Judge Amos Mazzant

Ed. note: As mentioned on Wednesday, we will be publishing today, but at a reduced level. We’ll be back in full force on Monday. Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!

* President-elect Donald Trump will likely pick a lawyer as his nominee for Secretary of State: Rudy Giuliani (NYU Law ’68) or Mitt Romney (Harvard Law ’75). [New York Times]

* Where do broken hearts go? Some precedents for Chief Judge Merrick Garland to follow from unsuccessful Supreme Court nominees. [Associated Press via How Appealing]

* A pre-Thanksgiving ruling from the Florida Supreme Court that gave one prisoner something to be grateful for could signal more upheaval to come in the nation’s second largest death row. [BuzzFeed]

* Three more judges participated in Pennsylvania’s “Porngate” email exchanges — but it seems that Bruce Beemer, the state’s new attorney general, won’t be naming names. [ABA Journal]

* What does the future hold for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and its chief, Chicago Law grad and former SCOTUS clerk Richard Cordray? [New York Times]

* It’s not just a plot line from Suits: Reginald Taylor, accused of posing as a lawyer by stealing an attorney’s bar number, apparently delivered decent results for his clients. [The Daily Beast]

* Don’t mess with (federal judges from) Texas, Mr. President; Judge Amos Mazzant, who blocked President Obama’s proposed extension of overtime pay, isn’t the first Lone Star jurist to cause problems for the Obama Administration. [New York Times via How Appealing]

* Thinking of hitting the movies over the long weekend? Tony Mauro shares our own Harry Graff’s enthusiasm for Loving. [National Law Journal]

* Thanks for ruining the holidays for millions of hard-working Americans, Your Honor: Judge Amos Mazzant of the Eastern District of Texas has granted a nationwide injunction to block a rule proposed by the Obama administration that would have extended mandatory overtime pay to 4.2 million people who make $47,500 per year or less. The rule was to take effect as of December 1. [Reuters]

* Desperate times apparently call for desperate measures? The European and Middle Eastern arms of King & Wood Mallesons may seek to merge with another firm after their partners failed to raise enough capital, a move that would sever those branches from the rest of the firm as a whole. Consultants fear that “if a bunch of people desert the sinking ship, all bets are off and the run on the bank will be coming.” [Big Law Business]

* Sure, President-elect Donald Trump says that his Supreme Court nominees will overturn the landmark case of Roe v. Wade, but it may be a feat that’s easier said than done. While some of the jurists on Trump’s Supreme Court shortlist have come out on the record as being firmly against abortion, others don’t have public records of any kind showing how they feel about abortion rights. Will this go his way? [Bloomberg]

* Last week, during a citizenship ceremony over which he was presiding, Judge John Primomo of the Western District of Texas informed newly sworn-in Americans that if they didn’t like President-elect Donald Trump, they should find a new country to live in. Judge Primomo has since been sanctioned by Chief Judge Orlando L. Garcia, and as a “permanent resolution,” can no longer oversee citizenship ceremonies. [WSJ Law Blog]

* “This is his first return to the silver tube. Going on the Netflix platform is a win-win for both Netflix and for Dave.” Fresh off of an awesome performance on Saturday Night Live, and thanks to Frederick Nance, the incoming U.S. managing partner of Squire Patton Boggs, the world will be be able to see three Dave Chappelle standup specials on Netflix. The deal has been valued at about $60 million. Congrats! [Am Law Daily]