Above the Law

Morning Docket: 08.14.26

* Judge threatens DOJ with contempt in Epstein files coverup case. [All Rise News]

* Holland & Knight brings in former partner to defend against $1.2B malpractice case. [Bloomberg Law News]

* Litigant hides prompt injection in court filing asking the court’s AI to rule favorably. Sure it’s an attempt to deceive the court but… if they aren’t turning over decision making to bots then it shouldn’t matter, right? [404 Media]

* Luigi reportedly considering plea deal. [Reuters]

* Trump sued over $100K/month “early access” feature. [NPR]

* Antisemitism case against Harvard booted out of court. [Law360]

* Federal judge blocks attempt to use the Voting Rights Act to get rid of majority-Black judicial districts. [Mississippi Today]

* California joins effort to block administration policy of blocking student visas over speech. [California AG’s Office]

XOXO, Gossip Girl: The Yale Law Whisper Network Dishes On Usha Vance — See Also

Everything You Need To Know About Usha Vance, You Can Learn At Yale Law: Her classmates gossip about her on Signal. The clerkship culture that shaped her politics is the part they don’t put in the group chat.

Daft For Taft: John Roberts pens essay celebrating William Howard Taft… but mostly trying to sugarcoat his own legacy.

The Top Schools For Tech & The Law: Check out the Honor Roll here.

Todd Blanche’s First Message To The DOJ: Trust me.

Slip And Fall Hopscotch: Law firm decorated sidewalks with ads and the local authorities aren’t happy.

Your Most Important Summer Reading Isn’t On Your Syllabus

Read your cases this summer. But also read the room.

At This Elite Litigation Boutique, It’s ‘Eat What You Kill’ — And Associates Are Feasting

With bonuses coming every quarter, everyone gets a piece when Reid Collins has excess capital.

Todd Blanche Would Like The DOJ To Know He Will Lead With Integrity

Sure, Todd.

Who Is Justice Barrett?

She has been labeled conservative, a swing justice, and sometimes unpredictable. This article puts all of these hypotheses to the test and provides a data based assessment of where she really stands.

Relativity Announces claiR, A Conversational AI For Lawyers, But You’ll Have To Wait Awhile To Chat With It

Relativity CEO Phil Saunders calls it a fundamentally new way for lawyers to get straight to the answers in their most consequential legal data.

The Best Law Schools For Technology Law (2026)

If you're interested in technology and the law, you need to see this list.

Law Firm Advertising Labeled ‘Graffiti,’ Threatened By Town Officials

The firm wanted to talk about road safety. The mayor wants to talk about the state grievance committee.

The First 10: A Young Lawyer’s Blueprint Beyond The Billable Hour

Your first decade will not unfold in a straight line. Some years will feel like acceleration. Others will feel like survival. Keep building anyway.

Phia Co-Founders Knew The App Was Wrongfully Claiming Sales Credits

When news of the scandal first broke on July 8, the company co-founders claimed that they had just been made aware of the situation.

Morning Docket: 08.13.26

* Jayden Daniels sends cease-and-desist claiming LSU violated his NIL rights by giving his number from three years ago to another player. [ESPN]

* Journalist Katie Phang’s latest filing blasts DOJ’s effort to delay Epstein file release. [Meidas News]

* Immigration enforcement use government databases to stalk women in “dog-bites-man” story. [DNYUZ]

* Trump asks Eleventh Circuit to pause the sanctions leveled against his team for the IRS case. [Law360]

* Structure of new birthright citizenship orders create new mechanism to criminalize women and girls. [Balls and Strikes]

* Treasury rolls back “burdensome” regulation that required corporations to send in a form listing who owned the company. [Forbes]

Boutique Money Is Where It’s At — See Also

Up To $170K In Bonus Bucks! This firm has already handed out three bonuses, while Biglaw associates are waiting to see if they’ll maybe get one.

Purcell Unprincipled: Alabama held its first primary since the Supreme Court jettisoned the Voting Rights Act, and people mostly didn’t vote… which from the Court’s perspective is a feature not a bug.

The DOJ Doesn’t Miss A Lesson: DOJ arrests former SPLC employee now that the court has blessed malicious prosecution.

‘I’ll Be Charging People With Assault’: Florida’s AG discovers the WNBA.

Dance Dance Insurrection: Jeanine Pirro turns to dance photographer to pursue charges with a “special” grand jury.

Asked Why He Cheated, Ken Paxton Would Like To Tell You About His Grandchildren: A town hall caller asked the question we’re all thinking.

Two Brothers Left The Same Biglaw Firm And Took Over U.S. Foreign Policy

Before they ran American foreign policy, they billed hours together.

Ken Paxton Won’t Discuss His Marriage With Thousands Of Strangers. He’ll Just Regulate Yours.

Turnabout, as they say, is fair play.