Category: News Feeds

1.0       Introduction
On day 16 of the National Lockdown declared by President Emmerson Mnangagwa on 27 March 2020 followed by the gazetting of SI 83 of 2020 Public Health (COVID-19 Prevention, Containment and Treatment) (National Lockdown) on 28 March 2020, official statistics by the Ministry of Health and Child Care indicated that COVID-19 confirmed cases had increased to eighteen (18), whilst the number of deaths relating to COVID-19 remained at three (3). The cumulative tests conducted is 665 of which 647 were negative.The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health and Child Care Dr A. Mahomva issued a letter directed at all Provincial Medical Directors, Chief Executive Officers of Government Hospitals, All-City Health Directors and Private Hospitals with a strategy to increase active screening for COVID-19. In the letter, she highlighted the Ministry’s intention to have tested thirty-three thousand (33,000) people by the end of April 2020 and gave a breakdown of categories to be tested. The letter was ostensibly issued in response to a consent judgment entered into before the High Court, details of which are provided below.

2.0       Methodology

This report encompasses reports covering the 10 provinces of the country through reports received from the following Forum Members:

• Zimbabwe Peace Project (ZPP)
• Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA)
• Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR)
• Counselling Services Unit (CSU)
• Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights, (ZADHR)
• Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZimRights)

Post published in: Featured

THREE organisations representing people who are visually impaired and Deaf have sued government
and the state-run Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) demanding to be provided with information
on coronavirus in a format which is accessible to them.

Development, Deaf Zimbabwe Trust and Zimbabwe National League Of The Blind argued that the
rights of persons with disabilities have been infringed and continue to be infringed by government and
ZBC during a public health emergency crisis triggered by the coronavirus pandemic as there is a lack of
access to information in a format that is accessible to persons with disabilities, notably Deaf and Hard of
Hearing people and the blind and partially sighted persons.

ZBC, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Hon. Monica Mutsvangwa, Health and
Child Care Minister Hon. Obadiah Moyo and Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister Hon.
Paul Mavima have been cited as respondents to the application by Centre for Disability and
Development, Deaf Zimbabwe Trust and Zimbabwe National League of the Blind.

As applicants, the Centre for Disability and Development, Deaf Zimbabwe Trust and Zimbabwe National
League of the Blind, represented by Denford Halimani and Doug Coltart of Zimbabwe Lawyers for
Human Rights, argued that given the state of public health emergency and the national lockdown, there
is need for ZBC to have sign language as part of its programming to enable the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
people to be fully informed about the coronavirus pandemic and continuous changes effected on
compliance with the national lockdown by the citizens and any subsequent measures taken by
government.

The Centre for Disability And Development, Deaf Zimbabwe Trust and Zimbabwe National League of the
Blind argued that there is a need for all other official communications by government ministries involved
in the fight against coronavirus to be produced in formats which are accessible to persons with disabilities,
including blind and partially sighted persons, through the use of Braille pamphlets, and audio versions,
large print versions, and digital readable-text versions of official communications.

Failure to provide information on coronavirus in a format accessible to persons with disabilities, the
applicants said, is not only a violation of the rights of those persons to equality, of access to information
and other constitutional rights, but it also poses a grave danger to them, their members, and their
beneficiaries who may be unknowingly exposed to the deadly disease as well as to the general public
who may also be infected with the disease by persons with disabilities if they are not given equal access
to information about the disease and empowered to take necessary measures to prevent its spread.
Centre for Disability and Development, Deaf Zimbabwe Trust and Zimbabwe National League of the Blind
want the High Court to order ZBC to immediately provide sign language and/or captions in all its content
on Zimbabwe Television (ZTV) pertaining to the coronavirus epidemic during and after the National
Lockdown for the benefit of the deaf and hard of hearing people in Zimbabwe.

Hon. Mutsvangwa and Hon. Moyo, the applicants said, should immediately cause the production of
pamphlets with information about coronavirus in Braille and to distribute the same information to visually
impaired persons throughout Zimbabwe and ensure that all written information related to coronavirus
provided by government is also made available in formats accessible to visually impaired and partially
sighted persons, such as audio versions, large text, and/or readable digital text, and distributed to the
intended beneficiaries.

Hon. Moyo, the applicants said, should also ensure that the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare’s
coronavirus hotlines and centres are staffed with persons who are equipped to deal with the unique needs
of persons with disabilities while Hon. Mavima must facilitate that Hon. Mutsvangwa and Hon. Moyo
ensure that Braille materials and any other coronavirus-related materials intended for persons with
disabilities are delivered to the intended recipients.

Hon. Mutsvangwa, the Centre for Disability and Development, Deaf Zimbabwe Trust and Zimbabwe
National League of the Blind said, must immediately issue a statement urging private entities, including
mass media and hospitals, to ensure that any services they provide to the public relating to coronavirus
including information, testing and treatment are accessible to persons with disabilities.
The application will be heard and determined on Monday 20 April 2020 by High Court Judge Justice
Joseph Mafusire.

Post published in: Featured

The National Conference of Bar Examiners recently wrote a report exhorting jurisdictions to reject any manifestation of diploma privilege admission and recognize that only an NCBE-produced bar exam could guarantee attorney competency. Which state’s bar examination did NCBE President and CEO Judith Gundersen take to become a licensed attorney?

Hint: It’s the same bar exam her predecessor Erica Moeser took!

See the answer on the next page.

I don’t know about you, but I feel like Bill Murray in the movie Groundhog Day.

I need to take a break from “all Covid-19 coverage all the time,” and so I’m returning to one of my favorite topics “What were they thinking?” Judges, lawyers, and even a law student this go-around.

Let’s start with the Superior Court judge in Ventura County, just north of Los Angeles on the coast. The California Commission on Judicial Performance has publicly censured Judge Jeffrey Bennet for making stupid, bone-headed, racist and sexist remarks. The conduct had been going on for more than a decade until the whistle was finally blown.

Examples of remarks included, but not limited to (as we lawyers like to say), the following:

When an African-American defendant appeared in a criminal matter, the judge thought that he was being evasive and told the defendant to stop “shucking and jiving.”

More than one time in the presence of a female deputy district attorney, the judge said that he was “the only one in the courthouse with the balls to make that ruling” or words to that effect.

“Balls” was a popular word in the judge’s vocabulary. After he admitted that he had ruled incorrectly on a motion to suppress, he said that he had probably had the “biggest balls in the courthouse” to admit that error. He made a gesture in his genital area. How did he know that he had the “biggest balls in the courthouse?” Did he do a size comparison? Did he “drop trou” and compare?

The judge commented on the number of peremptory challenges that the District Attorney’s Office was filing, asking, “Why are you guys papering me?”  I could go on and on, but you get the flavor of the conduct. Exhibit 1 for a case of robe-itis.

The Commission found that the conduct (and there were 26 examples) violated the Canons of Judicial Ethics and constituted prejudicial misconduct. The judge’s comments were “…offensive, undignified, dishonest, discourteous, sexist, profane, and create the appearance of bias and retaliation.” Pretty complete catalogue of adjectives.

Often in these cases, the judge under scrutiny denies the charges, claims victimhood, or in some other way tries to offload his own responsibility for ending up in this pickle. Kudos to this judge who didn’t try to squirm his way out. He stipulated to the truth of the charges and that was a significant mitigating factor that prompted the Commission to impose public censure, one step below removal.

What this shows is that the Commission appreciates “coming clean.” An example of throwing oneself on the mercy of the court, so to speak. This judge did and has saved his job. Whether he’ll keep it in the future is to be determined.

Meanwhile, two judges in New York have resigned after pleading guilty to felonies.

One was for garden-variety tax evasion. The other judge resigned after pleading guilty to — wait for it — attempted burglary based on the theft of an intern’s panties.

No, I am not making this up and yes, I am going to resist the temptation to let loose with a string of underwear puns, although the temptation is almost overwhelming.

Then there’s the matter of the attorney who was sanctioned $1,000 along with attorneys fees and costs for interrupting a deposition 145 times and making 106 objections. The deposition transcript was only 255 pages long. So, if you divide 255 by 145….

Do you think that attorneys will ever learn to conduct depositions without sniping? Do attorneys know how this kind of conduct looks to a court that will have to rule on what usually are trivial disputes of ego? Will we ever grow up? Or has the profession become the playground for kids who don’t — or won’t — learn how to play together?

Then there’s a New Jersey judge who told the wife and the girlfriend, in a hearing on what to do with certain provocative photos, that they had been played by the husband/boyfriend. The judge called him a “knucklehead.” (I haven’t heard that term used in years.) That was not the first time that this judge had made intemperate remarks. This time he was censured.

The judge had previously been ordered to take sensitivity training some years back after receiving private reprimands for discourtesy. What is the “stickiness” of sensitivity training? How long does it last? Should judges be required to take sensitivity training every certain number of years? Of course, even if they complete the courses, there’s no guarantee that anything learned in the training will last longer than the length of the class.

A lawyer in Kansas was suspended for two years for having forged the signatures of a judge and a clerk on a court document. What was she thinking? There were other instances of misconduct that the Kansas Supreme Court also considered. Why would anyone ever risk a forgery of any document, let alone a court document? Mental health issues played a part in the misconduct, which is why it’s so important to pay attention to those concerns and not ignore them.

Have you ever run from police after stiffing the tab for a $200 lap dance? This attorney has.

And last, but not least, there is the Harvard Law student who brought a weapon to his Zoom class. I didn’t know that there was a show-and-tell portion in any law school class. Is it now “bring a gun, go to law school?”  There are no words.

Jill Switzer has been an active member of the State Bar of California for over 40 years. She remembers practicing law in a kinder, gentler time. She’s had a diverse legal career, including stints as a deputy district attorney, a solo practice, and several senior in-house gigs. She now mediates full-time, which gives her the opportunity to see dinosaurs, millennials, and those in-between interact — it’s not always civil. You can reach her by email at oldladylawyer@gmail.com.

Throughout the Biglaw COVID-19 cost-cutting measures it’s been clear that the most severe move — one most firms try to avoid — is layoffs. Unfortunately, not every firm is able to avoid letting folks go during the global pandemic.

As reported by Daily Business Review, Am Law 200 firm Greenspoon Marder has confirmed that, in anticipation of revenue shortfalls, they’ve instituted firmwide pay cuts and laid off employees. According to reports, 40 staff members and 5 attorneys have been let go.

Firm co-founders Gerry Greenspoon and Michael Marder had this to say about the cuts:

“There is no question that our firm, like every other firm in the country, will experience a loss of previously projected revenue as a result of this unmatched global business slowdown,” said Marder and Greenspoon. “As a result, our firm has decided to implement various cost-cutting measures in order to preemptively parallel this unexpected impact upon revenue with currently anticipated costs and expenses. It is our sincere and honest hope that many of these reductions will be temporary.”

If your firm or organization is slashing salaries, closing its doors, or reducing the ranks of its lawyers or staff, whether through open layoffs, stealth layoffs, or voluntary buyouts, please don’t hesitate to let us know. Our vast network of tipsters is part of what makes Above the Law thrive. You can email us or text us (646-820-8477).

If you’d like to sign up for ATL’s Layoff Alerts, please scroll down and enter your email address in the box below this post. If you previously signed up for the layoff alerts, you don’t need to do anything. You’ll receive an email notification within minutes of each layoff, salary cut, or furlough announcement that we publish.

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).

The COVID-19 austerity measures that are tearing their way through Biglaw have claimed another firm. This time it is Crowell & Moring, who made $401,074,000 in gross revenue in 2018, making the firm 95th on the Am Law 100 ranking.

So here’s the scoop: there will be salary cuts at the firm, with the top echelons of the firm taking the biggest hit. Equity partners will take a 25 percent compensation cut, income partners will see their paycheck cut by 20 percent, associates and counsel are seeing a 15 percent cut, and staff who make $100,000+, which the firm estimates is about a third of staff members, will see cuts in the range of 5 to 20 percent.

Philip T. Inglima, chair of Crowell & Moring, had the following statement on the austerity measures:

Crowell & Moring is in very good financial health, with a balanced array of practices and revenue streams. Over the past month, we swiftly transitioned our people to an almost entirely remote work environment, as we continued meeting our clients’ needs, including those that have arisen from the COVID-19 pandemic.

We are taking prudent and responsible steps to keep our firm strong as we, and our clients, navigate the economic uncertainty and challenges stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to aggressively managing all expenses that we can forgo or defer, we will postpone distributions and adjust partner draw levels for the months ahead in 2020. We also will institute tiered compensation reductions for all non-partner attorneys, as well as a segment of our professional and administrative team, for the balance of the year. These adjustments avoid any lay-offs and mean that two-thirds of our staff are spared any reduction in compensation.

We are positioning our firm to meet our current and anticipated financial and operational needs and to keep our team intact. We look forward to returning to our prior compensation practices as soon as possible.

These proactive steps are consistent with what every business must do during this unprecedented time: contain costs and expand cash resources to weather the storm. By taking these actions now, we are confident that we will be able to continue providing outstanding service to our clients and to support our people. We will get through this challenging time together.

Points to Inglima for coming right out and saying the cuts should be enough to avoid layoffs. It’s awful when firms realize their first round of austerity measures weren’t enough to save jobs. Here’s hoping Crowell can avoid layoffs.

If your firm or organization is slashing salaries, closing its doors, or reducing the ranks of its lawyers or staff, whether through open layoffs, stealth layoffs, or voluntary buyouts, please don’t hesitate to let us know. Our vast network of tipsters is part of what makes Above the Law thrive. You can email us or text us (646-820-8477).

If you’d like to sign up for ATL’s Layoff Alerts, please scroll down and enter your email address in the box below this post. If you previously signed up for the layoff alerts, you don’t need to do anything. You’ll receive an email notification within minutes of each layoff, salary cut, or furlough announcement that we publish.

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).

If you thought working at a Biglaw firm during a pandemic was difficult because it’s forced the majority of the office into a work-from-home environment, imagine working at a Biglaw megafirm that merged just weeks before the crisis began. It’s an uncertain time for everyone, but there’s even more uncertainty when a newly combined firm is just starting to get its footing when disaster strikes.

This is what’s happening at Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath, the firm that was formed after Faegre Baker Daniels finalized its merger with Drinker Biddle & Reath on February 1. If you recall, the prospective Am Law 50 firm with more than 1,300 lawyers was one of the very first to close its doors over coronavirus concerns.

How is Faegre Drinker proceeding amid all of the salary cuts, furloughs, and layoffs that have come about at peer firms due to the global health crisis? The firm’s partners are reportedly taking a rather “sizable” hit for the team:

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath has deferred its equity partner distributions by one-third for the second quarter in an effort to be “prudent and conservative” during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the firm said.

It is also monitoring the expenses generated by its workforce of more than 1,300 lawyers, consultants and professionals located across 22 offices, said co-chairs Andrew Kassner and Tom Froehle.

“It’s inevitable if it impacts our clients, it’ll impact the law firms. Everything has to be on the table as we plan going forward over the second quarter and third quarter and beyond,” Kassner said. He initially described it as being a cut in partner distributions, but then emphasized the firm was deferring those distributions: “It’s just a deferral. It’s all a matter of timing.”

Best of luck to Faegre Drinker in the months ahead. It sounds like the firm is doing right by its employees, which will hopefully lead to its success in the future.

If your firm or organization is slashing salaries, closing its doors, or reducing the ranks of its lawyers or staff, whether through open layoffs, stealth layoffs, or voluntary buyouts, please don’t hesitate to let us know. Our vast network of tipsters is part of what makes Above the Law thrive. You can email us or text us (646-820-8477).

If you’d like to sign up for ATL’s Layoff Alerts, please scroll down and enter your email address in the box below this post. If you previously signed up for the layoff alerts, you don’t need to do anything. You’ll receive an email notification within minutes of each layoff, salary cut, or furlough announcement that we publish.

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.