The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times

One Bank of America Suit Tossed, But Spat With FDIC Continues

A federal judge in Washington handed Bank of America N.A. a loss yesterday in its fight with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation over $1.75 billion from the collapse of failed financial institutions. The ruling wasn't a total defeat for Bank of America, though. The company filed a suit against the agency in July that addressed issues raised in yesterday's decision.

Following the 2009 collapse of financial institutions in a multi-billion dollar fraud scheme, the FDIC was appointed as receiver. Bank of America sued the agency in 2010 to recover losses for investors, saying its claims were wrongfully denied. The agency filed counterclaims seeking $900 million from the bank for allegedly breaching its duties as the custodian and bailee of one of the failed institutions, Colonial Bank.

In April, the agency issued a "no value" determination, saying there were no longer any assets in the Colonial receivership estate for Bank of America to recover. Without money in controversy, U.S. District Judge Barbara Rothstein, a visiting judge from the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, wrote yesterday that she lacked subject matter jurisdiction to hear Bank of America's claims.

The Morning Wrap

Doctor-Assisted Search: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit overturns a drug conviction because a doctor paralyzed a man for eight minutes, against his will, so officers could look inside his rectum for contraband, Mike Scarcella of The National Law Journal reports.

Mesh Settlement: What would have been the second trial over transvaginal mesh devices has instead settled for an undisclosed sum, while manufacturer C.R. Bard Inc. still is fighting to tell jurors about the FDA's approval of its device, Amanda Bronstad of The National Law Journal reports.

Secret Evidence: Democratic congressmen want Attorney General Eric Holder to answer their questions about how the Drug Enforcement Administration uses intelligence information from secret National Security Agency surveillance, Reuters reports.

Electronic Transactions Group Upping its D.C. Profile

More than two decades after its founding, The Electronic Transactions Association has registered its first lobbyist to advocate for it in Washington, D.C.

Mary Bennett, the D.C-based trade group's government and industry relations director, is advocating on "[c]ybersecurity, privacy, payments, mobile payments, [Internal Revenue Service] reporting, intellectual property, [and] trade," according to lobbying registration paperwork filed with Congress last week. Established in 1990 as the Bankcard Services association, ETA represents more than 500 companies that provide electronic transaction processing services and products.

ETA's members include financial services companies American Express Co., Citigroup Inc., and Visa Inc., as well as tech companies Amazon.com Inc., Google Inc., and Microsoft Corp., which joined in the past year.

Appeal Likely After Dismissal of Police Whistleblower Case

After announcing problems in 2010 with breath test machines used in drunk driving arrests, the District of Columbia was hit with a series of lawsuits from drunk driving defendants and from police officers who claimed they were retaliated against for blowing the whistle.

The city settled the drunk driving defendants' cases last year. The police officers’ suit survived a motion to dismiss, but a judge last week terminated the case— ruling in favor of the city. Litigation over the problematic breath test machines isn't over just yet, though. The plaintiffs—three police officers—plan to appeal, according to police union head Kristopher Baumann.

In an August 20 opinion, District of Columbia Superior Court Judge Anthony Epstein found the plaintiffs failed to meet the standard under D.C. law for whistleblowing and hadn't presented evidence that they faced retaliation.

On Marijuana, Senate Wants to Know: Prosecute or Pass?

When it comes to marijuana laws, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) wants to know whether the U.S. Department of Justice plans to prosecute or pass.

Nearly a year after voters in two states legalized marijuana possession, the Senate Judiciary Committee chairman once again plans to ask Justice Department officials how they will handle the conflict between state and federal marijuana laws.

Leahy has invited Attorney General Eric Holder and Deputy Attorney General James Cole to testify at a September 10 hearing about Washington and Colorado legalizing small amounts of marijuana for personal use, as well 20 states and Washington D.C. legalizing medicinal marijuana.

Eighteen Attorneys, Judges Vie for Superior Court Seat

Eighteen Washington attorneys, magistrate judges and administrative law judges are hoping to become the next District of Columbia Superior Court judge.

The local group that recommends applicants to the White House, the District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Commission, released the names last week of lawyers who applied to replace retiring Judge Natalia Combs Greene. Greene is retiring effective September 30 and has asked for appointment as a senior judge.

The commission is accepting public comments on the applicants through September 23. The seven-member commission will recommend three applicants for consideration by President Barack Obama, who then has 60 days to select a nominee. The president's pick will go before the U.S. Senate for confirmation proceedings.

This Week in The National Law Journal

Prayer Circle: Marcia Coyle takes a look at a seminal 1983 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court upholding legislative prayers. Thirty years later, the high court is being asked to take that decision even further.

Cuts Loom: The U.S. Judicial Conference has announced plans to reduce compensation rates to private Criminal Justice Act attorneys by $15 per hour starting on September 1 unless Congress increases support for the courts in the 2014 budget. Todd Ruger has the story.

Clerks in Demand: The always-hot legal market for U.S. Supreme Court law clerks has gotten even hotter for those who served at the high court last term. Tony Mauro reports hiring bonuses have reached $300,000.

Peak Position: Managing partners at Washington firms large and small to spoke with Matthew Huisman about what's happening at their firms and the challenges facing the legal community as a whole.

The Morning Wrap

Ginsburg: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday said she won't leave the U.S. Supreme Court as long as her body and mind are strong, The New York Times reports. "I love my job," Ginsburg, 80, said. "I thought last year I did as well as in past terms."

King: A crowd that started at the Lincoln Memorial and went down the length of the Reflecting Pool and beyond Saturday marked the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington and Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech, The Washington Post reports.

Trump: New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman on Saturday filed a $40 million lawsuit against Trump University, real estate mogul Donald Trump's for-profit investment school, Reuters reports. "Light weight NYS Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is trying to extort me with a civil law suit," Trump tweeted.

Obama on Law School: Two Years is Enough

We know what policies Barack Obama has pursued as president of the United States, but he opened up Friday about what he would do as the leader of a law school.

His top priority: Cut out the third year.

"This is probably controversial to say, but what the heck, I'm in my second term so I can say it," Obama, a Harvard Law School graduate, said during a town hall speech on college affordability at Binghamton University in New York.

"I believe, for example, that law schools would probably be wise to think about being two years instead of three years—because by the third year—in the first two years young people are learning in the classroom," Obama said. "The third year they'd be better off clerking or practicing in a firm, even if they weren't getting paid that much. But that step alone would reduce the cost for the student."

NLRB Revamps its In-House Legal Services

The National Labor Relations Board has opened up a newly reorganized one-stop shop for its in-house legal services.

The NLRB moved a number of its related offices to the new Division of Legal Counsel at its Washington, D.C, headquarters, the labor and employment watchdog announced Thursday. Led by Associate General Counsel Margery Lieber, the division has an Ethics, Employment and Administrative Law Branch; a Contempt, Compliance and Special Litigation Branch; and a Freedom of Information Act Branch. The division also includes the NLRB's lead technology counsel, Rachel See.

"The consolidation eliminates duplication of functions, improve[s] the delivery of services, streamline[s] operations and integrate[s] services," the NLRB said in a statement.