suit against NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden for failing to turn over his book to the government for clearance before it was published, and now the DOJ wants all proceeds earned from sales to be turned over instead. [CNBC] * Did you think law school was full of jerks? Think again. According to the results of the latest Law School Survey of Student Engagement, law students are actually quite nice, thank you very much. [Law.com] * In case you missed it, Robert Cicale, the Long Island judge who allegedly broke into a former intern's home to steal her panties, pleaded guilty to attempted burglary and will have to register as a sex offender. [New York Post]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 09.15.16

* A considered case for pardoning Edward Snowden by Timothy Edgar, who was on the team responsible during the George W. Bush administration for determining that most of the secret surveillance programs had a firm basis in law. [Lawfare] * The Virginia Supreme Court denied an effort by Republican legislators to find Governor McAuliffe in contempt over an effort to restore voting rights to felons. [Richmond Times-Dispatch] * The "Urban Cowboy" threatens to sue New York City. Most importantly, he's lawyered up with Richard Luthmann, the Staten Island lawyer who previously sought trial by combat. This should be fun. [Gothamist] * An omnibus look at what the election means for the courts. Beyond Justice Peter Thiel, of course. [Law.com] * Many University of Chicago professors have denounced the "no safe spaces" publicity stunt from a few weeks ago, but the law school has largely missed the point of the dispute stayed out of the fray. [WSJ Law Blog] * You don't see many paeans to the Lochner era, but here's one. [Library of Law and Liberty] * Oregon has settled with Oracle over the state's troubled health exchange. [Oregonlive] * Walking meetings improve productivity. Yeah, I've watched West Wing reruns too. [TaxProf Blog] * ATL Editor Kathryn Rubino talks politics on the latest Today's Verdict. [BronxNet]

By Joe Patrice
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 06.06.16

* Not your most typical legal job: the life of a PETA lawyer. [WSJ Law Blog] * Joe Scarborough has weighed in on Donald Trump's statement about Judge Gonzalo Curiel's Mexican heritage. For the record, the former Republic Congressman thinks "[i]t's completely racist." [Politico] * Based on comments Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton have made, what will our next Supreme Court justice be like? [Empirical SCOTUS] * They may hate him, but with the perspective of three years, it is clear Edward Snowden actually helped the legal intelligence community. [Lawfare] * Donald Trump "fought back" against Elizabeth Warren, saying she made a "quick killing" in real estate after the economic downturn, but what do you know? Facts suggest otherwise (namely that she bought real estate in Oklahoma to help her family and their construction business). [Washington Post] * You can win an early copy of The Curve, a brand new novel by Jeremy Blachman and Cameron Stracher, about a corrupt Trump University-style law school. They've set up a website for the fake law school in the book, and would love readers to check it out and submit their own worst law school story for a chance to win an advance copy. [Manhattan Law School] * Who knows what the composition of the Court will be like when they hear it, but the Supreme Court will take on another racial gerrymandering case. [Election Law Blog] * The D.C. Disciplinary Counsel took seven years to pass judgment on an administrative law judge who sued a dry cleaner for $60 million over a pair of pants. [Legal Profession Blog] * What Muhammad Ali lost when he went to the Supreme Court. [Slate] * Using the life of a passed appellate attorney as inspiration for practice. [Guile is Good] * Does a sound legal case exist for indicting Hillary Clinton? [Beck's Law] * BuzzFeed turns down cold hard cash over its decision to turn away Trump for President ads. [Buzzfeed] * The "Gig Economy" -- things are only getting worse for adjunct professors. [Law and More]

By Kathryn Rubino
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 06.01.16

* The Justice Department is seeking a stay of Judge Andrew Hanen's benchslap and order of ethics training while it appeals the ruling -- a ruling the DOJ says could cost approximately $5 million to $8 million to comply with. [Texas Lawyer] * Cheryl D. Mills, chief of staff to Hillary Clinton at the State Department, wishes that the issue of Clinton's private email server "had been something we thought about." [New York Times] * Jim Lewis, counsel to Sigfredo Garcia, the man charged last week with the murder of Professor Dan Markel, maintains that Garcia had "had nothing to do with" the crime. [Tallahassee Democrat] * Former attorney general Eric Holder says NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden performed a "public service" by sparking a debate over government surveillance -- but still must pay a price for his illegal actions. [CNN] * The Fourth Circuit holds that the police don't need a warrant to obtain a person's cellphone location data. [How Appealing] * In other Fourth Circuit news, the court won't go en banc to rehear its prior ruling in favor of the Obama Administration's policy that transgender students are protected under existing civil rights law (aka the "transgender bathroom case"). [BuzzFeed via How Appealing] * Those unsealed Trump University documents we mentioned yesterday? They don't put the Donald in the best light. [New York Times] * And Donald Trump isn't getting much financial love from the legal community, as measured by campaign contributions (c'mon, Jones Day lawyers, help your client out). [American Lawyer] * Judge Joseph Portelli of New Jersey, recently reprimanded for alleged inappropriate comments to counsel, gets renominated to the bench. [ABA Journal] * Legal Eagle Wedding Watch: congratulations and best wishes to acclaimed novelist (and Dentons partner) Scott Turow and fellow lawyer Adriane Glazier -- who first met when he interviewed her years ago for a summer associate gig. [New York Times]

By David Lat
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 03.23.16

* The Supreme Court is behind some of the epic lines voters have experienced during the primaries. [The Nation] * Did Justice Kennedy just reveal himself to be hostile to the contraception mandate accommodation in today's oral arguments in Zubik v. Burwell? [Slate] * Senator Pat Toomey may be caving on the Merrick Garland front -- the Pennsylvania Republican has agreed to take a meeting with the judge. [Politico] * This is the actual problem with the most recent interpretation of Superman. [Lawyers, Guns and Money] * Making the connection between reproductive freedom and LGBTQ rights. [Huffington Post] * Opining on the ultimate fate of Edward Snowden. [Law and More] * Charting the spread of marijuana legalization. [Pacific Standard Magazine]

By Kathryn Rubino
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 09.29.15

* Chattels, bailment, and your car: What everyone needs to know. [Adequate Man] * What would the tax code look like if Donald Trump were president? A lot like Donald Trump actually. [Dealbreaker] * If it looks like a duck bribe, swims like a duck bribe, and quacks like a duck bribe, then it probably is protected speech??? [Slate] * We know bar exam results are getting worse, but does that impact Biglaw? [Bloomberg BNA] * What is really behind Edward Snowden's new Twitter account? [Law and More] * Fordham Law professor does a deep dive into the psyche of a Republican voter. Scary. [Huffington Post] * In which reason and passion are equal partners in the law. [Guile is Good] * Consumers seeking litigation financing are smarter than you think. [Mighty]

By Kathryn Rubino
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 03.05.15

* According to the latest data from NALP, summer associate hiring is up for the fifth year in a row. Hooray! But wait, don't go licking each other's popsicles just yet -- some law firms (35 percent of them, in fact) actually reduced the number of offers they made. [National Law Journal] * In response to outcry over bar exam reforms, this Dechert partner took time out of his day to wonder: "Is it too much to expect that future lawyers know the difference between a tort and a tenancy in common, or do we expect clients to pay them $400 an hour to learn it?" [Wall Street Journal] * Now that oral arguments in King v. Burwell have concluded, it's probably time you found out what's at stake for you if you haven't done so already, procrastinators. This is what will happen if SCOTUS strikes down Obamacare subsidies. [WSJ Law Blog] * Edward Snowden is reportedly ready to return to the United States, provided, of course, that he'll receive a "legal and impartial trial." Attorney General Eric Holder has already promised Snowden that he won't face the death penalty, so that's a start. [CNN] * An ADA in Texas apparently referred to defense counsel as a "motherf*cker" in front of jurors during a trial. We think now would be a great time to add this to the list of things that will get you kicked off a case. [Austin American-Statesmen via ABA Journal]

By Staci Zaretsky
Cars

Morning Docket: 10.24.14

* Thanks to this Government Accountability Office ruling, the company that cleared NSA leaker Edward Snowden and Navy Yard shooter Aaron Alexis may lose a $210M contract. [Legal Times] * After being acquitted on insider trading charges, Rengan Rajaratnam agreed to settle the civil suit filed against him for a cool $840K. At least he’s not in jail like his brother. [DealBook / New York Times] * Those interested in going to law school may want to know that Philadelphia is purportedly home to some of the cheapest law schools in the country — not Penn Law, though, sorry ’bout that. [Main Street] * Professors at WUSTL Law held a “teach-in” to discuss the Michael Brown police shooting case. According to them, the likelihood Darren Wilson will be federally charged is “slim to none.” [Student Life] * Attack of the aggrieved ex: a man drove a burning pickup truck loaded with explosives into a law firm, destroying much of the building. He had apparently dated one of the firm’s former clients. [Virginian-Pilot]

By Staci Zaretsky