Settlements

Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 08.16.16

* Former NYPD police office Peter Liang didn't have to serve jail time over the killing of Akai Gurley, but he (and the city of New York) will have to pay to settle the civil lawsuit. [Huffington Post] * The Supreme Court does no favors for victims of police brutality. [Slate] * How will Jones Day rebrand itself if (when?) its client, Donald Trump, fails? [Law and More] * Republican lawmakers are pushing for a perjury case to be brought against Hillary Clinton. [Law Newz] * Donald Trump unveiled a new immigration plan, but not everyone thinks it passes the legality bar. [Salon] * Wherein Kelly Ayotte tries to delicately dance around the issue of endorsing Donald Trump while still being a good Republican soldier. [Lawyers, Guns and Money]

By Kathryn Rubino
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 08.09.16

* Did Chief Justice Roy Moore of the Alabama Supreme Court commit judicial misconduct when he instructed probate judges that the state's same-sex marriage ban was still in effect despite the Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell? The state's Court of the Judiciary has set a date for a trial-like proceeding on the ethics charges Moore faces for late September. [ABC News] * If you want to go to law school and you've got your heart set on a particular institution, it may be in your best financial interests to apply early decision. A few law schools are now offering significant scholarship opportunities to early applicants -- in some cases, full tuition scholarships are being handed out. [Law Admissions Lowdown / U.S. News] * "Even innocent clients may not benefit from the fraud of their attorney." Chevron Corp. has prevailed in a long-running environmental law case set in an Ecuadorian rainforest. Lawyers for the oil and gas company convinced the Second Circuit that an $8.65 billion judgment was obtained through attorney Steven Donziger's bribery and fraud. [Reuters] * The family of slain Florida State law professor Dan Markel has accepted a $40,000 settlement from the Consolidated Dispatch Agency in connection with a wrongful death case. Due to an "error by dispatchers," it took approximately 19 minutes for ambulances to arrive at Markel's home as he lay dying after being shot. [Tallahassee Democrat] * This is why indebted law students can't have nice things: while the American Bar Association may have changed its tune when it comes to law students earning pay for credit-bearing externships, it will allow law schools to be the ultimate arbiters on whether academic credit will still be offered for these job placements. [Law.com]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 05.23.16

* The arresting officer in the Freddie Gray case was found not guilty on all charges. [Baltimore CBS] * An oldie but a goodie: a lawsuit filed against "Satan and his staff" for ruining a man's life. Unfortunately, there isn't much a court can do without proper jurisdiction. [Boing Boing] * Matt Bruenig may still think lawyers get paid too much, but that didn't stop him from opening up a GoFundMe campaign after being fired from Demos Think Tank over some rude tweets. [Lawyers, Guns and Money] * How small is too small? An analysis of the trivial doctrine under New York law. [Cityland] * A lawyer has already been hired to file an objection to the proposed settlement in the O'Connor v. Uber case. [Law and More] * Has University of Iowa College of Law's enrollment finally stabilized after a sharp decline? [Tax Prof Blog] * A whistleblower lawsuit alleges dirty tactics in the deal to move the Rams from St. Louis to Los Angeles. [Courthouse News] * Second Amendment fanatic vs. gun control advocate. [Funny or Die]

By Kathryn Rubino
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 04.27.16

* Amal Clooney lays the smackdown on Donald Trump, all without even uttering his name. Classy. [Vanity Fair] * If you're convicted of a felony in connection with the murder of your mother, then you should probably expect to lose your law license. [Law Profession Blog] * Yes, Ted Cruz is making a fool of himself, running a Sisyphean race for president. But does that mean the founding fathers were right about that natural born citizen crap? (If someone born in Canada to an American mother is even what they meant by the phrase.) [Lawyers, Guns and Money] * BYU's Title IX problem: Are they making sexual assault more likely by linking honor code investigations to reports of rape? [Slate] * Hooah! Army Captain Kristen Griest, one of the first women to earn a Rangers tab, will be transferring branches, becoming the first female infantry officer. Combat arms branches were recently opened to women for the first time, and Captain Griest's move is part of the Army's effort to integrate those branches. [Army Times] * Encounter with Ted Bundy! A victim of the notorious serial killer recalls the experience. [Huffington Post] * Should a settlement deal with a federal agency include a clause to prevent people from speaking negatively about the agency to Congress and the press? [Volokh Conspiracy] * The robots are coming for our jobs, but maybe, if we are lucky, some of us can survive. [Speechwriter Ghostwriter]

By Kathryn Rubino
Non-Sequiturs

Non-Sequiturs: 04.11.16

* TRUCE! In the wake of his settlement with Paul Cassell, Alan Dershowitz looks to make peace with David Boies after a vicious fight. [Big Law Business] * Speaking of making peace, Chris Christie has made a deal with New Jersey Democrats to end a six-year stalemate over the state Supreme Court. He is nominating Bridget Kelly's old lawyer, Walter Timpone. [New Jersey.com] * More analysis of bar exam results: see what happened in Oklahoma, Oregon, Washington, Tennessee, and Kentucky. [Bar Exam Stats] * Is it ethically acceptable -- and does it work -- to shame prosecutors for wrongful convictions? [Georgetown Journal of Legal Ethics via Slate] * Yes, that's billions with a B: Goldman Sachs to pay $5 billion in settlements over charges it contributed to the 2008 financial crisis. [Gawker] * Kevin Abikoff, partner at Hughes Hubbard & Reed, cleared Unaoil in an anti-corruption report, and is now facing questions about that representation. [Huffington Post]

By Kathryn Rubino
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 02.12.16

* Riding high after his victory in New Hampshire, Donald Trump settled his $500 million lawsuit against Univision for the network dropping his beauty pageants. Ay dios mio, this must be some sort of a YUGE GRANDE ploy to win the Hispanic vote. [USA Today] * Dickstein Shapiro lawyers must be feeling pretty good about themselves right now. Their mass lateral move to Blank Rome isn't a merger, it's an "asset acquisition." You see that? You're all "assets"! Remember that next time a partner makes you cry. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg] * The ABA is considering toughening bar passage requirements for law school accreditation. Under the plan, schools would have to prove that 75 percent of graduates who took an exam within two years of graduation passed. Good luck! [ABA Journal] * Uh-oh! Are partners at large law firms getting screwed? Biglaw firms are asking for bigger capital contributions (30-35 percent of earnings on average), and holding on to that money for longer periods of time when those partners leave. [Am Law Daily] * Minnesota Law has been hit pretty hard by the law school crisis, with losses expected to hit $16.1 million by 2018. When the school's soon-to-be ex-Dean first started in 2008, "everything was good," but now, it's a huge sh*tshow. [Twin Cities Pioneer Press]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 02.10.16

* Uh-oh! Martin Shkreli may have gotten more than he bargained for when he bought the one and only copy of the Wu-Tang Clan's "Once Upon a Time in Shaolin." An artist whose work appears on the album's packaging has filed a copyright infringement suit against the smug pharma bro. [WSJ Law Blog] * A Texas ADA was arrested this weekend for DWI after crashing into a parked car. According to police, it appeared as if she was trying to leave the scene. She's been a prosecutor for almost a year, and hasn't been put on a leave of absence for her alleged transgressions (yet). [FOX 7 Austin] * "I don't understand why donors should not donate money to the Law School because some moron, some racist decided to put black tape on some portraits." Some alumni (not this guy) are uncertain if they'll continue to donate to Harvard Law. [Harvard Crimson] * President Obama has proposed a cybersecurity plan that'll cost $19+ billion. Americans will learn how to better secure their accounts to prevent illegal hacks. That's a lot of cash to teach people not to use "123456" as their password. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg] * Have your birthday cake and eat it too, because the terms of Warner Music Group's "Happy Birthday to You" settlement have been disclosed, and up to $14 million is up for grabs for those who've had to pay licensing fees to use it. [L.A. Now / Los Angeles Times]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 01.26.16

* Martin Shkreli's hearing before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has been rescheduled due to this weekend's blizzard. This will give the reviled pharma bro even more time to brush up on constitutional law. [CBS News] * Uh-oh! Thanks to some "cash flow issues" -- like partners not being paid on time -- King & Wood Mallesons is currently in the process of raising capital and will be conducting a review of its overall financial structure. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg] * Cert denied! The justices of the Supreme Court may have bought these lawyers' arguments and struck down a crucial part of the Voting Rights Act in the Shelby County case, but they're certainly not buying their request for $2 million in legal fees. [Reuters] * A hate crime without a resolution? Police are closing their investigation into the defacement of black professors' portraits at Harvard Law without having found a perp. Maybe they decided to take Elie Mystal's advice not to feed the trolls. [Boston.com] * Florida State settled a lawsuit filed by Erica Kinsman, a former student who claimed Jameis Winston raped her, for $900K, but the school claims $700K of that amount will go to her legal team. Her lawyers, however, would politely beg to differ. [USA Today]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 08.26.15

* Melvin Feliz, husband of Keila Ravelo, the partner who allegedly bilked Hunton & Williams and Willkie Farr out of millions to lead a life of luxury, pleaded guilty in the fraud case brought against him. Is she a prospective Real Housewife of Cellblock D? [Bergen Record] * Sorry, Southwest passengers, but the Seventh Circuit says you're stuck with your free drink vouchers, and the lawyers who represented you in this class-action suit are stuck with their $1.65 million. No one is happy up in the unfriendly skies. [Associated Press] * China's economy may be on the brink, but that doesn't matter to Dentons. The firm is as happy as ever about its proposed merger with Dacheng because it really wants a horde of lawyers, so it's gonna get one. It's "almost absurd" to think otherwise. [Am Law Daily] * As we mentioned yesterday, lawyers work too damn much -- so much, in fact, that they're quitting their Biglaw jobs, starting competitor practices, and poaching talent from top firms by offering them a sense of work-life balance. [Harvard Business Review] * Kevin Fagan, perhaps better known as Juror 83 in the Dzhokhar Tsarnaev trial, is speaking to the media about his experience, and says he might've changed his death penalty vote if he had known the youngest victim's parents opposed it. [WSJ Law Blog]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 07.09.15

* According to Justice Jeanette Theriot Knoll of the Louisiana Supreme Court, the SCOTUS decision in Obergefell was not only "horrific," but it was also “a complete and unnecessary insult to the people of Louisiana." Gee, tell us how you really feel. [Slate] * The First Church of Cannabis filed a discrimination suit against Indiana and Indianapolis, claiming laws against marijuana use and possession are infringing upon its members' beliefs. We're sTOKEd to see the outcome here. [Indianapolis Star] * In case you missed it yesterday, a federal judge upheld the TTAB's prior ruling on the Washington Redskins' name, and ordered that the team's trademark registrations be canceled. The team is going for a Hail Mary at the Fourth Circuit. [Washington Post] * Ex-associate Elina Chechelnitsky's sexual harassment and gender bias lawsuit against McElroy Deutsch, filled with allegations of better bonuses for men and creepy flirtations, was settled out of court. You go, girl. [New Jersey Law Journal via ABA Journal] * Crowell & Moring recently dropped a suit against a former client that had allegedly failed to pay almost one million dollars in legal fees. There's no word on whether the conflict was ever resolved, but if it wasn't, it's nice to see the firm isn't hurting for cash. [Legal Times]

By Staci Zaretsky
Affirmative Action

Morning Docket: 04.28.14

* Meow! Last week, in a rare move, Justice Sonia Sotomayor let the world see that she’s not exactly the best of friends with Chief Justice John Roberts through her fiery dissent in the Schuette affirmative action case. [National Law Journal] * The Am Law 100 law firm rankings are out, and 2013 is being described as a “middling” year for most Biglaw firms. On the bright side, it looks like the big and rich got even bigger and richer. We’ll have more on this later. [American Lawyer] * Bingham McCutchen has settled a discrimination suit filed by Sleeping Beauty a former associate with a rare sleep disorder. We hope this lawyer will be able to sleep well on her new bed of cash. [Am Law Daily] * Secrets, secrets are no fun: The search for a new dean is on at George Washington University Law, but professors say they were “sworn to secrecy” on the candidates who’ve visited campus. [GW Hatchet] * “It’s not about me getting the money; it’s about showing the NFL you can’t do this.” Ex-Vikings punter Chris Kluwe may sue the team after being cut for expressing positive views on gay marriage. [NBC Sports] * Donald Sterling’s wife ain’t sayin’ V. Stiviano is a gold digger — she’s alleging V. Stiviano is a gold digger. This, plus the accusations of racism against Sterling, is a flagrant foul. [L.A. Now / Los Angeles Times]

By Staci Zaretsky