The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times

Office of Special Counsel Under Scrutiny

At least three public-interest groups are calling for the ouster of Special Counsel Scott Bloch, whose independent agency represents federal whistle-blowers.

The groups -- Project on Government Oversight, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility and Government Accountability Project -- say Bloch should go because of new revelations by The Wall Street Journal that he paid a computer firm to cleanse his computer hard drives at work.

The WSJ reports today that Bloch paid $1,149 to Geeks on Call for a "seven-level wipe" of his computer nearly a year ago. Such deletions make it difficult for computer forensics experts to reconstruct data.

Bloch is under investigation by the Office of Personnel Management's inspector general after the White House received a complaint in 2005 that Bloch retaliated against employees in his own office and ordered a massive purge of whistleblower cases.

Bloch, appointed by President George W. Bush to a five-year term in 2003, may be removed for neglect, inefficiency or malfeasance in office. He could not be reached for comment today.

"Obstruction of justice, making untruthful statements to Congress, retaliating against whistleblowers, purging career staff, using official authority for personal and political reasons, and the systematic destruction of OSC's effectiveness and credibilty certainly constitute malfeasance," writes Debra Katz of Katz, Marshall & Banks in a letter to President Bush.

Katz represents current and former Office of Special Counsel employees in the complaint against Bloch.

“Stop the madness! Under Bloch’s leadership, OSC has been utterly neutered. Bloch’s tenure epitomizes everything people distrust in government: cronyism, incompetence, retaliatory conduct and a politicized agenda," says Danielle Brian, executive director of the Project on Government Oversight.

Jeff Ruch, Executive Director, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, adds, "If Scott Bloch had any decency, he would resign. It is critical that federal whistleblowers have an official advocate who is credible and free from hidden agendas."

Maintaining Healthy Relationships

The Carlyle Group's $6.3 billion July buyout of nursing home operator Manor Care came just in time to get the company ensnared in concerns over private equity's health care operations. Now Carlyle's enlisted Dutko Worldwide to attend to its needs on the Hill.

A September New York Times report into private equity’s ventures into nursing homes found private equity groups had sometimes slashed staff below legal minimums. Citing the report, Reps John D. Dingell (D-Mich.), chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, and Barney Frank of Massachusetts (D-Mass.), chairman the Financial Services Committee, announced investigations, and a number of state bodies have followed suit.

Carlyle's contract was live as of the Monday before Thanksgiving. According to Dutko’s registration form, the firm’s responsibilities will be “monitoring and advising client as to the issue regarding private equity ownership of health care institutions.”

The three women charged with doing that bring a mix of experience to the table. One, Laine Glisson, is a former aide to John Breaux who lists her work with the National Bi-partisan Commission on the Future of Medicare as key item on her firm bio. The second is Cartier Esham, Dutko’s director of research and a registered lobbyist for retirement communities and a number of health-related clients. Finally, there’s the recently-arrived Judy Lemon, whose background isn’t in healthcare. But she is the former chief of staff to Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Breaux to Leave Patton Boggs

Former Sen. John Breaux (D-La.), a leading lobbyist for Patton Boggs, is starting his own public policy consulting firm with his son, lobbyist John Breaux Jr.

The father and son will open the firm in January. In an internal e-mail, Patton Boggs partner Thomas Boggs said he and Breaux are discussing ways for Breaux to continue working with Patton Boggs as counsel. A statement from Breaux included in the e-mail expressed gratitude to Patton Boggs, but said “the challenge and opportunity to start a new business with my son is something that I cannot pass up.”

Neither Breaux nor Boggs returned calls seeking comment. Stuart Pape, the firm’s managing partner, confirmed the legitimacy of the e-mail obtained by Legal Times, but said he could not otherwise comment.

The move comes after weeks of rumors about whether Breaux would stay with the firm after the end of the year, with well-sourced K Streeters buzzing about the fact that he had not yet renewed his contract. The announcement is also sure to juice already rampant speculation about a possible partnership between Breaux and Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss., who announced this week that he will retire from the Senate at the end of the year. Lott has not yet said what he will do next, but hasn’t ruled out lobbying and would be a high-profile hire for K Street. He and Breaux are close friends, and could form a powerful axis with deep ties to the Gulf Coast.

Lott’s son, Kentucky-based lobbyist Chester Lott, currently an affiliate of the Livingston Group, says his father honestly hasn’t yet decided what to do. In an interview with Legal Times a few hours before Breaux’s announcement, when asked if the two might go into business together, Chester Lott said his father and Breaux have “been kidding around about that since they were in the Senate, because you know they used to make deals in the Senate. There’s been no formal talks at all, and ... he can’t get in any of these talks now with anybody and wouldn’t.”

Asked about his own plans, Chester Lott said that “it just depends on what Dad decides down the road.”

While in office, Breaux was known as a Senate dealmaker with bipartisan ties. His decision to step down three years ago was greeted with a flurry of offers so overwhelming, he hired an agent to sort through them before choosing Patton Boggs. His annual salary from the firm is reportedly between $1 and $2 million.

Breaux quickly became one of the firm’s leading rainmakers, with colleagues going out of their way to publicly praise his work ethic, collegial attitude and willingness to solicit new business. When he toyed with running for governor of Louisiana last year, observers said it would be difficult for the firm to lose him. His lobbying client list reflects his Louisiana ties, and includes the port of New Orleans and Louisiana Economic Development. Breaux also led efforts to help the state recover in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. But his reach goes beyond his home state: the list also includes Sallie Mae, Cerberus Capital Management and Royal Caribbean Cruises. Midyear reports for Breaux clients this year totalled more than $1.75 million in revenue reported under the Lobbying Disclosure Act alone. It’s unclear whether those clients will remain with Patton Boggs.

In his e-mail, Boggs described Breaux as “an extremely valuable part of the Patton Boggs team,” but said he understood Breaux’s desire to go into business with his son.

News from the Lahore High Court Bar Association

It’s been a few weeks since Pakistani lawyer riots have been front page news in the U.S., but that doesn't mean the attorneys have settled down. Over the weekend, most of the arrested attorneys were released, and the Lahore High Court Bar Association just yanked the membership of Pakistan Attorney General Malik Qayyum, who recently helped amend Pakistani law to grant the pro-Musharref Supreme Court the ability to take disciplinary action against lawyers.

He’s also barred from visiting the association's offices, for life. In making the announcement, Ahsan Bhoon, the Bar Association's president, issued a challenge: “The Lahore Bar Council is an autonomous body and could not be made to bow... If Qayyum thinks he has taken away powers from the Bars to revoke licenses or cancel memberships, I dare him to come and sit in the Bar now."

Breaking News: Breaux Leaves Patton Boggs; Forming Own Firm.

Former Louisiana Senator turned lobbyist John Breaux is leaving Patton Boggs to form his own firm with his son, John Jr. According to an email sent by firm head Thomas Boggs to firm lawyers and obtained by Legal Times, the parties are still exploring some way for Breaux to maintain a professional relationship with Patton Boggs. Legal Times will update this breaking story. The full text of the Boggs' email is as follows:

"As many of you may have heard, my dear friend John Breaux will be
forming a new public policy consulting firm with his son John Jr.  John
has been an extremely valuable part of the Patton Boggs team since he
left the Senate three years ago.  While I will miss having John here
everyday, I am particularly excited about the potential opportunities
his venture presents, both for John and our firm, as we look for new and
innovative ways to serve public policy clients and maintain our leading
status among public policy law firms in the nation.  As his statement
attached below notes, we are also discussing how John can remain as
counsel to the firm.

As someone who has been lucky enough to practice law with my son Douglas in the law firm, I understand fully John's desire to practice professionally with his son.  We have all benefited immeasurably from our personal and professional association with John, we wish him well in
his new venture, and look forward to continuing our personal friendship
and professional collaboration for many years to come."

There was also this announcement from Senator Breaux:

Former United States Senator John Breaux, Senior Counsel to Patton Boggs
Law Firm, announced that he would be forming a new public policy
consulting firm in January 2008.

Breaux stated that while he has the greatest personal and professional
respect for Tom Boggs and the members of the firm, the new firm will
offer him an opportunity to be in business with his son, John Jr., a
goal that he has always wanted to achieve.

"Tom Boggs and the Patton Boggs firm have been a professional family for
me since I retired from the Congress almost three years ago.  It has been a rewarding experience in which I have learned a great deal from my colleagues, who are also my friends, but the challenge and opportunity to start a new business with my son is something I cannot pass up."

Breaux said he was in discussions with Patton Boggs to determine how he
could also continue to serve as counsel and provide strategic advice and
counsel to the firm in the future.

Breaux stated he expects the new business to start out on a small scale
and grow as business grows.

(Too) Easy Money

Sheryl Harris, a Cleveland Plain Dealer columnist who does a brisk business in writing about consumer fraud, reports this week that a JD isn't a guarantee against falling for a variant of the classic Nigerian scam. An Ohio FBI agent tells her that law firms around the country have getting contacts from overseas front companies purportedly looking for help with debt collection.

Here's how it works: After a retainer’s agreed upon, the front company pays with an excessively large check, requesting that the balance be wired back to it.

The check, of course, is faked, but by the time the bank flags it the firm’s money is already gone. According to the FBI, multiple firms both in and out of Ohio have been eating between $100,000 and $500,000 on the transaction.

Harris’s conclusion?

“Anyone can be scammed -- and here's proof.”

Lott's Son: Everything Up in the Air

Retiring Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss., is "considering everything. He hasn’t ruled anything out" when it comes to his post-Senate career, Chester Lott said this morning in a telephone interview with Legal Times.

Bloomberg earlier reported that the younger Lott, a Kentucky-based lobbyist who is affiliated with the Livingston Group, said his father is considering a partnership with former Sen. John Breaux, a Louisiana Democrat who is now with Patton Boggs. Chester Lott says Breaux and his father have long joked about the prospect of working together,"because you know they used to make deals in the Senate." But Lott adds that there have "been no formal talks at all, and...he can’t get in any of these talks now with anybody and wouldn’t."

Lott says his father definitely wants to give speeches, may decide to teach or take on political commentator duties, and hasn't ruled out any possibilities, including lobbying. "I guess it’s just natural for everybody to wonder what’s going to happen but he doesn’t know," Lott said of his father.

Arent Fox: not a "lifestyle" firm

A lifestyle is all about how someone chooses to live their life. A “lifestyle” firm is all about a place were the lawyers have a life to live. And that may not be a good thing, as one firm is finding out.

For years Arent Fox embraced its image as a “lifestyle” firm. But recently the DC shop has reversed course. At the firm’s partnership retreat last month, firm chairman Marc Fleischaker issued a directive to partners to stop referring to Arent Fox as a “lifestyle” firm. The problem, Fleischaker says, is one of perception: “The implication is that you don’t have to work hard. We do work hard and we make a lot of money, so I don’t want people to misconstrue who we are.”

The “lifestyle” moniker got hung on the firm several years ago when an associate satisfaction survey gave Arent Fox high marks on issues ranging from relationships with partners, to training and guidance, to compensation and benefits. The high score led firm leaders to use the positive feedback as a tool to recruit associates.

But Arent Fox found that while the “lifestyle” tag was an effective pitch for young associates, it made a distinctly different impression on potential lateral partners. “I think it hurts you in recruiting aggressive talent,” says Fleischaker. “It’s an implication that you don’t work hard.”

That puts Arent Fox in the seemingly counterintuitive position of now downplaying what was until recently seen as a strength. To some, it’s an unconvincing transformation. “To go after top laterals you have to offer a platform, not wordplay,” says a Washington recruiter. “Either embrace who you are or start going after what you want to be.”

Morning Wrap

Musharraf Resigns Army Job: Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf will be sworn into a new five-year term today after weeks of imposing military law, but he has resigned as chief of the Army, ending a dual role that drew protests, The New York Times reports.

Taylor Death Investigation: Miami-Dade police are launching a homicide investigation into the shooting death of Washington Redskins star player Sean Taylor, who died yesterday after being shot during a home invasion, The Washington Post reports.

Annapolis Talks Show Progress: Israeli and Palestinian leaders will work towards a peace agreement, and hope to conclude an accord by the end of 2008, The New York Times and The Washington Post reported today. Both sides said such an agreement would be challenging, and the absence of Iran overshadowed the multination talks.

Scrutiny of Virginia Mental Health System Continues: A legislative subcommittee will examine how Virginia decides whether a mental health patient poses an imminent danger in the wake of the Virginia Tech massacre and other incidents, The Washington Post reports.

Office of Special Counsel Head Under Investigation: The Wall Street Journal reports that Scott Bloch, head of the agency charged with protecting government whistle-blowers and who is investigating whether White House officials including Karl Rove used government agencies for improper political purposes, is under investigation for improperly deleting computer files during a probe with the help of a private company.

Toying with K Street

Toy companies are continuing to hire lobbyists in the wake of mass product recalls.

Hasbro, Inc., has hird The Duberstein Group to lobby on manufacturing, trade and consumer protection issues, according to a lobbying disclosure form filed with the Senate this week. The lobbyists listed on the Hasbro team include Duberstein Group Chairman and CEO Kenneth Duberstein, prominent Democrat Michael Berman and Eric Ueland, the former chief of staff for former Sen. Bill Frist (R-Tenn.).

The recalls - tied to lead paint and other manufacturing defects - have brought business to K Street as Congress has taken an interest. Toy retailing giant Toys R Us hired the Glover Park Group last month, the chain's first foray into lobbying. Mattel Inc. hired Johnson, Madigan, Peck, Boland & Stewart in October.