Judicial Notice (02.26.22): Justice Jackson
Trouble for a Trump prosecution, another Biglaw pay raise, and other legal news from the week that was.
Zach and Harlan and I just returned from a week-long vacation in Tucson, Arizona, which we spent with Zach’s parents, brother, sister-in-law, and nephew. Zach’s parents rented a beautiful, modern house in the desert, which was our base of operations as we went on hikes and took a jeep tour to take in the gorgeous scenery. But we mainly just hung out, enjoying the great weather and each other’s company (and my baked goods—I welcome your recipe suggestions in the comments).
Although we escaped the cold of the East Coast, we did not escape the news cycle. Like the rest of the world, we’re following the crisis in Ukraine, one of Zach’s ancestral homelands, with great concern. If you’d like to donate to support humanitarian work there, you can do so here (via Joe Borstein’s Twitter feed).
We also kept up with news from the legal world. It was an eventful week, so let’s get to it.
Lawyers of the Week: Carey Dunne and Mark Pomerantz.
On Wednesday, Carey Dunne and Mark Pomerantz, the prosecutors spearheading the Manhattan district attorney’s criminal investigation into former President Donald Trump and his business dealings, abruptly resigned. According to the New York Times, they resigned because the new DA, Alvin Bragg, expressed doubts to them about moving forward with a case against Trump. Based on this news, Karen Friedman Agnifilo, who served as chief assistant district attorney under Bragg’s predecessor, Cyrus Vance Jr., opined to the New York Law Journal that the case against Trump is “dead in the water.”
As someone who is not a Trump fan and believes it’s likely that crimes were committed in connection with his business affairs, I was surprised and disappointed by the resignations. But my opinions are based simply on news coverage; I haven’t seen what the prosecutors have seen in terms of both the evidence against Trump and anything exculpatory. I just hope that the decision about prosecuting Trump is being made for the right reasons, regardless of how it turns out.
Runner-up for Lawyer of the Week: Kelly Elizabeth Elkins, the 49-year-old lawyer who was arrested for disorderly conduct after she allegedly stripped naked at a bar and refused to leave. The tale is titillating—and yes, of course this happened in Florida. But I agree with Joe Patrice’s take: “In a world where people can and do hurt people under the influence, cut Elkins a little slack if her only outward expressions are getting a little goofy.”
Judge of the Week: Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson.
On Friday, President Joe Biden announced his intention to nominate Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson (D.C. Cir.) to the Supreme Court seat now held by Justice Stephen G. Breyer, for whom she once clerked. Judge Jackson’s selection was widely predicted across the ideological spectrum, by progressives like Jeff Hauser, conservatives like Ed Whelan, and moderates like yours truly.
My prediction is that Judge Jackson will be confirmed. If so, she’ll become not just the first Black woman to serve on the Court but also the third Justice Jackson—after Justice Howell Edmunds Jackson, who served for just two years (1893-1895), and Justice Robert H. Jackson, one of the greatest legal writers in the history of the Court (1941-1954).
The vote will be close—maybe even closer than the 53-44 vote to confirm her to the D.C. Circuit last year, since Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who previously supported her, appears a bit steamed that his preferred candidate, Judge Michelle Childs of South Carolina, got passed over. But like all the current members of the Court, Judge Jackson, a seasoned jurist with impeccable educational and professional credentials, is clearly qualified, whether or not you agree with her jurisprudence. I believe that she’ll get unanimous Democratic support and at least one moderate Republican, maybe Senator Susan Collins of Maine or Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, will vote for her.
Congratulations to Judge Jackson on her nomination, and good luck to her in the confirmation process.
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