Breaking Media

Governor Sarah Palin, the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee, announced today that she is resigning as governor of Alaska on July 25.

“We know we can effect positive change outside government at this moment in time on another scale and actually make a difference for our priorities,” said Palin. Check out her full statement here (PDF).

Palin may not be a lawyer, but she’s definitely a client. She owes more than $500,000 to the Alaska law firm of Clapp, Peterson, Van Flein, Tiemessen & Thorsness, which has defended her against various ethics complaints. Paying off her debt shouldn’t be a problem, thanks to the (surely lucrative) book deal negotiated for her by Williams & Connolly super-agent Robert Barnett (who spoke to ATL last September, when his firm hired appellate superstar Kannon Shanmugam).

We wish Governor Palin the best of luck in her future endeavors. Hopefully she will remain on the national stage for years to come.

Palin to Resign as Alaska Governor on July 25 [Washington Post]
Palin to Resign as Governor of Alaska [The Caucus / New York Times]

With the Fourth of July falling on a Saturday this year, it pains us to contemplate all the tacky red-white-and-blue themed weddings that will be taking place tomorrow in VFW halls across this great nation. Please, people: A little bunting goes a long way. And it should never go on the bridesmaids.

But we’ll tackle the Independence Day weddings next week. Today, we’ve got the last batch of June weddings. Here are the finalists:

1. Heidi Lee and Steven Hwang

2. Ahsaki Benion and Richard Habersham II

3. Kristin Campbell and Robert Samuelson

Read more about these newlyweds, after the jump.

ATL will be on a reduced publication schedule today, in observance of Independence Day. Most of you are out of the office, and we are too.

But not everyone has the day off. From one tipster:

While the rest of downtown Chicago is dead, away on vacation or taking the day off, Katten employees are hard at work today. The office demeanor is less than pleasant. Just another way for Katten to thank their hard working employees. Maybe we shouldn’t complain since those of us that work there still have jobs. Happy 4th of July!

Are you in the office today? Feel free to complain, in the comments.

If not, enjoy the three-day weekend. We’ll see you on Monday.

It appears that Mark A. Sargent’s abrupt resignation as dean of Villanova Law had nothing to do with the Peanut Girl controversy, or his more recent email faux pas.

It’s more likely that it had to do with an Eliot Spitzer problem: patronizing prostitutes. But at least the public-minded dean helped the police crack a local prostitution ring!

Ex-dean helped police, report says [Philadelphia Inquirer]

Earlier: Farewell, Dean Sargent: ‘Peanut Girl’ dean resigns at Villanova.

* Is the Urban Dictionary Above the Law? Not in America, baby! [True/Slant]

* How much of your taxpayer dollars goes to fund lawyers in the White House Counsel’s Office? Not much. Relatively speaking, not much at all. [The BLT: The Blog of the Legal Times]

* What kind of 4th of July parties is your firm sponsoring this year? [Legal Toast]

* Here are the 100 best blogs for those who want to change the world. [Best Universities]

* Now the DEA is involved in Michael Jackson’s death. What do you think you will hear more of this weekend, The Star Spangled Banner or Billy Jean? [Popsquire]

* Lori Drew has something extra to celebrate this weekend. [WSJ Law Blog]

Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law 3L Dave Johnston recently made a good showing on the online game show, “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?”

He’s not a millionaire, but thanks to his performance, and a little help from TruTV (formerly Court TV) anchor, Ashleigh Banfield, he is $50,000 richer. She was the celeb expert the show offered him for his “ask the expert” lifeline. He used it when he didn’t know the answer to “‘One woman writes a novel, another reads it, and the third lives it’ is the premise of what movie?”

His answer options were “A: Cold Mountain, B: The Hours, C: Memoirs of a Geisha, D: Atonement.” From the New York Post:

Banfield correctly told Johnston it was “The Hours,” which won him $16,000. He went on to win $50,000 and promised to take Banfield to lunch. Banfield told us, “He took me to Gus’ Place in the Village today and brought along friends from the office where he’s a summer intern. But since he’s using his winnings to pay the nearly $40,000 tuition for next semester, I picked up the check.”

We’re not impressed by Johnston’s lack of familiarity with chick flicks, but we are impressed by his finagling a celebrity lunch out of the experience. The moment was captured by his BlackBerry in the photo at right.

Johnston notes that Banfield was slightly off. His 3L tuition will be $44,000, not “nearly $40,000.” So he appreciated the free lunch even more. He tells us about it, after the jump.

$$$ US Marshals Seize Madoff Penthouse Property [CBS]

$$$ Sir Stanford’s request to unfreeze funds for legal fees denied [FTAlphaville]

$$$ Comment(s) of the Day:

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2009 11:37AM

The high collar says “I’m a sophisticated lady,” but the low cut screams “put it between the bags.”

And the response:

Posted by guest, Jul 02, 2009 11:39AM

@15 you think theyre big enough to TF? Looks like she might need to use the hand bridge.

$$$ Job of the Week: A hedge fund is looking for a “brilliant junior programmer.” You. [DB Career Center]

$$$ SlimJim Factory Explosion Causes Shortages Nationwide [NYP]

$$$ “Around October, when the economy went into free fall, a bunch of out-of-work finance guys in their 20s descended on Buenos Aires, where you can have the penthouse, the steak dinners and the bottle service at ridiculous nightclubs and still save money renting out your apartment in New York or London.

Lifestyle arbitrage, baby! The word got out, and the party built on itself, making the fantasy it offered all the more intoxicating: Come spend a month—or four—in Buenos Aires, where you really are a master of the universe, where nights are sleepless and potential business deals are all scams and the clubs teem with unemployed expat bankers looking for their identities in piles of cocaine and the bloodshot eyes of hookers and thieves.” [Playboy]

$$$ That’s it for us today. We’re off tomorrow, have a great weekend, Happy Fourth and if you happen to find yourself setting off illegal fireworks with Cliff Asness, we want to know!

If you’re at the office, you’re probably counting down the hours ‘til the holiday weekend kicks off. We think those hours pass more quickly with eye candy.

And today that comes to us from the Daily Mail in the form of Posh and Becks’ latest Emporio Armani ad campaign. As the paper notes, the large rope that was featured in David’s last solo venture makes repeat appearance.

But we’re more into Victoria’s hair (aside from their glistening bodies, that is.) We’re long-time fans of the high pony. And while we won’t be sporting one that sticks straight up in the air, we do rather like the idea of adding a braid.

Even you Beckham-haters have to admit they look pretty smokin’ right? We hope they keep doing these underwear ads for many seasons to come.