Author: TSA Press

For those who do not follow sports, there is an important, titanic college football game happening this weekend. The Alabama Crimson Tide take on the LSU Tigers in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. LSU has a decent quarterback, Joe Burrow, this year. So, when ‘Bama inevitably boat races them and reduces Burrow to a twitchy, human recreation of Fiver from Watership Down, the defeat will be particularly bitter.

I’d like to talk more about the game, but unfortunately we live in a world where the President of the United States is a jejune narcissist who refuses to let us have nice things. Donald Trump is continuing his national tour of looking for a sports audience to cheer him. He got booed at the World Series. He got booed at UFC, which is only surprising to those who think Dana White is representative of actual UFC fans. And so now Trump intends to go to Tuscaloosa to watch the big game.

A sporting event in Alabama might seem like a “safe space” for Trump. But we must remember that going to college seems to be the key factor in making white people understand that Trump is terrible. People who have schooling do not like Trump. Alabama draws a lot of fans who never went to the university or any college at all, but one might expect the Alabama students section, at least, to be vocally against the bigoted president when he comes to campus.

It would appear that a member of the Alabama Student Government Association, Vice President Jason Rothfarb, anticipated some anti-Trump feelings among the student body. This week, ahead of the game, Rothfarb sent out this letter, that was later widely circulated on social media:

“Any organizations that engage in disruptive behavior during the game will be removed from block seating instantly for the remainder of the season,” he wrote.

The only thing that could have made this more chilling to free speech is if Rothfarb had gotten Peter Thiel to cosign the message.

A firestorm erupted, justifiably so, because the free speech rights on the campus of a public university, while attending a sporting event, are among the most ironclad you can get without the aid of Russian interference. Trust me, I’m a Mets fan — the right to boo is among our most scared.

The pushback caused Rothfarb to clarify his statement, blaming others for “misinterpretation” as we’re now all trained to do when caught being stupid in public:

“Some have misinterpreted my comment regarding “disruptive behavior.” As with other games this season, Organization’s Block Seating locations will be clearly marked, but at certain times, other students can and should have access to open seats. By disruptive behavior, we are asking students to be respectful to all students and staff and avoid altercations.

Normally, I’d dismiss this walk-back out of hand. But… BUT… I mean… this is ‘Bama/LSU. Earlier this year, LSU played Vanderbilt in Nashville and, apparently, DRANK A BAR OUT OF VODKA BY 9:00 A.M.! The specter of hooliganism is real when these two programs meet. Young people will be drunk, rowdy, and one faction or the other will be losing. Bad things can happen. After a Harvard/Yale game one year, we lost and the Yale fans rushed the field and mooned our side and I started throwing dog biscuits at their asses until I was escorted out by “friends” (who were maybe “security guards,” but I remember them as friends). And drunken Harvard/Yale is to drunken Bama/LSU as a scented candle is to a flamethrower.

Rothfarb’s retcon of his warning is believable, I suppose. Except, you know who doesn’t believe it? The President of the United States:

Trump retweeted that after the retraction or clarification or whatever was made.

Regardless of what Rothfarb and Alabama actually intended, Trump is using it as an opportunity to chill free speech on campus.

I imagine most Alabama and LSU students just want to go to the game and… stick to sports. And, that’s their right. It’s unfortunate that we live in a country where the president is so desperate for attention that he intrudes himself on every aspect of our lives and culture.

But I’d just remind game attendees that they don’t have to focus on the game and nothing else. Alabama is not run by Jim Spanfeller. If you want to voice your displeasure at the current president, that is your right to do so.

You don’t even have to go full Nika Riot. You can leave that work to the people present should Trump ever be foolish enough show up to a WNBA game.

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Elie Mystal is the Executive Editor of Above the Law and a contributor at The Nation. He can be reached @ElieNYC on Twitter, or at elie@abovethelaw.com. He will resist.

The timing is sort of surprising. Obviously, there’s a war on talent. Firms want to be seen as an early leader in setting market rates, and it shows they feel confident in the market next year.

— Nathan Peart, managing director of Major, Lindsey & Africa’s associate practice group, commenting on Milbank’s announcement of year-end bonuses yesterday. Not only did the firm beat Cravath to the punch, but this is the earliest that Biglaw bonuses have been announced since 2009 (a time when bonus compensation was down, and the real bonus was still having a job).

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Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

Pewie Moyo works as a full-time carer for Yvonne Gage, who is quadriplegic

A woman who has worked as a carer for nine years has been told she must leave the UK without delay.

Pewie Moyo originally came to the UK from Zimbabwe under her partner’s visa, but they separated several years ago.

Ms Moyo works a full-time carer for a family in Trull, Taunton, where she lives with Karen Attwell, and cares for Karen’s wife, Yvonne Gade.

The Home Office has said it will not comment on individual cases.

Ms Moyo was told during a routine check-in three weeks ago, that her application to remain had failed and the decision was “in the system”.

A few days later, her solicitor received a Home Office letter confirming the decision.

It stated: “You have no basis to continue to stay in the United Kingdom and you are expected to make arrangements to leave the United Kingdom without delay.”

Ms Moyo said: “It’s really terrible, it feels like they don’t consider what I’ve been doing and contributing to this society. I feel like I’m not valued.”

Ms Moyo has been caring for Yvonne Gage for nine years

Ms Moyo has been caring for Ms Gage, who is quadriplegic and became paralysed after an aneurysm in her brain, for nine years.

Ms Gage’s wife Ms Attwell said: “We’ve got medical evidence we submitted to the Home Office to say they were very concerned about Yvie’s welfare should Pewie and Yvie be separated.

“We don’t have another carer that is as committed and that we love in the same way we love Pewie, it’s not that easy.”

Ms Moyo is now due to report back to a police station on Tuesday, 26 November and she fears she could be detained and sent back to Zimbabwe.

If she does return, she claims she could be tortured or killed, as she was a member of the opposition party.

Post published in: Featured

The term “World Class City” refers to a city that is considered safe and secure. It is a city that is inclusive and has access to basic services including water and electricity. It is a city that is ideal for its dwellers. Rubbish is collected on time and maintenance of buildings is always up to date. The City Council of a world class city is conscious about the health needs such as the fresh air and relaxation provided by paths and greenbelt and exercise – provided by walking and cycling tracks and playgrounds for children.

As such, Harare has committed itself to being a world class city by 2025 and other cities such as Gweru, Mutare and Bulawayo are expected to follow suit.

We Deserve Better Cities

World Cities Day and World Town Planning Day are days that commemorate world urbanisation and how cities have transformed thus far. The overall theme for the two days is “Better City, Better Life”, and the sub-theme for World Cities Day is ” Changing the World : Innovations and Better Life for Future Generations”. World Town Planning Day calls for Town Planners to be innovative, to rethink their strategies and to get excited about developing cities whilst World Cities Day calls for planners to be forward thinking.  With 50% of the world’s population living in cities, one can see why this day is of importance.

In Zimbabwe, 16% of the overall population is believed to live in Harare, whilst 5% in Bulawayo, 67% in rural areas and the remainder scattered around other towns and cities. In 2012, Zimbabwe indicated in its Report to UN Habitat that its cities are growing  at a rate of 4.3% annually. The Business Insider named Harare the second worst city to live in 2019. The Economist Intelligence Unit ranked Harare 135th out of 140 on the Global Liveability Index meaning only 5 capital cities in the world are considered worse than Harare in 2018. The reason for this was mostly owed to poor infrastructure, economic instability and poor healthcare.

As mentioned above Harare City Council has expressed its wishes for the city to become a world class city. This is to be done by 2025. For the goal to become a reality considerable change in how the city operates needs to take place. The Harare City Council as well as property owners need to commit to revamping and renovating buildings and spaces. Roads need to be maintained and pathways need to be fixed. Maintenance should not take place once something falls apart. Constant improvement and development needs to take place so as to not overwhelm the City Councils of tomorrow. All City Councils in the country need to take heed of this as well.

Cities For Future Generations

In his statement on the subject, the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres said that “how our cities develop will have significant implication in realising the futures we want.”  This is a call by the SG that in the development of cities we must consider sustainability, the overall environment and to better the health, mental and social needs of the people in the city. To date there have been growing trends of people building on wetlands. Land formerly reserved for recreational purposes has been issued out as housing stands and more and more we are turning our city into a concrete block without any places for children to play and general social development. In desperately catering for the population growth in cities, we are sacrificing town planning and development that is sustainable, eco-friendly and healthy for the inhabitants of the city.

Echoing the Secretary General’s remarks, a generational perspective needs to be adopted in town and city development. We need forward-looking municipalities that seek to solve long term problems. We should not seek to just satisfy the needs of the community of today only. Future generations must be kept in mind.

The government, Members of Parliament, municipalities and urban dwellers are called to work together for sustainable development that is sensitive to climate action and the quality of life for the generations to come.  As we have seen rapid expansion with no sure plan comes with poverty and unemployment. We need discipline, transparency and efficient systems in our municipalities in order to improve the cities and earn our spot back on the world stage as having world class cities. The time has come to adapt and remodel the template of cities we were left with decades ago into one that is suitable to the populations and conditions of today.

Responsible City Development

As we commemorate this day we call upon municipalities to apply fresh perspectives when developing Master Plans and carrying out urbanism projects. We implore all players responsible for city development to remember that the change begins with them. If we are to realise our goal to become a world class city by 2025 there needs to be greater equality and access to services throughout the country. We need to map a practical and feasible way forward with our infrastructure and actually implement visible developments.

Veritas makes every effort to ensure reliable information, but cannot take legal responsibility for information supplied.

Post published in: Featured

Pickup lines generally walk the fine line between cheesily bad and actionably harassing. But the art of crafting pickup lines for a specific profession brings in a level of sad nerdism that makes it perfect fodder for lawyers and law students showing off their mastery of arcane (to the rest of the world) legal knowledge in a way that’s just funny enough to get them a pity lay.

The Law School Memes for Edgy T14s page asked members to provide their best lawyerly pickup lines and they didn’t disappoint. Here’s a collection of the best of the project:

• Are you looking to tender some performance? Cause I’m ready, willing, and sufficient to satisfy.
• Hey girl, are you a bar review class? Because I would pay $3500 for you to talk to me for a short amount of time.
• Are your shareholders liable for your corporate debts? Because I’d like to pierce your veil.
• Are you intro to property law? Because I bet you can make me cry and waste countless hours of my life.
• Girl, I can sustain an objection for almost four hours.
• Westlaw and chill?
• Are you the country residence from Jacob & Youngs v. Kent? Cuz I’m tryna put a pipe in you.
• You must be a long arm statute cause you could grab me anywhere.
• Are you equity, cause I’ll make you come with clean hands.
• Oh baby, I’ll give you so much due process, standing will be the only issue.
• Are you the Court of Appeals because I’m tryna get overturned.
• I’m not in Big Law, but I got a big… Ego and Major Depression, please tell me I’m pretty.
• Is your name Lexis? Because you have everything I’ve been searching for.
• Are you confidential files? Because I’d like to examine you in camera.
• Girl, are you a burden shifting test? Cause what’s that butt for?
• Hi, are you my legal fees? Because you’re way too high and clearly taking advantage of me.
• Damn boy, is your ass Informal Rulemaking under the Administrative Procedure Act? Because I just had to Notice and Comment.
• Are you petitioning for cert? Because you’re appealing to me.
• If you’re Tompkins, I’m the Erie railroad cause I’m crushing on you.
• Something something dictum. Sleep with me.
• Are you a porter for Long Island Railroad? Cause you make my head spin.
• In my advisory opinion, after you see my dicta, you won’t have standing.
• Baby, if you were a contract, you’d be the fine print.
• I have the ability to turn the lawyer thing off and act like a normal human when I leave the office.
• Let me show you section 69 of my penal code.
• They call me Learned Hand for a reason.
• Maybe my special master can override your taint team.
• I’ll give you an excited utterance.
• I’ll make sure we observe Title IX and each get substantially equal playing time.
• I’m a lawyer, of course I can get you off.
• Hey boy. Is it true you last longer than a Scalia dissent?
• On a scale of 1 to America, how free are you tonight?
• Imma RAP that ass for the next 21 years!
• Hey girl, whaddya say we remove this matter to a forum more conveniens?
• Are you the Sixth Amendment? Cause I’d like to try you speedily and in public.
• Are you a restrictive covenant? Because I’d like to touch and concern you.
• I ask less questions than Clarence Thomas.
• I wish my law school has curves like you.
• Is your name Rodriguez, because I have a reasonable suspicion that you’re packing something, and I’d like to extend this interaction.
• Are you the Third Amendment, cause I’m thinking about quartering my soldier in your home.
• Are you a 3L? Cause I’d like to take a look at your outlines.
• Are you Tennessee Valley Authority v. Hill? Because DAM.
• Want to test the bounds of Fox v. FFC…I can make you swear…on camera.
• They call me breacher cuz I always fail to substantially perform.
• Hey, I’m poly, expressio unius non est exclusio altius.
• Baby you’re thiccer than my ConLaw casebook
• *When they introduce you to their friend* “I’d like to make a rule 14a motion to join a third party?”
• Are you the commerce clause? Cuz there are no limits to what I would do with you
• I’m a lawyer.

Aw. That last one was some powerfully wishful thinking. Try something like:

“I call it Blackacre because I’ll convey it all to you, baby… remainder to your friend over there.”

That should work. As long as you don’t add “reverter to my wife.”

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Joe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.

The country has never been more divided politically, and whether they’re strongly in favor of or adamantly opposed to President Trump’s policies, people have been inspired to go to law school to somehow “save America.”

As our readers know, the latest Princeton Review law school rankings are out, and today, we’ll be focusing on what are perhaps the most important rankings of them all: the law schools with the most conservative students and the law schools with the most liberal students. During these times of political division and strife, why not attend a law school where there’s a high likelihood that your classmates will share your political ideology?

Which law schools do you think came out on top of these lists?

First, we’ll begin with the methodology Princeton Review used to determine which law schools had the most conservative and liberal students. A single question was asked of respondents to determine the political bent of each school’s student body: “If there is a prevailing political bent among students at your school, how would you characterize it?” Answer choices were: “Very Liberal, Liberal, Middle of the Road, Somewhat Conservative, Very Conservative.”

Per Princeton Review, these are the law schools where you can wear your MAGA hats with pride, otherwise known as the law schools with the most conservative students:

1. Ave Maria School of Law School of Law
2. Brigham Young University J. Reuben Clark Law School
3. Samford University Cumberland School of Law
4. George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School
5. Faulkner University Thomas Goode Jones School of Law
6. University of Alabama School of Law
7. Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert Law Center
8. Mississippi College School of Law
9. Pepperdine University School of Law
10. University of Idaho School of Law

Note that the majority of these law schools are in Southern states. You can pwn those libs and discuss the latest witch hunt here. And always remember, NO QUID PRO QUO!

According to Princeton Review, these are the law schools where you’ll be able to plan how you’re going protect Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at all costs and stop the country from being ripped apart at the seams — the places that are also known as the law schools with the most liberal students:

1. Northeastern University School of Law
2. American University Washington College of Law
3. University of Pennsylvania Law School
4. University of Oregon School of Law
5. University of Maryland School of Law
6. Brooklyn Law School
7. City University of New York School of Law
8. State University of New York – Buffalo School of Law
9. University of Colorado School of Law
10. Vermont Law School

Note that the majority of these law schools are on either the East or West coasts, and one of them is a T14 institution. These damned liberal elites.

Did your law school or alma mater make the cut? If it did, do you think it was ranked fairly? If it didn’t make the list for best career prospects, do you agree with that assessment? Please email us or text us (646-820-8477) with your thoughts. Thanks.

Most Conservative Students 2020 [Princeton Review]
Most Liberal Students 2020 [Princeton Review]

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Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

Things aren’t going great for Gordon Caplan. As you probably know, the onetime co-managing partner at Willkie Farr found himself caught in the “Varsity Blues” college admissions scandal, eventually pleading guilty to paying $75,000 to “college coaches” turned government cooperating witnesses in a scheme to have a professional alter his daughter’s answers on the ACT in order to get her a higher score. He was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani to one month of jail time. Now he’s in a fight to keep his law license.

In New York, disbarment is automatic for conviction of a state felony or for a crime “essentially similar” to a state felony. As reported by Law.com, Caplan’s license has been suspended, but he’s trying to avoid the most severe punishment:

On Thursday, the Appellate Division, First Department held that Caplan’s offense qualified as a “serious crime” that warranted immediate suspension, but also granted his request for a hearing as to “why a final order of censure, suspension or disbarment should not be made.”

As Caplan’s attorney, Michael Ross, noted:

“Mr. Caplan agreed to the interim suspension and looks forward to presenting all the facts to the court so that a fair and appropriate sanction can be imposed on him,” Ross said.

Earlier this week, Caplan reported to a low-security prison in Pennsylvania to begin serving his sentence. The ethics hearing will take place within 90 days of his release.

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Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, and host of The Jabot podcast. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).

After Milbank matched last year’s holiday bonus schedule — “matched” assuming you ignore the summer bonuses from last year — we aggregated some of the best associate commentary about the new bonuses. One irritated tipster objected to the mundane bonuses by pointing out that the firm had raised rates this year and arguing that bonuses should have gone up accordingly and anything else is just profit taking by the partners off the backs of the associates:

They increased rates by 4% this year, so comp should go up, not down.

The next firms down the line should know they are going to get ravaged by the legal rags if they just match when the partners get millions while the workhorses don’t even get a cost of living increase.

I’m not so sure this tracks. In his reaction column, Elie Mystal argued that firms are gearing up for the next recession though he questioned whether any firm is going to stay its hand at layoff time based on cheaping out now. If partners are just pocketing the extra revenue, then the answer is emphatically no, they will not let this deter them from future layoffs.

But partners may not be pocketing this extra money. As we also covered yesterday, many Biglaw firms have been holding on to more revenue and adding it to partner capital contributions. In other words, that money could in fact be going into the rainy day fund that will keep the firm paying its bills — to both vendors and associates and staff — when times get tough.

There’s also an argument to be had that the salary hike last year — also initiated by Milbank — was a bridge too far under the existing finances. It’s not that the market couldn’t bear the increase, because obviously it could, but whether that increase was shouldered by decreasing partner profits or passing it on to the clients was an open question. You can guess how that was ultimately resolved. And despite the caterwauling of those clients, they continued to dutifully pay because the only thing worse than paying more for legal services is having to explain a devastating loss by admitting the legal department was trying to cut corners on counsel.

The retort to this is that if true, why were summer bonuses on the table last year and not this year? Remember Milbank wasn’t originally on the summer bonus train — that was Simpson’s contribution to the cause.

Finally, boosting rack rates doesn’t necessarily mean the firm’s billing out at that rate. Biglaw billing is wrought with discounts to make clients feel special. Is a 4 percent rate increase really bringing in 4 percent more scratch? Probably not. Milbank’s revenue is — if Am Law numbers are to be taken as gospel — up about 12 percent, but headcount is also up roughly 6 percent. And, of course, they raised the salaries in the meantime.

The point is, it’s possible that bumping rates should result in a bonus increase, but it’s certainly not automatic. There’s a little more involved in running a firm than that.

Earlier: Biglaw’s Reactions To Same-Bank Bonuses
Law Firms Trying Not To Go Bankrupt This Next Recession

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Joe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.

* A lawyer caught up in the college admissions scandal has had his law license suspended. Maybe he also helped his kid get into law school… [New York Post]

* The former top lawyer for a firm co-founded by Peter Thiel is suing her ex-employer for wrongful termination. [Los Angeles Times]

* Apparently there is a severe lawyer shortage in parts of Massachusetts, especially in Springfield. Looks like more lawyers looking for jobs should travel to the Commonwealth. [Mass Live]

* The San Francisco District Attorney race may be decided by only a few thousand votes. Never doubt that every vote counts. [San Francisco Chronicle]

* A lawyer who claimed he missed a hearing due to his grandfather’s death must supply proof to the court. This reminds me of an episode of Seinfeld… [ABA Journal]

* President Trump has paid $2M to settle a lawsuit filed by the New York Attorney General regarding the Trump Foundation. [CNN]

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Jordan Rothman is a partner of The Rothman Law Firm, a full-service New York and New Jersey law firm. He is also the founder of Student Debt Diaries, a website discussing how he paid off his student loans. You can reach Jordan through email at jordan@rothmanlawyer.com.