Government

Now Hiring: SEC Has Glut of Attorney Jobs, Turns to Recruiter for Help

With a glut of attorney jobs to fill before its fiscal year comes to an end in September, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has turned to a recruiter for help. Futurestep will help the federal enforcement agency find applicants for positions ranging from entry-level attorney advisers, earning an annual…

May 25, 2011 12:25 AM CDT

Municipal Attorney’s Next Assignment: Military Counsel; ‘When the Navy Calls, You Go’

Married, a father and a name partner in a Colorado law firm, Carl McGuire seemingly had his life structure set. Then he got the news that he was headed to Afghanistan for a six-month Naval Reserves deployment. “When the Navy calls, you go,” he tells the Fort Morgan Times, noting…

May 24, 2011 6:34 PM CDT

Ex Chicago Mayor Richard Daley Has New University of Chicago Gig, Also Expected to Land Law Firm Job

Former longtime Chicago mayor Richard Daley has landed a new gig at the University of Chicago. He has accepted a five-year appointment at the university’s Harris School of Public Policy Studies, where he will coordinate a guest lecture series on major issues facing cities, the university announced today in a…

May 24, 2011 5:09 PM CDT

NJ High Court Orders $500M in Extra School Funding, Short of the $1.7B Feared by the Governor

The New Jersey Supreme Court in a 3-2 ruling has ordered the state schools to spend additional money on public education in poor school districts, an amount estimated to be $500 million. The figure is less than the $1.7 billion feared by Gov. Chris Christie, the Associated Press reports. The…

May 24, 2011 3:23 PM CDT

Many Corporate Internal Investigations Conducted by Former DOJ and SEC Employees

Internal corporate investigations are a big business for the lawyers who conduct them—often former employees of the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission. The results of the probes are often shared with the DOJ and the SEC, which decide whether to do additional investigation or to bring charges,…

May 24, 2011 10:30 AM CDT

Holed Up at Home Since 2000, Texas Man Awaits Potential Gunfight with Sheriff’s Deputies

Over a decade ago, John Joe Gray got involved in an altercation with Henderson County sheriff’s deputies after a traffic stop, leading to a warrant for his arrest after he apparently failed to appear to defend himself in a criminal case. Authorities know where he’s been throughout that time—on a…

May 23, 2011 8:35 PM CDT

Ogletree Fights Demand for Bill Copies to Audit Legal Work Law Firm Did for Maricopa County Attorney

An Arizona judge last week gave a green light to a lawsuit seeking to force a well-known law firm to turn over copies of its bills for representing the Maricopa County attorney’s office and sheriff’s office during a high-profile power struggle with county supervisors. Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart…

May 23, 2011 5:35 PM CDT

Supreme Court Dispenses ‘Rough Equity’ in Ruling on State Secrets and a Jet Contract

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that neither the government nor two defense contractors can pursue billion-dollar claims in a contract dispute because of the possibility that state secrets will be revealed. Justice Antonin Scalia wrote the unanimous opinion (PDF) in the dispute over a stealth-fighter contract. The ruling, he…

May 23, 2011 5:29 PM CDT

Skadden Partner to Head 9/11 Compensation Fund

Sheila Birnbaum, who heads the mass torts and insurance litigation group at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, has been selected to lead the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, the Justice Department announced today. Last December, Congress passed a bill that provides up to $4.2 billion in new aid to…

May 18, 2011 4:17 PM CDT

City of Chicago’s New Top Lawyer Says He Plans to Bring More Work In-House

Chicago’s new mayor Rahm Emanuel has been talking about significant budget cuts, but his assistant corporation counsels’ jobs may be safe—the administration’s top lawyer, Stephen Patton, told the Chicago Tribune yesterday that he intends to bring more legal work in-house. The law department, which includes about 230 attorneys, has an…

May 17, 2011 4:20 PM CDT

Freedom of Information Request Can’t Be Used for Whistle-Blower Suit, Supreme Court Says

Whistle-blowers hoping to recover money by suing government contractors for alleged fraud can’t base their suits on information collected in freedom of information requests, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled. The Supreme Court ruled (PDF) against whistle-blower Daniel Kirk in a 5-3 opinion, according to the Associated Press and United…

May 16, 2011 5:35 PM CDT

Supreme Court Won’t Hear Extraordinary Rendition Lawsuit Derailed by State Secrets Privilege

The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to hear a challenge to the CIA’s “extraordinary rendition” program by five men who claimed they were sent to other countries to be tortured. The Supreme Court denied cert in the suit against Jeppesen Dataplan Inc., a subsidiary of Boeing accused of helping to…

May 16, 2011 5:04 PM CDT

Computer Giltch Causes Redo for US Immigration Lottery

Thousands of people told that they won U.S. immigrant visas through a worldwide lottery recently received disappointing news after a computer problem in the State Department program was discovered, and the selections were thrown out. According to the Associated Press the drawing should be random, but a computer glitch caused…

May 13, 2011 4:48 PM CDT

DC Group Sues to See Osama Bin Laden Death Photos

Judicial Watch, which describes itself as a conservative education foundation, filed a lawsuit today seeking the release of Osama bin Laden’s death photos and videos. It is one of many organizations, including the Associated Press, National Public Radio and Politico, to seek the footage under the Freedom of Information Act,…

May 13, 2011 4:05 PM CDT

DOJ Lawyer Denies ‘Nefarious, Secret’ FBI Records System; Judge Isn’t Satisfied

Updated: A federal judge in Utah has asked the FBI to explain why it hasn’t searched all possible databases and evidence rooms for surveillance tapes related to the 1995 bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City. U.S. District Judge Clark Waddoups ruled in response to a freedom of information…

May 13, 2011 11:00 AM CDT