The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times

The Morning Wrap

Testify: Gabrielle Giffords called on lawmakers to take action to curb gun violence during a Congressional hearing Wednesday on gun violence. Among the witnesses were Giffords' husband Cpt. Mike Kelly and the NRA's Wayne LaPierre. Reuters reports.

Hired:  An attorney who was part of the legal team that successfully prosecuted Raj Rajaratnam is joining Gibson Dunn & Crutcher. The New York Times is reporting that the announcement will come later today.

Laterals: Lateral movement reached a three-year high due in part to the dissolution of Dewey & LeBoeuf. Our sister pulibcation Am Law reports that 2,691 partners switched firms among the Am Law 200 last year.

Air Strike: Israel launched an air strike against Syria Wednesday for the first time in almost six years. The Washington Post reports that it could widen the civil war beyond the country's borders.

Judge Questions DOJ Over Secrecy in Author’s First Amendment Case

A U.S. Justice Department lawyer faced sharp questions today from a Washington judge over the government effort to restrict an author's ability to challenge whether certain details in his book about the Afghan war should remain secret.

Retired Army Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer, who penned a memoir titled "Operation Dark Heart," is pursuing a First Amendment case in Washington's federal trial court over the government's insistence that passages in the book contain classified information that cannot be publicly disclosed. In late 2010, Shaffer sued the CIA, the Defense Department and the Defense Intelligence Agency.

Shaffer's case presents thorny legal issues regarding the control and disclosure of classified information in civil litigation. U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer, at a hearing in the case today to discuss procedural issues, expressed concern that DOJ's litigation stance will hinder Shaffer's ability to present his contentions by restricting the information he's allowed to tell the court.

Scott Risner of the DOJ's Civil Division argued today that Collyer should not allow Shaffer to submit information to the court on his own. Instead, Risner insisted, Collyer should rely on the government's ex parte submissions in support of keeping select passages in the book blacked out.

Daily D.C. Lateral Roundup: Baker Botts; Hughes Hubbard

Baker Botts has added a government affairs attorney to its Washington office. Jeffrey Munk, formerly with Hogan Lovells, joins the corporate and government relations practices as a partner. He was previously legislative counsel for Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas).

Hughes Hubbard & Reed has elevated three attorneys to partner, including one in its Washington office. Eric Parnes, formerly counsel with the firm, focuses his litigation practice on appellate work, international arbitration, commercial litigation, and healthcare and pharmaceutical litigation.

D.C. Circuit Rejects Law Clerk Hiring Plan

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has put out a notice that it will no longer adhere to the federal law clerk hiring plan because it is "no longer working."

The statement, which the court posted Tuesday, takes effect starting with the 2014 to 2015 term. The hiring plan is a voluntary guideline that asks judges to not hire applicants who have not started the fall semester of their third year of law school. The guideline does not apply to applicants who have already graduated.

In its justification for the abandonment of the hiring practice, the D.C. Circuit cited an increasing number of judges who do not follow the guidance and hire in advance of the interview and offer dates outlined in the voluntary plan.

Alston & Bird Registers as Adviser to Russian Federation

Alston & Bird notified the U.S. Department of Justice this week that the firm was hired to act as an adviser to the Russian Federation on "issues which affect the bilateral US-Russian Relationship."

Alston will be gathering information on a broad range of U.S. foreign policy matters, including trade, energy and military issues that might affect relations between the two countries, according to registration paperwork (PDF) the firm filed on Monday with the Justice Department.

The firm was hired by public relations company Ketchum Inc. Alston served as an adviser to the Russian government through a similar arrangement with Ketchum in 2009, according to Justice Department records.

Deadline Approaching for Washington Legal Departments Contest

The National Law Journal is seeking nominations for our Washington Legal Departments of the Year Contest for 2013. We will recognize the Washington region's top in-house departments in six categories. To qualify, the departments must be led by lawyers from the D.C. metro area. Law firms may nominate their clients' legal departments for the contest.

Please send completed submissions to nljsurvey@alm.com, and include "Washington" and the company's name in the subject line. The deadline for submissions is January 31.

More information on the contest is available here.

The Morning Wrap

Immigration Reform: As President Obama praised a bipartisan immigration plan during a speech in Las Vegas, disagreement emerged between the White House and Republicans that underscored the difficulty of resolving an emotive issue that has long defied a legislative fix, Reuters reports.

Stepping Down: Department of Justice Criminal Division head Lanny Breuer is stepping down on March 1st, Mike Scarcella of the National Law Journal reports. As one of the longest-serving leaders of the Criminal Division, Breuer has overseen some of the highest-profile cases in the country's history.

Happy Ending: The broad push to make MF Global customers nearly whole, a goal now surprisingly within reach, is a remarkable turnaround from the firm’s 2011 bankruptcy filing when such a recovery seemed impossible, The New York Times reports.

D.C. Police Union Questions Payments to Attorneys in Mass Arrest Case

As a D.C. federal magistrate judge continues his investigation into the alleged mishandling of evidence in a decade-old mass arrest case, the head of Washington's police union is raising questions about the city's reimbursement of legal fees for city officials involved.

In a letter (PDF) sent yesterday to the D.C. Office of the Inspector General, Fraternal Order of Police Chairman Kristopher Baumann asked for an investigation into public compensation of private lawyers for defendants and other officials, now that U.S. District Magistrate Judge John Facciola's investigation has raised the specter of possible criminal activity.

Under the D.C. Code, the city can pay "reasonable" attorney fees for Metropolitan Police Department members facing a civil lawsuit for wrongful arrest. In an interview today, Baumann said that while the underlying matter is a civil case, Facciola's investigation is veering into issues such as whether police and other city officials committed perjury or submitted false information to the court.

Daily D.C. Lateral Roundup: Vinson & Elkins

Vinson & Elkins has added a pair of tax attorneys to its Washington office. Gary Huffman and Joe Garcia Jr., formerly with Bingham McCutchen, joined as partners.

Huffman’s tax planning practice focuses on partnerships, financial products, and natural resources. He is also an adjunct professor with the Georgetown University Tax Program where he teaches advanced partnership taxation.

Garcia’s business tax practice concentrates on taxation of partnerships. He also advises clients on complex partnership and structured financing transactions.

M.P. Q&A: Cooley's Ryan Naftulin

When Cooley moved into its new offices in D.C.'s Warner Building on Pennsylvania Avenue on New Year's eve, it was largely to facilitate the firm's growth in Washington. From the end of December 2011, the firm has expanded from 53 attorneys to 85 today.

Legal Times recently sat down with Ryan Naftulin, Cooley's partner-in-charge of the Washington office, in the firm's new digs to talk about growth, robust areas of practice and cycling. (Naftulin has been both the partner-in-charge and vice chair of the business department since the first quarter of 2011.)

Legal Times: How does the new office compare to the old space?

Naftulin: Being here has been great. The space is really functional. It feels more collaborative, much more open space, fewer dead ends. People pass each other more frequently in the hall. You're more inclined to get up and go see the person you want to talk to rather than picking up the phone or emailing them.