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Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 08.22.18

* Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to breaking campaign finance laws when he made payments to women "in coordination with and at the direction of a candidate for federal office ... for the principal purpose of influencing the election." In response, Rudy Giuliani, who apparently prefers to look at the bright side of things and because the truth isn't the truth, said, "There is no allegation of any wrongdoing against the president in the government’s charges against Mr. Cohen." [New York Times] * Oopsie... Rep. Duncan Hunter and his wife were indicted by a federal grand jury on 60 counts on charges related to the misuse of more than $250,000 in campaign funds for personal expenses (like family vacations and school tuition) and then trying to conceal it by filing false campaign finance records. [USA Today] * Venable is merging with New York IP firm Fitzpatrick Cella, and the deal is expected to close on November 1. The combined firm will have 800 lawyers, a major presence in the Big Apple, and revenue that's expected to top $620 million. [American Lawyer] * We know that law school enrollment is up, but at some law schools, it's really up. Several schools have seen their first-year enrollments climb by double-digit percentages, which is a welcome change for some schools. [Law.com] * Speaking of law schools, if you're trying to get into an elite school, then your GPA obviously needs to be really high. But how high are we talking here? All of the top 10 schools have median GPAs of 3.7 or higher. Good luck out there! [U.S. News]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 11.09.17

* Harvey Weinstein is bringing on famed defense attorney Ben Brafman who is conveniently not representing the New York Times at the moment. [Reuters] * Appellate attorney spoke candidly about the lack of funding for his death penalty appeal, prompting the state quickly remedy the situation to avoid the specter of injustice. Nah, just kidding, they fired the attorney. [Salt Lake Tribune] * Texas judge ordered to take a class on listening. There are probably a few other judges that could use a refresher course on that. [Texas Lawyer] * There's a new GC at the NLRB and he's fired up and ready to begin dismantling the agency and turning a blind eye to the constituents he's supposed to serve. [Law360] * Election day swept some Biglaw lawyers into office. [National Law Journal] * Locke Lord hit with £500,000 over a London partner's "dubious" financial arrangements. [American Lawyer] * Companies continue to delay sweeping information governance changes. But soon they might be unavoidable if clients want to keep discovery costs down. [Legaltech News] * A $30 million lawsuit against Morgan Lewis for alleged conflicts will go forward. [Legal Intelligencer]

By Joe Patrice
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 12.17.15

* Donald Trump has been having a rollicking good time on the campaign trail as the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination, but he may have to take a break to testify in a trademark dispute over "Trump Your Competition." [WSJ Law Blog] * It seems that Venable has been dragged into a huge Facebook stock scam, and thanks to a former partner's alleged conduct, the Biglaw firm is now being accused of assisting a con man in a $11.3 million fraud related to the social media giant's initial public offering. [New York Post] * The Obama administration has finally made a move in the SCOTUS case filed by Oklahoma and Nebraska seeking to overturn legal weed in Colorado. Solicitor General Donald Verrilli thinks the justices would have to be high to even entertain it. [Reuters] * Trinity Western Law grads were previously banned from practicing law in British Columbia, Canada, due to the Christian school forcing students to sign abstinence pledges, but because of this recent ruling, the tides have turned. [NewBostonPost] * “This will not be the end of the road for solitary confinement reform, but we really think it’s a watershed moment.” Thanks to a $62M settlement, New York will be changing the way it deals with solitary confinement in state prisons. [New York Times] * After finding out that Justice Scalia was rejected from two of his top-choice schools, the ABA Journal wants you to reflect on your own rejections and acceptances. Where did you apply to law school, and where did you decide to go? Let us know. [ABA Journal]

By Staci Zaretsky