Preet Bharara

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.16.19

* "This is not a game for us. This is deadly serious. We're here to find the truth, to uphold the Constitution of the United States." House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will not hold a full vote to authorize a formal impeachment inquiry into President Trump -- yet. [POLITICO; CNN] * Rudy Giuliani, President Trump's personal lawyer, has officially failed to comply with a congressional subpoena. According to Giuliani, despite the fact that he's reportedly the subject of numerous federal investigations, Jon Sale is no longer repping him, saying, "At this time, I do not need a lawyer." Good luck with that, bro. [The Hill] * You may remember Mossack Fonseca from the Panama Papers case, but now you'll remember the firm as the one that sued Netflix for libel and trademark infringement for portraying its attorneys as villains in the new movie “The Laundromat.” Catch the flick this Friday from your couch. [Big Law Business] * Students from Penn Law are marching to demand that Professor Amy Wax be shown the door. "We’re hoping that today people will join our call to fire her just to create a more inclusive space at the Law School that actually rectifies the harm that is being done." But will it work? [Daily Pennsylvanian] * In case you missed it, jurors recommended life in prison for Sigfredo Garcia after finding him guilty of murdering Professor Dan Markel, and a judge another 30 years on top for conspiracy to commit murder. Prosecutors still intend to retry Katherine Magbanua. [Tallahassee Democrat] * Sign up here if you’d like to take part in a conversation between best-selling author John Grisham and former U.S. attorney Preet Bharara (S.D.N.Y.) tonight. I’ll be there to cover the event for Above the Law, and I hope to see you there. [TimesTalks]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.14.19

* Remember how EU ambassador Gordon Sondland was forbidden to testify before Congress? And how he texted the Ukrainian ambassador that the president wanted "no quid pro quo’s of any kind"? He's about to testify that language was dictacted by Trump himself. Hmm... [Washington Post] * Rudy Giuliani, Trump's personal attorney who Trump is attempting to distance himself from, is reportedly being investigated by federal prosecutors over his ties to the removal of former Ukranian ambassador Marie L. Yovanovitch and whether he violated lobbying laws in the process. [New York Times] * After much negative publicity and a student protest, Louis Lehot, the DLA Piper partner who was accused of sexual assault by a fellow partner, was kicked to the curb by the firm. [American Lawyer] * Art Lien, who brings the Supreme Court to life for the rest of us, is one of the last courtroom sketch artists in the nation. The justices are still against cameras in the highest courtroom in the land, but even Lien thinks his days may be numbered. [Quartz] * In case you missed it, the jury in the Dan Markel murder trial convicted Sigfredo Garcia of first degree murder but declared a mistrial for his co-defendant, Katherine Magbanua. Garcia faces the death penalty, and Magbanua will remain jailed until her case is retried. [Tallahassee Democrat] * Sign up here if you’d like to take part in a conversation between best-selling author John Grisham and former U.S. attorney Preet Bharara (S.D.N.Y.) this Wednesday. I’ll be there to cover the event for Above the Law, and I hope to see you there. [TimesTalks]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.11.19

* "I don't know them, I don't know about them, I don't know what they do. I don't know, maybe they were clients of Rudy's. You'd have to ask Rudy." President Trump is trying his hardest to distance himself from Igor Fruman and Lev Parnas, Rudy Giuliani’s recently arrested associates. He may have been in pictures with them, though, and his son might have as well. Oopsie. [The Hill] * "Together, we will blow our whistles against Barr, President Trump, and their enablers in Congress." AG Bill Barr is scheduled to speak today at Notre Dame Law on "religious freedom," and protesters are expected to be there, where they'll literally be blowing whistles. [South Bend Tribune] * Years after his brutal murder, the Dan Markel case is finally in the hands of a jury. Luis Rivera has already taken a deal, but will Katherine Magbanua and Sigfredo Garcia be found guilty? [Tallahassee Democrat] * Minnesota Law is celebrating its largest first-year class in about a decade. The school, which is ranked 20th by U.S. News now has reliable employment statistics for graduates, has been recovering from the recession's effects on law school enrollment. [Minnesota Daily] * In case you missed it, Kim Kardashian West is trying to help Brendan Dassey of "Making a Murderer" in his quest to receive clemency from Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers. Per Gov. Evers, "Brendan's case will be given the same thoughtful review and consideration as any other case." [Esquire] * Sign up here if you’d like to take part in a conversation between best-selling author John Grisham and former U.S. attorney Preet Bharara (S.D.N.Y.). I’ll be there to cover the event for Above the Law, and I hope to see you there. [TimesTalks]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.09.19

* According to an eight-page letter from White House Counsel Pat Cipollone, the White House will not cooperate in the impeachment inquiry because not only does it violate “the Constitution, the rule of law, and every past precedent,” but it also “lacks any legitimate constitutional foundation" and is merely an effort to "nullify the outcome of the democratic process" by negating the 2016 election and influencing the 2020 election. Well then! [Washington Post] * In case you missed it, here’s what made a federal judge say, “Wow.” In an effort to keep redacted portions of the Mueller report from Congress, representatives from the DOJ essentially argued that a decision to release the Watergate grand jury evidence was “wrongly decided.” [Slate] * Despite having been dragged into the DLA Piper sexual assault controversy, Kamala Harris has a lot of Biglaw support, and the newly formed National Lawyers Council for Kamala is hoping to raise at least $100,000 by the end of the month to help her campaign for the presidency. [American Lawyer] * An investigation is currently underway at Yale Law School, where late this past weekend, anti-Semitic graffiti -- a swastika with the word “Trump” next to it -- was found on the steps to a side entrance to the school. [NBC Connecticut] * Sign up here if you'd like to take part in a conversation between best-selling author John Grisham and former U.S. attorney Preet Bharara (S.D.N.Y.). I'll be there to cover the event for Above the Law, and I hope to see you there. [TimesTalks]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non Sequiturs: 05.05.19

* If you shared my skepticism that the murder trial in the Dan Markel case will actually start next month, almost five long years after Markel's murder, then you won't be surprised by this latest development -- Saam Zangeneh, counsel to Sigfredo Garcia, has moved for a continuance. [Tallahassee Democrat] * As predicted, President Donald Trump just had his 100th Article III federal judge confirmed by the U.S. Senate; he's now up to 102 judicial appointees, as noted by Carrie Severino. [Bench Memos / National Review] * If my writeup of Preet Bharara's recent event at Cleary Gottlieb left you wanting more, check out Randy Maniloff's wide-ranging interview with the former U.S. attorney (including advice on how not to get hired at the S.D.N.Y.). [Coverage Opinions] * Jonathan Adler flags a thoughtful debate between Michael McConnell and Josh Chafetz on the battle over subpoenas between President Trump and Congressional Democrats. [Volokh Conspiracy / Reason] * Howard Wasserman identifies an interesting argument against police officers using body-worn cameras aka bodycams -- but as he also observes, we don't really have a better solution yet to the abuse of police discretion. [PrawfsBlawg] * My money's on Capital Loss Carryover in the Preakness Stakes. [TaxProf Blog] * Of course "real lawyers" take notes -- but there are some nuances here, which Joel Cohen explores. [New York Law Journal] * Frank Cross, a longtime professor of law at the University of Texas School of Law, rest in peace. [Balkinization]

By David Lat
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 03.18.19

* Sorry, bro, but one of them doesn’t like beer anymore: The Tenth Circuit denied 20 appeals of its earlier decision to dismiss misconduct complaints against now-Justice Brett Kavanaugh, but this time, the panel was split, with one judge saying the "entire council should be disqualified." [National Law Journal] * "It’s not enough to legalize marijuana at the federal level — we should also help those who have suffered due to its prohibition." If you're a Democratic candidate running for president in 2020, you better be down with legalizing weed in the name of social justice. [New York Times] * Preet Bharara, ex-U.S. attorney for the S.D.N.Y., knows his former coworkers could cause Trump trouble. They're "very aggressive," "very fearless," "very independent," and they don't even "care about politics" -- they'll prosecute anyone. [NBC News] * The National Women’s Hall of Fame recently announced its Class of 2019, and three lawyers of note were honored: Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, women's rights attorney Gloria Allred, and Native American tribal law expert Sarah Deer. [AP] * According to a new new report from Thomson Reuters and Acritas, there's a "disheartening" lack of diversity in corporate legal departments. Given how "diverse" law firms are, this isn't exactly shocking news to anyone. [Corporate Counsel]

By Staci Zaretsky