The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times

Judge Says Filing Errors May Prompt Review of 'Hundreds' of Cases

The chief judge of Washington's federal district court said he expects the court will have to review hundreds of arrest and search warrant dockets after learning this week that the clerk's office failed to publicly file an unsealed search warrant in a high-profile government leaks case.

In an order entered today, U.S. District Chief Judge Royce Lamberth apologized for a series of administrative errors that resulted in the continued secrecy of materials that had been previously unsealed in the case against Stephen Jin-Woo Kim, a former government adviser accused of leaking classified information about North Korea. The order was first reported by The Washington Post. As part of the leaks investigation, prosecutors obtained a search warrant to review Fox News reporter James Rosen's e-mails.

In an interview today, Lamberth said the mistakes were the result of human error in the clerk's office and he had no sense yet of whether similar problems occurred in other cases. "We're a public institution, we're accountable to the public," Lamberth said. "We shouldn't allow this to happen."

The Morning Wrap

IRS: Receiving little direction, the Internal Revenue Service's Cincinnati outpost faced difficulties handling groups seeking tax exemptions, The New York Times reports. "The IRS is pretty dysfunctional to begin with, and this case brought all those dysfunctions to their worst," said Paul Streckfus, a former IRS employee who runs a newsletter devoted to tax-exempt organizations.

Obama Plans: President Barack Obama on Thursday will discuss how he plans to bring the drone program and the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, military prison in line with the legal framework he said he would follow after taking office, The Washington Post reports.

Roberts Trip: U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. was in Jamestown, N.Y., on Friday for the 10th anniversary of a center dedicated to the late Justice Robert Jackson, The Associated Press reports. Jackson's grandchildren gave Roberts a life-size bronze bust of Jackson. "It will occupy a place of great prominence at the court," Roberts said, "just as his portrait does."

D.C. Court: Judges Can Investigate Juror Racial Bias

Judges confronted with allegations of racial or ethnic bias among jurors are allowed to investigate the claims, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals ruled yesterday. The opinion created a new exception to case law historically barring judges from questioning jurors about their process.

Whether judges can probe racial or ethnic bias among jurors after a verdict is an issue that's divided federal courts, according to the opinion, which was written by Judge Anna Blackburne-Rigsby. The three-judge panel found a juror's allegation of racist statements made by another juror wasn't evidence of "extraneous influence" on a verdict – a standard for examining juror behavior – but was still serious enough to raise constitutional concerns.

"The insidiousness of racial or ethnic bias is therefore distinguishable from other forms of juror misconduct or incompetence," Blackburne-Rigsby wrote. "[W]e are unwilling to rigidly bind the discretion of trial judges to prevent further inquiry where it may be necessary to ensure that a defendant's constitutional rights to a fair and impartial trial and jury are not jeopardized by racial or ethnic bias."

D.C. Superior Court Nominees Testify in the Senate

Two lawyers who spent most of their careers on opposite sides of a courtroom testified today before a U.S. Senate committee in the hopes of serving together on the District of Columbia Superior Court bench.

Washington solo practitioner Michael O'Keefe, whose practice is mostly in criminal defense and family law, and Robert Okun, chief of the special proceedings division at the U.S. attorney's office in D.C., were nominated by the White House in March. At today's hearing, they pitched their extensive history practicing in Superior Court and experience working with a variety of litigants, including those without a lawyer.

Neither nominee faced criticism. Sen. Mark Begich (D-Alaska), who chairs the subcommittee overseeing District of Columbia affairs, said they were "well-qualified" to serve. The nominees did face questions from Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), the subcommittee's ranking member, about their views on the city's gun laws, which have been the subject of legal challenges; both said they would abide by rulings from the U.S. Supreme Court and District of Columbia Court of Appeals.

Report: 'Confusion' About D.C. Post-Arrest Procedures

Updated at 3:36 p.m.

A committee of prosecutors, defense lawyers and law enforcement officials are calling on the District of Columbia Council to reform laws surrounding post-arrest procedures, identifying "confusion" among the public and within the criminal justice system.

A report published by the Council for Court Excellence recommended legislative changes that would clarify eligibility for certain-post arrest options and urged law enforcement agencies to create "plain English" descriptions of those options for arrestees.

"It puts the public on notice in a little clearer way: for these offenses, here are the potential options," said Cliff Keenan, director of the Pretrial Services Agency for the District of Columbia and chair of the group that put together the report.

The Morning Wrap

Chevron Allegations: Chevron Corp. on Friday accused Patton Boggs of fraud in a case that ended in a $19 billion environmental pollution judgment against the oil company in Ecuador, The Litigation Daily reports.

Ginsburg Roe: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Saturday said she backs a woman's right to choose to have an abortion, but the Roe v. Wade decision was too sweeping, The Associated Press reports.

Facebook Departure: Facebook Inc. general counsel Theodore Ullyot is leaving the company, The Recorder reports.

Age Discrimination Suit Against Georgetown Law Dismissed

Former North Dakota Attorney General Nicholas Spaeth has lost his age discrimination lawsuit against Georgetown University Law Center. A Washington federal judge ruled yesterday that Georgetown presented non-discriminatory reasons – chiefly, Spaeth's lack of academic scholarship – for rejecting his application for a tenure-track teaching job.

After a long career practicing law in government and private practice, Spaeth began pursuing law school teaching posts around 2009. He sued Georgetown and five other schools in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia after he failed to get an interview through the Association of American Law Schools faculty recruitment conference in 2010.

In yesterday's opinion, Huvelle found the record was clear that academic scholarship was a "primary concern" for Georgetown in weighing applicants. Spaeth failed to list any relevant publications in his application, she wrote, rebuffing Spaeth's argument that the focus on scholarship was a pretext for age-based bias. Even if Spaeth made it to the interview stage, she found, he failed to show he would have been hired over the three applicants who did get teaching jobs that year.

Judge Ketanji Jackson Sworn In to D.C. Federal Bench

Judges are a common sight at judicial swearing-in ceremonies in Washington's federal courthouse, but yesterday's investiture for U.S. District Judge Ketanji Jackson featured a special guest from several blocks away: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer.

Breyer administered the oath of office, calling Jackson, who served as his law clerk, part of the "court family." Sporting a sling for his right arm after suffering a recent cycling injury, Breyer joked the ceremony was truly a family affair, noting he received treatment at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, where Jackson's husband is a surgeon.

The U.S. Senate confirmed Jackson on March 22. Prior to her appointment, she served as vice chair of the U.S. Sentencing Commission; she filled the seat vacated by now-retired U.S. District Judge Henry Kennedy.

D.C. Attorney General Testifies in Evidence Dispute

In an unusual scene, District of Columbia Attorney General Irvin Nathan took the stand this morning in Washington federal court to testify about his office's handling of a longstanding wrongful arrest case. During occasionally contentious exchanges, Nathan fielded questions about his compliance with ethics rules as the city government's top lawyer.

Nathan was the final witness in a series of hearings about how city officials handled evidence in the case, which stemmed from mass arrests in 2002 at Pershing Park in downtown Washington. Nathan, who’s led the office since January 2011, was called to testify about a document filed by his office that included inaccurate information.

Nathan said he wasn't personally involved in preparing the document, but had no reason to believe attorneys in his office acted unethically or knew they were filing incorrect information at the time. Jonathan Turley, a lead attorney for the plaintiffs and professor at George Washington University Law School, asked Nathan why he didn't order an investigation once he learned his office had filed inaccurate information. Nathan said he believed he had met his ethical obligations and had "no regrets."

Voting Begins in D.C. Bar Elections

Voting is underway in this year's D.C. Bar elections for general and sections positions. The two lawyers vying for president-elect – the precursor post to serving as president – carried a bevy of endorsements into the election, which began April 30 and ends May 24.

Steptoe & Johnson LLP partner Brigida Benitez and Jenner & Block partner Lorelie Masters are this year's candidates for the bar's top job. The winner will serve as president-elect for a year before spending a second year as president, and then will serve a third year as immediate past president.

Both candidates have made expanding pro bono work and promoting access to justice top priorities. Benitez, in an interview today, said she wants to find ways the bar can be more creative in providing services and support partnerships with the legal services community. "It's something where the bar has been a leader, but I think the need is as great as ever," she said.