William Barr

Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 05.01.19

* Shortly after AG Bill Barr released his four-page summary of the Mueller report, special counsel Robert Mueller himself stepped forward to tell Barr that he objected to his conclusion that President Trump had been cleared of obstruction, "express[ing] a frustration over the lack of context." [New York Times] * Congressional Democrats can move ahead with their emoluments suit against Trump over his business thanks to a ruling by Judge Emmet G. Sullivan, where he found the narrow definition of emoluments championed by Trump to be "unpersuasive and inconsistent." [Washington Post] * Kannon Shanmugam may have been the first to leave Williams & Connolly to join the new Supreme Court practice at Paul Weiss, but he certainly isn't the last. Five of his colleagues followed him, and the group continues to grow. [National Law Journal] * Remember Am Law 200 firm Stinson Leonard Street? You should probably forget that name, because the firm is rebranding itself as Stinson. Going by one name is apparently the cool, new thing for Biglaw firms. [American Lawyer] * Biglaw money fight: The ex-chair of the government contracts practice at Dentons, a legacy McKenna Long partner, claims the firm owes her more than $390,000, but Dentons claims she owes the firm almost $2 million. [Big Law Business]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.29.19

* “President Trump views the Roberts Court as his potential, perhaps literal, ‘get out of jail free’ card.” While Trump thinks he’s got allies on the high court, Chief Justice Roberts has attempted to put the president in his place numerous times — to no apparent avail. [Washington Post] * AG Bill Barr says he may not show up at this week’s Mueller report hearing before the House Judiciary Committee unless Chairman Jerry Nadler changes the proposed questioning format. Au contraire, says Nadler: “The witness is not going to tell the committee how to conduct its hearing, period.” [CNN] * Former Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates, who was fired after refusing to defend the Muslim travel ban, says that the Trump would “likely be indicted on obstruction” if he weren’t president. [The Hill] * In case you missed it, Anna Delvey-Sorokin, the “socialite” who skipped out on more than $250K in fees due to three Biglaw firms, was recently convicted on grand larceny charges. [American Lawyer] * A former Baker & McKenzie paralegal who alleged she was sexually harassed, sued the firm for $200 million, and later withdrew her suit is now on the hook for $35,445 in attorneys’ fees after disobeying court orders to substantiate her claims. [Big Law Business]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.26.19

* Donald Trump won't stop tweeting about the Mueller report, most recently claiming that he "never told then White House Counsel Don McGahn to fire Robert Mueller." Meanwhile, the president's allies would really like it if he just STFU about it. [POLITICO] * Federal prosecutors have charged Judge Shelley Richmond Joseph of Massachusetts with obstruction and perjury for allegedly allowing an undocumented immigrant to leave a courthouse through a back door to prevent immigration authorities from conducting an arrest. [USA Today] * Reed Smith, which represents Concord Management and Consulting, the Russian company indicted in special counsel Robert Mueller's probe, has asked that both Mueller and AG Bill Barr be held in contempt over the redacted release of the Mueller report. [National Law Journal] * The ugly side of fashion law: A senior in-house attorney at LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton Inc. has filed suit against the company, claiming that she was sexually harassed by a male coworker and punished for reporting it. [New York Law Journal] * Weil Gotshal is willing to pay big money to pre-law students who've been accepted at certain T14 schools for doing nonprofit work. The Biglaw firm is planning to fork over $1 million a year so these up-and-coming law students can work at public interest jobs. [Big Law Business]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 04.03.19

* President Trump doesn’t seem to be as enthusiastic about special counsel Robert Mueller’s full report being released to Congress and the public anymore, which is strange since it was a “complete and total exoneration.” [POLITICO] * Meanwhile, Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee seem to be divided over how quickly they want to subpoena the full Mueller report from Attorney General William Barr. Either way, a vote will take place sometime today. [Washington Post] * Law firm merger activity has been really strong during the first quarter of 2019, with 27 firms combining thus far. Right now, this is on track with last year’s record-setting merger mania, when 106 firms officially tied the knot. [Big Law Business] * New York real estate lawyer Adam Leitman Bailey, who once told a tenant he “should commit suicide,” has been suspended for four months after reportedly running into an arbitration hearing and swearing at a witness. [New York Law Journal] * According to a report from the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, lawyers once connected to Wynn Resorts — including two former GCs — allegedly helped conceal sexual assault and misconduct claims against Steven Wynn, the casino’s founder. [Corporate Counsel] * Oopsie! As an FYI, in Texas, it’s completely possible to accidentally resign from your position as a judge. Don’t make the same mistake as this poor jurist. [Reuters]

By Staci Zaretsky
Non-Sequiturs

Non Sequiturs: 03.31.19

* Even Jonathan Adler, no fan of Obamacare, can't support the Justice Department's shift of position in the ongoing Affordable Care Act litigation out of Texas. [Volokh Conspiracy / Reason] * John Lauro continues to protect the reputation of his client Wendi Adelson, ex-wife of murdered law professor Dan Markel. [2paragraphs] * Meanwhile, another player in the Dan Markel case -- David Oscar Markus, counsel to Charlie Adelson -- argues that Attorney General William Barr and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein made the right call on obstruction of justice. [The Hill] * Speaking of the Mueller investigation, Brianne Gorod points out that Congress has the power to ask the district court to release grand jury transcripts and related information from the case. [Take Care] * Whether or not you agree with Senator Marco Rubio's proposed constitutional amendment to fix the size of the U.S. Supreme Court at nine justices, it's not a bad idea to think about possible ways to restructure SCOTUS -- as Gordon Renneisen does here. [Law360] * Meanwhile, as the Court grapples with the cross-shaped war memorial case this Term, Rick Garnett wonders: can a liberal state favor one religion over others? [First Things via PrawfsBlawg] * Legal tech M&A activity continues apace, with vLex's acquisition of Justis. [Artificial Lawyer]

By David Lat
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 03.27.19

* Attorney General William Barr says he plans to make a version of special counsel Robert Mueller's report available to Congress and the public within a matter of weeks, and apparently the White House won't be receiving a copy in advance of the release. [Wall Street Journal] * Speaking of the Mueller report, Rudy Giuliani says he wouldn't have any issues with releasing Trump’s written testimony that was submitted to Mueller. Jay Sekulow would beg to differ. [Washington Examiner] * The EU approved the controversial Copyright in the Digital Single Market Directive, a new IP law that will govern the way copyrighted material is uploaded online and who will be liable for infringement. At least memes are exempt? [BBC News] * Congratulations to Bridget Bade, who was just confirmed to the Ninth Circuit. She's the 37th circuit court judge to be appointed by President Trump, who is changing the makeup of the federal judiciary, one conservative judge at a time. [Big Law Business] * Elon Musk must appear in court next week for a contempt hearing over his Tesla tweets against self-interest that are allegedly in breach of his settlement agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission. [CNN] * Your bracket may be busted, but this Biglaw associate has a near-perfect track record. She's gotten 46 out of 48 matchups right thus far, and at one point she was one of just eight people in the country with a perfect bracket. [American Lawyer]

By Staci Zaretsky
Morning Docket

Morning Docket: 03.25.19

* In case you somehow missed it, according to Attorney General Bill Barr's summary of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation, there was no collusion with Russia and with regard to obstruction, "[w]hile this report does not conclude that the president committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him." And that's just fine, because AG Barr exonerated Trump himself. [New York Times] * Speaking of AG Barr, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler says he wants to call Barr in to testify due to the “very concerning discrepancies and final decision making” at the DOJ when it came to the Mueller report. [The Hill] * Rudy Giuliani wants apologies and he wants them now: From legislators to former CIA chiefs, Trump’s personal attorney is demanding apologies from all manner of people who said there was evidence of Russian collusion. [Business Insider] * Want to see what the Mueller report actually said? Luckily, the Electronic Privacy Information Center filed a FOIA lawsuit in the D.C. Circuit to get the contents of the full report within an hour of it being submitted to AG Barr. [National Law Journal] * Justice Brett Kavanaugh has been hired as a distinguished visiting professor at George Mason’s ASS Law Antonin Scalia Law School, where he’ll be teaching a study abroad class titled “Creation of the Constitution.” [Fourth Estate] * I like dollars, I like diamonds, I like -- paper cups? Okurr... When she's not suing people for defamation, Cardi B is applying for a trademark for her catchphrase "Okurrr" to sell t-shirts, hoodies, and paper goods like cups and posters. [TMZ; BBC]

By Staci Zaretsky