Howie Erichson
@howarderichson.bsky.social
Law professor at Fordham, teaching and writing about civil procedure, complex litigation, torts, and legal ethics.
Commentary from the always-thoughtful Ben Zipursky on why Cornyn must say no to Blanche. www.law.com/texaslawyer/...
Senator Cornyn, Attorney Blanche, and Self-Respect | Law.com
Like him or not, Cornyn has a stronger claim than almost anyone in the Senate to being a true lawyer-statesman. Candidate Blanche could not be further from this.
law.com
Thoughtful commentary today from my brilliant co-author Maria Glover about the Supreme Court's consolidation of power. www.ms.now/opinion/supr...
Opinion | The authoritarian power play is happening at the Supreme Court
J. Maria Glover: The Supreme Court has been seizing power for itself — from the lower courts, from Congress and from the voters. These are not scattered rulings; they are one move, made over and over.
ms.now
We need a strong Supreme Court that protects democratic institutions, upholds the rule of law, and safeguards individual rights. But this Court no longer operates as the framers envisioned, nor as it should. Here are six reforms that Congress can enact now: bit.ly/4dbN1qI
Six Solutions to Fix the Supreme Court
Congress must return the Court to its proper place in the U.S. constitutional system.
brennancenter.org
Prominent appellate lawyer Kannon Shanmugam is leaving Paul Weiss for Davis Polk & Wardwell.
Top Paul Weiss Litigator Shanmugam Bolts for Rival Davis Polk
Prominent appellate lawyer Kannon Shanmugam is leaving Paul Weiss for Davis Polk & Wardwell.
bit.ly
I'm looking forward to participating in this @cardozolaw.bsky.social symposium about @eburch.bsky.social's important new book about the darker sides of mass tort litigation.
A fixed schedule for Supreme Court appointments would reduce political manipulation and make the Court more representative. bit.ly/4bZbVIk
Term Limits Depoliticize the Supreme Court
A fixed schedule for appointments would reduce political manipulation and make the Court more representative.
brennancenter.org
A federal judge said the American Bar Association can proceed with a lawsuit alleging President Donald Trump's administration adopted an unlawful policy to punish law firms over their past legal work, diversity policies and political ties @mikescarcella.bsky.social reut.rs/4m6F2Oz
Not spicy, but very important for lawyers. CA5 holds (again) that the failure to file Rule 50(a) and Rule 50(b) motions bars *all* appellate review of evidentiary sufficiency, including under the plain error standard. www.ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions/pub...
![Briar Capital now appeals the jury verdict based on legal insufficiency
of the evidence. But because Briar Capital admittedly failed to file motions
under Federal Rules of Procedure 50(a) and 50(b), it has waived appellate
review of the sufficiency of the evidence. See Downey v. Strain, 510 F.3d 534,
543–44 (5th Cir. 2007) (citing Unitherm Food Sys., Inc. v. Swift-Eckrich, Inc.,
546 U.S. 394, 400–01 (2006)). “[A] party who wishes to appeal on grounds
of insufficient evidence must make a Rule 50(b) motion for judgment as a
matter of law after the jury’s verdict . . . .” Ibid. (citing Unitherm, 546 U.S. at
400–01); see also Marquette Transp. Co. Gulf-Inland, L.L.C. v. Navigation
Mar. Bulgare JSC, 87 F.4th 678, 686–87 (5th Cir. 2023). Briar Capital’s
failure to do so leaves us “powerless to review the sufficiency of the
evidence.” Johnson v. Moring, No. 24-30385, 2025 WL 1984266, at *2 (5th
Cir. July 17, 2025); see also Arvie v. Diamond Offshore Drilling, Inc., 349 F.
App’x 868, 869 n.1 (5th Cir. 2009) (“In the absence of [a Rule 50(a) or (b)]
motion, an appellate court may not review a jury verdict in a civil action.”).](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:b2zlnxrfackjw5h3lbemyqg5/bafkreihnkfdukgr4befmpfk76hje657qiowwdtaqo3vaerm43xhv26rh6y)
Go Susman! Glad to see a great firm defying the short-sighted and harmful recent trend of pushing the hiring process for 2L summer associate positions into the 1L year. Students should respect this move, and other firms should follow Susman's lead. www.susmangodfrey.com/news/susman-...
Susman Godfrey Defies BigLaw’s Recruiting Frenzy with Applicant-First Summer Program | Susman Godfrey L.L.P.
Susman Godfrey, the nation’s premier trial firm, is taking a unique approach to 2L summer associate hiring. BigLaw has been pushing hiring decisions earlier and earlier, forcing students to choose whe...
susmangodfrey.com
In my other life as a songwriter, my new song "The Elephant" was just released! Collaborator Racquel Roberts and I, with a team of phenomenal musicians, created a funk rock song about a couple with something they do not talk about. Give it a listen! open.spotify.com/track/1INoU7...
The Elephant
open.spotify.com
The judge upheld the jury verdict holding J&J liable for $16 million in compensatory damages, but granted JNOV as to punitive damages (wiping out a staggering $950 million punitives verdict) because the evidence could not support a clear-and-convincing finding that J&J acted with malice.
Reuters Legal@legal.reuters.com · 5mo agoA California judge threw out a jury’s award directing Johnson & Johnson to pay nearly a billion dollars in punitive damages to the family of a woman who died from mesothelioma, a cancer they said was caused by the company’s talc products reut.rs/4uMZnfY
I continue to be grateful for judges and lawyers from all over the political spectrum who take law and truth seriously. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/29/u...
An Ethicist ‘in the Scalia Mold’: The Minnesota Judge Blasting ICE
nytimes.com
Wow, this is quite a speech by Canada's Mark Carney. It saddens me that my own country is squandering whatever claim it once had to a position of principled leadership in the world, but I take some comfort in hearing voices of reason among those in power elsewhere. globalnews.ca/news/1162087...
Read the full transcript of Carney’s speech to World Economic Forum - National | Globalnews.ca
Prime Minister Mark Carney gave a forceful speech in Davos, Switzerland, on the 'new world order' and how middle powers like Canada can benefit by working together.
globalnews.ca
Bill Nelson ran a seminar for people (like me) who wanted to learn how to be legal scholars. His teaching and support were key to my transition into the academic world, and I will be forever grateful. @nyulaw.bsky.social www.law.nyu.edu/news/in-memo...
In Memoriam: William Nelson ’65
William E. Nelson ’65, Judge Edward Weinfeld Professor of Law Emeritus, died on December 13, Dean Troy McKenzie ’00 has announced. “Bill was a defining member of the NYU Law community whose presence h...
law.nyu.edu
BREAKING: The Justice Department again fails to re-indict New York Attorney General Letitia James, an AP source says.
Justice Department again fails to re-indict New York Attorney General Letitia James, AP source says
A grand jury has declined for a second time to re-indict New York Attorney General Letitia James, refusing to resurrect a mortgage fraud prosecution encouraged by President Donald Trump, according to a person familiar with the matter.
bit.ly
BREAKING: Mark Wolf, appointed to the federal bench by Ronald Reagan, writes that he is resigning as a judge to have the freedom to speak out against the president's assault on the rule of law. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
US judge rejects Capital One $425 million settlement with depositors reut.rs/49MB2hY
US judge rejects Capital One $425 million settlement with depositors
A federal judge rejected Capital One's $425 million settlement with depositors who said they were cheated out of high interest rates, saying the payout was too small and millions of account holders would continue to be short-changed.
reut.rs
It's good to see jurors serving their historic role as bulwarks against tyranny and prosecutorial overreach. apple.news/AmKELOTvVQua...
Jury finds D.C. ‘sandwich guy’ not guilty of assaulting officer — The Washington Post
Sean C. Dunn admitted he flung the hoagie at a federal agent. His attorneys called it a “harmless gesture” of protest as Trump commandeered D.C. police.
apple.news
This editorial is well supported and well expressed. On the topics I know best--higher education and rule of law--it gets the story exactly right. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Opinion | In Trump’s America, Are We Losing Our Democracy?
Donald Trump has wielded power as no previous president has.
nytimes.com
Glad to see this. American universities have flourished because of their academic freedom. Viewpoint-based government interference is antithetical to great teaching and research. Resources are essential, but so is the freedom to pursue truth fearlessly. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/17/u...
Universities Are Standing Up to Trump
nytimes.com
It is so exciting that @binsky18.bsky.social has joined @pamelabookman.bsky.social and the rest of our fantastic team of civil procedure scholars at @fordhamlawnyc.bsky.social!
Fordham Law School@fordhamlawnyc.bsky.social · 10mo agoIn the latest installment of "The Big Idea" Q&A series, Fordham Law Professor Robin Effron (@binsky18), who joined the faculty this fall, discusses her most recent scholarship on the topic of how best to notify people when they are being sued or caught up in other legal proceedings. Read more:
A depressing read, but useful to get the collective wisdom of Republican & Democratic lawyers on threats to the rule of law. Particularly sad to see the devastation of DOJ's reputation. 'Bow to the Emperor’:We Asked 50 Legal Experts About the Trump Presidency www.nytimes.com/2025/10/06/m...
‘Bow to the Emperor’:We Asked 50 Legal Experts About the Trump Presidency
nytimes.com
Omg. I’ve never seen anything like this in a judicial opinion:
![Case 1:25-cv-10685-WGY Document 261
Filed 09/30/25
Page 1 of 161
Post card dated June 19, 2025
(On file in Chambers)
1 9/S UNE 2025
TRUMP HAS PARDONS
AND TANKS..
WHAT DO
You
HAVE?
Dear Mr. or Ms. Anonymous, Alone, I have nothing but my
sense of duty.
Together, We the People of the
United States -- you and me --have our magnificent Constitution.
Here's how that works out in a
specific case --
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS, AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS -- HARVARD FACULTY CHAPTER, AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS AT NEW
YORK UNIVERSITY, RUTGERS AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS-AMERICAN
FEDERATION OF TEACHERS, and
MIDDLE EAST STUDIES ASSOCIATION,
Plaintiffs,
)
CIVIL ACTION NO.
25-10685-WGY
v.
MARCO RUBIO, in his official capacity as Secretary of State, and the DEPARTMENT OF STATE, KRISTI NOEM, in her official
[1]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:t4x2ruk2qmob2b2cx55h4v7r/bafkreibgb7sngnmpepxj24x4zn5rg2ygsw2qtumcnpmbro24rbo5y2hf5m)
John Hawkinson@johnhawkinson.bsky.social · 10mo agoOMG this William G. Young opinion that just dropped (12:30pm) in AAUP v. Rubio. It begins with a postcard sent to Chambers and Young's reply card: "Trump has pardons and tanks, what do you have?" WGY: "We the People of the United States — you and me — have our magnificent Constitution"
Wow, judge strikes Trump's NYT complaint for violating Rule 8's "short & plain" instruction. That's a rare event, but correct: "As every lawyer knows (or is presumed to know), a complaint is not a public forum for vituperation and invective—not a protected platform to rage against an adversary."
I know it's frustrating when lawyers point out when something the administration is doing is not legal. But responding with "the law doesn't matter anymore" is really unhelpful and defeatist. Clarifying the law is important because it reminds us not to comply in advance and to resist and take action
In rebuke to Trump administration, judge rules for Harvard on many key issues in the funding cutoff cases. I’m glad the university held fast rather than buckling under to the bully. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
Grand jury won't indict Sandwich Guy! In the very city where rioters were pardoned for brutally attacking police officers on Jan 6, it's a way for citizens to show they understand irony and they understand throwing a sandwich in frustration at this invasion. www.nbcnews.com/politics/pol...
Grand jury declines to indict man who threw a sandwich at federal officer in D.C.
The former Justice Department employee who threw a sub at federal officers in Washington, and came to be known as "Sandwich Guy," was not indicted on a federal felony charge.
nbcnews.com
Today, Judge Xinis held a status conference in Kilmer Abrego Garcia's lawsuit challenging his impending removal to Uganda. @annabower.bsky.social reported from the conference, where Xinis barred the government from removing Abrego Garcia, at least until briefing on the petition is complete.
Judge Xinis Holds Status Conference in Abrego Garcia. v. Noem et al
Anna Bower reported from the conference, where Xinis barred the government from removing the defendant until briefing is complete.
lawfaremedia.org
