On Monday, an unusual situation at the Supreme Court came to light: while Kannon Shanmugam of Paul Weiss was listed as counsel of record in a case, the argument was presented by Elizabeth Prelogar of Cooley. The switch raised questions about the reasoning behind the decision.
At the time, I wrote,
"There must be more to the story."That hunch proved correct.
Today, it was confirmed that Kannon Shanmugam, along with Masha Hansford, have moved from Paul Weiss to Davis Polk. A rumor of the move had surfaced after my initial post, and it has now been officially verified.
While this transition sheds some light on the situation, it does not fully explain why Shanmugam—or someone from Paul Weiss—did not argue the case. There may still be additional details to uncover.
In a related development, Jeff Wall and several other partners have transitioned from Sullivan & Cromwell to Gibson Dunn.
The shifting of legal talent between top firms continues to make waves in the legal world.
Related articles
Justice Alito’s Dissent Footnotes: Why the Unusual Formatting?
Enough about the merits of Danco. Let's talk about the formatting. Usually when an opinion has one footnote, it is not numbered. Rather, there is simp...
How Recent Supreme Court Rulings Reshape Constitutional Law Education and Practice
Randy Barnett and I are nearing completion of the Fifth Edition of our Constitutional Law casebook. We are still waiting for the last batch of cases f...
Supreme Court Blocks Restrictions on Abortion Pill Access via Mail and Telehealth
In a fast-moving case that threatened to decimate access to abortion pills nationwide, the Supreme Court has hit pause on a federal appeals court’s at...
New Study Challenges Supreme Court's Fourth Amendment Curtilage Rulings: Public Perceptions vs. Legal Doctrine
I'm very happy to post a draft of a new article, "Popular Conceptions of Fourth Amendment Curtilage," written together with my co-author Matthew Kugle...
Border Patrol Chief Mike Banks Resigns Amid Sexual Misconduct Allegations
The Trump administration’s immigration operation is experiencing another major shakeup.U.S. Border Patrol Chief Mike Banks suddenly resigned from his...
FDA Subpoena Battle: Rhode Island Hospital Challenges HIPAA Order Over Gender Dysphoria Drug Prescriptions
The Food and Drug Administration opened an investigation of medical facilities that prescribe "off label" drugs to minors with gender dysphoria. The F...
The Roberts Court’s Antipreemption Shift: How the Supreme Court is Rejecting Corporate-Friendly Preemption Claims
The Roberts Court is often derided as a pro-corporation Court. I've lost count of how many stories measure the Chamber of Commerce's success rate befo...
North Dakota Court Rejects Foreign Islamic Divorce Recognition in Landmark Case
From a decision last year in Ali v. Osman, from Judge Stephanie Hayden (N.D. Cass County Dist. Ct.); I just learned about it because it's on appeal to...