Retrospective On Richard Posner, An Above The Law All Star
The Seventh Circuit will be missing Posner's style points.
Morning Docket: 09.05.17
* As we continue to reel from Judge Posner's retirement, here are some of his best quips. Unfortunately lists like these will always miss something. Like my personal favorite: “Yeah, but, you know, the problem with the balancing test is there’s nothing on your side of the balance!” [National Law Journal] * The high price of becoming a partner. [American Lawyer] * Top Kasowitz Benson partner jumps ship... could this be more fallout from the ill-fated attempt to defend Trump? [New York Law Journal] * The government's been in a slump at the Supreme Court. [Empirical SCOTUS] * A deep dive into the Chadbourne discrimination suit. [Bloomberg Businessweek] * If you've not followed the phenomenon of running payday lending from tribal lands, here's an in depth look at a $2B lawsuit over the practice. [Law360] * Some predictions about the upcoming law school application cycle. Here's another one... a bunch of people will end up in debt for no good reason. [US News]
How Checkbox’s ‘Legal Front Door’ Can Transform Your Workflow
Leveraging agentic AI to triage, prioritize, and automate the law department inbox.
Richard Posner Is Retiring
Like, now. He's retiring right now.
Morning Docket: 08.02.17
* "We have a very crappy judicial system." Judge Richard Posner of the Seventh Circuit says the Supreme Court has far too few justices, and is calling for 10 more to be added to the high court's ranks, as he thinks the current arrangement on the bench is "[m]ediocre and highly politicized." Tell 'em how you really feel, Your Honor. [Chicago Tribune] * "This is deeply disturbing." The Justice Department's civil rights division is planning to sue colleges and universities that engage in "intentional race-based discrimination" in their affirmative action policies -- that is, discrimination against white applicants. Hmm, wasn't this recently before SCOTUS... twice? [New York Times] * RIP, billables: Microsoft wants to completely eliminate the billable hour by entering into alternative fee arrangements with all of the firms it works with in the future. Twelve Biglaw firms and one intellectual property firm will spearhead this movement as the company's strategic partners. [Big Law Business] * The Department of Education has filed a motion for summary judgment in a suit brought by the ABA over public service loan forgiveness, claiming that its forgiveness eligibility determinations won't be final until 10 years have passed and that any eligibility letters sent thus far are nonbinding and merely advisory. How comforting for law grads drowning in debt? [Law.com; ABA Journal] * The Senate has confirmed King & Spalding partner Christopher Wray as the new director of the FBI. During his hearings, Wray said he'd resign if he were ever asked to do something immoral or illegal, as his "commitment is to the rule of law, to the Constitution, to follow the facts wherever they may lead." [CNN]
Non-Sequiturs: 07.12.17
* The allegations about Marc Kasowitz's drinking problem might be salacious, but the issue of alcohol abuse by lawyers is serious. [Law.com] * Fun for legal nerds everywhere: Chief Judge Diane Wood benchslaps parties for shoddy jurisdictional statements! [On the Case / Alison Frankel via How Appealing] * And more fodder for #appellatetwitter types: Adam Feldman ranks the most-cited justices of the last Supreme Court Term. [Empirical SCOTUS] * Chris Geidner wonders whether another shoe will drop concerning the emails of Donald Trump Jr. [BuzzFeed] * The trial judge in this defamation case ought to read this analysis by Professor Eugene Volokh -- or at least watch The Big Lebwoski ("For your information, the Supreme Court has roundly rejected prior restraint."). [Volokh Conspiracy / Washington Post] * Professor Paul Horwitz comes to the defense of the latest controversial comments by the artist formerly known as Judge Richard Posner. [PrawfsBlawg]
Judge Richard Posner Rips On SCOTUS, Oldsters — And No, He’s Not A Troll
Judge Posner believes there's "no need for octogenarians" on the Supreme Court.
AI Is Reshaping Legal Practice—But Tools Aren’t The Real Differentiator.
Explore the mindset, cultural shifts, and training strategies that define the AI‑savvy lawyer, revealing why human judgment, standardized competence, and integrated learning—not technology alone—will shape the future of the profession.
Non-Sequiturs: 05.26.17
Ed. note: Above the Law will not be publishing on Monday, May 29, in honor of Memorial Day. We'll see you on Tuesday, May 30 -- which is when we plan to issue our latest ATL Law School Rankings. * A Texas police chief is under investigation for allegedly calling a woman a "black bitch" after an altercation in a Walmart parking lot. The police chief was giving his 14-year-old daughter driving lessons at the time, and I'm comfortable drawing a straight line from the police/father's behavior to 53% of white women voting for Donald Trump. [The Root] * I think this link has something to do with art. Potentially, there's a lawsuit about somebody who copies art? I really don't know. Somebody at Above the Law sent me a link about art, told me to put it here, but didn't summarize the relevant art facts to me, and... well, I'm just not going to muster the focus to read a whole story about art. [Jezebel] * Joel Cohen, Judge Jed S. Rakoff, and Judge Richard Posner debate "alternative facts," because this is now an issue in our crumbling society. [Slate] * Long Island family awarded over $8 million because cops Tased disabled man four times. [New York Law Journal] * Preet Bharara says recently elected Montana Congressperson, Greg 'The Body-Slammer' Gianforte, would "face deportation" if he was an immigrant. [The Hill] * Most respectable publications are reporting on Trump's embarrassing performance in Europe. Do you think that has filtered all the way down to the white supremacist media that is in charge of the country? [Breitbart]
Non-Sequiturs: 05.01.17
* Airbnb will allow the government to audit hosts in order to test for racial discrimination. [The Guardian] * Texas cop shoots and kills an unarmed black 15-year-old. [The Root] * There's no video, but Popehat has a nice little tale about an airline and airport police completely failing. [Popehat] * If this had happened to Ann Coulter, conservatives would be concerned. But since it only happened to left-leaning women in Kentucky... crickets. [ABC] * The Supreme Court doesn't want to touch California's ban on gay conversion therapy. Banning gay conversion therapy is, of course, the only reason to be happy Donald Trump hasn't been repealed and replaced by Mike Pence. [ABA Journal] * In case you missed it, on Friday night I debated Jenner Block's Lindsay Harrison about the Constitution, and Seema Iyer about sex offenders. Check out the webcast here. [WNYC Studios] * Richard Posner and Jed Rakoff face off over the death penalty. [Slate]
Elie Mystal is an editor of Above the Law and the Legal Editor for More Perfect. He can be reached @ElieNYC on Twitter, or at [email protected]. He will resist.
Judge Richard Posner Confesses Error
This brilliant jurist is hipper than you might expect.
A Judicial Battle Royal At The Seventh Circuit — And Judge Posner’s Favorite Gays Of All Time
SCOTUS shortlisters and other luminaries of the federal judiciary duke it out in a landmark case.
Keeping Law School Accessible When Federal Loans Fall Short
As federal borrowing caps tighten financing options for law students, one organization is stepping in to negotiate the terms they can't secure alone.
Non-Sequiturs: 03.16.17
* What does the future hold for the U.S. Supreme Court? Analysts (including yours truly) opine. [Bloomberg BNA via Storify] * Another prediction of ours has come to pass: congrats to Sullivan & Cromwell partner Brent McIntosh on his nomination as general counsel for the Treasury Department. [Corporate Counsel] * Is it time to break up the Ninth Circuit (as President Trump recently called for)? Professors John Eastman and Brian Fitzpatrick say yay; Judges Sidney Thomas, Carlos Bea, and Alex Kozinski say nay. [House Judiciary Committee] * Anthony Kronman: from dean of Yale Law School to "born-again pagan" (affiliate link). [New Yorker via How Appealing] * Looking for smart, timely takes on the Trump Administration, from an all-star cast of law professors and legal experts? There's a site for that. [Take Care] * Guess who: "Cat-loving judge makes case that has nothing to do with cats all about cats." [Chicago Tribune] * Professor Orin Kerr chats with Professor Barry Friedman about Friedman's latest book, Unwarranted: Policing Without Permission (affiliate link). [Volokh Conspiracy] * The current SCOTUS Term isn't super-sexy -- but there are a few interesting cases on the docket, as Adam Feldman points out. [Empirical SCOTUS] * Attention 2Ls & 3Ls, here's a cool contest -- with $100K in scholarships as prizes! [PR Newswire (press release)]
Morning Docket: 03.08.17
* What rights do you have to strike on International Women's Day? [NY Mag] * Amazon drops its objections to the Echo warrant, meaning if you own an Echo (or any of its ilk), you now have a wiretap in your house. Congratulations. [Corporate Counsel] * Blank Rome boosts profit 22 percent. Associates looking at their below market paychecks must feel super psyched about that. [Legal Intelligencer] * Judge Posner is just comparing everything to cats now and that's perfectly fine. [Law.com] * Looks like the NCAA and power conferences are going to shell out millions in settlement cash to former athletes in financial aid collusion case, which they'll make back several times over by the end of the month. [Courthouse News Service] * Penn accepts big gift from Charles Koch to work on criminal justice research, presumably an extension of his support for indigent legal services, but we can't rule out a plan to make convicts fight to the death for sport. [Law.com] * Just your standard slave labor case in 2017. [Law360] * Lynne Stewart has passed away at 77. [New York Times]
All Scrutiny Of Supreme Court Nominees Is Political
Get ready for a new Justice.
Why Is It Okay To Joke About Genocide, But Not About Killing Cops?
Police-murder satire would seem like the kind of thing that should also enjoy First Amendment protection. No?
Morning Docket: 02.22.17
* Judge Posner rules that you can't yell "fire" on a crowded Internet. [ABA Journal] * Want a sneak peek at Am Law 100/200 financial results? Spoiler: top firms make a lot of money. [ALM Staff] * Apparently it's financially tenuous to leave Biglaw. Who knew walking away from $200K+ could put a crimp in your plans? [Am Law Daily] * Michael Cohen is spinning in the wind after his contradictory secret peace plan claims fall apart. [Business Insider] * Dechert has jumped into Philadelphia's looming sanctuary city fight and Hogan Lovells may not be far behind. [Legal Intelligencer] * The harassment claims against Uber have in-house counsel under fire. [National Law Journal] * Human boil Martin Shkreli and Evan Greebel, his former attorney from Katten, are seeking separate trials. [Law360]