Above The Law - Thinking Like A Lawyer

We always try to come up with a theme for these shows after the fact and this is clearly the "no, you can't do that" episode. Paul Davis is back and trying to convince the courts to overthrow the government again. Twitter is banning fan accounts for no reason and getting fun letters in response. And the South Dakota Attorney General is ducking behind the law to protect his political career. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, LexisNexis® InterAction®, Lexicon and Nota.

It seems like only yesterday that we started this humble podcast. For our 200th episode we've got former co-host Elie Mystal back to bring the whole crew from the whole history of the show together for a wide-ranging discussion about law school debt and an AccessLex study about the notable difference in the debt loads of Black, Hispanic, Asian and Multiracial law school graduates, the changes to the industry over the course of the show, and an exciting update on what Elie's been up to. Come for the content, stay for the sound effects! Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, LexisNexis® InterAction®, Lexicon and Nota.

A lawyer ran afoul of a cat filter and gave the country a light-hearted moment of escapism. Then someone remembered the sordid details of the brouhaha over his time as a prosecutor. We also talk about law school and its impact on salaries, Trump's amazingly bad yet nonetheless successful impeachment lawyers, and the impending February bar exam. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, LexisNexis® InterAction®, Lexicon and Nota.

Oh, what happened last week? Well there was the lawyer having sex on Zoom during a criminal hearing for a gang leader. And there was Columbia Law School, as well as Michigan, sounding the alarm about mental health issues mounting as the schools pushed forward without noticing the toll it was taking. Frankly, that's a pretty good microcosm of the whole pandemic. Also some Trump lawyers manage to come across as incredibly sympathetic in gossip piece that they in no way leaked themselves... no sir! Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, LexisNexis® InterAction®, Lexicon and Nota.

What does the Constitution really say about impeachment? It's not crystal clear, but what is obvious is that some people claiming to divine the "plain meaning" have already reversed themselves making you wonder just how "plain" these meanings can be. Meanwhile, the Biglaw revolving door or lack thereof continues to spin for former administration officials. Stepping away from the political scene, we have Biglaw partners attacking associates and a frank conversation about what it means to be an effective lawyer-manager. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, LexisNexis® InterAction® and Lexicon.

Giuliani caught himself a billion dollar headache after telling anyone who would listen that Dominion was fixing the election (they weren't). Paul Davis is asking a court to junk the federal government and turn it over to the Hobbits (they won't). And Jeffrey Clark is accused to trying to convince Trump to pull a coup... now he's hoping Biglaw will take him back (they shouldn't). Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, LexisNexis® InterAction® and Lexicon.

Can the Senate try a former president on an impeachment charge? Must a fact witness recuse themselves from serving as an advocate in a trial? The answer to both of these questions is obviously, "yes" and yet the last week involved a number of right-wing outlets trying to muddy the waters up to and including Jonathan Turley demanding that everyone stop citing Jonathan Turley. Joe and Kathryn also discuss the Supreme Court's race to approve executions in Trump's waning days and the state of the legal industry entering 2021. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, LexisNexis® InterAction® and Lexicon.

A lot has happened since we last convened, and we're here to talk about it. What's the standard for "incitement"? How does the 25th Amendment work? Can Amazon really kick Parler off their servers? All that and an update to last week's discussion about Biglaw's involvement in Trump's effort to pressure Georgia officials to "find" votes. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, LexisNexis® InterAction® and Lexicon.

As the post-election drama gets even weirder, Biglaw partner Cleta Mitchell turned up on a call seeming to represent Donald Trump as he attempted to solicit election interference from Georgia officials. Joe and Kathryn revisit the difference between professional consequences and business consequences when it comes to lawyers and boggle over how a lawyer could let a call like this happen without confidentiality provisions. Also, Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz have elite law school educations and their classmates wish they'd act like it. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, LexisNexis® InterAction® and Lexicon.

Joe and Kathryn discuss the big stories in law this past year. Is it all COVID? Yes, it is. But there were several different repercussions to discuss from firm business to office architecture to bar exams. And there was a new Supreme Court justice whose nomination nearly destroyed the White House. So there was that. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, LexisNexis® InterAction® and Lexicon.

The New York Times seems to think everyone was too tough of Jeffrey Toobin. They are wrong. Meanwhile one guy who has had far too many chances is Rand Paul, who continues to be completely awful, this time in blocking a bill designed to protect federal judges. And California bar applicants don't need a second chance either, they just need a bar examiner willing to grade their exams honestly rather than suggesting that one-third of them cheated. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, LexisNexis® InterAction® and Lexicon.

Joe and Kathryn discuss the 2020 slate of new holiday movies that seem to always put lawyers on the wrong end of work-life balance. We also check in on Naomi Biden's move to D.C. Biglaw and an attorney who apparently decided that Zoom trials meant the end of dress codes. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, LexisNexis® InterAction® and Lexicon.

It's final exam season for law students and that means it's final exam botching season for professors and administrations. A couple of T14 schools have already stumbled out of the gate. Joe and Kathryn also take a deep dive into whether or not it's ever appropriate for a J.D. to call themselves "Doctor" -- and it isn't. Finally, we discuss holiday shopping for lawyers. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, LexisNexis® InterAction® and Lexicon.

Biglaw bonuses are dropping and seem to confirm that most of the Biglaw world will get last year's bonus check plus a little something extra to match the autumn COVID bonuses that a few heavy hitters previously announced. But where does that leave the industry going forward? Are we really going to see them backslide on compensation when there isn't (hopefully) a year-long pandemic? Meanwhile, after initial fears of mass deferrals, law school applications are way up -- which isn't necessarily a good sign. Finally, we talk about the Justice Department's latest effort to bring back firing squads and why everyone needs to get over their visceral revulsion and ask, "why does this bother me so much?" Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, and LexisNexis® InterAction®.

Election challenges continue, Krakens are released, Rick Schroder provides a critical look at America's cash bail system, and Bill Barr has some explaining to do. But beyond all that, a new study takes a comprehensive look at the legal licensing process and the value of the status quo bar examination regime. It may not surprise anyone that the existing system does a poor job of providing the assurances of "minimum competence" that the public and the profession need, but this study does the hard work of backing that feeling up with data and, more importantly, outlining alternative licensing programs that would do better. AccessLex funded the study, and Aaron Taylor, Executive Director of the AccessLex Center for Legal Education Excellence joins the show to talk about it. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, and LexisNexis® InterAction®.

As pressure mounts on Trump's election attorneys, Jones Day has doubled down on the sinking effort. While declaring that it is not representing Trump per se, the firm is behind the Pennsylvania "stop the count" effort and with advocacy groups urging corporations to pull business and reports emerge of internal strife, the firm seems willing to stay the course. It worked for the Titanic after all. Meanwhile, a family law attorney pursuing the case makes an interesting complaint about the size of Kirkland & Ellis. In more heroic news, a lawsuit takes aim at Confederate monuments and we talk about the state of annual bonuses. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, and LexisNexis® InterAction®.

It took awhile to declare a winner in the election, and it looks like it's going to take even longer to declare an end to the election. And that's nobody's fault but the lawyers willing to make dubious claims from parking lot rallies and within the bowels of bureaucracy. Joe and Kathryn run down the quasi-lawyering phase of this election season. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, and LexisNexis® InterAction®.

News is moving far too fast for this show. We discuss the elevation of Amy Coney Barrett and it immediately seems like old news. Meanwhile, Brett Kavanaugh's clerks apparently failed to closely edit and cite check his opinion, leaving the beer-soaked jurist with egg on his face in a critical opinion. Finally, we talk about the best -- if ill-advised -- way to get out of your criminal charges. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software, and LexisNexis® InterAction®.

So much has happened that you'd be forgiven for thinking Jeffrey Toobin removed himself from the public eye -- by not removing himself from the public eye -- forever ago. Alas, it was only last week. We talk about the downfall of one of America's preeminent legal talking heads, the challenge for Biden when it comes to the apparent inevitability of court expansion calls, and we have a little eDiscovery lesson courtesy of Ghislaine Maxwell's unsealed deposition transcript. What will next week bring? Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software and LexisNexis® InterAction®.

One of the most exciting legal tech shows of the year was ported online and demonstrated how much we've learned about virtual events since the pandemic began. Joe got a chance to talk to Clio CEO Jack Newton about the show, the lineup of keynote speakers, and the annual Legal Trends Report. Joe also ran down Seyfarth's ransomware snafu and ACB's performative celebration of laziness. Special thanks to our sponsors, Paper Software and LexisNexis® InterAction®.