“Detainee fight gets bigger, costlier for long-battling Boston law firm; Six Algerian terrorist suspects held at Guantanamo Bay for more than six years without charges have won the right to petition for release, increasing the stakes for their pro bono defenders”: The Boston Globe today contains an article that begins, “The Wilmer Hale law firm, one of the largest and most respected in Boston, has a reputation for championing unpopular causes: President Nixon during impeachment. The US Army during the McCarthy hearings. Even defending serial killer Ted Bundy. But the firm’s past efforts pale in comparison with the free legal assistance that it has given to six Algerian terrorist suspects held without charge at Guantanamo Bay. Since 2004, lawyers with the firm have provided 35,448 billable hours of legal help, worth an estimated $17 million, making this case the largest pro bono effort in the 90-year history of the firm.”

“Kozinski’s Spirit”: This editorial appears today in The New York Sun.

“Banning Loaded Words at Criminal Trials: A Well-Meaning But Foolish Approach to Protecting Defendants.” Sherry F. Colb has this essay online at FindLaw.

“Michigan judge named to U.S. appeals court”: The Detroit News today contains an article that begins, “Ending a bitter partisan feud that dates from 1997, the U.S. Senate took less than two hours Tuesday night to confirm a controversial Michigan judge to sit on the federal appeals court that handles cases for the Midwest. The final vote to give Helene White, a Michigan state appeals court judge, the lifetime appointment to the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals was 63-32.”

And The Associated Press reports that “Senate approves Michigan judicial nominees.”

In addition to confirming the nomination of Helene White (click here and scroll down for bio) to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on a roll call vote, the U.S. Senate yesterday also confirmed Raymond Kethledge to the Sixth Circuit on a voice vote.