Wake Up Call: Law School Offers Student Loans After Federal Cuts

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

• Washington University in St. Louis School of Law is tapping its own university’s funds to offer students $25,000 guaranteed annual loans after new federal borrowing limits altered the financial landscape for law students. WashU announced is the second US law school to offer direct loans since the federal government adopted ‌a $50,000 annual limit on professional student borrowing, following the University of Kansas School of Law. (Reuters)
• A routine probation hearing in Texas spiraled into a personal showdown between Judge Rosie Speedlin Gonzalez and defense attorney Elizabeth Russell after the judge accused Russell of coaching her client to change his plea. Speedlin Gonzalez ordered Russell handcuffed and placed in the jury box, and later vowed to bar her from practicing in the courtroom. (San Antonio Express News)
• Florida attorney Taylor Wayne Casey was suspended from practicing law for 18 months following a drunken 2023 incident in which he struck a police officer. Casey was arrested after reportedly acting unruly at a restaurant and allegedly flailing his arms and hitting an officer when police attempted to remove him. (The Florida Times-Union)

Laterals, Moves, In-House

• Exclusive: LeElle Slifer, John T. Sullivan, and Katrina Eash joined King & Spalding as litigation partners in Dallas. They join from Winston & Strawn.
• Aaron Russ joined Holland & Knight as a partner in its private investment funds team in Richmond. He joins from Morrison Foerster.
• Shan Haider joined Winston & Strawn as a partner in its transactions department in New York.
• Vlad Bulkin joined Proskauer as a partner in its private investment funds group. He joins from Katten Muchin Rosenman.
• Evan Carr joined Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani as a partner in its commercial litigation, appellate and trial practices in Indianapolis.
• Abbey Raish joined BCLP as a partner in its corporate transactions practice in Los Angeles. She joins from Kirkland & Ellis.
• Matthew Grant, Gail Holtzman, Carl Meyer and Letao Qin joined Pierson Ferdinand as partners.