Jay-Z

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 05.08.18

* With NY Attorney General Eric Schneiderman resigning, the negotiations to determine his successor are in full swing. Expect someone no one has ever heard of from some upstate DA's office who will then hold the job for a decade. [New York Law Journal] * Trouble in paradise? Donald Trump reportedly frustrated with Rudy Giuliani because Fox is starting to let him know that Rudy's completely screwing him. But is he? It may be embarrassing, but if he sells the story that Cohen paid off women all the time, then it may not be a campaign law violation because it's something he does in the ordinary course. Giuliani's may be crazy like a fox. Or just crazy. [Time] * GDPR = Y2K 2018? European regulators claim they aren't ready for the planned switch over to GDPR. The law is definitely more stringent than what most of Europe was used to, but it's not wildly out of sync with what some countries were already doing. Stop hyperventilating and get it together, people. [Reuters] * The SEC wants a completely open-ended opportunity to meet with Jay-Z. He says this is unreasonable and offered them a full day of testimony. Why are we wasting a judge's time with this? Give the SEC one whole day with the right to come back to make a request for more. It's an SEC investigation, it's not Bonnie & Clyde. [Law360] * The administration may have pardoned Sheriff Joe for his crimes, but that doesn't mean the county who elected him over and over can avoid paying for it. The Ninth Circuit determined that Maricopa County is on the hook for the illegal activity Sheriff Joe perpetrated behind his badge. [The Recorder] * Forget Amazon, drones are now delivering contraband and other smuggled goods. Ah, the future. [Futurism] * A financial technology firm claims Perkins Coie and Bracewell cost it millions of dollars by leading it into a contract with Morgan Stanley without protecting it from changes the bank made to the contract. Are you saying a major bank tried to screw someone over? [American Lawyer]

By Joe Patrice
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 03.11.18

* This great profile of Chuck Cooper, by Tierney Sneed of TPM, includes more details on why he withdrew from the solicitor general sweepstakes. [Talking Points Memo] * A team from Quinn Emanuel, led by high-profile hire Alex Spiro, is repping Jay-Z in a trademark fight. Can Biglaw + Beyonce be far behind? [Hollywood Reporter] * Steven Brill, the godfather of modern legal journalism, launches his latest venture: NewsGuard, which "uses journalism to fight fake news." [Dewey B Strategic] * Speaking of "fake news," leading media lawyer Charles Glasser puts President Trump's "war on the press" in a broader, global context. [Daily Caller] * Still on the subject of POTUS v. Press, is the media being played in the Stormy Daniels drama? Joel Cohen and Dale Degenshein think so. [Law & Crime] * Strange bedfellows at One First Street: Adam Feldman looks at Supreme Court cases featuring unusual ideological alliances. [Empirical SCOTUS] * Protip for litigators and litigants: don't tick off Judge Frederic Block (or any other judge presiding over your case, for that matter). [artnet] * If our five Biglaw business development tips weren't enough for you, Jane Genova adds two more for your consideration. [Law And More] * How can technology be harnessed to bridge the justice gap? Neota Logic has some ideas. [Artificial Lawyer]

By David Lat
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 11.20.17

* President Trump has added five names to his slate of judicial candidates to fill a nonexistent vacancy on the Supreme Court. Welcome aboard to Judges Brett M. Kavanaugh (D.C. Circuit), Amy Coney Barrett (Seventh Circuit), and Kevin C. Newsom (Eleventh Circuit), as well as Justices Britt C. Grant (Georgia Supreme Court) and Patrick R. Wyrick (Oklahoma Supreme Court). [New York Times] * Did Trump obstruct justice in the Russia probe? We may soon find out. Special counsel Robert Mueller has requested all manner of documents from the Justice Department related to the firing of former FBI director James Comey. [ABC News] * In other Trump-related legal news, rather than continuing to have his re-election campaign or the Republican Party foot the bill for his legal representation in the Russia probe, the president has officially started to pay his own legal tab. [Reuters] * Ohio Supreme Court Justice Bill O'Neill, who was considering running for governor, bragged about the fact that he'd been "sexually intimate with approximately 50 very attractive females." After much backlash, he told his detractors to "lighten up" and offered a nonpology. He won't be running for governor anymore. [Washington Post] * FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is about to pull the plug on net neutrality, and Americans are too distracted by Thanksgiving to care. Luckily for us, Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel wants open hearings to take place before a vote is held. [Slate] * "Probation is a trap and we must fight for Meek and everyone else unjustly sent to prison." In the wake of rapper Meek Mill being sentenced to up to four years in prison for violating his probation, Jay-Z is letting everyone know he's got 99 problems and the way the criminal justice system treats minorities is one of them. [New York Times]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 07.27.17

* Bey and Jay-Z want to trademark their kids' names because nothing creates the nurturing environment of unconditional love children need like converting them into commodities. [The Recorder] * For lexicography nerds, a deep dive into the original definition of "emoluments." For the MAGA crowd, the English language itself is fake news. [National Law Journal] * The 2017 A-List is out! That's the American Lawyer's comprehensive ranking of law firms. No, not the Am Law 200, the other one. No, not the NLJ 500, the other one. Actually, what the f**k is the A-List? [American Lawyer] * Freshfields co-managing partner steps down. [Law.com] * Martin Shkreli not having the best of days. [Law360] * The Communications Director is calling on the FBI to investigate the Chief of Staff and put this news on Twitter. That's... not standard procedure. [Huffington Post] * A repeal and replace they can actually get done. Say goodbye to clean water regulations! [Courthouse News Service]

By Joe Patrice
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 01.12.17

* Fahrvergnügen! The DOJ charged six VW executives in the emissions-cheating scandal, arresting one in Miami. [New York Times] * Dewey think the Trustee should be able to destroy records? [Law360] * The Jeff Sessions confirmation hearing opted for the "he can't be racist, he has a black friend" strategy that absolutely, positively never fails. [Litigation Daily] * Child prostitution isn't legal in California and oh my God why do we have to clarify this? [ABC News] * Company under CFPB investigation battling to remain anonymous. This probably would be a significant legal challenge if we assumed the CFPB would exist past next month. [National Law Journal] * Chelsea Manning's sentence may be commuted before Obama leaves office. [Lawfare] * The fight over legal rights to Prince's catalog continues. [Page Six]

By Joe Patrice
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.22.15

* Brush that dirt off your shoulder: Jay-Z may have 99 problems, but this copyright lawsuit about his song "Big Pimpin'" is no longer one of them. The suit filed against the rap mogul in 2007 was dismissed on standing grounds, but the plaintiff says he plans to appeal. [Los Angeles Times] * When it comes to the death penalty, Justice Antonin Scalia says that it "wouldn't surprise [him]" if the Supreme Court were to strike it down as unconstitutional. It seems that a capital punishment case could become the next SCOTUS blockbuster. [CBS Minnesota] * No one is a fan of the Securities and Exchange Commission's in-house court system, and legislation to give financial defendants the right to opt out will be introduced in Congress later this week. Would you rather face trial before a federal judge or jury? [WSJ Law Blog] * Earlier this week, a state-court judge brought a live grenade to the courthouse, but only because he wanted to have it properly disposed of by police. The jurist currently remains unidentified, which is a good thing, because this is pretty embarrassing. [CBS Los Angeles] * Jurors in New York are paid $40 per day for their service, so you may be wondering how the confused members of the jury in the Dewey & LeBoeuf (mis)trial were able to survive on only $2,920 after five months spent in the courtroom. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 08.17.15

* This October, rappers Jay Z and Timbaland will have to testify in a lawsuit concerning copyright infringement and improper music sampling. We'll see how "Big Pimpin'" they really are when we find out which lawyers and law firms are repping them. [Page Six / New York Post] * This judge apparently doesn't appreciate fighting words in pleadings. "Do you want to fight me? Is that what you want?" A West Virginia magistrate judge challenged a litigant -- one who previously called the magistrate a "fat sweaty slob" in motion papers -- to come to his house and "see what happens." [Charleston Gazette-Mail] * An ex-Texas judge was sentenced for his side job of smuggling guns into Mexico and selling them. He faced up to 70 years when he pleaded guilty to two felony counts in May, and was handed his 18-month sentence on Friday. Yeehaw! [Austin American-Statesman] * The Idaho College of Law will begin to host first-year law school classes at its Boise campus starting in 2017. The Boise campus now serves 1Ls, 2LS, and 3Ls, but not to worry, this flyover law school's main campus isn't going anywhere. [Idaho Statesman] * Julian Bond, civil rights icon, SPLC board member, former NAACP chair, RIP. [NYT]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 12.17.14

* Law school enrollment continues its death spiral for the fourth year in a row, with enrollment down about 28 percent since 2010. Some schools -- about 25 of them -- have reported enrollment dips of more than 20 percent. Celebrate good times, come on! [National Law Journal] * Beyoncé and Jay-Z, the queen and king of rap royalty, have been sued over a sample that was allegedly used in their hit song, "Drunk in Love." When asked for comment on the suit, our bae Bey kept it short and sweet: "Bow down, bitches." [A.V. Club] * Yoohoo, SCOTUS, pay attention to this one: The first federal judge has weighed in on President Obama's executive order on immigration, and in a four-page takedown, found it unconstitutional and “beyond prosecutorial discretion.” [WSJ Law Blog] * Katrina Dawson, an Australian lawyer who worked at Eight Selborne Chambers, was killed during the Sydney terrorist siege earlier this week. She reportedly died in an attempt to save a pregnant law firm colleague from a hail of gunfire. [Am Law Daily] * Lawyers and law students dressed in suits hosted a "die-in" in the pouring rain outside of a courthouse in downtown L.A. yesterday. Professor Priscilla Ocen of Loyola Law made some great points on a bullhorn. [L.A. Now / Los Angeles Times]

By Staci Zaretsky
Bar Exams

Morning Docket: 11.06.14

* “Perhaps Congress should have called this the Sarbanes-Oxley Grouper Act.” Based on the justices’ reactions during oral argument, it seems like SCOTUS isn’t taking the bait in the Yates case. [WSJ Law Blog] * It seems that President Obama still hasn’t made a decision on who he wants to replace Eric Holder as attorney general. Maybe the results of the midterm election made him change his mind. [Legal Times] * Jay Z may have 99 problems, but this champagne deal ain’t one because Cooley helped to seal the deal. If Armand de Brignac is good enough for Queen Bey, it’s good enough for this Biglaw firm. [Am Law Daily] * Students at the University of South Dakota School of Law are wondering whether they’re receiving a good legal education considering they’re being trained to pass the “easiest [bar] in the nation.” [The Volante] * Kenneth Desormes of Connecticut was charged after trying to eat the results of his breathalyzer test. He may be the same Kenneth Desormes who tried to get his law school to admit to fraud. [Hartford Courant]

By Staci Zaretsky
ACLU

Non-Sequiturs: 08.15.14

* Suit filed questioning the parentage of Blue Ivy Carter. Plaintiff claims to be the real… mother? Hm. You’d think that would be pretty easy for everyone to remember. [International Business Times] * The Washington D.C.-area NFL team has filed suit to get its trademark back. They think the USPTO are Indian Givers. [DCist] * The ACLU is asking courts to define “freedom of the press” in the wake of Ferguson. I understand their impulse, I just don’t think they’re gonna like the answer. [Fox2Now] * A 71-year-old lawyer allegedly called two escorts over to his house and they asked for more money. Even for rich lawyers it’s the principle of the thing. [South Florida Lawyers] * Sad to see Professor Larry Tribe join the “let’s blame the teachers instead of funding public schools” parade. But now that he’s become a high-profile supporter of ending tenure for those teaching the young, perhaps he’ll renounce his own tenure. Or at least fight to revoke it from all his colleagues. [National Law Journal] * A Colombian lawyer is suing FIFA for $1.3 billion over bad officiating. Of all the things FIFA deserves to get sued over, this isn’t making the list. [Washington Post] * Congratulations to Rob Manfred, a Harvard Law grad formerly of Morgan Lewis, on his promotion to MLB Commissioner. He will continue the proud tradition of keeping us bored all summer long while we wait for football to come back. [New York Times] * New lawsuit says Google kept records of plans to infringe intellectual property… on Post-Its. Unwise. Office supplies are for back-to-school shopping, not writing down wrongful acts. [Valleywag] * If you’re a current 3L or a law grad about to come off a clerkship, NOAA has a job opportunity for you. Imagine how exciting it will be when the next Sharknado happens! [USAJobs via NOAA]

By Joe Patrice