Wake Up Call: DOJ’s Blanche Won’t Recommend Pardon for Maxwell

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

• Todd Blanche said the Justice Department won’t recommend a pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell. The acting attorney general made the commitment during Senate testimony after being asked whether DOJ would back clemency for the convicted sex trafficker, whom Blanche personally interviewed last year as part of the department’s Epstein investigation. His statement addresses only the department’s recommendation, not President Donald Trump’s ultimate pardon power. (Axios)
• Pennsylvania allows court-appointed lawyers handling post-conviction cases to argue against their own clients and withdraw by filing “no-merit” letters, a ProPublica and Philadelphia Inquirer investigation found. Reviewing overturned Philadelphia convictions and sentences, the newsrooms identified at least 50 cases in which appointed lawyers said there was no valid basis for relief, only for courts later to grant new trials or hearings. (ProPublica)
• A single donor’s multimillion-dollar contribution could reshape the Republican runoff for Texas attorney general. The New York Times reports that Amarillo businessman Alex Fairly poured $2.75 million into a political action committee supporting Rep. Chip Roy for the post long held by Ken Paxton. (New York Times)
• Fox Rothschild has pre-leased space at a new Steve Ross office project in downtown West Palm Beach. The firm signed a 10-year lease for nearly 17,300 square feet at 15 CityPlace, a 490,000-square-foot building expected to be completed next year. (The Real Deal)

Laterals, Moves, In-House

• Latham & Watkins hired Kirkland & Ellis partner Carson Young as a partner in Houston to boost its expanding complex commercial litigation practice.
• Amanda Gill joined DLA Piper as a partner in its corporate practice in New York.
• Cheryl O’Connor joined Goodwin as a partner in its complex litigation and dispute resolution practice in the Orange County, Calif. office.
• Meredith Halama joined Cooley LLP as a partner in its global cyber/data/privacy group in Washington, DC.
• Sarah Burke joined Holland & Knight as a partner in its executive compensation and benefits team in New York.
• Matthew McCullough joined Faegre Drinker as a partner in its intellectual property group in San Francisco.
• Edward Schenk joined Fisher Phillips as a partner in its labor and employment law practice in Raleigh.
• Stuart Glick joined Bracewell LLP as a partner in its real estate special situations practice in New York.