The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times

The Morning Wrap

Host of Challenges: Three hours after Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad, a car bomb tore through a crowded market place, killing more than 80 people and injuring 160 more, The New York Times reports. The attack underscores the challenges of Clinton's mission in a country that has grown skeptical of Washington's long-term commitment.

The Astro-Spy: The Washington Post explores the case of Stewart Nozette, a brilliant NASA astronomer who was indicted earlier this month on two counts of attempted espionage. Nozette has been accused of giving sensitive government information to an undercover FBI agent posing as an Israeli intelligence officer.

Pushed to the Limit: If the spread of H1N1 or Swine Flu begins to keep more Americans homes from school and work, some government officials warn that it could overwhelm Internet networks, The Washington Post reports. The Government Accountability Office said in a report released earlier this week that if the flu reaches a pandemic, a surge in telecommuting and children logging on to watch videos and play games could bog down local networks.

To Cut or Not to Cut: Treasury Department pay czar Kenneth Feinberg has made sharp cuts to total compensation at the finance and auto companies under his control, but he substantially increased one element -- regular salaries, The Wall Street Journal reports. The Journal says move reflects the complexity of regulating something that mixes politics and economics.

Leaking Info: Attorney Gil Cornblum, who was accused of leaking insider information while an associate with Sullivan & Cromwell in New York in the 1990s and as a partner in Dorsey & Whitney's Toronto office from 2004 to 2008, was found dead Monday in an apparent suicide. The New York Law Journal reports that according to a complaint filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission, allegedly gave his former law school classmate Stanko Grmovsek material, non-public information on about 40 mergers and acquisitions that he learned about while on the job at both law firms.

Trial Begins in Stalking Case Against D.C. Judge's Ex-Girlfriend

Jury selection began today in the government's case against Taylar Nuevelle, accused of breaking into the home of a D.C. Superior Court magistrate judge and stalking her through voluminous text messages and e-mails.

Magistrate Judge Janet Albert, who presides over child abuse and neglect cases, ended a one-year relationship with Nuevelle in September 2008. A grand jury in April indicted Nuevelle on charges of burglary with the intent to stalk and with misdemeanor stalking. (In May, Nuevelle pleaded not guilty to the charges.)

Nuevelle’s lawyer, D.C. solo practitioner A. Kevin Fahey, maintains Nuevelle lived with Albert in her home in Northwest Washington. At a hearing yesterday in the case, Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie Brenowitz said the government plans to argue that Nuevelle was only an occasional guest in the judge's home.

Brenowitz said Nuevelle executed a “campaign of harassment” against Albert, who is represented by Schertler & Onorato partner Robert Spagnoletti. The presiding judge in the case, Russell Canan, said yesterday he planned to review hundreds of text messages to and from Nuevelle in preparation for trial. Opening statements are scheduled for Wednesday.

Lobbyist Indicted for Ties to Sudan

Federal prosecutors unsealed an indictment against a Washington, D.C. lobbyist today for allegedly violating sanctions against the government of Sudan.

According to the Justice Department, Robert Cabelly, a former state department official and managing director of C/R International, did work for the Sudanese without permission from the U.S. government. The firm allegedly brokered business contracts for the country, and gave it “sensitive” U.S. government information.

The Justice Department says Cabelly was also involved with the Sudanese oil industry, and was being paid by both the country’s government and by a foreign oil company. He allegedly directed the company to deposit a $180,000 payment in an offshore account in the Cook Islands in an attempt to launder the funds.

He is facing eight counts including charges of violating sanctions regulations, money laundering, passport fraud and making false statements.

“The conduct alleged in this indictment is broad in scope and very serious,” said David Kris, assistant attorney general for national security, in a statement.

In 2005, The Washington Post reported that Cabelly’s firm had a $530,000 a year contract to lobby for Sudan.

Thousands of Pages of New Documents Emerge in Pershing Park Cases

The District of Columbia Attorney General’s Office s has handed over approximately 2,000 pages of new documents today in the Pershing Park police misconduct cases.

Attorney General Peter Nickles filed a notice in court this morning that the documents had been found during sweeps of the OAG Civil Litigation Division. The filing did not explain what the papers contained.

“We are told that these are documents that had not been produced after seven years of litigation,” said Bryan Cave partner Daniel Schwartz, who represents protesters rounded up in mass arrests in 2002. “We don’t know much about them.”

Discovery in the cases initially closed in 2007. But Judge Emmet Sullivan of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia extended it after the city handed over 13,000 new documents. Plaintiffs’ lawyers say important files in the case have gone missing or been destroyed.

“These things keep popping up like mushrooms,” Schwartz said. “I’m sure there will be more documents in the future.”

Two Years After Audits, Legal Services Gets Some Praise

The Legal Services Corporation is getting mostly good marks from government auditors, two years after a pair of reports questioned the management practices at the largest funding source for civil legal aid.

In 2007, the Government Accountability Office released two reports critical of the non-profit corporation's governance. Among other things, it criticized the lack of an audit committee among the corporation’s directors and what it called inadequate review of management.

Most of the GAO’s 12 recommendations have since been implemented, although review of management could still be improved, the GAO told the House Judiciary Committee today.

“LSC’s Board of Directors and management have made progress on implementing our prior recommendations including fully implementing nine recommendations,” said Susan Ragland, director of financial management and assurance at the Government Accountability Office, in written testimony for the committee. “The improvements that LSC has made in its governance and accountability provide a good foundation for completing implementation of the elements needed for a strong program of governance and internal controls.”

Click here (PDF) for Ragland’s testimony, and here for testimony from other witnesses, including Legal Services Corporation President Helaine Barnett.

The Legal Services Corporation is looking for an infusion of funding from Congress, and some senators want to almost double its budget of $390 million. This month, the Brennan Center for Justice released a report showing a major increase in the need for civil legal aid as a result of the foreclosure crisis.

The Morning Wrap

A WARNing Shot: Former Thelen staffers are taking an unusual approach in their $18 million lawsuit against five firms that hired many of Thelen's partners. The Recorder reports that the employees are arguing that the firms' hiring of the partners amounted to purchasing a portion of Thelen's business. Therefore, the firms are bound by the same obligations as an employer under the WARN Act.

Better Know a Lobby: The Washington Post reports that AARP has put its full 40 million-member weight behind health care reform, saying many of the proposed changes to the status quo would lower costs and increase the quality of care for older Americans. What the lobbying campaign is not doing however, is talking about the group's substantial earnings from insurance royalties and the potential benefits that could come its way from many of the reform proposals.

Drawing Up a Fail Safe Plan: Global economic policy makers are beginning to consider one of the key issues that arose out of last year's bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers Holdings, namely what to do if a global megabank faces collapse. The Wall Street Journal reports that policy makers are assigning each of the world's 25 most complex international banks to a multinational crisis-management team to draw up contingency plans should they run into trouble.

Child Prostitution Sting: Federal law enforcement officials have arrested more than 700 people, including 60 suspected pimps, in a nationwide crackdown on child prostitution. Fifty-two children were rescued during the raids, which were led by almost 1,600 agents and officers The Los Angeles Times reports.

National Pro Bono Week Starts Today

Today marked the start of the first annual National Pro Bono Week, sponsored by the American Bar Association's Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service. Events across the nation will focus on pro bono service, and in Washington, D.C. Bar President Kim Keenan ushered in the celebration this afternoon by accepting a mayoral proclamation from Rawle Andrews, managing attorney of the AARP Legal Counsel for the Elderly, on behalf of Mayor Adrian Fenty.

“In the District of Columbia, attorneys, paralegals, and interns donate thousands of hours of pro bono time each year to serve the needs of the residents of modest means,” the proclamation read. “Therefore, I…call upon all the residents of this great city to join me in recognizing the professionals that give pro bono service to residents in need.”

The week will be capped by a Friday fundraiser called “Go Casual for Justice Jeans Day.” Participating law firms can sign up to donate $5 or more for every person who dresses down. The event organizers said they hope to pull in a healthy sum to be distributed by the D.C. Bar Foundation to pro bono causes.

They've already gotten a good response from local firms, and one in particular has upped the ante. Carter Phillips, managing partner of Sidley Austin's Washington office, has agreed to take a hit to his school pride if his office raises $4,000 through the casual day fundraiser and other donations. "I've agreed to wear a University of Michigan hat and tie for the day," said the Ohio State University alum. "This is no small sacrifice."

His colleagues from Michigan have already escaped embarrassment because the firm has raised more than $3,000, he said: They would have had to sing Ohio State's fight song.

For more information about this and other events, visit www.celebrateprobono.com.

McDermott Team Wins Victory for Sikhs

McDermott Will & Emery scored a pro bono win last week by convincing the army to allow a religious Sikh to serve while wearing full religious garb.

The army gave Captain Kamaljeet Kalsi, a military doctor, permission to wear the full beard and turban Sikhs are required to wear by their faith while on active duty. Kalsi was a graduate of the Army’s Health Professions Scholarship Program, but was told that he would have to shave and remove his turban before he could begin his military service.

An army administrator reversed that decision in an Oct. 22 letter.

“Your beard, uncut hair, and turban will be neat and well maintained at all times,” the letter stated.

Although the military emphasized that its decision was being made on an individual basis, McDermott lawyers said officers have indicated that they are also considering changes to a 22-year-old policy that prevents Sikhs from serving with turbans and beards.

“The goal was to change the policy to allow all Sikhs to serve in the U.S. armed services,” said McDermott associate Amandeep Sidhu, the firm’s lead counsel on the case. “The army representatives have indicated that they realize the policy issue remains and they need to turn their attention to this issue.”

McDermott became involved in the case after it was approached by its co-counsel, the Sikh Coalition, a a civil rights group that Sidhu said he helped found in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. Along with Kalsi, the firm and the Sikh coalition represented Captain Tejdeep Rattan, a military dentist whose case is still pending.

According to Sidhu, Sikhs were allowed to serve freely in the military until 1981, when the army banned all forms of religious expression among soldiers. In 1987, lobbying by the Jewish community convinced Congress to make an exception for “neat and conservative” religious garments, Sidhu said. But the army interpreted that to exclude turbans.

“Our argument is that the army has been ignoring congressional intent for 22 years,” Sidhu said. “This may not be something that requires any additional legislative change.”

Even so, McDermott has launched an effort to change the rule, enlisting help from Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY.) and Robert Menendez (D-NJ) among others. The firm’s team on the project includes partners H. Guy Collier, Elizabeth Hack and Stephen Ryan; legislative counsel David Ransom; and associate Jennifer Belcher.

Former Federal Prosecutor Challenges Recommended Bar Discipline

Updated: 5 p.m.

Lawyers for embattled former federal prosecutor G. Paul Howes are challenging a proposed two-year bar license suspension, saying that an ethics panel's recommended discipline is flawed and too harsh.

A committee of the D.C. Board on Professional Responsibility in August split in its recommended punishment for Howes, a former assistant U.S. attorney in the District of Columbia. One committee member said Howes should be suspended from the practice of law for two years; the other committee member said Howes should be disbarred. (Bar Counsel rejected disbarment.)

The two-person committee—a third member of the committee dropped from the panel without explanation before the report was issued—found that Howes misused public money to compensate retired detectives for their courtroom testimony and Howes was wrong to pay incarcerated witnesses. A Justice Department Office of Professional Misconduct report in 1998 found Howes, over the course of two years, authorized, more than $140,000 in payments to 132 witnesses.

Howes’ alleged misconduct has led to reduced prison sentences for at least nine defendants—several of whom were serving life sentences. Howes now works in the San Diego offices of Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins.

A lawyer for Howes, Paul Knight of Nossaman, said in a brief this month challenging the recommended sanction that the sanction should be no greater than 30 days. Knight said the two committee members sway “inconsistently back and forth between positions” and that the committee "has completely failed to grasp the massive factual record in this case.”

Phoenix EEOC Lawyer Chosen as General Counsel

A supervising trial attorney in the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's Phoenix, Ariz., office has been chosen to be the agency's next general counsel.

P. David Lopez has been with the EEOC for 13 years, beginning in Washington as a special assistant to Gilbert Casellas, then the commission’s chairman. Lopez (Arizona State, Harvard Law) previously worked in the employment section of the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and as an associate at the D.C. firm Spiegel & McDiarmid.

The White House said late Friday that President Barack Obama intends to nominate Lopez as the commission’s top in-house lawyer. Lopez did not immediately return a call today requesting comment.

While in Phoenix, Lopez tried a case against GoDaddy.com, leading to a $242,000 jury verdict against the software company for discriminating against a Muslim employee. He also worked on a 2003 consent decree with the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, which paid $104,000 to three women who claimed that they were unfairly denied spots on an entertainment troupe.

If confirmed by the Senate, Lopez would succeed Ronald Cooper, who this year returned as a partner to the D.C. office of Steptoe & Johnson.