* Rest in peace, Benazir Bhutto; God knows you weren’t able to live in it. [CNN]

* That seems like a pretty good starting point for liability against the zoo. [BBC]

* We don’t know if you know Tom Goldstein, but he’s a pretty big deal. [SCOTUSBlog]

* If he could only apply all of that genius to acquiring some money to actually make a mortgage payment… [WSJ Law Blog]

Last week, the ABA Journal named former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales its 2007 Lawyer Legal Newsmaker of the Year. Now we bring you news of two more Lawyers of the Year.

The National Law Journal went highbrow and international. The NLJ selected Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, the former Chief Justice of Pakistan, as its Lawyer of the Year:

Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry is not exactly a household name to the legal profession in the United States. We think he should be.

Chaudhry, the chief justice of Pakistan who was dismissed from office by President Pervez Musharraf after the imposition of emergency rule, has been a strong voice for the preservation of the rule of law in Pakistan — one of the United States’ key allies in the war on terror.

Meanwhile, the WSJ Law Blog stayed domestic. Their honoree may be, for better or worse, more well-known that former Chief Justice Chaudhry (at least to readers of ATL). Their pick: celebrity commenter Loyola 2L!

[W]hen the nominees were put to an unscientific vote, Loyola 2L won in a landslide…. And before you start whining, “But he’s not even a lawyer!,” we never said we were strict constructionists!

So who — or what — is Loyola 2L? For the non-cognoscenti, he, or she, is purportedly a second-year student, or “2L,” at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles. And his claim to fame? For over a year, Loyola 2L has beaten a loud and consistent drum of discontent around the Web by posting in online forums about the job prospects for graduates of nonelite law schools.

If you’re hoping that this honor will bring Loyola 2L to unmask himself (or herself), don’t hold your breath:

[W]hile he’s presumably a “3L” by now, he still clings to the moniker. And anonymity. In responding to a call to identify himself he said, “Outing myself … would only add to the current difficulties in my life.”

For today, L2L, put the complaining on hold, and bask in the limelight. You’ve earned it!

P.S. Thanks for all of your nominations for ATL’s own Lawyer of the Year contest. We’ll put up the poll shortly.

The Lawyer of the Year: Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry [National Law Journal]
The Law Blog Lawyer Of the Year: Loyola 2L [WSJ Law Blog]

Earlier: ATL Lawyer of the Year: Nominations, Please

* Oral argument in New Jersey v. Delaware. [U.S. Supreme Court (PDF) via How Appealing]

* I’ll have a Joey Bag of Lawsuits. [AP via Atlanta Journal-Constitution]

* TB Andy didn’t hurt anybody. [Atlanta Journal-Constitution]

* Grandpa got screwed over by a lawsuit … [AP via Reno Gazette-Journal]

* Pakistan lets (almost) everyone go, but will the rule of law return? [Jurist]

So how did yesterday’s rallying in support of Pakistani lawyers go? It depends on whom you ask.

It was a smashing success, according to Eric Turkewitz:

Hundreds of New York attorneys tuned out at 1:00 today to rally in support of Pakistani lawyers that were arrested for demonstrating against the firing of the Pakistani Supreme Court….

By my eye, the crowd looked to be about 300-400 lawyers, well in excess of what I had anticipated. Attorneys filled the steps of the courthouse and spilled out onto the sidewalk below.

It was a big disappointment, according to David Giacalone:

… [F]ewer than 800 hundred lawyers took part yesterday in the two Pakistan solidarity rallies. Sadly, I do not believe it was because no one knew (did Musharaff jam everyone’s Blackberries and cellphones?) or because the protests were “splintered.” Everyone just had higher priorities at lunchtime on a lovely autumn day in Manhattan. Seems to me, curiosity alone should have ensured more than a triple-digit body count.

Will D.C-area lawyers, and those congregating from around the country to the Nation’s Capital, make a better show of solidarity today around the U.S. Supreme Court at Noon today?

Good question. If you attended the D.C. march, feel free to share your observations in the comments.

New York Lawyers Rally By Hundreds In Support of Pakistani Lawyers [New York Personal Injury Law Blog]
not impressed yet by U.S. lawyers re Pakistan [f/k/a]
Attack of the Lawyers! (subscription) [TNR (Ben Wittes)]

Earlier: Something To Do on Your Lunch Break Today

Sorry we didn’t get this to you earlier — it starts in less than two hours. But for those of you who are following recent events in Pakistan (as we have been), and who are based in New York, you might want to attend this event:

Lawyers to Rally in Solidarity with Pakistani Lawyers and Judges
Tuesday, November 13, 2007 1 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.

What: Rally in support of lawyers and judges affected by emergency rule in Pakistan
Where: Steps of the New York County Courthouse; 60 Centre Street

Join the New York City Bar Association, the New York State Bar Association and the New York County Lawyers’ Association and other organizations in rallying support for the lawyers and judges affected by the emergency rule in Pakistan.

For more details, see here.

Update: For those of you here in Washington, DC, you can participate in this march, taking place tomorrow:

What: Lawyers’ march to support the rule of law in Pakistan
When: 11:30 a.m., Wednesday, November 14
Where: Meet at the James Madison Building (101 Independence Avenue SE) before walking around the Supreme Court
Attire: Black suit

For more details, see here.

Lawyers to Rally in Solidarity with Pakistani Lawyers and Judges [New York City Bar]
American Lawyers Will March to Supreme Court to Show Solidarity with Pakistani Lawyers [American Bar Association]

* Pakistan sets parliamentary elections. [CNN]

* What’s going on with the AMT? [ABA Journal]

* State Department absolves Blackwater of certain shootings. [MSNBC]

* Initial OJ hearing begins today. [MSNBC]

* Reno businessman pleads guilty during murder trial. [CourtTV]

Several of you have requested a post about recent events in Pakistan. So here you go.

Truth be told, what’s going on over there — namely, a wholesale assault on civil society and the rule of law — isn’t typical ATL fodder. It’s deadly serious stuff, so it doesn’t fall under the entertainment prong of ATL’s mission. And it has nothing to do with “NY to 190,” so it doesn’t qualify under this site’s greed promotion function.

But the Pakistani protests are not completely devoid of more lighthearted aspects. Jezebel offers this take:

Is it too obvious that our initial reaction to all those shots of lawyers in protest of military rule in Pakistan was, “Umm that’s sort of hot!” a thought that led immediately to the query, “But are they as hot as those monks protesting military rule in Burma a month back?” Of course it is! And would it be kind of TMZ of us to run a thoroughly meaningless poll wondering what you think about this pressing issue? Very much so!

You can vote in the poll over here.

And there’s more. From a reader:

The Pakistan Supreme Court has an official “50th Anniversary Theme Song” from last year, entitled “And Justice For All.” It even has a bonus video! It’s dreadfully earnest, and is rather ironic given the circumstances.

The new version will be called “And Justice For All — Unless the President Says Otherwise.”

You can check out the video here (wmv file). Even though the Pakistani Supreme Court’s website has already been updated — to show Abdul Hameed Dogar as the “new” chief justice, and to scrub all references to Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and the other ousted jurists — the video is still available. So enjoy it now, before it gets taken down.

Finally, in a gesture towards real journalism, we present the house arrest order against prominent Pakistani lawyer Asma Jahangir, as well as an email from her.

Check out these items, after the jump.

False arrests: they’re not just an American phenomenon. From ABC News (via Drudge, of course):

An Afghan tribesman with an uncanny resemblance to Osama bin Laden has now been arrested twice, both times following reported sightings and massive manhunts for the al Qaeda leader, Pakistani intelligence officials tell ABC News.

Over six feet tall and with the same angular nose as bin Laden, Sher Akbar comes from an Afghan village, Bagh e Metal, in an area where U.S. officials believe bin Laden has been hiding.

Best part of the article:

[A Pakistani intelligence] official said an extensive investigation involving Pakistani and U.S. intelligence officers found that the look-alike has no connection to bin Laden, but that local residents had tried to collect rewards based on Akhbar’s resemblance to bin Laden.

(And in case you’re wondering, no, this item did not come from The Onion.)

Look-alike Arrested Twice; Close But No Bin Laden [ABC News]