FanDuel

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 11.21.16

* Despite the fact that President-elect Trump has called for the cast of "Hamilton" to apologize to Vice President-elect Pence for delivering a message to him after the show, Pence handled it well, saying he "wasn't offended," and that he reminded his kids that the mixture of boos and cheers from the audience as he took his seat was "what freedom sounds like." [PLAYBILL] * President-elect Donald Trump may be able to get a pretty hefty tax write-off for settling the Trump University fraud case for $25 million, since according to tax lawyer Robert Wood, most business settlements are fully tax deductible. Perhaps the president-elect -- or his legal team -- really does know the tax code better than anyone else. [Forbes] * Libertarian vice presidential candidate Bill Weld is settling back into private practice after the election. The former Massachusetts governor has returned to the Boston office of Mintz Levin as a partner in the firm's government relations practice, says that being back is a "pure pleasure because you get to sit at a desk and think." [Am Law Daily] * In an effort to slash their legal bills, rival fantasy sports rivals DraftKings and FanDuel will be merging in the second half of 2017. As the two sites are market leaders and their union would likely create a monopoly, there will be some antitrust issues to review before the merger closes. We wonder which firms are working on the deal. [Reuters] * Kaplan's Concord Law School, an unaccredited, for-profit, online-only institution, is petitioning several states to allow its students to sit for the bar exam. California is the only state that allows Concord graduates to sit for its bar exam, and their passage rate for first-timers on the July 2015 administration of the exam was 25 percent. [ABA Journal]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 03.22.16

* WHATCHA GONNA DO, BROTHER, WHEN THIS JURY'S PUNITIVE DAMAGES AWARD RUNS WILD ON YOU?!? Gawker was hit with an additional $25M in punitive damages yesterday in Hulk Hogan's sex-tape lawsuit, on top of the $115M award the jury had already slapped the media company with last week. That loud typing sound you hear is the appeals being furiously written. [Reuters] * They were gonna grant you leave to file, but then they got high? The Supreme Court has puff, puff, passed on the opportunity to hear a challenge posed by Nebraska and Oklahoma to Colorado's legalization of marijuana. Justices Thomas and Alito dissented, contending that the case fell within the Supreme Court's original jurisdiction. [NPR] * This took longer than the iOS 9 download: Hot on the heels of the announcement of new Apple products, we got the news that the tech giant and its rival, Samsung, will face off next term before SCOTUS in a patent case that's been going on since the iPhone 4 was still considered the latest and greatest in smartphone technology. [WSJ Law Blog] * "Once you start seeing leading law firms offering this, it's going to become more prevalent and pretty rapidly, because it's going to be required to compete." Lawyers with law school debt will probably jump at the chance for their firms to pitch in to repay their loans, but don't forget, all of that assistance will be taxable as income. [U.S. News] * "My job is to enforce the law, and starting today, DraftKings and FanDuel will abide by it." In a settlement reached with New York AG Eric Schneiderman, the sports betting daily fantasy sites will cease operations in the state, and in exchange, the AG will hold off on additional litigation that could force them to pay restitution to their losers. [ESPN]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 01.22.16

* Pharma bro Martin Shkreli was subpoenaed to appear before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, so of course he took to Twitter like a mature adult to bemoan the encroachment upon his constitutional rights. [Washington Post] * Jell-O pudding pops for all! A judge dismissed a defamation suit filed against Bill Cosby and his lawyers, ruling that denials made in response to accusations are protected by the First Amendment. [Reuters] * "For him to be arguing now that there ought to be tort reform is completely hypocritical." It looks like Ted Cruz's record for winning large damages awards for clients in personal injury cases may be coming back to haunt him. [Wall Street Journal] * U.S. states aren't permitted to declare bankruptcy, but some say it's a better option than a taxpayer bailout. Puerto Rico, on the other hand, doesn't need to file bankruptcy -- it just needs "an orderly process to restructure its debts." [Bloomberg Businessweek] * Because everyone needs a Hail Mary: As DraftKings and FanDuel take on state attorneys general in the fight to remain in business, both daily fantasy sports websites have started lobbying Congress in the hopes of changing state gambling policies. [CNBC]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 01.12.16

* Based on reading the oral-argument tea leaves, it sounds like the Supreme Court is about to school the teachers' unions (and public-sector unions more generally). [How Appealing] * Ring in the new year by making the register ring: a slew of Biglaw firms have secured (presumably lucrative) engagements working on the proposed $32 billion merger between drug makers Shire Plc and Baxalta Inc. [American Lawyer] * By a vote of 82-6, and after a wait of more than 400 days, the Senate just confirmed Judge Luis Felipe Restrepo to the Third Circuit, making him the first Hispanic federal judge from Pennsylvania to sit on that court. [Associated Press] * Good news for fantasy-sports fans: it's not (yet) "game over" for DraftKings and FanDuel, thanks to a stay issued by a New York appellate court. [Bloomberg News] * And bad news for student-loan-saddled law grads (like our own Shannon Achimalbe) who were hoping that SCOTUS might make it easier to discharge such debts through bankruptcy. [Wall Street Journal via ABA Journal] * Does Sean Penn face legal risk for his interview of El Chapo, the infamous Mexican drug lord? [ABA Journal] * A former federal prosecutor just secured a six-figure settlement and reinstatement from the Justice Department. [National Law Journal] * U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara -- who came so, so close to winning Lawyer of the Year honors -- announced that Governor Mario Cuomo is off the legal hook for his controversial shutdown of the Moreland Commission, a panel aimed at investigating public corruption. [Law360] * Avvo is starting to roll out a service featuring fixed-fee, limited-scope legal services through a network of attorneys (and Bob Ambrogi has the scoop). [Law Sites] * Professor Peter J. Henning explores the implications of the end of the government case against hedge fund magnate Steve Cohen. [DealBook / New York Times]

By David Lat
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 12.28.15

* The lawsuit the Bernie Sanders campaign filed against the Democratic National Committee is far from over. Will a "full investigation from top to bottom" reveal that the DNC was trying to burn the Bern in the polls? [Yahoo!] * It seems like the whole two-year law school gambit isn't working out as planned, but maybe that's because it hasn't been properly executed yet. Sorry, Northwestern, but we're really not sorry for saying that. [DealBook / New York Times] * DraftKings and FanDuel threw the challenge flag after Illinois AG Lisa Madigan declared that daily fantasy sports betting was illegal in her state. Gibson Dunn and Boies Schiller hope review of the play won't result in another "Fail Mary." [Chicago Tribune] * "I thought I was the only person who felt that way." Feeling left out at law school? USC Law is trying to make legal education a little less intimidating for students who are the first in their family to attend institutions of higher education. [Los Angeles Times] * iDamages: If you thought Apple liked gouging its customers, then you should see what it does to its adversaries. Samsung just paid the company more than $548 million in patent infringement damages, but Apple wants about $180 million more. [Reuters]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 11.16.15

* DraftKings and FanDuel aren't going to take a knee and allow New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman to rip away their gamblers clients. Both daily fantasy sites have refused to stop conducting business in New York, and have instead filed suit against Schneiderman with some hefty Biglaw backing. [WSJ Law Blog] * During a recent speaking engagement at the University of St. Thomas School of Law, Justice Antonin Scalia explained why he writes such scathingly quotable dissents: "I’m writing dissents mainly for you guys—for law students. I know it will be in the casebooks." [University of St. Thomas NewsRoom] * SCOTUS granted cert in a challenge to Texas abortion laws, and some wonder how this decision will affect other states' laws. If the justices don't think these restrictions represent an undue burden, then women may as well hang up their ovaries and go home. [Reuters] * We'll have to rely on old faithful, Justice RBG, to raise the torch for women. She recently sat down for tea with Gloria Steinem to discuss women's rights. "Ruth is better at getting along with people with whom we profoundly disagree," says Steinem. [New York Times] * The "least sexy" part of a merger? If you want to know what took the Dentons / Dacheng merger so long to be formalized, Dentons CEO Elliott Portnoy says it had to do with website, logo, communications, and marketing issues. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 11.13.15

* Gaming laws are incoherent and inconsistent... do go on. Check out Steve Silver's appearance on the Dan Patrick Show. [NBC Sports] * Lady lawyers: Do you drink more to impress partners? [Corporette] * How's this for a thought experiment? If Mozart were a lawyer, what would his closing argument look like? (It's a truck question -- he'd probably settle.) [Jurispire] * The coming elections are really inspiring people to be dumb. Especially when the future of the Supreme Court gets bandied about. [Lawyers, Guns and Money] * Advice for hitting your yearly billable targets -- 6 minutes at a time. [Daily Lawyer Tips]

By Kathryn Rubino
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 11.11.15

* A person of interest in the shooting of Texas Judge Julie Kocurek has been apprehended and arrested -- not for the shooting, mind you, but for a completely unrelated crime. Judge Kocurek continues her steady recovery after being seriously injured not by a bullet, but by shrapnel and glass. [Austin American-Statesman] * Barnes & Thornburg partner Vincent “Trace” Schmeltz may be sanctioned for tweeting pictures that he took of the evidence that was presented during a trial. He claims he didn't see the huge sign outside the courtroom prohibiting “photographing, recording or broadcasting." [Chicago Tribune via ABA Journal] * Schneiderman, Schneiderman! Bans sports-betting wherever he can! New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman issued a cease-and-desist order against DraftKings and FanDuel, saying the daily fantasy sites constituted illegal gambling. [New York Times] * Dentons finally formalized its merger with Dacheng Law Offices yesterday, thus making it the official largest law firm in the world. At 6,600 lawyers strong, just think about how many scandals we'll be able to cover in 2016. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg BNA] * According to the Diversity & Flexibility Alliance, more women are being welcomed into the ranks of partnership at major firms. Out of 118 firms, women made up 34.4 percent of new partner classes. Let's celebrate that less-than-50-percent benchmark! [WSJ Law Blog] * Fred Auston Wortman III, the Tennessee attorney who tried to murder his estranged wife, Staci, by lacing her toothpaste with poison, and later hired an inmate to do the deed after his plan failed, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison. [Commercial Appeal] * Here are three ways you can balance your law school applications with your college responsibilities, but to be honest, if you're having trouble balancing these things, then perhaps you don't belong in law school. [Law Admissions Lowdown / U.S. News]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.08.15

* Remember the judge who challenged a public defender to a fistfight in court? He was suspended by the Florida Supreme Court, and has 20 days to explain why he should keep his job. With all due respect, your great right hook isn't a good enough reason, Your Honor. [Florida Today] * Screw the historic SCOTUS decision, because this Alabama probate judge really doesn't want to issue same-sex marriage licenses. In fact, he doesn't think any judges in the state should have to do so. He wants the federal government to issue them instead. [AL.com] * In the wake of the latest daily fantasy sports scandal involving DraftKings, FanDuel has hired the kind of legal representation that you'd want on your team for a Hail Mary play. Hut! Hut! Hike! Time to suit up, Debevoise and Kirkland. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg] * The University of Chicago Law School has a new dean. We'd like to wish a warm welcome to Thomas Miles, a "rookie dean" who likely has enough prestige points under his belt to lead one of the best law schools in the nation with great ease. [Crain's Chicago Business] * Today is the 25th Annual National Depression Screening Day, so if you're a lawyer or a law student who's feeling anxious or depressed, please feel free to take an anonymous online screening quiz. There are people and programs who can help you. [Am Law Daily]

By Staci Zaretsky