How Appealing



Monday, April 25, 2011

“Law firm quits marriage act case, a win for gay-rights groups; King & Spalding says it won’t defend the Defense of Marriage Act, but prominent partner Paul Clement quits the firm and says he’ll stick with the case”: David G. Savage will have this article Tuesday in The Los Angeles Times.

Tuesday’s edition of The New York Times will contain an article headlined “Law Firm Won’t Defend Marriage Act.”

And in Tuesday’s edition of The Wall Street Journal, Ashby Jones will have an article headlined “Partner Quits Firm in Rift Over Gay Marriage.” The newspaper will also contain an editorial entitled “Knave and Spalding: A law firm drops a politically incorrect case.”

Posted at 10:45 PM by Howard Bashman



“WikiLeaks: Just 8 at Gitmo gave evidence against 255 others.” Tom Lasseter and Carol Rosenberg of McClatchy Newspapers have this report.

Posted at 10:38 PM by Howard Bashman



“Holder says he’s not going anywhere”: Jerry Markon of The Washington Post has a news update that begins, “He has been a focus of criticism and a longtime target of congressional Republicans, one of whom recently called for his resignation. But Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. made it clear Monday that he’s not going anywhere.”

Posted at 10:18 PM by Howard Bashman



“Appeals Court to Hear Arguments on Pace of Offshore Drilling Permits”: Lawrence Hurley of Greenwire has an article (via The New York Times) that begins, “The latest phase in the legal fight over offshore drilling permits that was kick-started by last year’s Deepwater Horizon disaster begins this week with two back-to-back arguments in a federal appeals court in New Orleans.”

Posted at 10:07 PM by Howard Bashman



“Prop. 8 side: Gay judge shouldn’t have heard case.” Bob Egelko of The San Francisco Chronicle has a news update that begins, “The federal judge who struck down California’s ban on same-sex marriage should have disqualified himself because he is a gay man with a longtime partner he could marry as a result of his ruling, sponsors of the ballot measure said in a court filing Monday.”

And at “SCOTUSblog,” Lyle Denniston has a post titled “Prop. 8: Plea to throw out ruling.”

Posted at 10:04 PM by Howard Bashman



“Chief Justice Roberts and the First Amendment”: David L. Hudson Jr. has this essay online at the First Amendment Center.

Posted at 3:53 PM by Howard Bashman



“Firm defending Defense of Marriage Act withdraws from case”: The Washington Post has this news update.

James Oliphant of The Los Angeles Times has a news update headlined “Defense of Marriage Act defender resigns from law firm amid pressure from gay rights advocates.”

“The Caucus” blog of The New York Times has a post titled “Law Firm Backs Out of Defending Marriage Act.”

Ariane de Vogue and Devin Dwyer of ABCNews.com report that “Republicans’ Defense of Marriage Act Lawyer Quits Top Firm After It Dumps DOMA Defense.”

Bill Mears of CNN.com reports that “Law firm backs out of defending federal Defense of Marriage Act.”

The Associated Press reports that “Firm hired by GOP ends work on gay marriage ban.”

And Reuters reports that “Clement breaks with King & Spalding over Marriage Act.”

Posted at 2:25 PM by Howard Bashman



“NY court upholds ruling in Connecticut school case”: The Associated Press has a report that begins, “A federal appeals court in New York has agreed that Connecticut school officials acted reasonably and constitutionally when they disciplined a student for an Internet posting she wrote off school grounds.”

Today’s ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in Doninger v. Niehoff begins, “We are once again called to consider the circumstances in which school administrators may discipline students for speech relating directly to the affairs of the school without running afoul of the First Amendment.”

Posted at 12:20 PM by Howard Bashman



“King & Spalding Asks to Withdraw from Marriage Litigation”: David Ingram has this post at “The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times.”

And in related news, according to an email that I have just received, former Solicitor General Paul D. Clement today has tendered his resignation from the King & Spalding law firm. The letter of resignation that I received as an attachment to that email can be accessed here. USA Today is confirming Clement’s resignation in a news update headlined “Law firm withdraws from gay marriage case.”

And Bill Rankin of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has a news update headlined “King & Spalding to withdraw from defending DOMA.”

Update: A follow-up email contains a press release that begins, “Paul D. Clement, the 43rd Solicitor General of the United States, has joined the firm of Bancroft PLLC as Partner.”

“The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times” now has a new post titled “Clement Leaves King & Spalding to Continue Same-Sex Marriage Litigation.”

Posted at 11:24 AM by Howard Bashman



“Defense lawyers take case against documentation penalties to state high court”: Today’s edition of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel contains an article that begins, “A record 17 times last year, Wisconsin’s Court of Appeals hit lawyers with $150 ‘summary sanctions’ when judges thought briefs were missing some supporting documentation.”

Posted at 7:54 AM by Howard Bashman



“WikiLeaks discloses new details on whereabouts of al-Qaeda leaders on 9/11”: This article appears today in The Washington Post.

The Los Angeles Times reports today that “WikiLeaks releasing documents on Guantanamo; Thousands of pages outline the U.S. prison operation at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, with details on the self-proclaimed Sept. 11 mastermind and others; The White House condemns the leak.”

Coverage of “The Guantanamo Files” from The Guardian (UK) can be accessed via this link. Today’s coverage includes articles headlined “Guantanamo leaks lift lid on world’s most controversial prison; Innocent people interrogated for years on slimmest pretexts; Children, elderly and mentally ill among those wrongfully held; 172 prisoners remain, some with no prospect of trial or release“; “Guantanamo Bay files: Caught in the wrong place at the wrong time; Almost half of 212 Afghan prisoners either innocent or forced to fight for Taliban, while foreigners were simply rounded up“; and “What are the Guantanamo Bay files? Understanding the prisoner dossiers.”

The Miami Herald reports that “WikiLeaks reveal prison camp secrets.”

And The Associated Press reports that “Leaked files reveal new info on Gitmo detainees.”

Posted at 7:35 AM by Howard Bashman