University of Virginia

* James Alex Fields Jr., the 20-year-old accused of ramming his car into a group of counter-protesters in Charlottesville, Virginia, killing one and injuring numerous others, has been charged with one count of second-degree murder, three counts of malicious wounding, and one count related to leaving the scene of an accident. [NPR]

* Heather Heyer, the 32-year-old woman who was killed in Charlottesville this weekend, was a paralegal at a small law firm where she managed the bankruptcy department. She was described as woman willing to stand up against “any type of discrimination.” We’ll have more on this tragic news later today. [New York Times]

* After being urged by Senator Ted Cruz to “prosecute this grotesque act of domestic terrorism,” the Department of Justice has opened a federal civil rights investigation into the deadly white supremacy rally that occurred this past weekend in Charlottesville, as the events that unfolded there “strike at the heart of American law and justice.” [Independent Journal Review; The Hill]

* “Evidently that’s not going to happen.” Senator Chuck Grassley, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is walking back comments that he made back in April about the likelihood of a Supreme Court justice (i.e., Justice Anthony Kennedy) retiring this summer. Maybe he’ll get his wish next summer. [Reuters]

* Classes are supposed to begin at Charlotte Law in three weeks, but according to a spokesman from the University of North Carolina system, the school’s temporary license to operate has expired. The dean of the troubled law school, on the other hand, says the license hasn’t expired. Hmm… [Charlotte Observer]

* Keys to success: remove your ego from the battle. [Katz Justice] * Yeah, this answer was pretty perfect. [Slate] * Russia is full on trolling the United States over election 2016. [Salon] * "Trains racing at unsafe speeds with volatile, difficult-to-contain oil is incredibly dangerous." Indeed. [Occupy.com] * Update from the Rolling Stone defamation trial over the magazine's now-retracted story about sexual assault at University of Virginia. [Jezebel] * What will Jones Day (the Trump campaign's lawyers) do after the election? [Law and More] * Tips for writing the all important chronology of events. [Law Prose]

Even after the Rolling Stone debacle, many dubious beliefs persist about women who allege that they have been sexually assaulted, the men those women accuse, and how the media reports on it.

* According to a recent survey conducted by Altman Weil, Biglaw managing partners and chairs say that overcapacity and a lack of work for their partners is putting a dent in their overall profitability. Please don’t take the easy way out here — the weather is way too nice for layoffs. [Am Law Daily]

* Beverly Cochran, the wife of Judge Edward Najam of the Indiana Court of Appeals, was charged with obstruction and false reporting after allegedly carving “die judge” on their front door in the hope that her son-in-law would be arrested. [WBIW via ABA Journal]

* When Harvard Law alums say their business education “was a joke,” you know you’ve got a problem. Law schools are finally coming around to the fact that their graduates don’t have a clue about business, and some of them are trying to fix that. [Bloomberg Business]

* Nicole Eramo, UVA’s associate dean of students, has filed a $7.5 million defamation suit against Rolling Stone for tarring and feathering her in the magazine’s now discredited campus rape story. She’s also upset this “unflattering” photo was published. [CNNMoney]

* Say aloha to admission to the University of Hawaii School of Law without an LSAT score. We figure that a few more schools will decide to try this program out since the ABA recently indicated its regrets about introducing the initiative in the first place. [KHON2]

* Fried Frank is closing down its Hong Kong and Shanghai offices because they were costing the firm more money than they were bringing in. What’ll happen to the lawyers who work there? Most of them will be huòdé dìyù. [Am Law Daily]

* Not everyone can match the New York market when it comes to Biglaw bonuses. According to disputed rumors, associates in some practices of at least one Chicago law firm didn’t receive any bonus at all. Which firm? [Crain’s Chicago Business]

* We often complain that women are getting the short end of the stick in Biglaw, but today we’ve got a nice little caveat. At some large law firms in at least one city, more women are making partner than their male counterparts. [National Law Journal]

* UVA hired Pepper Hamilton to consult on its inept handling of sexual assault cases while O’Melveny & Myers deals with its Rolling Stone gang rape allegations. Collars shall be half-popped until the school gets serious about these issues. [Newsplex]

* Whittier Law, home to one of the worst full-time, long-term employment rates in the country, hopes to give grads a “legal leg-up” with its new solo incubator program — because “[e]ducation and training doesn’t end when they graduate.” [Daily Pilot]

* Wet Seal joined the ranks of teen retailers like Deb and Delia’s when it dumped lots of locations and filed for Chapter 11. New code provisions might’ve sped things along, but like, being a debtor-in-possession is totally uncool. [DealBook / New York Times]

There is nothing insensitive about asking women who use the media to spread their accusations to also respond to media inquiry.

Is there ever any excuse for coming down like this on an underaged drinker?

Ed. note: We apologize for getting such a late start today, but we were experiencing some technical difficulties. Thanks for being patient with us.

* Barack Obama made some bold statements about marriage equality in his inaugural address, but the jury is still out — literally — on whether he thinks laws banning same-sex couples from marrying are constitutional. [BuzzFeed]

* You can smoke pot for sh*ts and giggles in several states, but the D.C. Circuit is siding with the DEA on this one. Marijuana is still classified as a Schedule I drug in the eyes of the (federal) law. [National Law Journal]

* With claims of prejudicial evidence, Rajat Gupta is trying to get his insider trading conviction overturned. We’ll wait for more on this story from note passer field correspondent, Benula Bensam. [WSJ Law Blog (sub. req.)]

* Here are some tips on how you can refine the résumé that will accompany your law school application — but make sure you get the accents aigus right, or else. [Law Admissions Lowdown / U.S. News & World Report]

* “Why are all high school teachers freaks in the sacks?” Sarah Jones, the cheerleader-cum-sexy teacher, cried over phrases like that yesterday during testimony in her defamation case against The Dirty. [ESPN]

* George W. Huguely V, the UVA lacrosse bro who was convicted of killing his sometimes girlfriend, has got one hell of an appellate lawyer. Perhaps famous litigator Paul Clement is a friend of the family. [Bloomberg]

* And now another reason for lawyers to hate other lawyers (even more than they already do): Westlaw and LexisNexis are being sued for copyright infringement for selling access to publicly filed legal documents. [WSJ Law Blog]

* MGA Entertainment’s antitrust suit against Mattel has been dismissed. In celebration, attorneys from Quinn Emanuel will buy themselves hot pink convertibles while singing that “Barbie Girl” song. [Thomson Reuters News & Insight]

* Yesterday in the Golinski case, a federal judge ruled that the definition of marriage under DOMA is unconstitutional. Come on, even a Bush II appointee knows what’s up. [Poliglot / Metro Weekly]

* After finally realizing that he was a lawyer and not an agent — and that his most infamous client wasn’t worth as much as he thought — Jose Baez dropped Casey Anthony like a bad habit. [Miami Herald]

* Former University of Virginia lax player George W. Huguely V was found guilty of second degree murder in the death of Yeardley Love. UVA students are instructed to pop their collars at half-staff. [Bloomberg]