Jason Smiekel

* Mirror, mirror, on the wall, which is the fairest firm of them all? According to the 2012 Acritas Brand Index survey, the current leader of the Global 100 is the most powerful Biglaw brand for the fifth year in a row. [American Lawyer]

* But that might not last for long, considering the dilemma Baker & McKenzie is facing when it comes to joining the Shanghai Bar Association in China. The firm is one of the first to indicate that it’ll take the plunge. [Wall Street Journal]

* Thanks to the Second Circuit, Rajat Gupta will be a free man on bail pending the appeal of his insider trading conviction. We wonder what Benula Bensam would have to say about this new twist. [DealBook / New York Times]

* Jason Smiekel, the lawyer who pleaded guilty in a murder-for-hire plot involving a former client, was sentenced to eight and a half years in federal prison. The things men will do for HHHBs. [Chicago Tribune]

* Student loan payments: coming to a paycheck deduction near you! Congress is considering an overhaul of the country’s student debt collection practices, and Rep. Tom Petri has some interesting ideas. [Bloomberg]

* The Cleveland-Marshall College of Law is the latest school to hop aboard the solo practice incubator train, but graduates will have to rent their office space from the school. Nice. /sarcasm [National Law Journal]

* “We didn’t file this complaint lightly.” Sorry, Judge Norman, but as it turns out, you can’t just sentence a teenager to attend church for 10 years as a condition of parole without pissing off the ACLU. [Tulsa World]

* When your alterations cost more than your wedding gown, it’s pretty much a given that you’ll have some problems — ones worth suing over, if you’re a true bridezilla (like moi). [Thomson Reuters News & Insight]

Jason W. Smiekel, the attorney accused of taking out a hit on a former client (who also happened to be the ex-husband of Smiekel’s fiancée), has taken a plea deal....

Last month, federal law enforcement officials accused an Illinois attorney from a small firm, Jason W. Smiekel, of trying to put a hit out on a former client -- who also happened to be the ex-husband of Smiekel’s fiancée. Alas, if they are in love, their love may have to wait, thanks to the latest bad news for Smiekel....

It's not every day that a small firm lawyer is accused of murder for hire. But that's what happened earlier this month, when Illinois lawyer Jason W. Smiekel was accused of trying to put a hit out on a former client....

Chicago is a beautiful city in the summer, but some of its attorneys are facing ugly allegations. What's going on with Reema Bajaj, the rather attractive Illinois lawyer accused of prostitution? And what's going on with Jason Smiekel, the Illinois lawyer accused in a murder-for-hire plot? Read on to find out....

* Some bloggers stand up to dubious defamation lawsuits. [Techdirt] * And some settle: St. Thomas Law (or its insurer) is paying $5,000 to Joseph Rakofsky. [Simple Justice] * Another day, another lawyer accused of trying to kill someone — but not succeeding. (We might have more to say about this case next week; send […]