Liberty University School of Law

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 12.30.15

* According to the Law Firm Group of Citi Private Bank's year-end predictions for the legal profession, profit growth for this year and next is once again going to be anemic. This is the "new reality for the foreseeable future." [WSJ Law Blog] * "[T]hese guerilla marketers believe they are above the law." Uh-oh! What has The Biebs done now? Pop star Justin Bieber has pissed off the San Francisco, California, legal community with sidewalk graffiti ads promoting his new album. [San Francisco Chronicle] * If you thought that the highest ranked law school in Virginia would've fared the best on the state's July 2015 administration of the bar exam, you'd be wrong. With a 93 percent passage rate, congratulations to Jerry Falwell's finest at Liberty Law! [One News Now] * Ay dios mio! Escándalo! In a recently filed lawsuit, a former faculty member at Amherst College claims that teaching assistants in her department were encouraged to "prostitute themselves" to increase enrollment in Spanish classes. [Washington Post] * "Soft kitty, warm kitty, little ball of fur..." The ear worm lullaby featured on The Big Bang Theory is now at the center of a copyright dispute, and it seems like this kitty could actually win. Showrunners probably wish they left this one in the litter box. [USA Today]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 08.07.15

* Chris Christie argued passionately about national security with Rand Paul, noting that he was appointed a U.S. Attorney the very day before 9/11. Except, you know, he wasn't and is completely lying. [Empty Wheel] * The Simpson Thacher and Mayer Brown epic screw-ups: where are the individual lawyers now? [The Am Law Daily] * Choose the right firm for you... with the help of these Legos. [The Careerist / The American Lawyer] * A bipartisan bill hopes to replace loan default rates with a repayment metric. [Insider Higher Ed] * The most predictable prison escape ever. [Lowering the Bar] * John McAfee's new security update includes a handgun -- which he was arrested for carrying while high on Xanax after a "shootout" with police. He explains the whole thing on Facebook. [Gawker] * Liberty Law has a new dean. [News & Advance] * Pretty sure Key & Peele read the Elonis decision. [Key & Peele / Comedy Central] [iframe src="http://media.mtvnservices.com/embed/mgid:arc:video:comedycentral.com:31920221-2ca8-4b07-835a-513ba2cffee4" width="640" height="360”]

By Joe Patrice
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 02.02.15

* Fun fact: Seattle Seahawks QB Russell Wilson's uncle is the managing principal of of Beverage & Diamond's D.C. office. Thanks to a gentlemen's bet, because Wilson's team lost the Super Bowl, his uncle will have to wear a Gronk or Tom Brady jersey. Ouch. [Legal Times] * One of the homeless dogs who played in Animal Planet's 11th annual Puppy Bowl was adopted by Bob Bernstein, a former partner at Kaye Scholer. The adorable Great Pyrenees-mix now leads a life of privilege, as any Biglaw pet should. [New York Post] * We know all about the former law school dean who was recently arrested on some pretty salacious charges. We'll have more on this later today. [Dallas Morning News] * The interim dean of religiously affiliated Liberty Law thinks challenges to the school's heteronormative honor code are a "concern for the future" -- especially since a Canadian Christian law school is under fire for a similar code. [Deseret News] * It's not just law schools in the United States that are feeling the pinch of a fewer applicants amid a pathetic legal job market. Japan's legal education system is also struggling, and some law schools may merge in order to survive. [Japan Times] * Prosecutors say formal charges won't be filed in George Zimmerman's latest aggravated assault case because his current girlfriend recanted her claims, just like his ex did. His lawyer was wrong -- his client does have luck with the ladies. [CNN]

By Staci Zaretsky
Copyright

Non-Sequiturs: 04.29.14

* Remember when I said it was a bad idea to drop off a drunk in Ireland? This is EXACTLY why. [The Independent (Dublin)] * Oh, Cooley Law School… don’t ever change. [The Faculty Lounge] * Republican tort-reform advocate settles overblown personal injury suit. Oh the irony. [The Hutchinson News] * Check that, this is even more ironic. [The Chronicle of Higher Education] * The U.S. Postal Service helped kill an innovative, anti-junk-mail startup. You could say a bloated government agency is to blame. Or you could say cutting off the Post Office and forcing them to fund themselves through Faustian deals with junk mail distributors is to blame. Either way, a great idea was smothered. [Inside Sources] * Indicted former Virginia Governor and transvaginal ultrasound enthusiast Bob McDonnell has taken a gig as a visiting professor at an ATL Worst Law School finalist, Liberty Law. Of course. [The News & Advance (Lynchburg)] * Do you need to be on a law journal to succeed? [Huffington Post] * Can you get paid for sleeping on the job? Good question. [The Spitz Law Firm]

By Joe Patrice