* We should have included him in our Lawyer of the Day poll: While in Tallahassee filing papers to run for Broward County public defender, criminal defense attorney Gary Ostrow got arrested for cocaine possession. [JAABlog]

* Loro Piana's new tactic for protecting their intellectual property rights. [Fashionista]

* Former judge (and SCOTUS nominee) Robert Bork settles slip-and-fall suit against Yale Club. [WSJ Law Blog]

* Professor Laura Appleman supplements the list (previously noted here) of "Classes My Top-Tier Law School Should Have Offered as Warnings About the Profession." [The Faculty Lounge]

* A popular (but unsurprising) beneficiary of unclaimed class-action funds: law schools. [Point of Law]

* Not really law-related, but interesting: top colleges are admitting lots of students from wait lists this year. [New York Times]

In one corner, we have John Newsome, a district attorney in Colorado. Sources inside and outside the district attorney's office tipped off local TV station KOAA to Newsome's carousing during office hours. From The Gazette:

The television station aired its report Tuesday night after filming Newsome on a "recent afternoon" as he drank three 20-ounce beers and a 10-ounce beer during "work hours" over the course of less than two hours at Oscar's, a downtown Colorado Springs bar.

Newsome was then shown heading back to his office. An hour later, he drove his El Paso County-owned SUV to another bar, according to KOAA.

There, Newsome was reportedly seen drinking four more pints with Assistant District Attorney Amy Mullaney and then driving away. Mullaney was also drinking with Newsome earlier that day at Oscar's.

DA party-time! Woohoo. There will be no criminal investigation, and he's running unopposed for reelection in November. Lucky guy.

Representative Vito J. Fossella, the Staten Island Republican who was arrested on drunken-driving charges in Virginia last week, acknowledged on Thursday that he had fathered a daughter, now 3, in an extramarital affair. But he declined to address questions about his political future.

Mr. Fossella, who has three children with his wife on Staten Island, issued a terse statement that said nothing about the events leading to his arrest, which occurred hours after he attended a White House reception celebrating the New York Giants’ victory in the Super Bowl.

At least he wasn't drinking during office hours.

Newsome: 'I sincerely apologize' [Colorado Springs Gazette]
'POP' GOES THE WEASEL VITO [New York Post]
Fossella Admits He Had an Extramarital Affair [New York Times]

Massachusetts lawmakers desperate for additional revenue are eyeing the endowments of deep-pocketed private colleges to bolster the state's coffers by more than $1 billion a year, asserting that the schools' rising fortunes undercut their nonprofit status.

Legislators have asked state finance officials to study a plan that would impose a 2.5% annual assessment on colleges with endowments over $1 billion, an amount now exceeded by nine Massachusetts institutions. The proposal, which higher education specialists believe is the first of its kind across the country, drew surprising support at a debate on the State House budget last week and is attracting attention in higher education circles nationally.

The idea has prompted a range of questions, including whether it is legal to infringe upon private colleges' tax-exempt status or single them out based on their wealth. It also faces significant opposition from the colleges and some skeptical lawmakers.

And it's not just the Crimson whose blood would run under this plan:

In addition to Harvard, the legislation would affect Amherst College, Boston College, Boston University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Smith College, Tufts University, Wellesley College, and Williams College.

Two of these institutions, BC and BU, have law schools. This tax would be bad news for them, but perhaps good news -- in a schadenfreude-ish sort of way -- for Bay State competitors with more modest endowments, like Northeastern and Suffolk. Deans of poorer law schools frequently complain about having to go toe-to-toe in the U.S. News rankings against institutions with vast accumulated wealth (which keeps on accumulating, tax free).

The Boston Globe editorial board thinks this tax plan stinks, calling it "economic suicide" and "an ill-conceived money grab that ignores how vital higher education is to the local economy." What's your view?

Mass. Considers 2.5% Excise Tax on College Endowments > $1 Billion [TaxProf Blog]
Lawmakers Target $1b Endowments; Exempt Status of Schools Debated [Boston Globe]
How to strangle an economy [Boston Globe]

For counsel, Schoenfeld retained Anne C. Vladeck, the superstar plaintiffs-side employment lawyer who successfully represented Anucha Browne Sanders in her sexual harassment case against Isiah Thomas and MSG. After Vladeck and Sanders won at trial, the parties settled the case -- including all appeals -- for a cool $11.5 million.

Back to the Schoenfeld case. Sources close to the case inform us that the parties have resolved the case, and it will be formally closed in the near future. It hasn't been dismissed yet, as you can see when you check the S.D.N.Y. docket (1:07-cv-11431-HB), where the last entry is the pretrial scheduling order. But the parties have an agreement in principle to settle, and it will be papered up soon.

We reached Todd Girshon of Jackson Lewis, counsel to Allen & Overy, by phone. He offered a "no comment" (although we detected a faint hint of amusement in his voice as he said it). We've left telephone and email messages for Anne Vladeck, counsel to Norman Schoenfeld. We haven't heard back from her yet, but we'll let you know if and when we do.

We must confess that, although we're happy to see the parties resolve their differences, we're sad that we won't get to write more about this case. As you may recall, when the story first broke, we thought that it might turn into "the Jewish version of Charney v. Sullivan & Cromwell." It looks like that won't be happening. No tales of "bending over," boiled hard drives, or boasts of representing Nazis -- just a quiet settlement. What began with a bang has ended with a whimper.

In other Allen & Overy news, the New York office has a new managing partner. Congratulations to Kevin O'Shea, who assumed leadership of the New York office effective May 1. Presumably he's glad to have this lawsuit behind the firm as he takes the reins at A&O - NY.

Earlier: Lawsuit of the Day: The Jewish Version of Charney v. S&C?
Schoenfeld v. Allen & Oy-vey-ry: We've Got Close to Bupkis
Schoenfeld v. Allen & Oy-vey-ry: A&O's Answer

Now DeBrocky has filed a seriously sh**ty lawsuit against the city, seeking reimbursement for new shoes and the price of admission and parking. Maybe she's part of the secret movement trying to get everyone in the world to hate New Yorkers.

From the Stamford Advocate:

A New York woman who took her family to visit the Maritime Aquarium has filed a $100 claim against the city, saying her child's shoes, along with the entire outing, were ruined when her 1-year-old stepped in dog feces early last month outside the Maritime Garage.

Norwalk officials will deny the claim, city attorney M. Jeffry Spahr said.

"The official response is her claim is denied and poop happens," he said.

Awesome quote. City attorney M. Jeffry Spahr sounds like the man. Another great Spahr quote: "I'm also having a tough time picturing why [the child] had to be bathed after stepping in this unless he thought it was some kind of poop sandbox."

DeBrocky says it's no laughing matter and that she's "really skeeved." Well, we're really skeeved that your kid played in a poo sandbox and that you're suing someone for it.

P.S. Things could have been much worse for DeBrocky. What if the poop had been dumped on her stoop?

City: Mom's claim stinks [Stamford Advocate]

Last night we had a wine and cheese event. Today, the e-mail below was circulated.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: [Redacted]
To: "DL London Personnel"
Date: Fri, 9 May 2008 11:31:21 +0100
Subject: Trousers

To DL London Personnel

A pair of black gentleman's trousers size 34 regular have mysteriously found their way into office 12-03. Any claimants?

[Redacted]
Legal Secretary
Dewey & LeBoeuf

---------- Forwarded message ----------
To: "DL London Personnel"
Date: Thu, 8 May 2008 17:16:06 +0100
Subject: Cheese & Wine Party @ Beadles

Dear all
please find attached directions for the above. We hope to see you later.

best wishes

Sports & Social Committee

Sounds like someone was up to another kind of "sport," after too much wine and cheese.

Employer: Major Sports League

Location: New York

Description: This major sports league is seeking an attorney who will be responsible for providing legal counsel for trademark protection, as well as for handling certain litigation-related, corporate and business matters. Responsibilities will include drafting correspondence relating to infringement of intellectual property matters, negotiating and drafting settlement and other agreements, handling and/or supervising the implementation of anti-counterfeiting measures, assisting with business and legal projects, preparing demand letters, and generally overseeing collection procedures and bankruptcy matters for national and international licensees, drafting correspondence and overseeing document production for litigation matters, and other matters. For more information or to apply, please see Position #8961 on Lateral Link.

Skills: Two to four years of relevant law firm experience; familiarity with trademark practice preferred.

In addition to the above attorney position, this company has contracted with Lateral Link to identify (1) a Senior Trademark Paralegal and (2) a Legal Contracts Administrator (candidates must have experience working with contracts – redlining, revising, etc.). For more information about these two positions, please email candidatehelp at laterallink dot com.

Earlier: Prior Job of the Week listings (scroll down)

Remember back in the day when you were idealistic about the law school experience, touring campuses, and trying to decide where to go to become a top-notch attorney? CBS Sports has a column on how to choose the right law school. Yeah, CBS Sports.

Here are our favorites from the list of 17 pieces of advice. We left off "don't be seduced by rankings."

1. Visit the school when there's good weather, if at least half of the guys aren't wearing shorts, flip-flops, and t-shirts, then you don't want to go there. Law school should be fun because being a lawyer isn't fun. If people at the law school are already dressing like they're practicing law (or the law school has some sort of stuffy motto like, "We take the law seriously in the classroom too") then you'll be miserable for three years. Trust me.

5. Think about the size of the law school. My Vandy class had 184 people. That's like a high school. You knew everyone. Some people loved this, others wished the school was bigger because once they got drunk, made out with a midget missing an arm, and later were called a midget lover by the entire class. At a larger law school this probably would have been less likely.

7. When you visit consider the attractiveness of the undergraduate population. One of my good friends went to college in the northeast. He knew nothing about Nashville or Vanderbilt. But he went to a law school fair and the Vanderbilt counselor gave him the usual selling points for a school like Vandy. My friend was unmoved. Then at the end, the guy said, sort of under his breath, "Plus, the undergrad girls are unbelievably hot." Sold. Remember, you don't want to waste your love in the law line at the bar on mediocre girls with bingo wings.

14. Don't go to the Midwest for law school. Pick any other region. Unless you're absolutely certain you want to practice in Chicago. Yeah, yeah, Chicago's awesome but it's also the de facto capital of about eight states. If you really want to end up in Chicago you can get there from lots of places outside the Midwest.

We were surprised to find law school advice on a sports site, but the columnist, Clay Travis, is actually a 2004 graduate of Vanderbilt Law School. He says, "Never underestimate what lawyers will do not to practice law." Indeed.

Though most of his columns are on sports, he lets the law creep in occasionally, such as this column on how each Supreme Court justice might rule on a fantasy sports case. It may have been a bit too "inside legal baseball" for the usual CBS Sports audience, since the only comment is "What the hell is this guy talking about?"

ClayNation: Looking for law school? Study this precedent [CBS Sports]

* Marine convicted of "wrongful sexual contact and indecent acts," but not rape. [CNN]

* Driver sues for damage to his car after hitting and killing 13-pound dog. [MSNBC]

* McCain accused of pushing legislation to benefit one of his top fundraisers. [Washington Post]

* Who benefits from filling FEC vacancies? [New York Times]

Oh is the author of the famous (and fabulous) PH Farewell Email -- aka The Email That Launched A Thousand Blog Comments -- and a heroine in the eyes of many Biglaw associates around the country. Here are a few highlights from the interview:

[T]he former associate, Shinyung Oh (University of Chicago ’93, Georgetown Law ’98), a commercial litigation lawyer.... says she sent the now-infamous email because she didn’t want other associates who may be laid off because of downsizing by the firm – but told it is because of their performance – to doubt their own abilities.

“I want them to feel like they’re not completely alone and not to worry about their own performance when it’s the firm doing something for economic reasons” and because of a “desire to increase partner profits,” she said.

Inducing crippling self-doubt among associates is one of the most pernicious things about "stealth layoffs," in which economically-driven dismissals are cast by firms as purely performance-based. We know this from having spoken to stealth-layoff victims, who have described how their self-confidence was shattered when their firms dismissed them, purportedly for poor performance.

While there may be a "six of one, half-dozen of another" quality to this debate -- as Dan Weiner of Hughes Hubbard & Reed just told the WSJ Law Blog, "is it economic or is it performance-related is a false dichotomy," since if you have to make cuts, "you’re not going to pick people randomly" -- we still think it's the better part of valor for firms to take the reputational hit, rather than stick it to their associates. At any rate, it's certainly fair for law students and lateral candidates to shun firms that get called out for being less-than-candid about their personnel decisions.

Back to the interview. Here's the $64,000 -- or three-months-severance -- question: What was Shinyung Oh thinking when she sent out that email?

[Oh said] she knew that the email, which was sent to associates firm-wide, litigation partners in her office and the top management of Paul Hastings, could ruin her chances of landing another big-firm job. She said she isn’t considering suing the firm, and said she doesn’t feel she was discriminated against because of her pregnancy.

Oh Shinyung, are you sure? After Aaron Charney settled with Sullivan & Cromwell, he got himself a nice new apartment. Then again, if you were planning to sue, you probably shouldn't have told the Wall Street Journal that you didn't feel discriminated against on account of your pregnancy.

As for what’s next, Oh, who immigrated from South Korea when she was eight and grew up in New York and Houston, said she’s not sure. But she said that since the email was posted online, she’s received an outpouring of support from lawyers in the Bay Area and across the country. Several are trying to help her find a new job.

Shinyung, if you're looking for headhunter recommendations, drop us a line -- we can hook you up. And if you ever get the urge to send out another barn-burning, firmwide email, definitely give us a heads up. Based on the way that your email resonated with readers, it's clear that you have writerly talent that deserves a wider audience.

In all seriousness, we wish Shinyung Oh the best of luck. We commend her for the courage it took to write that farewell email. We have every confidence that she will land on her feet -- recall our prior post, quoting a colleague who praised her as someone who "ran a huge class action and got excellent results" -- and we look forward to following her career in the years ahead.

Update: Jane Genova shares our optimism about Oh's future. She writes: Oh "has almost an infinite number of fresh career options, within and outside law.... [enumerates options].... Being the good solider, girl scout or boy scout has no payoff in the current career marketplace. Bold risks do.... Wild risk is the only secure path."

P.S. Congrats to Amir Efrati on the interview. Read the full post over here. Check out a copy of Shinyung Oh's 2006 performance review, also obtained by the WSJ, over here (PDF).

A screencap of her firm bio is saved for posterity, after the jump.

Fired Paul Hastings Associate Talks to Law Blog [WSJ Law Blog]
The New Risky Business - Shinyung Oh's E-Mail Strategy [Law and More]

Earlier: Breaking: A Dramatic Farewell Email (And proof of Paul Hastings layoffs.)
Miscarriage of Justice at Paul Hastings? The Blogosphere Reacts
Nationwide Layoff Watch: Paul Hastings

Unlike Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, all of this is real, but some of our readers commented that it all sounded like some kind of marketing ploy, "B-grade Asian job porn," and otherwise too good to be true. Perhaps we came across as too enthusiastic, or maybe we sound like one big recruiting column. Whatever the case, we really do think Asia is the most exciting place in the world to be right now, and not just because the money's better (additional advantages to be discussed in the weeks to come).

Still, it's not for everyone. For any of you considering a move to Asia, here are some questions to consider:

1. Are you willing to spend time away from your family, friends, and familiar places? Flight time from most places in Asia back to North America is at least twelve hours each way (and could be double that if you have to make connections). Add in getting to and from the airport, layovers, and getting over jet lag, and you may be spending four days on each trip just traveling or recovering from it. Not to mention that even economy airfares are well over a thousand bucks and rising, and business class is usually four times that (although arguably worth it for the fifteen-hour flight from Asia to New York). As a busy corporate associate, you will likely only visit home once a year (but at least it'll be a free trip home). Obviously if you are married and/or have children, the question gets even more complicated.

2. Can you handle frequent travel? Nervous fliers should steer clear of Asia (with the possible exception of Tokyo, where the majority of work is domestic). Lawyers out here commonly travel several times per month to wherever the deals are, from India to the South Pacific. We have seen longtime Asia lawyers with passports as thick as the stack of 1000s in our pockets when we come back from Macau. Though the clients always pay for business class, and Asian airlines, airports and hotels are generally rated the best in the world for service and comfort, some people find travel and time away from home too stressful.

3. Do you have a flexible sleep schedule? American lawyers in Asia are often working with U.S. and European offices of the banks and law / accounting firms on their deals. New York is about twelve hours behind China / Japan, and 10 p.m. Friday conference calls or 4 a.m. closings are not uncommon. Or, given the workload of many Asian offices, you might just be up that late working. Very hot market + small office = lots of billable hours.

Read more, below the fold.

* What NOT to do with your foreclosed-upon home. [Dealbreaker]

* It's not just Columbia. Chief Justice Roberts judged the moot court finals at the University of Kansas, too. "Second-year law student Brian Nye printed out a photo of Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. a few weeks ago and started delivering speeches to it." [KU News]

* Job of the Week? Maybe not. Law firm seeks a third- to seventh-year associate "who has been seared in the arts of reviewing massive loads of corporate legal documents." Salary is $140K. In Los Angeles. [Monster.com]

* Professor Michael Froomkin -- brother of the Washington Post's Dan Froomkin, in case you're wondering -- explains why practicing lawyers don't always make the greatest law school deans. [Discourse.net via Leiter's Law School Reports]

Earlier today, we reported on allegations made by a former associate at Bingham McCutchen in Boston. Michelle Moor claimed that (1) she was drugged at the firm holiday party; (2) a fellow Bingham associate told Moor that she had also been drugged -- and then raped -- by a Bingham employee the year before; and (3) a male employee at the firm "made 'a number of alarming sexually inappropriate comments' about 'roofies' and having sex with unconscious women." Along with Moor's allegations, we posted a brief statement from the firm.

Now we can bring you more of the firm's side of the story. Earlier this afternoon, Bingham McCutchen's general counsel, William Southard, sent out an internal email to all personnel. The email contains more specifics than the firm's prior statement.

We got our grubby paws on it, of course. Based on the email, it seems to us that Bingham has handled this difficult situation with sensitivity and "delicate handling" (as touted in its ubiquitous advertisements).

Of course, you're free to form your own opinion. Check out the email, after the jump.

We've been following the trials and tribulations of Ave Maria School of Law for some time now. The school even has its own category tag on ATL.

In the latest news, reported by Julie Kay in the National Law Journal, more than a dozen faculty members have left since the February 2007 decision to move the school from Ann Arbor, Michigan, to Ave Maria, Florida (a town founded by Domino's founder and school head Thomas Monaghan):

The brain drain at the school has been devastating, [tenured professor Richard Myers] said.

"There were 20 full-time people on the faculty a year-and-a-half ago," he said. "Next year there will be five of that group left teaching full-time. That's a dramatic change."

The law school has been actively trying to recruit new teachers, Myers said, with only limited success. The school recently hired a tax professor and a visiting professor, he said.

Prospective law school students may want to steer clear until Ave Maria gets back on track. The extensive list of the departed faculty members is available below the fold.

In other Catholic law school news, we reported earlier this month on St. Thomas's decision not to let students complete their pro bono requirement at organizations with missions that conflict with Catholic values. If you choose to go to a Catholic school for its ranking and not its religious mission, don't expect sympathy if you gripe to your friends about the school imposing its values on you. In our poll, over 57% of the 1,726 voters supported St. Thomas's decision.

More discussion, after the jump.

But every now and then, we go commercial, and write about law firm offices. E.g., Cleary Gottlieb; Gibson Dunn; Cravath.

Today's featured tenant: Paul Weiss. From the New York Observer:

High-powered law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison is in negotiations with Vornado Realty Trust for more than one-third of the tower planned for atop the Port Authority bus station, a move that, if cemented, would extend the legal establishment’s apparently inexorable drift westward from the white-shoe stronghold of midtown.

A source close to the negotiations confirmed that Paul, Weiss is in serious, though early, negotiations to take 500,000 square feet in the middle of the 42-story building slated to rise from a platform atop the seedy bus terminal.

Seedy is right -- but there are advantages to being based at Port Authority. Check out this list of shops and restaurants. It will be easy for beleaguered associates to slip away to Duane Reade, to fill that prescription for anti-anxiety medication. And lavish lunches at Munchy's Gourmet -- second floor, South Wing -- will seal the deal for PW recruits.

Meanwhile, another top law firm is venturing beyond midtown. Also from the Observer (which covers the commercial real estate world as thoroughly as we cover Biglaw):

The largest tenant in the GM Building is relocating a portion of its operations from the gilded midtown tower to the decidedly humbler environs of downtown Brooklyn.

Weil, Gotshal & Manges, a global law firm with a New York staff of 1,300, has signed a lease for 35,000 square feet at Brooklyn’s 15 Metrotech Center, owned by Forest City Ratner.

Over the past few years, Brooklyn has been booming, growing increasingly attractive as a residential option for young professionals. But if you're a Manhattan snob and Weil associate, have no fear. The Brooklyn digs will house information systems, finance, and operations; the lawyers will stay in the GM Building.

P.S. Speaking of the GM Building, here's a digression on "safe email." One ATL tipster likes to email us, using a non-work email account, from a computer in that building's Apple store.

But you don't need to be quite that cloak-and-dagger. It's usually safe to email us, from a non-work account, using the web browser on your wireless device (like a Blackberry or iPhone); that traffic doesn't pass through your law firm's servers.

Of course, to be ultra-cautious, wait until you get home, and email us from your personal computer. Thanks.

Law Firm Nears Lease Atop Bus Terminal [New York Observer]
Big Manhattan Law Firm Exits GM Building for ... Downtown Brooklyn [New York Observer]
Terminal Information & Services [Port Authority of New York and New Jersey]