* Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg missed oral arguments on Wednesday because of a stomach bug. Wishing Justice Ginsburg a speedy recovery! [CNN] * Closing arguments have started in the Roger Stone trial. From what prosecutors are saying, it seems like Roger Stone has a target as well as a tattoo of Richard Nixon on his […]
* Roger Stone left early from his trial yesterday because he complained of food poisoning. At least this is better than R. Kelly's infected toenail excuse... [CNN] * An attorney alleged to have smuggled a hit list out of jail has been denied the reinstatement of her law license. [East Bay Times] * Attorneys for Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes have filed a motion to withdraw from the case, stating that they haven't been paid for more than a year. Holmes has come a long way from paying numerous attorneys hefty fees to go after Theranos whistleblowers. [CNBC] * The Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda has asked that Harvard Law make reparations to that country for the impact Antiguan slave labor had on the creation of Harvard Law School. [Toronto Star] * A celebrated cellist has won $11M in a slip and fall lawsuit against an upscale food market. That's a lot of cheddar. [New York Post] * Kentucky elected its first African American attorney general last night. [The Hill] * The Supreme Court yesterday seemed to frown upon North Carolina's use of copyrighted images of a pirate ship that sunk off its shores. If you want to see good images of a pirate ship, there's a ride you should check out... [USA Today]
A new proposal would let wealthy foreign nationals secure an opportunity for a U.S. green card with a $1 million 'gift' to the government, sparking legal and ethical debate.
* The drama at WeWork has resulted in huge amounts of legal work for several top law firms. Maybe the firms will get free office space along with their fees. [American Lawyer] * A new lawsuit alleges that Southwest Airlines pilots hid a video camera in an airplane lavatory and streamed the video from the cockpit. Sounds like a weird new Mile High Club... [Washington Post] * A 78-year-old woman has been sentenced to 22 years in prison for the attempted murder of her own lawyer. Her criminal defense attorney is one brave person. [AP News] * Steve Bannon is expected to testify against Roger Stone at the latter's upcoming trial for federal charges. [National Law Journal] * Arrests have been made for the murder of Rachelle Bergeron, the New York attorney who served as the acting attorney general of the island of Yap. [BBC] * Retired Justice Anthony Kennedy was awarded the Liberty Medal yesterday for efforts to promote education about the Constitution. The award comes with a $100,000 prize — hope he's not jealous that RBG won a $1,000,000 award last week. [Philadelphia Inquirer]
* An alleged New Hampshire church shooter has allegedly beaten his own lawyer... good luck trying to find another attorney to represent him. [Boston Herald] * A bunch of law firms are vying to provide fixed-rate trademark services for Amazon. Wonder if they'll offer free two-day delivery to Prime members. [American Lawyer] * It may be time for the "Piper" to pay — another DLA Piper employee alleges inappropriate behavior by a firm partner and administrators. [Bloomberg] * R. Kelly and his divorce lawyer are in Splitsville over R. Kelly's alleged failure to pay his lawyer's fees. [Chicago Sun Times] * Roger Stone won't be able to show clips from The Godfather Part II at his trial. I guess they made the judge an offer he could refuse. [Daily Beast] * Unfortunately, two beaten-up lawyers make today's Morning Docket. The Cleveland attorney sucker punched by a client after a 47-year sentence was handed down is mulling a lawsuit against the local sheriff's department. [Cleveland.com]
* Redaction comedy: filings in the Roger Stone case inadvertently gave out Trump's phone number. [National Law Review] * Law firm growth has slowed but we're going to pretend that's not a troubling sign. [American Lawyer] * California's going to war with the NCAA and they stand a better chance than this year's UCLA team. [KTLA] * Former Penn State GC faces discipline hearing before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. [Law.com] * Insider trading trial begins with argument that banker didn't intend to go in on an insider trading scheme with his dad. [Law360] * FDA sends warning letter to Juul over its claims to be "safer than cigarettes" being potentially false as opposed to its claims to "not make you look like a douche" which are demonstrably false. [Corporate Counsel]
* The mail bomber, Cesar Sayoc, gets sentenced to 20 years in prison for sending 16 explosive devices to journalist, high ranking officials and former elected politicians. [New York Law Journal] * Roger Stone would really like the D.C. Circuit to lift the gag imposed last month by U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson. [Law360] * In the wake of the latest round of mass shootings, the governments of Venezuela and Uruguay issue warnings for their citizens traveling in the U.S. [Huffington Post] * With the courts being the way they are, don't get too excited about the prospect of actual gun control. [Slate] * The legal ethics behind AI: An ABA proposal urges the legal profession to address the emerging use of the technology now, before it's too late. [Big Law Business] * The U.K. is lowering the standard of proof in lawyer misconduct ethics tribunals. Beginning in November, lawyers will be judged on "the balance of probabilities." [Law.com]
Adoption of Chrometa represents more than a technological upgrade; it reflects a professional philosophy that values accuracy, transparency, and efficiency.
* The first debate night included an unexpected spotlight on America's addiction to overcriminalization when Castro and Beto clashed over why border crossing needs to be a crime to fight sex trafficking... when sex trafficking is already a crime. Meanwhile prosecutors wearing granny's clothing said, "all the better to leverage you into a deal, my dear." [Washington Post] * For all the tech transfer attorneys out there... this can't be good news. [Law360] * They're turning Lee Harvey Oswald's jail cell into a law school and here's an update on that process. [Dallas News] * San Francisco has banned e-cigs. I'm no fan, but it seems like analog cigs should be banned before e-cigs, right? [CBS News] * Fintech practices are hot these days. Maybe doubling down on tech savvy lawyers will help move the legal industry into the 21st century. [American Lawyer] * Roger Stone stares into the void of contempt. [National Law Journal]
People keep dancing around some good points.
* Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta is in hot water for brokering the 2008 plea deal for Jeffrey Epstein. District Judge Kenneth Marra said the actions of then prosecutor Acosta violated federal law. [Slate] * When saying you're sorry just isn't enough: Roger Stone gets slapped with a gag order by Judge Amy Berman Jackson after Instagram debacle. [Law.com] * One of Michael Avenatti's sources has been identified as IRS analyst John C. Fry... and he's in trouble for disclosing Suspicious Activity Reports. [Law and Crime] * Most Americans understanding separation of powers better than the president. [The Hill] * If you're going to discuss bribing officials, you probably shouldn't do it over a video conference call -- this is the exact reason seedy dive bars exist. [Corporate Counsel] * The Jackson family is going after HBO over the documentary "Leaving Neverland," seeking $100 million in damages. [Deadline]
There's one thread that ties these stories together and it's not pretty.
Our expert panel explores common sources of profit leakage along with practical steps for improvement.
* I share Allahpundit's take on the retirement buzz around Justice Clarence Thomas (recently discussed by Jeffrey Toobin, but also in the air at last November's Federalist Society conference): it's certainly possible, and if it happens, Judge Amy Coney Barrett and Judge Amul Thapar are the two top picks. [Hot Air] * And Judge Barrett is protecting her prospects for Supreme Court confirmation: she just joined the opinion of a fellow shortlister, Judge Diane Sykes, that dutifully applies Hill v. Colorado, the shaky but not-overruled Supreme Court precedent about free-speech rights outside abortion clinics. [Bench Memos / National Review] * Speaking of SCOTUS, which amici boast the best track recorders in filing certiorari-stage amicus briefs in business cases? Adam Feldman crunches the numbers -- and the dominance of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce should come as no surprise. [Empirical SCOTUS] * And speaking of the Chamber, it also seems to be making progress on its goal of forcing more disclosure of litigation-funding arrangements, with the reintroduction of the Litigation Funding Transparency Act (LFTA). [Institute for Legal Reform] * Litigation funders don't reflexively oppose any and all disclosure requirements; Michael German of Vannin Capital, for example, argues for a sensible and limited disclosure regime. [New York Law Journal] * If you're looking for an interesting new podcast (besides Wondery's exploration of the Dan Markel case), consider Bound by Oath from the Institute for Justice (Eugene Volokh is a fan). [Institute for Justice] * Should Roger Stone be gagged? Joel Cohen weighs the pros and cons. [The Hill] * Are you a lawyer who enjoys poker? Mark your calendar for February 23! [Attorney Poker Tour]
This really didn't age well.
* Roger Stone's heading to court today. That should be a scene, man. [National Law Journal] * Corrupt legislatures... not just for U.S. Congress anymore! The ABA House of Delegates bails out for-profit law schools again. [Law.com] * The New Yorker has a deep dive into Plessy v. Ferguson as "The Case That Enshrined White Supremacy." Dude, let me introduce you to Shelby County. [New Yorker] * Texas is pretending thousands of "illegal" immigrants have voted over the years. The methodology is basically "they were once not citizens... then years later they voted!" I only highlight this story because in 6 months when it gets unceremoniously dropped by ACTUAL CRIMINAL DEFENDANT Texas AG Ken Paxton it's worth remembering how completely insane this all is. [Courthouse News Service] * Fugitive ex-Hunton attorney gets 7 years... or over 61,000 billable hours. [Law360] * Not to defend Harvey Weinstein, but should we really be using a human trafficking law here? [Time] * Now they want to make animal cruelty a federal felony. Could we maybe start with making a federal case out of "shooting unarmed kids in the back"? [WECT]
Indictment alleges obstruction of justice and witness tampering.
* President Trump is preparing to declare a national emergency at the country’s southern border. A draft order is in the works, and $7B+ will be used to build the president’s wall to fix the humanitarian crisis he helped to create. [CNN] * Longtime Trump ally Roger Stone was arrested early this morning in connection with special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe. He’s been charged with seven counts: one count of obstruction of an official proceeding, five counts of false statements, and one count of witness tampering. [Washington Post] * Were you planning on taking the D.C. bar exam in February? Not so fast. Thanks to the government shutdown, you might not be able to do so. We'll keep you updated. If you've been waiting to get sworn in after passing the July 2018 bar, keep waiting -- potentially for a while. [Law.com] * Michael Cohen's lawyer, Lanny Davis, has called for a criminal investigation into Rudy Giuliani for his alleged witness tampering because "calling out a man’s father-in-law and wife in order to intimidate the witness is not fair game." [The Hill] * Like it or not, women still carry the bulk of their childcare duties, and lawyer moms often find themselves "deploy[ing] tactical maneuvers" to get the job done. At least millennials are doing what they can to eliminate motherhood bias. [Law.com] * Congratulations to Kimberly Mutcherson of Rutgers-Camden, who was recently named as the co-dean of Rutgers Law School. She will be the first African-American and first LGBTQ law dean at Rutgers University. Well done! [Daily Targum] * Believe it or not, you can still do a lot of extracurricular activities during law school. Just ask Ted Bundy. He killed up to eight women while he was a student at Utah Law. We hope your preferred activities are more... normal. [Salt Lake Tribune]