Monday status conference: Decisions, decisions

This morning the U.S. Supreme Court will likely hand down decisions and orders - among the cases that have yet to be decided is the closely-watched Second Amendment challenge to DC’s handgun ban - and we’ll update any newsworthy developments here. The justices are set to meet again on Thursday. The House meets in a pro forma session today and lawmakers from both houses resume work tomorrow.

Meanwhile:

According to a memo obtained by the Washington Post, Office of Special Counsel chief Scott J. Bloch, whose home and office were raided by the FBI last week, repeatedly butted heads with top career staffers over which cases should be pursued by the principal office protecting federal whistle-blowers and policing partisan politicking in the federal workplace. (WaPo).

Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens says the euthanized Kentucky Derby horse Eight Belles probably died more humanely than death row prisoners do. (AP)

So far this term, the Court has avoided the plethora of 5-4 splits that defined the October 2006 term. (AP).

Emails containing racially derogatory banter exchanged by Secret Service agents were revealed in federal court in a lawsuit brought by black former agents alleging racially-motivated employment discrimination. (NYT)

President George W. Bush was in Crawford, Texas over the weekend on a covert family operation, if you haven’t heard. (WaPo)

Monday status conference: Cinco de Mayo edition

Justices from the nation’s highest court will convene in a conference on Thursday, lawmakers are busy trying to hammer out the farm bill and other matters (more on that below), and a brand-spanking new issue of Lawyers USA is out as you celebrate Cinco de Mayo today. Here are some highlights from this issue. Subscribers can click on the links for the full story.

Under the best of circumstances, divorce proceedings rarely are completely pleasant or smooth-sailing for a couple and their lawyers. But in an uncertain economy and shaky housing market, divorce is becoming increasingly complicated. More here.

Estate planning lawyers are finding that many prenuptial agreements for older couples contain costly omissions - about health care, nursing home costs and other “elder care” costs. More here.

A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling addressing the definition of driving while intoxicated for purposes of federal sentencing is expected to have a broad impact on criminal cases, but also leaves open many questions, criminal lawyers say. More here.

Prepaid funeral plans may involve more risk than buyers realize. More here.

In other news and chatter:

Lawmakers want to hold hearings to investigate whether the practice of securities lawyers paying plaintiffs to file class action lawsuits happens at places other than Milberg Weiss. (BI)

Is the False Claims Act a legal gold rush for the tort bar? (WSJ Law Blog)

There will soon be a vacancy at the head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division - giving Attorney General Michael Mukasey the opportunity to make a key appointment. (WaPo)

Many case-strapped states are releasing prisoners early in order to ease their budgets. (WaPo)

Lawmakers are working to come up with a veto-proof farm bill plan. (AP)

The IRS and FBI are investigating whether mortgage lenders ignored the signs that some borrowers were getting into subprime deals that would eventually overwhelm them - and the credit industry. (NYT)

Monday status conference

The Senate meets today, resuming debate on matters including the FAA Reauthorization Act, while House members get back to the office tomorrow. The Supreme Court will likely issue some opinions and may also grant some certs today, and we’ll keep you posted on that.

Meanwhile:

States including Texas and Mississippi already have scheduled executions after the Supreme Court’s decision in Baze v. Rees that the method used in lethal injection executions is not unconstitutional. But Ohio is moving much slower, meaning it could be months before death row in mates there - including an inmate who may become the first woman executed in the state in 54 years.
(WHIO/Columbus Dispatch)

Lawyers who represent suspects in terrorism-related investigations fear their clients are being secretly monitored by the U.S. government. (NYT)

Could nearly two-thirds of patent appeals judges have been unconstitutionally appointed? That is a question the U.S. Supreme Court is being asked to consider. (NLJ)

Former Washington D.C. city workers are claiming, in a federal lawsuit, that they and other employees were fired in violation of law that protect whistleblowers from retaliation. (WaPo)

Still haven’t gotten enough of Justice Antonin Scalia? Check out his interview with the ABA Journal, where he gives attorneys preparing to argue before him some tips. Here’s a hint: never use legislative history, and never answer a hypothetical with “that’s not my case.”
(ABA Journal)

Monday status conference: The Supremes, one week only

This week, the Supreme Court will hear the last oral arguments of this term. See this post for more details. Updates on newsworthy decisions, orders or other news can be found here this afternoon.

In the meantime, here’s a peek at some of the stories in this week’s issue of Lawyers USA. Subscribers can click the links following each item to see the whole story:

A Colorado dairy and five of the nation’s biggest retailers have been hit with lawsuits alleging they mislabeled milk as organic so they could charge customers higher prices. The milk fight is being closely watched in the organic food industry as a harbinger of potentially costly legal battles for the hearts and wallets of organic food shoppers. More here.

As a wide-ranging debate about immigration policy continues to rage in the U.S., new data from the EEOC suggest that complaints against employers over “English Only” workplace policies may be on the upswing. More here.

Some lawyers don’t just take work on vacation - they take their colleagues too. Here’s the story of one firm whose partners vacationed together with their families, often going to exotic parts of the world, partly for the pure fun of it and partly as a way to develop a deeper relationship as business partners. More here.

Meanwhile, in other legal news from inside the Beltway:

The patent bill appears to be all but dead. (WSJ)

Lobbyists are finding ways to get around the new ethics law. (NYT)

While Congress continues to debate a permanent measure, President Bush signed a one-week extension of current farm law. (AP)

The Justice Department is taking heat for strategy that may prevent attacks but rarely brings convictions. (WaPo)

Monday status conference: The Pope and the tax man cometh

This week, as countless Americans rush to get their tax returns (or extensions, at least) filed by tomorrow night’s deadline, President George W. Bush is preparing to fete Pope Benedict XVI on his first visit to the U.S. The president will even greet the leader of the Catholic Church at the airport Tuesday - something no other president has ever done.

Oral arguments resume this week at the U.S. Supreme Court. Check this earlier post for summaries of the cases before the justices this week. Also the Court may release some grants of certiorari and other orders today, so stay tuned for any newsworthy developments.

Meanwhile:

It’s hard out here for Alberto: Former Attorney General Gonzales is having a tough time finding a job, sources tell the New York Times. (NYT, via ABA Journal)

Speaking of taxes, if you are dying to know, President Bush and his wife paid $221,635 in federal taxes on an adjusted gross income of $923,807 for the year 2007. (AP).

The White House, Congress and federal agencies have all come up with plans they say will help stem the housing crisis. Now the presidential candidates are weighing in as well. (AP)

Meanwhile, world economic leaders say that the food crises is a far bigger problem than the credit crisis. (NYT)

Monday status conference: Cherry blossom edition

Good morning. Just as the cherry blossoms are being celebrated here this week, Congress returns from its two-week recess. The Supreme Court could issue some orders today, although no oral arguments are scheduled for the next couple of weeks. Meanwhile:

The U.S. News & World Report law school rankings are officially released today. (Fox Business)

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is scheduled to meet with House Republican leaders Tuesday to discuss the U.S. economy and housing market problems. (Reuters).

Democrats are urging President Bush to endorse their housing assistance proposal, which would let bankruptcy judges lower payments for homeowners staring at foreclosure. (AP)

Meanwhile some Republicans are stuck between constituents demanding protection from foreclosure and party leaders urging restraint. (NYT)

The Bush administration is proposing a sweeping overhaul of the way the government regulates the nation’s financial services industry from banks and securities firms to mortgage brokers and insurance companies. (AP)

Attorney General Michael Mukasey talked tough on intellectual property crime, saying the theft of inventions poses a threat to the nation’s “health and safety” and fosters terrorism. (Wired News)

President Bush threw the ceremonial first pitch in the new Nationals Park, to cheers and boos. (AP)

Monday status conference: Post-Easter edition

Good morning. As you try to figure out some recipes for all those leftover hardboiled eggs (potato salad, anyone?) here’s a look of what’s going on:

Congress is still on a break designed to allow lawmakers to work in their home districts, although Sen. Arlen Specter thinks it’s time for them to come back to Washington. The Supreme Court hears more oral arguments this week (see this post for more). And it’s still Easter at the White House! The annual White House Easter Egg Roll is today!

Meanwhile,

Here’s a peek at what’s in this week’s issue of Lawyers USA (subscribers can click the links for the full stories):

With a full-fledged recession looming, lawyers should start thinking about how they can shield their practices from a sustained economic downturn. Although experts disagree on whether we are technically in a recession, there’s no doubt that lawyers are beginning to feel the economic pressures their clients have felt for months. More here.

Celebrity cases such as Heath Ledger’s recent death from mixing prescription drugs and Dennis Quaid’s newborn twins receiving an adult dose of a blood thinner only scratch the surface of a growing number of lawsuits over medication errors. More here.

The recent jump in the number of federal discrimination charges filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in the last fiscal year - the largest annual increase since the early 1990s - has employment lawyers urging companies to take a careful look at their workplaces. More here.

A recent case over the herbal supplement Airborne is just one example of the many false advertising class actions being filed across the country. More here.

Elsewhere in the news:

Lawmakers want the Justice Department to investigate the unauthorized searches of the passport files of Sens. Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and John McCain. (NYT).

Sen. Obama has been working hard to woo elite Washington lawyers. (LT)

Monday status conference: Everyone is Irish today

Good morning, and Happy St.Patrick’s Day. You may add an O’ to the beginning of your surname today.

Congress is not in session, as lawmakers spend the next two weeks working from their home districts. The Supreme Court is in session, and oral arguments are underway (check this post for a summary of what is on tap). The Court has already released some cert grants (see below) and expect some decisions this week as well.

Tomorrow the justices will hear arguments in one of the most anticipated cases of the term, which may decide whether handgun bans like the one in Washington, D.C. a run afoul of the Second Amendment. The Washington Post has a preview here, and The New York Times takes a look at the rift the case has caused within the Bush administration. DC Dicta will be at the Court tomorrow and will bring you the highlights afterwards.

Meanwhile,

This morning the U.S. Supreme Court added eight cases to its docket, granting certs in cases that will consider, among other things, whether the FCC’s rules banning fleeting curse words on airways violate the First Amendment, and whether prosecutors can use crime lab reports as evidence without having the forensic analyst who prepared them testify at trial. (AP) Here is a summary of all of today’s cert grants on SCOTUSBlog.

Congress may be ready to move the give the FDA more resources to police contaminated drugs from overseas. (NYT)

While most lawmakers went home this week, Sen. John McCain is in Iraq, and Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are on the seemingly unending campaign trail. (Bloomberg, AP)

President Bush tries to alleviate fears by assuring Americans that the White House “is on top of” the economic situation. (AP)

Monday status conference: retroactive day edition

Good morning. The U.S. Supreme Court could issue some orders and opinions today - we’ll keep you posted on that. There are no oral arguments scheduled for the next two weeks. Across the street, the House meets in a pro forma session, and the Senate is in session.

Meanwhile,

Today, the new retroactive crack sentencing guidelines go into effect, allowing as many as 1,600 federal inmates to petition for immediate release. (CNN)

Just days after President Bush insisted that Congress produce an eavesdropping law that shields telecommunications companies, the House Intelligence Committee chairman expects a compromise on the measure. (AP)

Attorney General Michael Mukasey denies House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s request to press contempt charges against Harriet Miers and Josh Bolten. (CNN)

President Bush is urging Congress to pass legislation aimed at ending illegal sales of highly addictive prescription drugs on the Internet, citing a growing number of fatal overdoses. (AP)

Monday status conference: Thomas keeps mum

Today the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the cases of Cuellar v. United States and Warner-Lambert Co. v. Kent, which deal respectively with the standard of proof under a federal money laundering statute and federal preemption of state law fraud claims against drug makers.

As usual, Justice Clarence Thomas did not ask a question during today’s arguments. As DC Dicta pointed out a bit earlier, it has been two whole years since Justice Clarence Thomas has asked a question during oral arguments. (AP)

Among its orders today, the Court agreed Monday to resolve a dispute over the federal government’s ability to take land into trust for American Indian tribes (Carcieri v. Kempthorne, No. 07-526). (AP)

In its other two certiorari grants, the Court agreed to examine law enforcement’s ability to conduct a warrantless search of the automobile’s passenger compartment incident to the arrest (Arizona v. Gant, No. 07-542) and when erroneous jury instructions can lead to habeas corpus relief (Chrones v. Pulido, No. 07-544). The list of all today’s orders is here.

Here is a look at some of the stories in this week’s issue of Lawyers USA (Want to subscribe? Click here): UPDATE: If you tried the links before, and found they didn’t work, that’s because our new website just went live. The links should be fixed now. Sorry about that!

After several years of anticipation, the Department of Labor has issued its final proposed changes to the Family and Medical Leave Act. More here.

A judge’s recent decision to slam attorneys with $8.5 million in sanctions for failing to monitor their client’s e-discovery failures - and report them to the state bar for possible disciplinary action -sent ripples of fear through the legal world. More here.

A growing number of companies driven by a concern over litigation are ramping up employee training in an effort to stamp out sexual orientation bias in the workplace. More here.
 
Attorney General Michael Mukasey recently told a Senate panel that the Justice Department has replaced the controversial “McNulty memorandum,” which outlines federal prosecutors’ ability to encourage corporate defendants to waive the attorney-client privilege in order to cut a better plea deal. But attorneys representing corporations say they will believe the policy change when they see it - and so far, nothing has changed. More here.