Judicial Misconduct

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 08.17.17

* Leaders and prominent partners at Biglaw firms across the country are speaking out against President Donald Trump's most recent comments concerning the deadly Charlottesville rally, where he blamed "both sides" for the violence that occurred. Has anyone among the leadership at your firm denounced Trump's remarks? We'll have more on this later. [Big Law Business] * In case you missed it, James Alex Fields, the man accused of second-degree murder in the death of Charlottesville counter-protester Heather Heyer, was supposed to be represented by an attorney from the public defender's office, but it seems there was a conflict of interest -- a relative of an employee was injured in the car crash that led to Heyer's untimely death. [Richmond Times-Dispatch] * Judge Jim Hinkle of Gwinnett County, Georgia, has been suspended thanks to his Facebook comments about the events that unfolded in Charlottesville. Hinkle compared the protesters "nut cases tearing down monuments" to ISIS, referring to them as "snowflakes" with "no concept of history." Hinkle said he didn’t "see anything controversial" about his posts. [Atlanta Journal-Constitution] * Retired Judge Robert Echols, formerly of the Middle District of Tennessee and now a partner at Bass Berry & Sims, once donated about $3,000 to the Mary Noel Kershaw Foundation, which funds firearms training for the League of the South, a hate group tied to the violent Charlottesville rally. The firm has launched an internal investigation into the matter. [Tennessean] * Austin Gillespie -- d/b/a Augustus Sol Invictus, the DePaul Law grad who opened his own Florida solo practice, closed it via this unhinged memo, and later sacrificed a goat and drank its blood -- was an organizer of the Charlottesville alt-right rally and is now running for Senate, again. [Am Law Daily]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 11.29.16

* Despite facing uncertainties, per a recent Am Law survey conducted before the election, the vast majority of law firm leaders are moderately optimistic about how 2017 will pan out for their firms and more than a quarter of them expect profits per partner to grow by more than 5 percent. Unfortunately, “the reality for […]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 08.17.16

* Ding ding ding, we have a winner: with a bid of $135 million, Univision has prevailed in the auction to buy Gawker Media's assets (held at the offices of Gawker's bankruptcy counsel, Ropes & Gray). [Politico] * The Ninth Circuit rules that the feds can't spend money to prosecute people whose actions comply with state medical marijuana laws. [How Appealing] * Protip for millennial law students: don't call your law professor by her first name. [WSJ Law Blog] * "Is $88,500 Salary Too Much for a Deputy General Counsel?" (Hint: no.) [Big Law Business] * Is it time to rethink antitrust enforcement, especially when it comes to Big Tech? [DealBook / New York Times] * Judge Timothy Dooley has been censured by the Alaska Supreme Court for his rude remarks in open court. [Alaska Dispatch News] * Hedge-fund billionaire Steve Cohen can't trade in CFTC-regulated commodities markets until 2018, as part of a settlement with the commission. [Bloomberg] * Sigfredo Garcia, one of the two men accused of killing law professor Dan Markel, isn't getting bond just yet. [Tallahassee Democrat; WCTV]

By David Lat
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 08.09.16

* Did Chief Justice Roy Moore of the Alabama Supreme Court commit judicial misconduct when he instructed probate judges that the state's same-sex marriage ban was still in effect despite the Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell? The state's Court of the Judiciary has set a date for a trial-like proceeding on the ethics charges Moore faces for late September. [ABC News] * If you want to go to law school and you've got your heart set on a particular institution, it may be in your best financial interests to apply early decision. A few law schools are now offering significant scholarship opportunities to early applicants -- in some cases, full tuition scholarships are being handed out. [Law Admissions Lowdown / U.S. News] * "Even innocent clients may not benefit from the fraud of their attorney." Chevron Corp. has prevailed in a long-running environmental law case set in an Ecuadorian rainforest. Lawyers for the oil and gas company convinced the Second Circuit that an $8.65 billion judgment was obtained through attorney Steven Donziger's bribery and fraud. [Reuters] * The family of slain Florida State law professor Dan Markel has accepted a $40,000 settlement from the Consolidated Dispatch Agency in connection with a wrongful death case. Due to an "error by dispatchers," it took approximately 19 minutes for ambulances to arrive at Markel's home as he lay dying after being shot. [Tallahassee Democrat] * This is why indebted law students can't have nice things: while the American Bar Association may have changed its tune when it comes to law students earning pay for credit-bearing externships, it will allow law schools to be the ultimate arbiters on whether academic credit will still be offered for these job placements. [Law.com]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 08.05.16

* Judge Olu Stevens, who famously said he would not “check his First Amendment rights at the courthouse door,” will be dropping his suit against the Kentucky Judicial Conduct Commission. He remains charged with six counts of misconduct related to public comments made about the exclusion of black jurors. [WDRB] * Four partners from Cadwalader […]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.28.16

* ASS Law is back in the news: Earlier this week, professors on the George Mason University Faculty Senate voted 21-13 to reopen the naming process on the already twice-renamed Antonin Scalia Law School. These professors must know that their actions have no impact on the administration's decisions... right? [BuzzFeed News] * Thanks to allegations of sexual harassment brought forward by courthouse personnel, Judge José A. Fusté of the District of Puerto Rico was allegedly forced by the First Circuit to "retire" from his position, effective June 1. If you're unable to read in Spanish, Google Translate has a version in broken English that may be slightly helpful. [El Nuevo Día] * Attention intellectual property attorneys, because your practice area just got a little more exciting. The Defend Trade Secrets Act passed in the House yesterday by a vote of 410-2, and that means the “most significant expansion of federal law in intellectual property since the Lanham Act in 1946” will likely soon become law. [WSJ Law Blog] * "Transitioning at a Biglaw firm, are you crazy?" Not only is it possible to transition in Biglaw, but it's possible to thrive as a transgender woman in Biglaw, and Sara Schnorr of Locke Lord had the full support of her firm. In fact, she was recently appointed to the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women. Congrats! [Big Law Business] * "Is nonlawyer ownership of law firms long overdue? Or a bad idea?" The U.K. and Australia are already doing it, and now the ABA Commission on the Future of Legal Services is seeking comments for an issues paper on the risks and benefits of nonlawyer law firm ownership. Email us or tweet us and let us know what you think. [ABA Journal]

By Staci Zaretsky