Trump-appointed judge argues against prosecutions of political candidates, this week's Legal Fee Tracker and more ??
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?? Good morning from The Legal File! Here is the rundown of today's top legal news:
?? Trump-appointed judge argues against prosecutions of political candidates
A conservative federal appeals court judge, who is seen as a potential U.S. Supreme Court nominee, warned on Nov. 14 about the need to ensure no one is ever charged on the "basis of their politics or on the status as a political candidate."
U.S. Circuit Judge Andrew Oldham, who Republican President-elect Donald Trump appointed to the New Orleans-based 5th Circuit Court of Appeals during his first term in office, spoke about the potential for prosecutors to abuse their ‘dangerous power’ to pick who they prosecute during a keynote speech that kicked off an annual gathering of conservative lawyers and judges in Washington hosted by the Federalist Society.
The conference came a week after Trump emerged as the winner of the Nov. 5 presidential election, defeating Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris. Republicans are also set to lead both chambers of Congress following the elections.
"And oh my gosh, how excited are we about last week's blowout victory? By which I obviously mean the University of Texas Longhorns beating Florida," Oldham, a Texas native, joked, prompting laughter and applause.
Oldham's speech focused on the need to defend the federal judiciary's independence against "attacks" and "reprisal from the legislative branch."
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?? Pressure mounts for release of Matt Gaetz congressional ethics report
President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for attorney general, Matt Gaetz, faced growing scrutiny from his fellow congressional Republicans on Nov. 14, with one saying he "absolutely" wants to review an unreleased report examining allegations of sexual misconduct.
Senator John Cornyn said he and other lawmakers should get access to the report by the House of Representatives Ethics Committee, which examined allegations of sexual misconduct and illicit drug use.
"I don't want there to be any limitation at all on what the Senate could consider," Cornyn told reporters. When asked if that means he wants to see the ethics report, he replied: “Absolutely.”
Cornyn holds a top spot on the Judiciary Committee, which will consider Gaetz's nomination next year. All 12 Democrats on the panel also said they should be able to see the Ethics Committee report.
A lawyer representing an alleged victim also called for the report to be made public.
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??No joke: the Onion parody website buys Alex Jones' Infowars out of bankruptcy
Like a headline lifted from the Onion, the parody news website is buying conspiracy theorist Alex Jones' Infowars in a bankruptcy auction.
The Onion said in a statement on Nov. 14 it aims to replace Infowars' "relentless barrage of disinformation" with the Onion's "noticeably less hateful disinformation."
"The Onion is proud to acquire Infowars, and we look forward to continuing its storied tradition of scaring the site’s users with lies until they fork over their cold, hard cash,” the Onion CEO Ben Collins said in a statement.
Financial terms were not disclosed, and are subject to future approval by a U.S. bankruptcy judge in Houston. Infowars' website was shut down on Nov. 14 and the Onion said it aimed to relaunch the platform in January.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez, who is overseeing Infowars' bankruptcy, said he had some concerns about the transparency of the auction at a court hearing on Nov. 14.
"I personally don't care who wins the auction," Lopez said. "I just care about the process."
?? Legal Fee Tracker: 3M earplug settlement lawyers inch closer to $540 mln payout
After reaching a $6.01 billion deal with 3M to settle the largest mass tort litigation in U.S. history, lawyers for the plaintiffs got a step closer this week to securing their own share of the settlement fund.
3M agreed to the settlement last August, resolving claims consolidated in Florida federal court that flaws with the company's earplugs caused hearing damage in hundreds of thousands of U.S. service members and veterans.
The plaintiffs' lead attorneys at Seeger Weiss; Aylstock, Witkin, Kreis & Overholtz; and Clark, Love & Hutson on Nov. 13 persuaded U.S. District Judge M. Casey Rodgers to maintain a 9% hold-back on the class funds, paving the way for them and about 60 other law firms in the case to be awarded common benefit fees.
In court papers, the firms said altogether they spent 364,000 hours and a ‘staggering amount of work and money’ on the sprawling multidistrict litigation. That included 16 trials, 10 of which the plaintiffs won, before the settlement was released last year.
The court and the lawyers must still hammer out how to distribute the legal fees that the court set aside, which amount to about $540 million. David Herndon, a retired federal judge who is aiding the court's oversight of the 3M litigation, said in an October report, recommending the continued 9% hold-back that the allocation procedures are being developed.
?? That's all for today, thank you for reading?The Legal File and have a great weekend!
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