Election Law

Top DC prosecutor announces new election fraud unit, though authority and scope are unclear

The top federal prosecutor in Washington, D.C., is leading a new initiative to investigate election fraud cases.

Mar 18, 2025 2:12 PM CDT

5th Circuit judge challenges BigLaw firms’ ‘institutional bias’ in opinion

A federal appeals judge is calling out the country’s largest law firms for what he describes as “institutional bias.”

Mar 18, 2025 11:50 AM CDT

Trump order targeting Perkins Coie is ‘affront to the Constitution,’ suit says; judge sees ‘chilling harm of blizzard proportions’

Updated: Perkins Coie has won a temporary restraining order in a lawsuit filed against the Trump administration over a directive targeting the law firm and its clients.

Mar 13, 2025 9:56 AM CDT

Ex-Wisconsin justice who led election review should be compelled to sit for deposition in ethics case, motion says

A former Wisconsin Supreme Court justice should be compelled to sit for a deposition before a disciplinary review board, a lawyer for the Wisconsin Office of Lawyer Regulation argued in a Feb. 28 motion.

Mar 6, 2025 10:00 AM CST

Who won election to top North Carolina court? Case belongs in state court, for now, 4th Circuit says

A federal court shouldn’t decide lawsuits over a contested election for a seat on the North Carolina Supreme Court, at least not yet, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Richmond, Virginia, ruled Tuesday.

Feb 5, 2025 3:03 PM CST

Danger of doxing for governmental officials has to be addressed, says ABA House

Government entities should adopt legislation and policies to prevent the disclosure of personally identifiable information of active and former officials and employees as well as the family members who live in their homes, the ABA House of Delegates says.

Feb 3, 2025 12:10 PM CST

Judges Without JDs: In the United States, judges are not always required to be lawyers

More than half of states allow nonlawyers to serve as judges in lower-level local courts. Nonlawyers can be justices of the peace, magistrates, municipal judges or probate judges. The types of cases over which they preside can include eviction, probate and civil disputes with limits on the financial stake.

Feb 1, 2025 2:20 AM CST

Our Inheritance

There is a lot of talk about democracy these days, but there is not nearly enough understanding of its vital importance. How it works and should work. Why it matters. You’d be surprised at what’s not covered in school. But it is more than the responsibility of schools—it is a challenge for our profession. It’s up to us to make sure the knowledge stays fresh, the experience is not forgotten and the handwritten notes are still read.

Feb 1, 2025 2:10 AM CST

This BigLaw firm will represent Trump in appeal of hush-money conviction

Sullivan & Cromwell will represent President Donald Trump in his appeal of his conviction and sentence for falsifying business records to hide a hush-money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential election.

Jan 30, 2025 12:47 PM CST

Ethics complaint dropped against Texas AG over challenge to 2020 election results

The Texas Commission for Lawyer Discipline has dropped an ethics complaint alleging that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton made dishonest statements in December 2020 litigation seeking to overturn 2020 election results in four battleground states.

Jan 28, 2025 8:54 AM CST

Jack Smith’s subtle indictment of the Supreme Court

Special counsel Jack Smith’s effort to hold Donald Trump accountable for a wild and ultimately violent attempt to overturn the 2020 election based on lies about voter fraud came to a rather meek conclusion early Tuesday with the release of Smith’s final report.

Jan 14, 2025 12:15 PM CST

Trump sentenced in hush money case, will not face jail or probation

Donald Trump was sentenced without penalty on Friday for his felony conviction in his hush money trial, appearing virtually at what was likely his final court hearing as a criminal defendant before he is sworn in for another term in the White House.

Jan 10, 2025 10:36 AM CST

11th Circuit allows release of Trump Jan. 6 special counsel report

A federal appellate court has cleared the way for the Justice Department to publicly release special counsel Jack Smith’s report on Donald Trump’s efforts to undo the results of the 2020 election, although the timing of that release remains unclear.

Jan 9, 2025 8:55 PM CST

Chemerinsky: Supreme Court confirms conservative leanings in 2024, shows no signs of changing

The last year at the U.S. Supreme Court confirmed what has been clear since President-elect Donald Trump selected three justices between 2017 and 2020: It is a very conservative court. Those who are conservative celebrate this, and those who are liberal decry it. But no one disputes that when the court is ideologically divided, it is virtually always a 6-3 decision with a conservative result. This was certainly true in 2024, and it is likely to remain that way for many years to come.

Dec 23, 2024 8:46 AM CST

Fani Willis disqualified from Trump election case by Georgia appellate court

A Georgia appellate court overturned a judge’s ruling allowing Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis to remain in charge of the criminal racketeering case against Donald Trump—a decision that could doom the high-profile prosecution.

Dec 19, 2024 9:38 AM CST