Law Schools

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 02.07.18

* Slater & Gordon, the world's first publicly traded law firm, claims that it isn't planning to conduct any layoffs in the wake of its latest operations review. The firm, which once found itself on the verge of insolvency and is now owned by a hedge fund, is no stranger to conducting massive layoffs. [The Australian] * Andrews Kurth continues to lose lawyers left and right, with a group of up to 25 attorneys from its public finance group in Texas soon expected to defect to Orrick. How's that merger talk with Hunton & Williams going these days? [American Lawyer] * Deputy AG Rod Rosenstein will be delivering the commencement address at Campbell Law’s graduation ceremony this spring. At this rate, given how much the president likes him, let’s see if he’s still Deputy AG come May. [News & Observer] * ASU Law is on track to receive a record-breaking number of applications for the upcoming academic year. According to LSAC, ASU is one of only four law schools in the country to have seen an increase in applications of 50 percent of more. [ASU Now] * "Jane Doe," the New Hampshire woman who won the $560 million Powerball lottery last month, has filed suit against the state’s Lottery Commission in an attempt to remain anonymous. Now that she's a multimillionaire, she doesn’t want to risk the "significant invasion of privacy" of her name being released. [USA Today]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 02.05.18

* “I’d like to see in the Constitution a statement that men and women are people of equal citizenship stature. I’d like to see an equal rights amendment in our Constitution.” Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is all in favor of amending the Constitution to benefit women. Are you? [Washington Post] * Kashyap Patel, the “primary author” of the House Intelligence Committee’s secret memo, is no stranger to controversy. You may remember when he dropped out of this bachelor auction due to an issue with his license to practice or from this “Order on Ineptitude” after he was berated by a federal judge. [New York Times] * Duke Law has a brand new dean, and she’ll be starting her job come July 1. Congratulations to Kerry Abrams -- “one of the brightest stars in legal education” -- on becoming one of the handful of women to lead one of America's top law schools. [Duke Today] * The DOJ wants former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort’s suit against special counsel Robert Mueller and Deputy AG Rod Rosenstein to be tossed, arguing that its only purpose is to “interfere with [his] ongoing criminal prosecution.” Yep, that was the whole point. [CNN] * Ouch! One Am Law 100 Firm is experiencing that awkward moment when management decides to completely scrub the name of the firm’s major merger partner from all of its branding, just one year after the combination was consummated. [American Lawyer]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 02.01.18

The American Bar Association needs some new blood! A new report from Law School Transparency and the Iowa State Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division recommends adding some younger members to the ABA's Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar. [Law.com] Partisan gerrymandering challenges may be making their way through the court system, but don't expect them to be a deciding factor in the midterm elections. [Big Law Business] It's never a great start to a trial when the judge has to explain the case isn't about whether your client is "evil." [Law360] Another day, another looming "constitutional crisis." [Washington Post] Everyone is out at USA Gymnastics. It is the absolute least they could do. [CNN] Stephen Cutler may be moving from JPMorgan Chase to Simpson Thatcher, but he says his practice will still focus on internal and government investigations, corporate governance matters and crisis management. [Law.com] Hank Greenberg of Greenberg Traurig is the president-elect designee of the New York State Bar Association. [New York Law Journal]

By Kathryn Rubino