Steven Davis

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 07.06.16

* In case you haven't been keeping score like we have, these are the firms that recently raised salaries: Jackson Walker. Where are the rest? If you’re worried you’ve missed any of our coverage on pay raises, check out our omnibus 2016 salary chart where we collect these stories. [2016 Salary Increase / Above the Law] * "[I]t's stunning that it takes a court decision for federal employees to be held accountable to the law." Perhaps someone should tell Hillary Clinton about this, but according to the D.C. Circuit, federal officials may not use private email accounts to avoid having their documents and messages fall under public records laws. [The Hill] * Steven Davis, the former chairman of Dewey & LeBoeuf, owes quite the pretty penny to Citibank in the form of an unpaid loan. Davis was ordered by Judge Nancy Bannon to pay nearly $400K to the bank to cover what was once his capital contribution to the firm before it flopped under his leadership. [New York Law Journal via ABA Journal] * Thanks to a string of victories in fending off complaints about its controversial practices, it's highly unlikely that the Securities and Exchange Commission will stop using its system of in-house administrative law judges any time soon. The SEC is very reluctant to give up its perceived "home court" advantage. [DealBook / New York Times] * If you're thinking of applying to law school with a criminal record, you probably don't need to worry too much about whether you'll be accepted. From murderers to bank robbers, plenty of ex-cons have gone to law school before you, and many of them are successful in their non-criminal careers. [Law Admissions Lowdown / U.S. News]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 01.19.16

* The New York Times editorial board believes SCOTUS justices "already have all the evidence they need to join the rest of the civilized world and end the death penalty once and for all" -- and they may get the chance to do so this Term (but won't). [New York Times] * A Texas lawyer has filed the first "birther" lawsuit against Republican candidate Ted Cruz, seeking a declaratory judgment that the Canadian-born senator isn't eligible to run for president. The filing is a pretty entertaining read in that it's completely insane. [KHOU 11 News] * Just when ex-Dewey & LeBoeuf chair Steven Davis thought his legal troubles were over, Citibank swooped in to slap him with a suit seeking repayment of a $400,000 loan for his capital contribution to the failed firm. [New York Law Journal via ABA Journal] * The U.S. Copyright Office has formed an academic partnership with George Mason University School of Law. We bet students and law school administrators alike are probably hoping it'll turn into an employment partnership as well. [IP Watchdog] * Lower-ranked law schools ought to thank their lucky stars that U.S. News "ranking competition" exists, because if not for fear they'd sink in the rankings, higher-ranked schools would've enrolled students typically bound for unranked schools. [Forbes] * Not only has Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's first bid to get a new trial been rejected, but in what's been called a "symbolic gesture," the convicted Boston Marathon bomber has now been ordered to pay more than $101 million in restitution to his victims. [Boston Globe]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 12.07.15

* "People who have a dream of going to law school should go into it with their eyes wide open." In case you haven't heard, not all of the law school lawsuits were dismissed; in fact, one of them filed against Thomas Jefferson School of Law is going to trial in March. [ABC News] * Dewey know which D&L defendant will likely be able to escape a retrial? It seems that Steven Davis, the failed firm's former chairman, may find himself on the receiving end of a deferred prosecution agreement instead. [DealBook / New York Times] * At this point, it's anyone's best guess as to what the future of net neutrality may be: The FCC's latest proposal for equal treatment of internet traffic apparently left a bad taste in the D.C. Circuit's mouth during oral arguments at a recent hearing. [WSJ Law Blog] * Baker & McKenzie used to be the largest law firm in the world before Dentons arrived on the scene, but now it's got its eyes on expansion in a territory that the Biglaw behemoth hasn't completely claimed: the United States. [Crain's Chicago Business] * Give thanks, because according to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the legal sector added 600 jobs last month. If you've got a job on your Christmas wish list, Santa just might deliver one to you this year. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg BNA]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.21.15

* Arizona Summit Law wasn't the only law school to post an embarrassing passage rate on the July 2015 administration of the bar exam. Only 28 percent of test-takers from this law school passed, but its dean says that the scores don't "reflect a problem with the school's quality." Hey, whatever helps you get to sleep at night. [Tennessean] * Speaking of bar passage rates, if you're applying to law school, should you care about them? Job statistics are probably a more telling measurement when comparing schools, but then again, it's harder to get a job when you can't pass the bar exam. [U.S. News] * “It’s a huge blow to his tenure as DA." The mistrial in the criminal case against Dewey & LeBoeuf's former executives is putting a major damper on what was supposed to be Manhattan DA Cy Vance's crackdown on corporate crime. [Big Law Business / Bloomberg] * Thanks to the Department of Education's "gainful employment rule," for-profit law schools could be in trouble when it comes to eligibility for federal student loans under the "debt-to-earnings" test. This certainly may put a crimp in Infilaw's style. [Huffington Post] * The vast majority of all class members in the Subway "footlong" lawsuit aren't likely to see a dime. This is fine because they don't need to see any "dough," but a guarantee that the company's next spokesperson won't be a child predator would be nice. [WSJ Law Blog]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.19.15

* After a recent vote, the Florida Bar flat-out rejected a supposedly "controversial" proposal for bar reciprocity. Attorneys in the Sunshine State absolutely, positively do NOT want you practicing law there if you haven't taken the Florida bar. [WSJ Law Blog] * Tomorrow, Oscar Pistorius will be released from prison after having only served a fifth of a five-year sentence for killing his girlfriend, a law school graduate. He'll begin a stint of house arrest, and he's not allowed to have guns there... for very obvious reasons. [UPI] * The case of the missing mistrial? After four weeks of deliberation, and after having acquitted the defendants of a slew of lesser charges, the jury in the criminal trial against the ex-execs of Dewey & LeBoeuf will enter a new month without a full verdict. [Reuters] * The Nebraska Legislature voted to abolish the death penalty in the state, but supporters of capital punishment have forced a November 2016 referendum vote instead. Not to worry, "[n]obody’s going to be executed in Nebraska anytime soon.” [New York Times] * This week, Connecticut's Appellate Court will hear cases at the state's most famous -- and most prestigious -- law school. Don't get too excited, Yalies, because this has nothing to do with you. In fact, you've probably never even heard of this place. [Associated Press]

By Staci Zaretsky