ACS Convention: The American Constitution Society's national convention ran through the weekend, and the BLT was there to listen in on several panel discussions. Friday night, lawyers from the Barack Obama administration weighed in on legal issues confronting the president. On Saturday later, ACS opened up discussion on problems confronting federal judges. Later, panelists debated the significance of the recent SCOTUS ruling in Caperton v. A.T. Massey Coal Co.
A New Model?: In its final installment of a series looking at the lasting effects of the recession on the legal industry, The Legal Intelligencer examines the possibility that firms will start to focus on what's best for them, and not on trying to emulate the top-earning firms. The days of associate salary wars are, it seems, part of a bygone era.
Imaginary Voters?: Revolutionary Guards warned Iranian protesters not to take to the streets Monday, as election officials made a stunning admission: the number of votes cast in 50 cities in the disputed Iranian presidential election exceeded the actual number of voters in those cities. That development, says the NYT, could possibly affect three million votes in the election that has stirred up violent protests in Iran for more than a week.
Big Spenders: Hedge funds escaped relatively unscathed from the Obama administration's plan to revamp financial regulation announced last week. One possible reason, reports the WSJ, is their renewed focus on lobbying. The hedge-fund industry has thrown lots of cash at K Street in recent years, spending $6.1 million last year.
OT Out at PTO: The BLT obtained an internal memo distributed to employees at the Patent and Trademark Office last week announcing that overtime pay will be suspended for at least the remainder of the fiscal year. The announcement comes as PTO employees deal with massive backlogs.
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