Law And More

MIT's Richard Stallman - Career Interrupted, But Maybe Not for Long

Brilliant professionals can be very dumb about how the world really works. And that cluelessness can derail a successful career. At least temporarily.

MIT professor in the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory - Richard Stallman - has resigned. He should have known in this digital era to never put in email what you don't want the world to see and interpret as it wishes. After all, he had played every day in the tech sandbox. 

As the New York Post reports, in an email on MIT's listserv Stallman touched what has become the third rail: anything to do with Jeffrey Epstein. 

It was Vice which essentially broke this story.

On the listserv, Stallman attempted to defend MIT's background with Epstein. Part of that was positing a "most plausible scenario" that minor at the time Virginia Giuffre had been "entirely willing" to have sex with math expert Marvin Minsky. Stallman extended that scenario to all the women in the Epstein sex trafficking loop. 

In this time of high political sensitivity such a hypothesis is not what reasonable people put out there. And that's that.

But, Stallman's reputation and career might recover from this.

Prominent players such as Harvard Law professor Lawrence Lessing and LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman have come to the defense of Joi Ito. That former head of the MIT Media Lab also had resigned. It had been discovered that the Media Lab had not been transparent about donations from Epstein. 

Those whose branding and career path have been disrupted by fallout from the Epstein scandal should lay low. If they have the resources they should hire a top expert in reputation restoration.

Meanwhile, they learned the brutal lesson that before engaging in any behavior, that should be filtered through how the media would interpret it. Currently, the media is the most powerful institution in the world. And in order to worm their way into the force field, more and more folks rush to leak to the media. In a sense it's power by association.

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Shannon Who? Joe, You're Becoming a Public Nuisance - The Great Unpredictability

In Massachusetts, U.S. Senate incumbent Ed Markey could be in for the fight of his life.

Or, maybe not.

Markey, in his 70s, is already opposed by labor-lawyer hero Shannon Liss-Riordan. Her signature is representing contract drivers against Uber to obtain the legal classification as "employee."

But, that grand mission became accomplished when California AB-5 was signed into law by the Governor Gavin Newsom. Usually what happens in CA spreads throughout the nation. So much for Liss-Riordan's branding as lawyer friend of the gig worker. The CA legislature and executive branch took care of that, thank you.

Obviously, that particular political force is somewhat neutralized.

The meme of high uncertainty in today's world washes across the consciousness of the watchers of the MA U.S. Senate race.

Another supposed threat to Markey has been U.S. Congressman Joe Kennedy III. Although he filed to run, he continues to do a Hamlet. Obviously, before declaring himself a candidate, Kennedy is analyzing his chances of winning against Markey.

What Kennedy would have going for him could be two things.

One is the Kennedy branding in MA, along with its fundraising force field.

The other is his age. Come on, admit it, there is age bias in America. That stink follows Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders around. It surfaced in the last Democratic debate. 

But, not so fast about the Kennedy edges. They could be neutralized by the ability of Markey to obtain the endorsements of two high-profile influential politicos. 

As Boston Magazine reports, AOC announced she is supporting Markey. They're allies in championing the Green New Deal. With Dorian and more there had been more attention to the impacts of climate change. AOC has gained new credibility. You bet, residents of the U.S. are getting it that they have to factor climate change into everything from where to live (maybe not coastal Florida) to where to invest (maybe not fossil fuels).

Also, Elizabeth Warren is for Markey. She is navigating the early campaign better than expected. And she could be the last one standing. Since she's a woman that could make her a publicity magnet.

It could be said that what is going on in MA mirrors the Uncertainty as Standard that dominates global, national, state, and local matters. 

Consequently, those who decide to take a certain course of action can't predict how that will play out in their careers and long-term branding. Liss-Riordan can look naive for taking on Markey. Kennedy's Hamlet act can irritate voters in MA. The residue could be: Another Kennedy manipulating us.

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September 16, 2019 in Branding, careers, Current A

In Massachusetts, U.S. Senate incumbent Ed Markey could be in for the fight of his life.

Or, maybe not.

Markey, in his 70s, is already opposed by labor-lawyer hero Shannon Liss-Riordan. Her signature is representing contract drivers against Uber to obtain the legal classification as "employee."

But, that grand mission became accomplished when California AB-5 was signed into law by the Governor Gavin Newsom. Usually what happens in CA spreads throughout the nation. So much for Liss-Riordan's branding as lawyer friend of the gig worker. The CA legislature and executive branch took care of that, thank you.

Obviously, that particular political force is somewhat neutralized.

The meme of high uncertainty in today's world washes across the consciousness of the watchers of the MA U.S. Senate race.

Another supposed threat to Markey has been U.S. Congressman Joe Kennedy III. Although he filed to run, he continues to do a Hamlet. Obviously, before declaring himself a candidate, Kennedy is analyzing his chances of winning against Markey.

What Kennedy would have going for him could be two things.

One is the Kennedy branding in MA, along with its fundraising force field.

The other is his age. Come on, admit it, there is age bias in America. That stink follows Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders around. It surfaced in the last Democratic debate. 

But, not so fast about the Kennedy edges. They could be neutralized by the ability of Markey to obtain the endorsements of two high-profile influential politicos. 

As Boston Magazine reports, AOC announced she is supporting Markey. They're allies in championing the Green New Deal. With Dorian and more there had been more attention to the impacts of climate change. AOC has gained new credibility. You bet, residents of the U.S. are getting it that they have to factor climate change into everything from where to live (maybe not coastal Florida) to where to invest (maybe not fossil fuels).

Also, Elizabeth Warren is for Markey. She is navigating the early campaign better than expected. And she could be the last one standing. Since she's a woman that could make her a publicity magnet.

It could be said that what is going on in MA mirrors the Uncertainty as Standard that dominates global, national, state, and local matters. 

Consequently, those who decide to take a certain course of action can't predict how that will play out in their careers and long-term branding. Liss-Riordan can look naive for taking on Markey. Kennedy's Hamlet act can irritate voters in MA. The residue could be: Another Kennedy manipulating us.

Not getting results from your marketing communications? Complimentary consultation – janegenova374@gmail.com.

 

Reputation Laundering - The Genius, Money, and Morality

Despite the Sixth Amendment - the right to a defense - superlawyers such as David Boies have been criticized for pulling out all stops assisting their clients.

Forever will resonate Jason Farrow's outing of this in The New Yorker. However, the reality is this: Boies' law firm continues to be in demand. Unlike the warrior in the film "John Wick 3," Boies has not had imposed on him an "excommunicado."

But the legal defense is only a part, perhaps a relatively small one, in the parallel universe that those with significant resources can operate. 

Before, during, and after that win in the court of law could come what John Naughton The Guardian essentially labels as "reputation laundering." The analysis fingers the MIT Media Lab as the platform for the attempt to restore Jeffrey Epstein's brand. 

Rebranding, just like many defenses in the court of law, requires strategic genius, money, and its own kind of morality. The latter mirrors capitalism's notion of paying for a service.

In reputation laundering that payment is usually high. Over the years, Epstein donated large sums to the MIT Media Lab and motivated those on his global network to also contribute.

According to current norms, society now demands that process be transparent.

Had the MIT Lab disclosed in detail those financial windfalls, perhaps members of the media, including Ronan Farrow again in The New Yorker, wouldn't have this issue to cover.

Actually, it's an ideal one for the ambitious media. More recently, Harvard has also been outed as accepting Epstein's contributions and appointing him as a "fellow" (a kind of professor) in the psychology department. At a time when many have become weary of national politics, this particular story has legs.

The U.S. Constitution guarantees the defense.

But there is no constitutional guarantee that the influential institutions in society will continue to allow reputation laundering. Businesses, such as public relations firms, could be, yes, be stamped with an "excommunicado" decree if they accept a rebranding assignment for what is perceived as a questionable cause or an enemy of the people. 

The Verge is among the communications sources which reported that disgraced media tycoon Roger Ailes was planning a comeback. After his non-compete provision with Fox News ended, he, assisted with venture capitalist Peter Thiel's funding, was envisioning a rival to Fox. That would be another kind of conservative cable network. 

Likely, a moving part in that would have had to be reputation restoration. Could Ailes' long-time personal public relations representative Bob Dilenschneider been assigned that project? Could that mission of reinvention be pulled off?

Many Ailes watchers never counted him out to time travel to an undiscovered planet of accomplishment. What seems unthinkable simply might be conceived within a framework lacking imagination and push.

It was before prison that the Nixon Administration lawyer Chuck Colson seemed to begin to self-launder his reputation. He found and shared spirituality. When he died the obituaries hailed his contribution to humanity. 

What could be crossing the minds of those not perched on the top rungs of the socio-economic ladder in America is deep resentment. They assume that they are locked out of the shot at reputation laundering. On the agenda for ending inequality could be tutorials on the art of rebranding.

But that hostility may arise from a lack of a capacity to envision what's possible. In reality, nobodies pull off every day overcoming how they initially are perceived and treated.

The warm and fuzzy term for that is "The American Dream." Like Colson, it was in prison that Malcom X laundered his reputation. The transition was from street thug to respected leader.

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Family of Seth Rich Wins Appeal for Lawsuit Against Fox News to Move Forward

If Joel and Mary Rich know how to gain publicity their lawsuit against Fox News could tarnish that brand. Here are the details of that saga from BusinessInsider. 

Their son Seth Rich, a DNC player, had been murdered in July 2016. Law enforcement weighs in that the motivation had probably been robbery and that went very wrong. 

That's not what those at Fox News put out there. They speculated Rich was murdered to conceal the leak of emails to Wikileaks. Fox News tends to connect the dots on supposed conspiracy theories. Although conspiracy theories attract viewers, the tactic can be legally risky.

In response how Fox News positioned and packaged the murder, on March 13, 2018, the Rich family filed a lawsuit against Fox News and two specific employees - Malia Zimmerman and Ed Butowsky. They contended emotional distress from the conspiracy narrative. Here is a copy of that complaint. 

The lawsuit was tossed. The family appealed to the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Here is a copy of that appeal.

The Second Circuit ruled the lawsuit can proceed. Lenny Gail represents the Rich family.

Fox News indicates it stands by its original coverage and predicts it will be cleared during the discovery process. Here are more details. 

During this 2020 Election it would handicap conservative candidates if shade is thrown on the credibility of Fox reporting.

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Manna from Heaven (and hell) - Epstein Donor Crisis at MIT Deepens as Goodwin Procter Investigates

As in big time politics, among prestigious academic brands, there must be a continual influx of what is usually referred to as "real money."

That manna comes from both heaven (respected foundations and philanthropists) and hell (donors such as Jeffrey Epstein).

Now, such a traditional dynamic is being scrutinized in the media. That had been kicked off by Ronan Farrow's expose in The New Yorker about the MIT Media Lab's acceptance and lack of transparency regarding donations from convicted pedophile Epstein. Very quickly the head of the Lab Joi Ito resigned. Then MIT president Rafael Reif contracted with prominent law firm Goodwin Procter to investigate.

Since then, the crisis has deepened.

The Daily Mail reports that Goodwin Procter has uncovered an August 16, 2012 thank-you letter from Reif, then a new president at MIT, to Epstein for a donation. Over the long term Epstein had contributed $800,000 to MIT, in addition to the gifts to the Media Lab.

Those who understand how large organizations operate find it credible that Reif indicated that letter was standard procedure and that he does not even remember signing it. He probably doesn't.

But given how the media plays with stories and how many feel resentment against elite academic institutions, Reif will suffer. MIT will suffer. The Media Lab will suffer. 

What and who will be left standing is a betting game bookmakers can oversee.

However, at the end of the day, MIT as the powerful force it is in many fields, will bounce back. The odds are that it will seek guidance with the best of crisis counselors, probably both internally and externally, on how to navigate this scandal. 

Ever since the Puritans established Harvard in 1636, higher education has had an almost voodoo-like hold on America. MIT's power isn't going away. It will continue to cast spells. 

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Lawyers - Predisposed to Fail Retirement

The toughest rite of passage among successful professionals is moving on to retirement. 

In her book "Retirement reinvention," Robin Ryan discusses how many are failing at that. That is, they can't put together a meaningful lifestyle after their career ends. Signs of the failure range from boredom to a sense of being irrelevant. 

Given the combination of the need for extreme cost efficiency and age bias, what we traditionally classify as a "career," is ending sooner and often abruptly. Jobs are quitting the older professional versus the professional deciding to hang it up. In denial of that reality, many simply haven't prepared for the transition.

The rawness of being thrown up against The Next is nothing new. As Don Draper from "Mad Men" brought out in his iconic Kodak slide show, teenagers mourn the loss of the identity of being a child. Few ever emerge from the years of formal education and glide smoothly into the very different context of work. 

Yet, the expectation is that the passage into a post-career part of a life should be almost an instinctual process. 

Instead it is being put out there for what could be 30 or 40 years without any guidance from the past. Today's retirees are generational pioneers. 

Some, after suffering greatly, are finding a path toward meaning - as well as the added income to make ends meet. The Federal Reserve documents that one-third of those who rode into the sunset have headed back into the workplace. The amazing thing is that they can accept the lower compensation and status of those jobs. 

Another experiment is radical relocation. It's not simply the move from pricey Manhattan to less expensive North Carolina. It's the willingness to start over again in Mexico or Ecuador. They are fleeing the "Cheers" phenomenon of everyone knowing their name. 

A third is training for another line of work. That can range from becoming certified as a substance abuse counselor to long-distance truck driver. Unlike the academic degree route, this way is fast and relatively cheap. 

And, a fourth is wild experimentation. In total openness, former comfort zones are fled. The introvert does the online dating. The extrovert takes a seminar in listening. Everything becomes possible.

The major obstacle to mastering this rite of passage is usually the aging themselves. They tend to shoot themselves in the foot. Here, free to download, is my book on taming the dark forces which keep human beings over-50 from grabbing out for a new kind of satisfaction.

Coaching, lecturing, and writing/ghostwriting thought leadership content on ageism.

 

For individual coaching – sliding scale fees. Complimentary initial consultation. The displaced over-50 get back to work. Please contact Jane Genova janegenova374@gmail.com.

 

Uber - If It Looks Like a Perfect Storm, Maybe It Is

As with WeWork, Uber investors are rising up. 

For years, investors had bought into startups' pursuit of growth, at the expense of profit. After all, Jeff Bezos pulled that off at Amazon.

That was then.

Twice WeWork has dropped the valuation for its IPO. That IPO might not even happen. And if SoftBank doesn't come up with additional funding, WeWork could collapse. The once unthinkable is being thought about.

Meanwhile for Q2 2019, Uber had a whopping $5 billion loss, its largest ever.

To attempt cost-efficiency it has been laying off.

The most recent reduction in force is the layoff of 435 employees in engineering and products. Here are more details from TechCrunch.

That RIF follows axing 400 in marketing. Investor patience has also seemed to have peaked at Uber and is on a downward trajectory.

Simultaneously, Uber's gig worker business model, which gives it a competitive edge, could become illegal - at least in California. And, CA is the state which sets trends.

Bill AB-5 has passed the CA House and is now in the state Senate. If it becomes law, it will outlaw, with a few exceptions, the classification of most of the workers as contractors. Instead they will have the legal title of "employee," with protections, rights, and benefits, That shift will even allow them to join unions.

AB-5 will not only impact Uber. It will be a death blow to the gig economy in CA, extending from nail salons to food delivery services. 

Not so unthinkable is that Uber, like WeWork, could financially collapse. Certain lines of business such as Eats are doing well. Those could be lopped off from the parent and run for profit, not extreme growth.

UPDATE:

Late last night, CA time, AB-5 cleared the state Senate. Now it goes to the Assembly to be reconciled with the chamber's version. Next, it will go to Governor Gavin Newson. He had already endorsed the bill so it's bound to be signed. Here are more details from Axios.

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"JaneDoe1, et al. v. Morrison & Foerster" - Defendant Requests Records of JaneDoe4 from Current Employer

Nicknamed the "Mommy Track" lawsuit, "JaneDoe1, et al. v. Morrison & Foerster" has been high profile from the get-go.

The plaintiffs for this class action contend discrimination against pregnant lawyers and lawyers who are mothers. JaneDoe4 claims she was terminated less than two months before her due date, based on this kind of bias. Here is a copy of that complaint.

The latest high profile development is that law firm representing defendant Morrison & Foerster - Gibson, Dunn & Crucher - requested the records of JaneDoe4 at her new employer. Here is the coverage by Law.com.

The subpoena specifies documents relating to matters ranging from evaluation of performance to benefits. Here is a copy of that subpoena.

The defense team justifies that by stating that it is necessary to refute her claim that Morrison & Foerster disparaged her to other potential employers.

However, the lawyer for JaneDoe4, Deborah Marcuse of Sanford Heisler Sharp, indicates that was not the case in this particular hiring. JaneDoe4 got into the loop on the job through the help of a former Morrison & Foerster lawyer, also a mother, who had left that firm. 

Marcuse objects to the request as premature and overly broad. Here is her reply to the court.

This particular development can send an arctic blast of air toward those considering suing their current or previous employer. Among the fallout from that could be the reach-out by the defendant's law firm to the next or present employer. That means the "stink" usually attached to suing an employer follows her or him. 

Although the #MeToo litigation efforts were celebrated not all plaintiffs had the lucrative and career opportunities which Gretchen Carlson's litigation had.

Vanity Fair reported on the women who contended they were blackballed after filing a lawsuit and they had received puny settlements. The title of the article is "You Will Lose Everything." Here is a copy.

Lawsuits can be game-changers for the workplace. But the emotional and financial toll on the plaintiffs can be extraordinary. 

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Insider Trader Raj Rajaratnam Back Living on Manhattan's Upper East Side - Recalling Best of Preet Baharara's Times

U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Baharara was having the best of times. He had pulled in a conviction for insider trading for head of the Galleon Group Raj Rajaratnam. Along with that high profile courtroom win was nailing the former head of prestigious management consulting firm McKinsey Rajat Gupta. 

That was then. 

Now, after being fired by the then-new U.S. president Donald Trump, Baharara no longer has his law enforcement superhero branding. He does, though, have a large and devoted following on social. 

A ghost from those big days has returned in the headlines. And it's the headlines which are everything during this era when some contend the media is the most powerful institution in the world. 

That's Raj.

As the New York Post reports, he had been released early from his 11-year sentence for good behavior. That was six weeks ago.

Usually he would have had to serve the rest of his sentence in a halfway house. However, because of the "First Step Act," which Kim Kardasian helped pass, he can do that anywhere. The law allows those over-60 or with a health condition to skip the halfway house.

Raj is back on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

That's where the 2019 version of the Gilded Age is being lived. There are those who are critical of that.

After all, Raj scammed about $70 million. But the tragedy associated with his Machiavellianism was that Gupta had wound up in the loop. Many revered Gupta for having overcome early adversity in India, taking care of his siblings there, and, after achieving professional success in the U.S., becoming a man of good deeds.

Incidentally, Baharara's golden age never did include his being able to arrest SAC head Steve Cohen. Some of Cohen's employees got nailed for insider trading but personally the law wasn't able to touch Cohen in a way that he would do prison time. Currently, he's back operating a hedge fund Point72 Asset Management. But he hasn't been able to recapture the high ROI magic of SAC. Recently Point72 had an exodus of major players. 

Currently there are new alleged bad guys members of the media are giving lots of ink to and new crime stoppers. Those on the playing field have changed so much since Baharara's best of times. In fact, it is difficult to conjure back up how that experience felt back then.

For some it was a Camelot, that brief interlude when the public felt safe those who didn't obey the law would be caught and punished. Now, there are only ghosts. 

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"County of Summit, Ohio et al. v. Purdue et al." - Public Nuisance Stays, Rules Judge Polster

Any corporation facing litigation alleging public nuisance or which could be a target for that kind of lawsuit should feel the blast of arctic air going through the business community. At the top of the list could be the former lead paint manufacturers/marketers such as Sherwin-Williams. 

In "County of Summit, Ohio et al. v. Purdue et al." U.S. District judge ruled that public nuisance stays in the trial. Here is a copy of that complaint. 

Settlement talks between Purdue and the state attorneys general in the loop broke down over the weekend. Unless something changes, the opioid public nuisance lawsuit will proceed to the courtroom as a jury trial on October 21, 2019. Here are details about that summary judgement from Law.com

Most of OH is a lousy venue for that litigation. The defense could have a challenge finding objective jurors. The state has been devastated by deaths related to alleged opioid addiction. Part of that human tragedy is that children have been left without their parents. Frequently opioid use is a family affair.

Public nuisance first became a power tool of state attorneys general when BigTobacco had been targeted. Eventually that was settled through the Master Agreement in 1998. 

Later it was leveled by the combination of state attorneys general and plaintiff lawyers operating on a contingency basis against corporations which had been in the residential lead paint loop. The first win for the plaintiff had been in a bench trial in California. From that verdict, the contingency plaintiff lawyers will receive 17%.

As expected, that success generated similar public nuisance lawsuits. Pennsylvania has already parachuted in with lawsuits against Sherwin-Williams. And Massachusetts is being encouraged to also do so.

Public nuisance has also been applied to diverse legal situations ranging from how utilities do their energy to how the Roman Catholic Church allegedly managed the contentions about clergy sexual misconduct.

Clearly, from the 20th century days which produced a windfall settlement from BigTobacco to today, public nuisance has evolved into a multi-dimensional legal concept.

Large corporations might think about it as the monster emerging from the deep. Meanwhile, all organizations should factor into their crisis communications accusations that they are causing a public nuisance.

The wrong rhetorical moves could position and package them in the court of public opinion as the enemy of the people.

Meanwhile the careers of political figures who point the finger could go on a rapid upward trajectory. It has been the current U.S. senator Sheldon Whitehouse who had put the first major lead paint lawsuit in play in Rhode Island. At the time he was the attorney general.

You bet, Purdue et al. don't want public nuisance in the courtroom and in the media. But things didn't go their way on that one. 

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