Wake Up Call: Judges Openly Question DOJ Lawyers’ Credibility

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

• Judges question DOJ lawyers’ credibility. Federal judges in several recent cases have accused DOJ attorneys of withholding facts, making statements that didn’t match the record, or presenting incomplete information to the court. The criticism spans matters in Rhode Island, Chicago, and Tennessee, and includes concerns about grand jury transcripts, court filings, and testimony tied to major Trump administration priorities. The growing loss of confidence threatens a longstanding assumption that government lawyers can generally be trusted to deal candidly with federal judges. (New York Times)
• Meta’s gag order is reaching beyond its whistleblowers. The lawyer for former Meta executive Sarah Wynn-Williams says an arbitration ruling bars him as well as his client from promoting her memoir or criticizing the company. Attorney Ravi Naik said the order’s restrictions on Wynn-Williams and her “agents” left her unable to speak during a Hay Festival appearance and could expose them to steep penalties if they violated the ruling. (Guardian)
• An Iowa lawyer falsely claimed dementia to get off a case. Fred Blake Perkins was reprimanded after telling a court he was experiencing early onset dementia and could not competently handle legal research in an effort to withdraw from a court-appointed criminal matter. According to the disciplinary board, Perkins later acknowledged the claim had no medical basis, and a subsequent evaluation found no impairment affecting his ability to practice. (ABA Journal)

Laterals, Moves, In-House

• White & Case is bringing on five new partners as the firm looks to execute its ambitious growth strategy.
• Paul Feldberg joined Morgan Lewis as a partner in its litigation practice in London.
• Freshfields named Damien Zoubek as US regional managing partner after he served in a pivotal role growing the firm’s mergers and acquisitions practice in the states.
• Michael Darby joined Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison as a partner in its M&A group within the Corporate Department.
• Paul Weiss hired Akin Gump energy M&A partner Trent Bridges as a partner in Houston, bringing the firm’s talent footprint to double digits in the US energy capital.
• Jarel Rosser joined King & Spalding as a partner in its finance and restructuring practice group in New York.
• Iliana Karaoglan rejoined Weil, Gotshal & Manges as a partner in its mergers & acquisitions practice in New York.
• Peter Bergan joined Vinson & Elkins as a partner in its real estate industry practice in New York.
• Cravath Swaine & Moore is adding a longtime National Security Division official Michael Patrick Daly to its ranks in Washington after a string of partner departures earlier this year.
• Jeffrey Wolf rejoined O’Melveny as a partner in its mergers and acquisitions practice and private equity industry group in San Francisco.
• Allison K. Perry joined Bracewell as a partner in its tax department in Houston.
• Litigation boutique Keker, Van Nest & Peters appointed Jamie Slaughter as its new managing partner.
• Abhishek Kambli, a little more than two weeks from defending President Donald Trump’s executive orders targeting law firms in court, is joining GOP-aligned boutique Holtzman Vogel.
• The global investment firm Carlyle announced that Kate Heinzelman will join the firm as general counsel effective June 29.