Trials

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 10.24.18

* As she steps away from public life in the wake of her dementia diagnosis, rather than banish retired Justice Anthony Kennedy to the Thurgood Marshall Federal Judiciary Building, retired Justice Sandra Day O'Connor bequeathed her chambers to him. The Supreme Court will miss her. [National Law Journal] * Judges say the darndest things: Bill Cosby's bid to get a new trial and reduce his sentence was summarily turned down by Judge Steven O'Neill, who noted in a simple, one-page ruling that "no hearing or argument is required on the issues." [NBC News] * Desmarais, the elite IP litigation boutique that recently raised salaries for first-year associates to $210,000, will be making its "first and probably [] last expansion," opening a West Coast office in San Francisco to serve its Bay Area clients. [Law360] * In case you missed it, the State Bar of California’s Committee of Bar Examiners awarded Thomas Jefferson School of Law with state accreditation after an 8-7 vote, with one committee member abstaining. Now its graduates will be able to sit for the California bar exam even if the ABA revokes its accreditation. [ABA Journal] * If you've been wondering what killed the Middle Tennessee State University / Valparaiso Law School deal, one member of the Tennessee Higher Education Commission says it had to do with "genuine concern about the labor supply and demand for lawyers" -- and that seems entirely reasonable. [Murfreesboro Post]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 09.21.18

* Lawyers for Dr. Christine Blasey Ford say that she's "prepared to testify next week" before the Senate Judiciary Committee on her allegations of sexual assault against Judge Brett Kavanaugh, but not on Monday (an "arbitrary" date), and only under "terms that are fair and which ensure her safety." [CNN] * Everyone and their mother and their dog who's been caught up in the Kavanaugh controversy has lawyered up. Patrick Smyth, one of SCOTUS nominee Brett Kavanaugh's former high school classmates who was reportedly at the party where Dr. Christine Blasey Ford was allegedly assaulted, has hired Kobre & Kim to represent him. [American Lawyer] * "Cohen’s disavowal of Trump has triggered a series of events that turned once very good friends into permanent enemies." Michael Cohen has been chatting with Robert Mueller, and his conversations have focused on Trump's dealings with Russia, possible collusion, and whether he's ever discussed a pardon with Trump. [ABC News] * When it comes to Wachtell, "[i]t may be the last true partnership," but that's not how 87-year-old "Poison Pill" creater Martin Lipton sees things. "If I wasn’t here tomorrow, the firm wouldn’t be any different," he says, because he wants to pass everything on to the next generation of lawyers in the future. [Big Law Business] * $26.5 million can buy you lots of fancy things, including a law school. The University of Alabama School of Law will now be known as the Hugh F. Culverhouse Jr. School of Law at the University of Alabama after Culverhouse donated the largest gift in the school's history. Congratulations and ROLL TIDE! [Sarasota Herald-Tribune] * For the first time in history, there are more women than men at Brigham Young University’s J. Reuben Clark Law School. Fifty-two percent of BYU Law's first-year students are women. According to the dean of admissions, applications increased by 6.7 percent this year, with a nearly 21 percent rise among women. [Daily Herald] * The trial for Katherine Magbanua and Sigfredo Garcia, who are accused in the 2014 murder of FSU Law professor Dan Markel, was scheduled for October 8, but it's been delayed due to a defense attorney's medical treatment. [Tallahassee Democrat]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 08.20.18

* It turns out that Don McGahn, the White House counsel, has been cooperating "extensively" with Robert Mueller's obstruction investigation. He's apparently been sharing "detailed accounts" for his own legal security because he thought President Trump might be trying to set him as the fall guy. [New York Times] * Judge T.S. Ellis says that he's received threats while overseeing Paul Manafort's trial and that he is now under the protection of U.S. Marshals. He's refused to release the names of the jurors out of a genuine concern for their safety. [USA Today] * Federal prosecutors are reportedly preparing charges related to bank and tax fraud for Michael Cohen. He allegedly misrepresented his assets to obtain loans and failed to properly report income from his taxi medallions. Yikes! [CNN] * Speaking of Cohen, Bracewell partner Barbara Jones has concluded her privilege review of the more than 3.2 million documents seized from Michael Cohen, and found that about 7,150 were actually privileged -- a fraction of what was taken, and a fraction of what Cohen's legal team claimed was privileged. [New York Law Journal] * "I will regret every day of my life, the day I met Martin Shkreli." Despite his lawyers' request for no jail time, Evan Greebel, the former Biglaw partner who once worked with the pharma bro, has been sentenced to 18 months in prison. [American Lawyer] * Esperanza Franco, a 2015 graduate of Penn Law's LL.M. program and 2017 graduate of Arizona's J.D. program, has been defending immigrants from deportation, but she may soon face deportation herself thanks to a series of visa errors. You can donate here to help her stay in the country. [Philadelphia Inquirer]

By Staci Zaretsky