Wake Up Call: Michigan Plans to Ask Williams & Connolly for Help

Welcome to Bloomberg Law’s Wake Up Call, a daily rundown of the top news for lawyers, law firms, and in-house counsel.

• The University of Michigan is planning to consult with Williams & Connolly as the Big Ten conference decides whether to suspend football coach Jim Harbaugh in connection with an NCAA signal-stealing probe, multiple sources say. Michigan is also being investigated for alleged off-campus scouting violations. (ESPN)
• New York Mayor Eric Adams has hired WilmerHale to represent him in an FBI probe of fundraising activities by Adams’ campaign. Brendan McGuire recently returned to the firm after a stint as counsel in the mayor’s office. (New York Daily News)
• The New York State Bar Association has delayed a study into whether the state should allow “certificated paraprofessionals” to assist indigent clients with legal advice and representation in certain proceedings. A recommendation to vote immediately on the measure from a bar task force was rejected after it met with “some degree of opposition” from bar leaders. (Law.com)
• A lawyer with New York County Defender Services in Manhattan resigned after she was caught on video tearing down posters of hostages missing in the war between Israel and Hamas. Victoria Ruiz is also known for fronting a five-piece punk band called The Downtown Boys. (New York Post)

Laterals, Moves, In-house

• Barrett R. Howell has joined Blank Rome as a partner in the white collar defense and investigations group in Dallas, Texas.
• Matthew Howard has joined Kirkland & Ellis as a partner in the investment funds group. He joins from Fried Frank.
• Benjamin J. Sitter has joined Nelson Mullins LLP as a litigation partner in Pittsburgh, Pa.