Richard Cordray

Find out what this deputy general counsel thinks will happen in the legal profession and beyond in 2018.

The only check on textualism is a court's tolerance of a lawyer's linguistic mischief.

* Today marks the first day of Judge Neil Gorsuch’s confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Will there any big surprises unveiled about him during the hearings? At this point, the only surprise is that anyone still expects there will be a surprise about the “[d]apper, folksy” judge. The bigger surprise will be whether […]

Trump reportedly considering a Fannie Mae exec who worked at OneWest after decades as a Wall Street lawyer.

* I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced. I fear something terrible has happened. [The Atlantic]

* I’m dreaming of a white… genocide? No, that’s not how that song goes. That’s not how that song goes, even in my house. [Simple Justice]

* The battle between Tata Sons and its former chairman, Cyrus Mistry, is probably the biggest corporate law story that you don’t care about. [New Indian Express]

* Chris Christie has been totally abandoned. [New York Times]

* Richard Cordray, head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, is probably more likely to be eaten by reindeer than have his job by this time next year. [Wall Street Journal]

* Parole judge charged with assault for slugging a public defender. Do you even need a joke here? [New York Daily News]

Ed. note: As mentioned on Wednesday, we will be publishing today, but at a reduced level. We’ll be back in full force on Monday. Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!

* President-elect Donald Trump will likely pick a lawyer as his nominee for Secretary of State: Rudy Giuliani (NYU Law ’68) or Mitt Romney (Harvard Law ’75). [New York Times]

* Where do broken hearts go? Some precedents for Chief Judge Merrick Garland to follow from unsuccessful Supreme Court nominees. [Associated Press via How Appealing]

* A pre-Thanksgiving ruling from the Florida Supreme Court that gave one prisoner something to be grateful for could signal more upheaval to come in the nation’s second largest death row. [BuzzFeed]

* Three more judges participated in Pennsylvania’s “Porngate” email exchanges — but it seems that Bruce Beemer, the state’s new attorney general, won’t be naming names. [ABA Journal]

* What does the future hold for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and its chief, Chicago Law grad and former SCOTUS clerk Richard Cordray? [New York Times]

* It’s not just a plot line from Suits: Reginald Taylor, accused of posing as a lawyer by stealing an attorney’s bar number, apparently delivered decent results for his clients. [The Daily Beast]

* Don’t mess with (federal judges from) Texas, Mr. President; Judge Amos Mazzant, who blocked President Obama’s proposed extension of overtime pay, isn’t the first Lone Star jurist to cause problems for the Obama Administration. [New York Times via How Appealing]

* Thinking of hitting the movies over the long weekend? Tony Mauro shares our own Harry Graff’s enthusiasm for Loving. [National Law Journal]

On November 13, 2014, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) proposed new rules for prepaid accounts, to be effectuated through amendments to the regulations implementing the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and the Truth in Lending Act (Regulation E and Regulation Z, respectively). The proposed rules can be accessed here. The CFPB’s press release regarding the proposed rules can be accessed here. Comments to the proposed rules must be submitted within 90 days of the date the proposed rules are published in the Federal Register. The proposed rules are a follow-up to the advanced notice of proposed rulemaking regarding prepaid cards issued by the CFPB in May 2012.

What are the allegations against Ohio attorney general Mike DeWine regarding his awarding of contracts for outside legal work?

Obama's pick to head up the SEC could be a game changer.

* Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s lawyer has a challenge for you: “I defy you to tell the difference between a naked prostitute and any other naked woman.” [Dealbreaker] * It’s not often that Cravath partners leave for other firms, but it happens. Jeffrey Smith, former head of the environmental practice at Cravath, recently decamped for Crowell & […]

It’ll take some time before a court rules on the legality of Barack Obama’s recess appointment of Richard Cordray to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. In case you haven’t been paying attention, Obama nominated Cordray two years ago, but the Republicans have refused to allow his nomination to come to a vote. Obama then wanted […]

* Is New Jersey’s Senator Robert Menendez blocking Patty Shwartz, Obama’s Third Circuit nominee, out of resentment? Time to build yourself a bridge and GTF over it. [New York Times] * Sullivan & Cromwell took the top spot among law firms in M&A transactions in 2011, with $325.7 billion in deals. You better believe they’re […]

* The recess appointment of Richard Cordray to head the CFPB could get tricky — not because Republicans are outraged by recess appointments (much like Democrats are outraged by obstructionist filibusters), but because Congress isn’t technically in recess, due to the sham sessions Congress has been running. [WSJ Law Blog] * Milbank, if you’re going […]

Mark Herrmann, our in-house columnist, is not a mentor. Never has been. Never will be. Doesn't care to be. He's a lawyer. He's a co-worker. In some cases, he may be a friend. But he's not a mentor; he has no time for that crap....

* The arrest of Rebekah Brooks over the weekend only complicates the investigation into News Corp. phone-hacking. I like her hair. I only have one question. [Bloomberg] * What (and where) becomes of Casey Anthony now that she’s out? Y’know, F. Scott Fitzgerald once opined that “There are no second acts in American lives. But […]