It seems "active liberty" is going to be getting a lot more passive.
Given the late Merrick Garland's untimely demise under the hooves of stampeding water buffalo, who should be Biden's pick to fill Breyer's seat?
January 26, 2022
Breaking news: Justice Breyer to retire, NBC reports
January 25, 2022
Avenatti goes pro se in Stormy Daniels trial after his PD's cross of the first witness
Apparently, Avenatti was not happy with the viciousness (or lack thereof) of his public defenders, both in their cross of Stormy Daniel's book publisher and with regard to their willingness to agree with his desired scope of cross-examination of his former office manager/paralegal.
As reported live from the trial by Law.com reporter Meghann Cuniff:
It’s definitely a different world here than what Avenatti got with his trial in Orange County last summer. He’s obviously trying to get his public defenders to employ the same aggressive tactics that prosecutors say drip with bad faith, and it hasn’t worked out very well today.
Avenatti's response: Go pro se of course!
Per Meghann:
So Judge Furman did a complete 180 over the break and now appears ready to let Avenatti represent himself. Avenatti described a breakdown between him and counsel, including over the scope of the cross of his paralegal that’s coming up today.
Avenatti's public defenders are not surprised:
I heard public defender Robert Baum whisper to someone in the audience that Avenatti is going pro se and that “this was always coming.” I ducked out when it became obvious Furman was going to approve so I could update here but am headed back in now to hear the rest of it.
It will be interesting to see how long a leash Judge Furman of the SDNY will put on Avenatti's aggressive trial tactics. Meanwhile, Avenatti has not failed to entertain.
UPDATE: Not long a leash at all!
Furman said with 4 minutes to go that he wanted to go up until 3 pm. Avenatti soon told him, “Now is a good breaking point. You can use the 2 minutes against me.” And Judge Furman ice-cold refused! Nope, keep going, the judge said, and it’s actually 3 mins. #welcometoNewYork
Ha!
January 20, 2022
Legal News Roundup: Red-hot hiring market, Jamie Spears loves paying lawyers, Elie's daily meltdown
Per Reuters: The number of associates leaving U.S. firms increased 51% in 2021 and Orange County CA (! ) had the largest number of lateral moves (partners & associates) in the U.S. Says a recruiter: "Some laterals were interviewed and hired within the span of two weeks, when that process would traditionally require a month or more."
That won't end badly!
Cheapskate Britney Spears doesnt want to pay her dad's legal bills. A snippet from the New York Times article on how Pa Spears squandered Britney's money:
"The court papers show that Mr. Spears approved the payment of more than $30 million in fees to dozens of law firms, “including large payments for evidently small matters, as well as significant overlap in work performed.”
Where's the problem? I don't see it.
Also Elie is having his daily meltdown, this time over the NPR "reported" story about Justice Gorsuch allegedly refusing to wear a mask so he could murder Justice Sotomayor.
Naturally Elie claimed that Justice Roberts was lying when he said this wasn't true and after someone called Elie "hysterical" he promptly tweeted:
"They're ABOUT TO take away abortions rights. THEN they'll let people carry guns ON THE FUCKING SUBWAY!!!!...But I guess I should go shine shoes!"Meanwhile Lat tried --and failed-- to find a SCOTUS clerk angle to the story. His twitter thread was too boring to quote but I'm sure he'll recycle it in his (unprofitable) newsletter. Lateral Link is looking kinda good these days, maybe they'll take him back.
January 10, 2022
January 5, 2022
Michael Avenatti tells Politico he hopes he has hit rock bottom
"The last time he flew private, in January 2020, he was shackled. Federal marshals chartered a plane to take him to the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan, where he spent 74 days in solitary confinement, in the high-security cell once occupied by El Chapo [...] The last time he drove a race car, his most beloved and expensive habit, was 1,411 days ago. The last time he had a Grey Goose martini (up, two olives) and a New York strip at Craig’s, his preferred hangout in West Hollywood, was 709 days ago. The last time he wore his five-figure Patek Philippe Nautilus watch, before it was seized by the government, was 708 days ago. The last time he talked to his former client, Stormy Daniels, was February 2019. The last time a reporter asked him about running for president was March 24, 2019, the Sunday before his arrest. The last time he saw his parents was Thanksgiving 2019. His Twitter account, where he once held the attention of nearly 900,000 followers (now 680,000), sits frozen in September 2018."
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