UPDATE — David Lat’s original post has a number of updates and he has written “an epic” follow-up post about Cannon and her clerks here.
The legal community is abuzz with this David Lat report that two of Judge Cannon’s law clerks have resigned:
Judge Cannon has had at least two law clerks quit on her, according to
multiple sources—including individuals who serve in the U.S. District
Court for the Southern District of Florida, where she sits.
***
What does Judge Cannon have to say about clerks quitting on her? Over
the past few days, I have sent multiple emails to the Public
Information Office for the Southern District of Florida and to Judge
Cannon’s chambers, requesting comment on reports that at least two of
her clerks have departed before the scheduled end of their clerkships. I
have received read receipts, but no responses (even though, in my
experience, subjects are eager to warn me off bad information—for which
I’m always grateful). If I do hear back, I will immediately update this
post, of course.
I should be clear about what I don’t
know. My sources have been circumspect so far, and despite my best
efforts, I have been unable to determine precisely why these clerks
quit, when they departed, and if they have already been replaced or the
Cannon chambers is operating short-staffed.3
But
based on my experience, I believe that once the fact of the clerks’
quitting becomes public, the floodgates will open. Details about the
Cannon clerk departures will become more widely known, whether reported
by me or others. Additional information about other personnel issues in
her chambers—possibly involving employees other than clerks, such as
judicial assistants or courtroom deputies—could emerge. So one reason
I’ve decided to publish this post, despite lacking certain key details,
is to prime the pump—to encourage sources to come forward with more
information, and to encourage other journalists to follow up on my
reporting.