NFL

Morning Docket: 11.03.20

* The Supreme Court is allowing an antitrust case against the NFL to move forward. The XFL is still around to compete with the NFL...right? [Chicago Sun Tribune] * A Texas lawyer has been disciplined for stealing LegalZoom referrals from the firm that employed her. [Texas Lawyer] * The Attorney General of South Dakota was reportedly distracted before allegedly striking a pedestrian earlier this year. [Hill] * The Surgeon General of the United States has pleaded not guilty to allegedly being in a park that was closed to slow the spread of COVID-19. [AP] * A lawsuit alleging that Amazon did not do enough to protect its workers from COVID-19 has been dismissed. [CNN] * A lot of billable hours may be recorded in the legal battles that may arise after the presidential election. [Fox News]

NFLPA Seeks To Dismiss Case Concerning Changes To Retiree Benefits

The union has no duty or responsibility to maintain any specific level of former player benefits and is prohibited from administering benefit plans.

Morning Docket: 09.14.20

* A PA lawyer has been sentenced to prison for allegedly stealing client funds to purchase (among other things) tickets to Superbowl LII in which the Eagles beat the Patriots. Maybe it was worth it to see Tom Brady lose... [Lehigh Valley Live] * A lawyer at the Department of Labor has been reassigned after accusing the Secretary of Labor of retaliation. [Bloomberg Law] * New details have surfaced about the Chicago attorney couple who were found stabbed to death in their home earlier this year. [Chicago Tribune] * Senator Ted Cruz is another potential Supreme Court pick on President Trump's most recent list to indicate he has no desire to serve on the high court. [CNN] * An employee at the Washington State Attorney General's Office has been put on administrative leave after leaving a note on a restaurant check that read: "BLM pin = no tip." [Spokesman-Review] * A contractor is in legal hot water for allegedly fleecing a congregation of $454,000 to build a church and then performing little work. The contractor should be most afraid of getting struck by lighting or something like that... [Stamford Advocate]

Morning Docket: 08.26.20

* Halle Berry wishes to act as her own lawyer in her divorce against Olivier Martinez. Hope it doesn't turn out badly like Catwoman... [Fox News] * The top lawyer at ICE will become the new leader of the agency. [CNN] * The Attorney General of Alaska has resigned after allegedly inappropriate text messages he sent to a younger female state employee surfaced. [NBC News] * A new lawsuit alleges that the NFL's concussion settlement discriminates against black players. [Wall Street Journal] * The family of a woman found alive at a funeral home after being declared dead has hired a lawyer to investigate possible negligence. Maybe she was just a heavy sleeper? [Guardian]

66 NFL Players Opt Out Of 2020 Season As COVID-19 Concerns Linger

The opt outs account for roughly 4% of the league.

Morning Docket: 05.28.20

* Three members of a $31.7 million fraudulent slip-and-fall ring have been sentenced to prison. Wonder if they got the idea from Slippin' Jimmy. [Insurance Journal] * Former presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard has abandoned her short-lived defamation lawsuit against Hillary Clinton. [CNN] * A Louisiana attorney who was suspended from practice for chest bumping a prosecutor has been reinstated as a lawyer. Apparently the chest bump was not like the kind seen in football. [Advocate] * The Los Angeles City Attorney has sued a company for selling allegedly fake COVID-19 tests. [Orange County Register] * There is some hope that a TV series based on The Lincoln Lawyer will be produced after all. Thought I already saw the reboot, but realized it was just a Matthew McConaughey car commercial. [Hollywood Reporter] * Since this website has not published a Lawyerly Lairs article in a while, just wanted to report that a top Chicago criminal lawyer has listed his posh pad for sale. [Crain's Chicago]

Morning Docket: 05.22.20

* The lawyer for Carole Baskin's missing husband says the signature on his former client's will may have been forged. Please let there be more Tiger King episodes about this. [Fox News] * An NFL player has filed a lawsuit against United Airlines over an alleged sexual assault that occurred on a recent flight. [ABC News] * The Supreme Court decided against considering an appellate ruling that ordered the State of Idaho to pay for a transgender prisoner's reassignment surgery. [New York Times] * Lawyers are looking to reopen cases in which Tara Reade, who accuses Joe Biden of sexual assault, served as an expert witness, since Reade may have exaggerated her educational background. [Politico] * Harvard Law School has made its "Zero-L" classes available to all law students online for free even though HLS originally planned on charging a fee for the courses. [Harvard Crimson] * Richard Simmons has won a lawsuit against a media company that installed a tracking device on his vehicle. Can kind of understand the desire to know where he's been recently. [Hollywood Reporter]

Morning Docket: 05.08.20

* Legal Sea Foods has filed a lawsuit against their insurer over business interruption insurance. Bet they hope the denial of their claim was just a "fluke." [Boston Herald] * A judge has dismissed a lawsuit stemming from a sex tape involving Kevin Hart. Sounds like this could form the basis of another Jumanji sequel. [Atlanta Journal Constitution] * The Department of Justice has dropped criminal charges against Michael Flynn. [AP] * A federal appeals court has ruled on legal fees to be doled out in the NFL concussion litigation. Don't remember lawyers being involved in the Will Smith movie... [Legal Intelligencer] * Tara Reade, who accuses Joe Biden of sexual assault, has hired a lawyer who represented six Harvey Weinstein victims. [New York Magazine] * Zoom will start cracking down on Zoombombing in a deal with the New York Attorney General. Will Ferrell should still be allowed to crash Zoom calls... [NPR]

Right-Wing Podcaster Seeks Lawyer To Sue NFL For Condemning Him To Hell With Salacious Halftime Show

The First Amendment does not give J. Lo the right to pole dance in Dave Daubenmire’s living room!

Morning Docket: 08.30.19

* Brexit is going to be a real problem for law firms. [Law.com] * Former paralegal sues firm alleging it "fosters a 'party culture' rife with drug use and sexual harassment." [Philly Voice] * Law firms are feasting on the Sears bankruptcy. [NY Post] * 2020 could be a monster year for Biglaw fundraising. [American Lawyer] * What happens to intellectual property when artificial intelligence starts inventing things? [The Recorder] * Even the Second Circuit doesn't want to fly Spirit. [Law360] * SEC targets investment fund that allegedly preyed upon brain-damaged NFL players to enrich themselves. Team owners, meanwhile, face no repercussions. [Daily Business Review] * The DOJ makes secret laws? Super. [Politico]

Barry Bennett Wasn’t Just An NFL Great, He Was My Teacher, And He Leaves A Rich Legacy

Great teachers matter.

Colin Kaepernick Settled His Grievance, Jay-Z Is Just Taking The Money

People who are comparing Kaepernick's settlement to Jay-Z's business deal need to step all the way back.

Morning Docket: 05.28.19

* Law firm diversity score cards are here, and.... African-American lawyers are still not being represented. Yikes. [Law.com] * Judge Kozinski may be gone from the Ninth Circuit, but it is still hard work to change the culture there. [Big Law Business] * Oakland is the second city looking to decriminalize hallucinogenic mushrooms. Plan your vacations accordingly. [The Hill] * In a continuing embarrassment to NYC, Rudy Giuliani wants a new role in the 2020 Trump campaign. [Politico] * 5 firms have been cut out of the NFL concussion case. [Law360] * Ted Wells for the defense, in New Jersey tax incentives case. [National Law Journal] * Will New York strengthen sexual harassment laws? Well, maybe. But at least they're having hearing on the issue. [New York Law Journal]

Non Sequiturs: 12.16.18

* In case you missed it (the news broke on Friday night), Judge Reed O’Connor (N.D. Tex.) held that the Affordable Care Act aka Obamacare is unconstitutional, in the wake of last year's tax reform that reduced the ACA's "shared responsibility payment" for lacking health-care coverage to zero. [MedCity News] * Josh Blackman agrees with Judge O'Connor the constitutionality of the individual mandate, but disagreed with his severability analysis. [Reason / Volokh Conspiracy] * Meanwhile, fellow Volokh Conspirator Samuel Bray is glad that the court didn't issue a national injunction. [Reason / Volokh Conspiracy] * Adam Feldman takes a closer look at the Federal Circuit's relationship to the Supreme Court -- including which members of the Federal Circuit are most frequently vindicated by SCOTUS. [Empirical SCOTUS] * Carrie Severino shares the disappointment of her former boss, Justice Thomas, in Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Kavanaugh voting against certiorari in Gee v. Planned Parenthood of Gulf Coast. [Bench Memos / National Review] * Eric Turkewitz calls out members of the media for misreporting on a routine trip-and-fall case because they don't like the plaintiff's famous father. [New York Personal Injury Law Blog] * Oakland is going on the offensive against the NFL, firing off a 49-page complaint signed by James Quinn of Berg & Androphy, among others. [The MMQB / Sports Illustrated] * Speaking of Berg & Androphy, name partner David Berg offers expert insights on what it takes to win as a trial lawyer. [YouTube]

Morning Docket: 08.31.17

* Colin Kaepernick's lawsuit against the NFL alleging collusion between NFL teams will be allowed to go forward, at least to a full hearing. [Slate] * A former NBC exec says the network threatened to smear Ronan Farrow if he kept investigating Harvey Weinstein. [Daily Beast] * Proskauer settles lawsuit over the work the firm did for convicted Ponzi schemer R. Allen Stanford... to the tune of $63 million. [New York Law Journal] * A Mueller bombshell to drop by 5pm today? We'll be watching. [Mediaite] * Inside the fight to deregulate the U.K. legal market. [The Financial Times] * Microsoft is doubling down in making sure its outside law firms (and other suppliers) provide paid parental leave for their employees. [Corporate Counsel] * Bank of America is facing backlash after freezing accounts of people they suspect as being non-U.S. citizens. [Huffington Post]