Trump poised for major makeover of liberal 9th Circuit court

Erwin Chemerinsky quoted by Fox News, April 24, 2018

“It really depends on whether the Republicans keep the Senate in November,” Chemerinsky told Fox News. “If they do, I think ultimately Trump will get his picks through unless they are unqualified or very objectionable. But if the Democrats take the Senate in November, I think it will be very difficult for him to get anyone confirmed.”

Born, not made: Hire lawyers on potential, not achievement

Olga Mack writes for Above the Law, April 23, 2018

In sum, if you haven’t been _________ (fill in the blank with a legal specialty or title) you don’t qualify to ever practice it. Again, in my head I perfected an answer that I rarely articulated: “Litigators/Fortune 500 lawyers/startup lawyers/general counsel/etc. are not born, they are made.”

Victim in Reuben Foster case hires an attorney. Here’s what that means

Nancy Lemon quoted by The Sacramento Bee, April 20, 2018

“If there is really no other evidence besides the victim’s statement at the time of the arrest or right afterward, then it’s much harder to go forward. However, if they do have a lot of other evidence like photos – if the police took a lot of photos – that kind of thing can enable them to go forward without the victim’s testimony.”

Immigration judges are bewildered by the DOJ’s decision to slash legal guidance for detainees

Leti Volpp quoted by Pacific Standard, April 18, 2018

“Limiting the access of immigrants to due process through defunding the Legal Orientation Program, through creating judicial quotas, or through mass deportations, will not reduce backlogs. As we have seen in the past, less process at the immigration judge level results in more appeals to federal court,” says … Leti Volpp. … “The best way to reduce the immigration court backlog would be to reduce how many immigrants are issued with notices to appear in the first place.”