The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times

Lawyers Saddle Up for Bike to Work Day

Cyclists fill Freedom Plaza in downtown Washington.

More than 14,000 bicyclists—including a few lawyers—saddled up for Washington's annual bike to work day.

The event is meant to encourage cyclists of all skill levels to commute by bike and raise awareness about biking. There are more than 70 pit stops, scattered across D.C., Maryland and Virginia, for the riders.

T. Scott Thompson, a communications partner at Davis Wright Tremaine, has been commuting to work via bicycle from Arlington, Va. for the past 12 years. Thompson, who was a competitive cyclist in college, said a couple of co-workers spurred him to start commuting by bike in 2001. After about a month, he was hooked.

Mali Hires Davidoff Hutcher Lobbyists

As Mali fights to keep its northern territory and legendary city of Timbuktu out of rebels' hands, the West African nation has hired Davidoff Hutcher & Citron to lobby for it in Washington.

The firm is planning to meet with members of Congress and their aides, as well as senior Obama administration officials, to further Mali's "economic and defense interests," according to foreign lobbying registration paperwork filed this week with the U.S. Justice Department. Davidoff associate Russ Klenet,  as well as government relations professional Stephen Slade, director Jonathan McCollum and analyst Scott Klenet, are handling the account.

Russ Klenet said Mali has a "tremendous desire" to reach out to U.S. officials as the country moves toward a stable democracy. Next week, the Davidoff lobbyists will assist Younoussi Touré, speaker of Mali's parliament, with meetings in Washington, he said.

Labor Secretary Nomination Moves to Full Senate

Assistant Attorney General Tom Perez's bid to be the next Labor secretary might have passed the first hurdle in the Senate, but Republicans are still strongly opposed to the nomination.

The U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions voted Thursday to move Perez's nomination to the full Senate for consideration. The committee vote was delayed twice by Republicans, who said they wanted more information about Perez. Critics have hinted at the possibility of using a filibuster to block a confirmation vote before the full Senate.

The 12-10 vote yesterday was along party lines, with several Republicans noting their objections. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the committee's ranking member, said he was troubled by a review of Perez's actions as chief of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division since 2009. An recent DOJ inspector general's report found politics in the division was affecting the division from working efficiently.

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."

The Morning Wrap

Immigration Reform: Prospects for passage of a major immigration bill have improved after a bipartisan group of lawmakers in the House of Representatives on Thursday declared they had reached a tentative deal, Reuters reports.

Smear Campaign?: Months after the FBI began probing allegations against Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), investigators are looking at whether someone set out to smear him, the Washington Post reports. Three Dominican women said in court documents in March that they had been paid to make up stories about Menendez paying them for sex.

Med-Mal Truce: In Georgia, physicians and plaintiffs’ lawyers have declared a narrow truce. The state has enacted the nation’s first “provider shield” statute, which aims to protect doctors from malpractice suits based on payment-policy standards established by the Affordable Care Act, Bloomberg Businessweek reports.

Unsealed Opinion Offers Few Clues on Mayoral Probe

Updated at 4:31 p.m.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit today unsealed a ruling in a dispute that features a prominent Washington businessman who’s caught up in an investigation of corruption in the 2010 mayoral campaign.

Jeffrey Thompson, who has not been charged with a crime, is one of several individuals under scrutiny for possible campaign finance violations during Mayor Vincent Gray's 2010 mayoral run; Gray (D) has not been charged with a crime. Thompson is being investigated in connection with an unlawful $650,000 "shadow campaign" that supported Gray.

Thompson appealed a trial judge's order rejecting his challenge to the government's plan to review evidence seized last year from his home and office. The redacted opinion didn't offer new information about the case or the status of the grand jury investigation. But the decision did include a few hints as to Thompson's legal defense strategies, at least in the minds of the judges. (The opinion doesn’t mention Thompson by name, but he was identified as the subject of the proceedings in trial court documents.)

At D.C. Circuit, Contractor Case Merits Take Backseat

Lawyers for the Federal Election Commission and government contractors on Thursday argued in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit over a law that forbids the contract holders from making federal campaign donations. The merits of the case, however, took a backseat.

The panel—Senior Judge Douglas Ginsburg and judges Thomas Griffith and Karen Henderson—focused most of their time on the court's jurisdiction to even hear the dispute.

The judges questioned, for example, whether the full appeals court has exclusive original jurisdiction to hear a constitutional challenge to the Federal Election Campaign Act. The government contractors brought their case against the donations prohibition to the U.S. District Court for the District Columbia, where a trial judge upheld the ban in November. The contract holders appealed.

Prosecutor, Two Judges Recommended for Superior Court

A federal prosecutor, magistrate judge and administrative law judge are being considered by the White House for a vacancy on the District of Columbia Superior Court.

The District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Commission, a local body that vets applicants for vacancies on the city's local courts, announced late yesterday it had recommended Assistant U.S. Attorney Ann Marie Carroll, Superior Court Magistrate Judge William Nooter and Administrative Law Judge Steven Wellner to take Superior Court Judge A. Franklin Burgess Jr.'s seat. Burgess is retiring in August and seeking senior status.

President Barack Obama will have 60 days to select a nominee. He can choose from the latest group of recommended lawyers, or any lawyer already sent up by the commission for consideration to fill other pending vacancies.

Senate Judiciary Approves Sri Srinivasan for D.C. Circuit

Updated 3:51 p.m.

The Senate Judiciary Committee gave unanimous approval to Sri Srinivasan to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, clearing the way for him to be the first new judge on the panel since 2006.

Srinivasan’s nomination now heads to the Senate for a full vote. Srinivasan, if he’s confirmed, would fill one of four vacancies on the D.C. Circuit. Despite the 18-0 vote of the committee, Republicans have signaled they’re not interested in adding any more judges to the appeals court.

Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) introduced legislation in April that would eliminate three spots on the D.C. Circuit. Other Republicans, including Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah), have signed onto the legislation. The D.C. Circuit would lose three judge positions under the plan.

Cool Music Soothes Supreme Court

If there is any tension among Supreme Court justices as they tackle the tough pending cases of their current term, it was nowhere to be seen Wednesday afternoon at the court's spring musicale.

As they have off and on since 1988, justices took time off for an afternoon to bask in top-notch musical performances by internationally known artists in the court's East Conference Room. Usually, the talent is drawn from the classical and operatic world. But the justices have also heard memorable jazz and cabaret-style performances by the likes of Bobby Short and Marian McPartland.

Wednesday's performance may have topped them all, with renowned cabaret and concert singer Barbara Cook making an appearance, backed up by famed jazz sidemen including guitarist John Pizzarelli. Pizzarelli's wife Jessica Molaskey was the warm-up singer before Cook performed. In introducing the ensemble, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg called Pizzarelli "incomparably cool." Ginsburg, perhaps the court's greatest music fan ever, has presided over the musicales since 2002, taking over from Sandra Day O'Connor who had picked up after the departure of the tradition's founder, Justice Harry Blackmun.

The Morning Wrap

Hearing: Attorney General Eric Holder testified on Capitol Hill Wednesday, and Congress had its choice of scandal to choose from. Our own Todd Ruger reports on the four-hour hearing.

Resignation: The acting commissioner of the IRS resigned Wednesday amid the investigation into whether employees unfairly targeted conservative groups. The Washington Post reports.

Twister: A tornado struck parts of north Texas Wednesday, resulting in multiple deaths. The Dallas Morning News reports.

Benghazi: The White House released emails Wednesdays related to the administration's reaction to the attack in Benghazi that killed four Americans. Reuters reports that the administration hopes to resolve the controversy. 

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.

Daily D.C. Lateral Roundup

A former associate at Williams & Connolly has moved to The Kaiser Law Firm’s Washington office.

Rebecca LeGrand has joined as a partner in the firm’s commercial litigation practice. She focuses on intellectual property, securities matters and white collar criminal defense. Her experience includes working on matters of commercial litigation like cases involving securities fraud, bank fraud, government contracts, intellectual property, unfair trade practices and breach of contract claims.

Prior to joining Williams & Connolly, LeGrand was an associate at Robbins, Russell, Englert, Orseck, Untereiner & Sauber. She also worked in the Office of the Federal Public Defender for the District of Maryland.

FTC Warns Companies of Children's Privacy Violations

Don't say they didn't warn you. The Federal Trade Commission today sent letters to more than 90 businesses, informing them that they could potentially be in violation of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act when changes to the law go into effect on July 1.

The FTC contacted both domestic and foreign companies making mobile apps that may be directed at children under age 13 about revisions to the privacy rule to "help ensure you are aware of those changes and your compliance responsibilities."

The two-page letter, signed by Maneesha Mithal, associate director of the Division of Privacy and Identity Protection, is quick to note that the FTC has "not yet evaluated your apps or your company's practices." Instead, the letter serves more as a heads-up about new standards for personal information collected from children.

Business Roundtable Enlists Wilmer to Lobby on Trade

The leading association of U.S. chief executive officers has turned to an international trade lawyer at Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr for lobbying assistance in Washington, according to lobbying registration paperwork filed with Congress on Tuesday.

Business Roundtable has hired Wilmer counsel David Ross to lobby for it on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership agreements. President Barack Obama announced in his State of the Union address in February that his administration intends to start talks on transatlantic free trade, while the United States and nine other nations already are participating in discussions for the pan-Pacific free trade pact.

Ross also is advocating for Business Roundtable on the reauthorization of the trade promotion authority, the White House's power to send trade deals to Congress for expedited approval. The authority expired in 2007.

Federal Courts Ask for Emergency Funding

Updated 1:21 p.m.

Federal courts officials have asked Congress for emergency funding, saying the judiciary does not have the budget flexibility to absorb the large mandatory budget cuts that have caused furloughs in the nation's federal public defender and court offices.

In a letter sent Tuesday to the White House Office of Management and Budget, the U.S. Judicial Conference said the courts need an emergency appropriation of $73 million—$41 million for federal public defenders and $32 million for court operations. The money would save 550 jobs in public defender and clerk offices, and prevent 24,000 furlough days for 5,000 employees, the letter states.

The judicial conference request also connected the emergency funding to the Boston Marathon bombing, saying $5 million for projected representation costs "for high-threat trials, including high-threat cases in New York and Boston" that federal public defenders would have been able to absorb had the sequester not happened.

Benin Ambassador Fires Back at Arent Lobbying Client

Benin's ambassador to the United States has fired back at an Arent Fox client who is accused of plotting to assassinate the West African nation's president and overthrow its government.

In a May 7 news release, Benin Ambassador Cyrille Oguin said Beninese businessman Patrice Talon hired the Washington office of Arent to "damage" the reputation of the country and its president, Thomas Boni Yayi. The dispatch came less than a month after Arent filed lobbying registration paperwork with Congress to promote "respect for the rule of law in Benin" on behalf of Talon, who has lived in Paris since Beninese authorities accused him and three others of planning to poison the president.

Oguin asked for restraint as Talon's case proceeds. This month, a Paris appellate court is expected to rule on whether to extradite Talon.

"Therefore, any parallel activity intended to affect the credibility of Justice and Benin would seriously undermine the ongoing proceedings and is considered as null and void," Oguin said. "The Government of the Republic of Benin invites all its partners to trust fully Benin's justice to hold a fair trial."

The Morning Wrap

Defending: Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. says he's confident prosecutors didn't botch any guidelines in the collection of phone records from The Associated Press, telling reporters that the investigation of a leak required "very aggressive" action. The National Law Journal has this report on the flap over the subpoenas. Holder told NPR that he's unsure how many media subpoenas he has authorized. POLITICO reports here on Holder's reemergence in the national spotlight.

Back again: "In the aftermath of a national tragedy, Kenneth R. Feinberg has become the essential man," The New York Times reports today. Feinberg has been a central figure in dividing up victim compensation funds following major catastrophes.

Pause button: A candidate for Brooklyn district attorney wants CBS to delay airing a reality series about the office's work under the leadership of Charles Hynes. The challenger, Abraham George, says the program would run afoul of election finance laws. "We are surprised that this candidate would not know about the First Amendment," a CBS spokesman said. "This is obviously a publicity push by a politician."

The limit: The National Transportation Safety Board is recommending states cut drunk-driving thresholds from .08 to .05. "The proposal, among others by the board, faces a long road before, if ever, becoming the law of the land. It took more than 20 years for all the states to act after the NTSB recommended reducing the drunk driving threshold in 1982," according to a report in The Baltimore Sun.

Q&A: Latham & Watkins' Alice Fisher

In the 35 years since Latham & Watkins established its Washington presence, the firm has grown from an outpost to one of the 10 largest offices in the District. At the helm is Alice Fisher, managing partner of Washington office since March 2011.

A common thread among many of the attorneys in the office is that they have served in various high-level government positions. Fisher is no exception. She joined the firm in 1996, and decamped for the Department of Justice in July 2001 to serve as the deputy assistant attorney general of the Criminal Division. She rejoined the firm in October 2003, only to leave once more for Main Justice to serve as assistant attorney general of the Criminal Division in September 2005. She returned a second time to the firm in 2008.

Fisher focuses on white-collar matters, particularly criminal and internal investigations. Her clients include the NCAA, the Hospital Corporation of America and Eli Lilly & Co. Legal Times sat down with Fisher earlier this month to discuss firm business, the DOJ Criminal Division and diversity in the legal community.

AG Holder ‘Confident’ DOJ Followed Rules in AP Phone Review

Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. revealed Tuesday he was not involved with a controversial decision to subpoena Associated Press phone records as part of an investigation into a leak of classified information.

Holder, addressing reporters at a press conference about a health care fraud enforcement matter, said he recused from the investigation after the FBI interviewed him during the course of the leak probe. Deputy Attorney General James Cole made the decision to subpoena toll records from 20 phone lines of reporters and editors at the Associated Press.

Holder, however, stopped short of criticizing the decision during a flurry of questions from reporters. He said he was confident the issuance of the subpoena was in accordance to Justice Department guidelines concerning the collection of evidence from reporters.

"I'm not familiar with all that went in to the formulation of the subpoena," Holder said. "But I’m confident that the people who are involved in this investigation, who I've known for a great umber of years and who I've worked with for a great number of years, followed all of the appropriate Justice Department regulations and did things according to DOJ rules."

After Holder's remarks, the Justice Department issued a letter from Cole, to the AP chief executive, Gary Pruitt, that tried to allay concerns the department overstepped its authority.

"We understand your position that these subpoenas should have been more narrowly drawn, but in fact, consistent with Department policy, the subpoenas were limited in both time and scope," Cole said.

Cole noted that the subpoenas, which cover a two-month period in 2012, did not seek the content of any call. He said the "records have been closely held and reviewed solely for the purposes of this ongoing criminal investigation. The records have not been and will not be provided for use in any other investigations."

The Associated Press flap comes amid reports that the IRS had used political criteria to target conservative groups for extra scrutiny on applications from tax-exempt organizations. At Tuesday’s press conference, Holder announced that he had ordered a criminal investigation Friday into whether the IRS had broken any laws.

Holder also revealed Tuesday that the White House and Justice Department are looking at candidates for a senior official on the detention base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, part of a broader effort to close the controversial base that houses terrorism suspects and others.

Check back at NLJ.com later today for more on the Justice Department’s secret review of the Associated Press phone records.

Daily D.C. Lateral Move: Jones Day; Holland & Knight; Drinker Biddle & Reath; Paley Rothman

Jones Day has added a former DOJ trial lawyer to the Washington office.

J. Andrew Jackson has joined as a partner in the government regulation practice. Previously, he was a partner in Dickstein Shapiro’s Washington office where he led the False Claims Act investigations and defense practice. Prior to that, he has served as a U.S. Department of Justice trial lawyer in False Claims Act and government contract litigation.

Jackson has defended clients against fraud and false claims allegations and litigated affirmative claims against the government. He also has experience in complex commercial litigation, including class action defense in pharmaceuticals, software, technology, engineering, construction, and shipbuilding industries.

Nokia Taps Alston Lobbyists to Help with Trade Agency

Nokia Inc. has called on a former U.S. senator and three of her colleagues at Alston & Bird in Washington to help it with the U.S. International Trade Commission, according to lobbying registration paperwork filed with Congress on Monday.

The Finnish cellphone maker has enlisted former Senator Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.), a special policy adviser at Alston, along with senior policy adviser Robert Holifield, counsel William Anaya and partner Robert Jones. Anaya is a co-leader of Alston's political law practice. Jones is the head of the firm's legislative and public policy group.

They are lobbying on unspecified policy matters concerning intellectual property rights cases before the ITC. The federal agency can order U.S. Customs and Border Protection to block infringing products from entering the United States.

Anaya declined to comment.

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

Brothers in Cabinet: Commerce Department General Counsel Cameron Kerry may be one half of a historical duo when he becomes acting secretary of commerce at the end of this month, The Washington Post reports. Along with his brother Secretary of State John Kerry, it could be the first time that two brothers served in the Cabinet at the same time.

IRS Scandal: A growing controversy in Washington involving the Internal Revenue Service could mean big changes in the way the agency regulates the political activity of tax-exempt organizations, election law experts told The National Law Journal.

Bean Ruling: A unanimous U.S. Supreme Court that is often skeptical of patents embraced a key seed patent on Monday in the case of a Monsanto Co. soybean variety that was being replicated by savvy farmers, Tony Mauro reports for The National Law Journal. The decision in the closely watched case Bowman v. Monsanto Co. may have its biggest impact in biotechnology, where self-replicating techniques are often used in research as well as commerce.

DOJ Defends Review of Associated Press Phone Records

Updated 11:20 p.m.

The U.S. Justice Department is defending its review of two months of phone records for a group of reporters and editors at the Associated Press, which called the government action "a massive and unprecedented intrusion" into newsgathering.

The news agency publicly disclosed the Justice Department's review of the phone records in a protest letter to Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. "There can be no possible justification for such an overbroad collection of the telephone communications of The Associated Press and its reporters," Gary Pruitt, president and chief executive officer of the AP, wrote.

"That the Department undertook this unprecedented step without providing any notice to the AP, and without taking any steps to narrow the scope of its subpoenas to matters actually relevant to an ongoing investigation, is particularly troubling," Pruitt said. Prosecutors collected records on 20 separate phone lines.

A statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia did not reveal the nature of the investigation. The Justice Department, however, has previously disclosed that the Maryland and District of Columbia U.S. attorneys are investigating, among other national security matters, the leak of information that provided the substance of an Associated Press story, published in May 2012, about an alleged terrorist plot that was thwarted.

Members of Congress on Wednesday will get a chance to question Holder about the rare move to subpoena newspaper reporters' phone records. Holder is scheduled to testify at the House Judiciary Committee for an oversight hearing.

Generic Drug Manufacturer Settles Claims for $500 Million

Updated 5:40 p.m.

A team of Venable attorneys represented drug maker Ranbaxy USA, Inc. in a $500 million settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice, marking one of the biggest drug safety deals ever with a generic drug manufacturer.

Ranbaxy USA, the U.S. subsidiary of Indian generic pharmaceutical manufacturer Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited, pleaded guilty today in federal district court in Maryland to charges rooted in the manufacture and distribution of adulterated drugs made in India. Ranbaxy is India's largest generic pharmaceutical company.

The company agreed to pay a criminal penalty of $150 million in addition to another $350 million to resolve civil claims under the False Claims Act and other state laws. Venable partners W. Warren Hamel, Geoffrey Garinther and Winifred Weitsen represented Ranbaxy.

Hamel is co-chair of the firm’s SEC and white-collar defense practice, and Garinther leads the firm’s litigation division. Weitsen practices in the firm’s SEC and white-collar defense group. Hamel directed a request for comment to the company.

"We are pleased to continue bringing safe, effective and quality medicines to market for the benefit of consumers in the U.S. and other parts of the world," Ranbaxy CEO and managing director Arun Sawhney said in a written statement. "While we are disappointed by the conduct of the past that led to this investigation, we strongly believe that settling this matter now is in the best interest of all of Ranbaxy’s stakeholders; the conclusion of the DOJ investigation does not materially impact our current financial situation or performance."

Assistant U.S. Attorney Stuart Berman, with senior litigation counsel Linda Marks and trial attorney Perham Gorji—both of the Justice Department’s consume protection branch—represented the government in the criminal case against Ranbaxy.

“This is the largest false claims case ever prosecuted in the District of Maryland, and the nation’s largest financial penalty paid by a generic pharmaceutical company for FDCA violations,” Maryland U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein said in a statement. “The joint criminal and civil settlement, which reflects many years of work by FDA agents and federal prosecutors, holds Ranbaxy accountable for a pattern of violations and should improve the reliability of generic drugs manufactured in India by Ranbaxy.”

According to the settlement agreement, from April 2003 through September 2010 Ranbaxy allegedly knowingly manufactured, distributed and sold certain drugs that were different strengths and purity and therefore not made according to federal standards. The drugs originated in two of the company's facilities in India. The separate drugs in question were used to treat epilepsy and nerve pain and recalcitrant nodular acne. A third was a broad-spectrum antibiotic.

On the civil side, Ranbaxy will pay $350 million under the False Claims Act over allegations the company caused false claims to be submitted to government health care programs—including Medicaid and Medicare—from April 2003 to September 2010. The federal government gets $231.8 million, and the rest--$118.2 million—is headed for states that are participating in the settlement.

Part of the federal settlement—$48.6 million—is going to whistleblower Dinesh Thakur, a former Ranbaxy executive. Thakur filed a qui tam suit in 2007 in Maryland federal district court. The Justice Department intervened in the case on May 10 for the purpose of a settlement.

Thakur was represented by Stein Mitchell Muse & Cipollone partner Andrew Beato, who wasn’t immediately reached for comment this afternoon.

Dentons Unveils Global Consulting Venture

Updated at 2:59 p.m.

Within three months of its formation, Dentons announced last week that it has partnered with a consultancy to help clients with crisis management and international expansion.

Dentons, which launched in March with the combination of SNR Denton, Salans and Fraser Milner Casgrain, has joined with advisory firm Wirthlin Worldwide International to create Wirthlin, a Dentons Innovation Group Partnership. The venture is the first initiative of Dentons Innovation Group US, a subsidiary of the law firm.

Washington-based Dentons partner and innovation strategy director John Fernandez is handling the partnership with Wirthlin Worldwide managing directors Richard Wirthlin and Scott Ogilvie in Beverly Hills, Calif., and Michael Silva in D.C.

In Commencement Address, Verrilli Offers Lessons Learned

Solicitor General Donald Verrilli Jr. on Friday offered some words of advice for the graduating class of the University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law.

“First, expect some adversity to come your way, you are going to get knocked down,” Verrilli, the commencement speaker, told the class. “It happens to everyone; it certainly happened to me and you could be pretty sure it is going to happen to you."

Verrilli, the U.S. Justice Department’s top Supreme Court advocate, addressed the graduating class for about ten minutes. There wasn’t any mention of the recent high-profile cases he’s argued—including the Affordable Care Act and same-sex marriage—or any of the criticism aimed at him. Verrilli was more philosophical in his talk.

D.C. Circuit Weighs Child Pornography Restitution Case

The thorny question of how to calculate restitution to victims of child pornography came back before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit last week, with the U.S. Department of Justice defending a proposed formula.

Friday's arguments marked the second time the court considered the case of Michael Monzel. Monzel pleaded guilty to one count each of distribution and possession of child pornography. A trial judge ordered Monzel to pay $5,000 to a victim known by the pseudonym "Amy," but on remand from the D.C. Circuit reduced the award to zero, finding the government didn't produce evidence on how much of Amy's losses he caused.

The government appealed, arguing U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler was wrong to reduce the award and that its proposed formula – dividing a victim's total losses by the number of individuals found criminally responsible and then adjusting based on certain factors – represented a fair solution. Monzel's lawyer, Federal Public Defender A.J. Kramer, said the formula was arbitrary and that Kessler was right to reduce the award after the government presented no evidence linking his client to specific losses.

This Week in The National Law Journal

Foreign Corrupt Practices Act: Lawyers and former federal prosecutors say deferred and nonprosecution agreements are becoming more common as companies realize cooperation and compliance with FCPA regulations could lead to reduced fines and spare them criminal actions. Amanda Bronstad has the story.

Cold War Court Plan: Tony Mauro reports on new historical research that offers insight into the U.S. Supreme Court's perceived indifference to making disaster contingency plans. During the Cold War era, the court dropped plans to relocate to Asheville, N.C., in the face of a nuclear threat.

Toyota's 'Crown Jewels': Lawyers with cases against Toyota are pushing for access to the company's "crown jewels": the source software code behind the electronics of its vehicles, which almost no one has seen. Amanda Bronstad reports.

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.