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Good morning. Former President Donald Trump is facing his third indictment, this time over alleged election interference – and a law from 1870 intended to protect the rights of Black people is at the heart of the case. Plus, Henrietta Lacks’ estate settles with Thermo Fisher, and Katten makes cuts. Lots to get to – scroll on!
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The charges brought against former President Donald Trump in the federal election interference case are based in part on a law enacted in the aftermath of the Civil War to protect the rights of Black people, report Jack Queen and Sarah N. Lynch.
Trump is accused of using false claims of voter fraud to pressure election officials to subvert the election and of conspiring with others to put forth a slate of sham electors who would falsely deem him the winner. He has denied wrongdoing and said the case is part of a broader, politically motivated “witch hunt.”
Federal prosecutors base one charge, conspiring to deprive citizens of constitutional or legal rights, on Section 241, a law enacted during post-Civil War Reconstruction in 1870. Prosecutors have long used the statute to fight disenfranchisement of Black voters, and a string of landmark U.S. Supreme Court cases has affirmed the law’s use for that purpose.
“From a prosecution standpoint, I think the charge is a solid one that is well-grounded in what Congress envisioned when they passed this statute,” said Eric Gibson, a former federal prosecutor who successfully prosecuted a former Pennsylvania election judge and a former U.S. Congressman for trading bribes for fraudulent votes.
More on the charges:
Can Trump use political donations to pay for legal defense?
Civil lawsuits target Trump efforts to overturn 2020 loss
Trump to face familiar judge in criminal case over 2020 election
Who allegedly conspired with Trump to overturn the 2020 election?
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- Northwestern University hired Paul Weiss to independently review its procedures as the school faces mounting lawsuits over harassment and hazing in its football program. Former Obama-era U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch will lead the review and her findings will be made public, the school said. (Reuters)
- A lawsuit claiming federal court officials mishandled a former North Carolina public defender’s complaints of sexual harassment is headed to mediation rather than going to trial next month as expected. In a court filing, the ex-public defender, Caryn Strickland, and DOJ lawyers defending the judiciary said they had agreed to heed a judge’s advice to hold further settlement talks before a mediator. (Reuters)
- Katten said it was laying off lawyers and professional staffers and delaying the start date for some incoming associates, marking at least the second U.S. law firm to make cuts this week. Chicago-founded Katten said “a small number” of lawyers and business support professionals were being let go, but the firm declined to specify a number. (Reuters)
- London-founded Clyde & Co said it saw a more than 20% revenue increase to 788.6 million pounds ($1.01 billion) in the financial year ending April 30. The firm, which has more than 2,400 lawyers, said its 2022 merger with insurance-focused law firm BLM contributed to the gains, while 6% of the boost was “organic growth.” The firm generated profit of 169.2 million pounds ($216.24 million), representing a 6% increase. (Reuters)
- Saul Ewing opened two offices in Southern California through a combination with 50-attorney law firm Freeman Freeman & Smiley. Saul Ewing said it now has 18 offices nationwide and more than 400 attorneys. (Reuters)
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That’s the anticipated cut in funding for cybersecurity improvements in the federal judiciary, if Congress approves pending spending legislation. The bills also would force the judiciary to cut hundreds of jobs for public defenders and probation officers. Members of the Judicial Conference, the federal judiciary’s policymaking body, said in letters to Congress that pending spending legislation for the 2024 fiscal year would have “detrimental impacts” on court services if enacted by Congress. Lawmakers have until Oct. 1 to approve government spending legislation.
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Vice Chancellor Travis Laster ruled on Monday that shareholder lawyers are entitled to almost 27% of the class recovery in a breach-of-duty case against Dell and its controlling shareholders. That was not the outcome that investment funds in the Dell shareholder class wanted – or that five eminent securities law professors recommended. Alison Frankel examines why Laster awarded bigger fees than plaintiffs lawyers would likely have received if they’d been litigating in federal court.
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“All this means that the General Counsel plainly acted within her statutory authority to say she disagrees with NLRB precedent and is looking for a case to prosecute.“
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- Montana officials are due to defend a new state law that criminalizes conduct including “drag story hours” at libraries and schools. Last week, Chief U.S. District Judge Brian Morris issued a temporary restraining order, and the state is set to respond today to the plaintiffs’ effort to win a preliminary injunction that would block enforcement of the law for a longer period. Montana Pride and Imperial Sovereign Court of the State of Montana are among the plaintiffs. They contend the law “creates new, confusing restrictions on ‘sexually oriented performances.’” Morris scheduled a hearing for Aug. 28.
- In D.C. federal court, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta will hold a status conference in the district’s lawsuit against right-wing groups Proud Boys and Oath Keepers that seeks to collect on the financial costs of the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and its aftermath. The suit, filed in December 2021, aims to hold accountable two groups that prosecutors say played a leading role in an assault by thousands of supporters of then-President Donald Trump that aimed to prevent Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s election victory. Mehta last year paused the civil proceeding amid criminal cases against Proud Boy leaders. The city’s legal team includes Jeannie Rhee of Paul Weiss and Vincent Cohen of Dechert.
- The Biden administration has a deadline to make final arguments to the 9th Circuit to block a California federal judge’s order striking down a new regulation restricting asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border. The regulation presumes most migrants are ineligible for asylum if they passed through other nations without seeking protection elsewhere first, or if they failed to use legal pathways for U.S. entry. U.S. District Judge Jon Tigar last week stayed his order for 14 days, leaving the restrictions in place for now.
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Court calendars are subject to last-minute docket changes.
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- White & Case’s Jonathan Hawk is representing X Corp in its lawsuit in California federal court accusing nonprofit Center for Countering Digital Hate of making false claims. The center has said its research reveals a rise in hate speech on the platform. Roberta Kaplan of Kaplan Hecker represents the nonprofit center. White & Case is representing X Corp in a variety of other suits accusing the company of failing to pay its bills. (Reuters)
- Elon Musk and X Corp also asked a Delaware federal judge to dismiss one of several lawsuits claiming they failed to pay promised severance to laid-off employees. In a filing, X, formerly known as Twitter, said six former employees who sued the company in May were not parties to a 2022 merger agreement between Twitter and a Musk-owned holding company, so they could not sue them for allegedly breaching it. (Reuters)
- A divided D.C. Circuit panel ruled the federal law regulating mine safety may apply to contractors such as trucking companies even when they are not working at a mine, but the court said the U.S. Department of Labor must clarify its scope. The D.C. Circuit said federal mine safety law is ambiguous as to when it applies to equipment, such as trucks and other vehicles, that is not permanently located at a mine. The court ordered the Labor Department to flesh out its views on the issue. (Reuters)
- The Ninth Circuit reinstated a law requiring that women in Guam meet with doctors in person before obtaining abortions, a restriction that has made terminating pregnancies in the U.S. territory difficult due to a lack of doctors. The appellate panel overturned a judge’s 2021 ruling that blocked enforcement of the law, citing the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling last year striking down the constitutional right to abortion. (Reuters)
- Energizer and Walmart asked a California federal judge to throw out a trio of consumer and retail antitrust cases alleging a conspiracy to inflate the prices of disposable batteries. The lawsuits allege Energizer was under pressure from Walmart to push up battery prices for other retailers. Energizer is represented by Gibson Dunn, and a team from Latham is defending Walmart. (Reuters)
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- Paul Hastings hired white-collar and investigations partner Adam Fee in the firm’s Los Angeles office from Milbank. (Reuters)
- London-founded law firm Clifford Chance hired Violetta Kokolus, a technology-focused partner from Ropes & Gray in New York. (Reuters)
- Jones Day hired Koren Wong-Ervin as a D.C.-based antitrust and competition partner from Axinn Veltrop. (Jones Day)
- Willkie added New York-based partner Matthew Block in the firm’s asset management group. He was previously at Kirkland. (Willkie)
- Eversheds brought on white-collar partner Jeffrey Cottle in D.C. to co-lead the firm’s national security practice. He was previously at Brown Rudnick. (Eversheds)
- Goodwin hired Robert Lemons as a New York-based partner focused on financial restructuring. Lemons was previously at Weil. (Goodwin)
- O’Melveny added litigation partners Travis Sales and John Anaipakos in the firm’s Houston office. They join from Baker Botts. (O’Melveny)
- Fried Frank added M&A and private equity partner Lawrence Natke in New York from Schulte Roth. (Fried Frank)
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Correction: An Industry Moves item in Tuesday’s newsletter misstated the Wilson Sonsini office that new partner Karen Deschaine joined. She is based in San Diego.
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