Law Professor Found Dead, No Foul Play Suspected
Our deepest condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues during this difficult time.
Yet Another Troubled Law School To Close Its Doors
Administrators couldn't even give this law school away as a gift.
Morning Docket: 10.31.18
* Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) says he plans to introduce legislation to end our "absurd policy of birthright citizenship." Good luck with that, Senator, because if you want to amend the Constitution, you'll need a two-thirds majority in Congress and ratification of three-quarters of the states. [The Hill] * Women are allegedly being paid to make false sexual assault and harassment claims against Special Counsel Robert Mueller, and now the FBI is investigating the situation. The going rate for these made-up stories is apparently $20,000. [The Atlantic] * After having its plan to gift a troubled law school to Middle Tennessee State University be flat-out rejected, Valparaiso Law has decided to call it quits. We'll have more on this totally unpredictable development later today. [ABA Journal] * If you're in law school and your girlfriend breaks up with you, you should probably stop calling her -- unless, of course, you don't mind a harassment conviction and spending a year in jail. Now this fellow is trying to overcome his character and fitness obstacles to become a member of the bar. [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel] * In case you missed it, the Library Innovation Lab at Harvard Law School just unleashed about 6.5 million digitized court decisions online, for free, as part of the Caselaw Access Project. No, that's not a typo -- everything is free. [Fortune] * How did graduates of the Charleston School of Law do on the South Carolina bar exam this past summer? Not too well. For the second year in a row, more than half of them failed the test. On the "bright side," 59 percent of first-time takers from the school passed, up 11 percentage points from last year. [Post and Courier]
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]
University Tries To Give Away Troubled Law School As ‘Gift’
Giving away a slightly used law school as a gift is really no gift at all.
Morning Docket: 06.25.18
* The Supreme Court is set to rule on six more cases this week, and one of them is President Trump's Muslim travel ban. Stay tuned, because we could find out a decision on this one later this morning. [Reuters] * President Trump has called for the immediate deportation of undocumented immigrants with "no judges or court cases." Adios to due process, which was pretty cool while it lasted. [The Hill] * Speaking of undocumented immigrants, Lawyers for Good Government has launched Project Corazon, a program led by Kirkland & Ellis, where attorneys will help reunite families that were separated at the border under President Trump's "zero tolerance" policy. [ABA Journal] * Valparaiso Law might not be going anywhere after all. As it turns out, Middle Tennessee State University is in talks to inherit the struggling law school program. MTSU isn't buying the school or merging with it -- no, this is going to be considered a "gift." Mmmhmmm. [Chicago Tribune] * Coming to a law firm near you is the Mansfield Rule 2.0, which aims to close the gap in leadership roles for LGTBQ+ attorneys in Biglaw. Fifty firms signed up for the original Mansfield Rule to promote the success of women, and 35 of those firms plus 11 new ones have joined to support LGTBQ+ attorneys. [American Lawyer]
Plugging The Profit Leaks: How Your Firm Can Stop Burning Money
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10 Law Schools Sanctioned By The ABA — More To Come?
The ABA is going after poorly performing law schools and more may be in the crosshairs.