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Category: Sentencing and Eighth Amendment

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Fifth Amendment

As Second Circuit Affirms Conviction for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender, Judge Calabresi Questions “Non-Punitive” Nature of Registration Statutes

In a per curiam opinion, United States v. Diaz, the Second Circuit (Calabresi, Chin, and Carney) held that the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”), 18 U.S.C. § 2250(a), does not permit a defendant to collaterally attack his or...
July 23, 2020
Sentencing and Eighth Amendment

Circuit Rejects Argument That Mandatory Life Sentence Violates Eighth Amendment

In United States v. Sierra, the Second Circuit (Newman, Jacobs, Droney) wrote a short published decision that rejected the argument raised by several defendants that it violated the “cruel and unusual” provision of the Eighth Amendment to impose a mandatory...
August 6, 2019

About Our Blog

The Second Circuit Criminal Law Blog is your place to follow the criminal law decisions rendered by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. With a rich 225-year history of legendary judges like Learned Hand and Henry Friendly, the Second Circuit has long been known for writing important and thoughtful opinions on many subjects, including the criminal law. We review every published criminal law opinion handed down by the Second Circuit in order to provide you with a summary of the holding, an assessment of the key legal issues, and practice pointers based on the Court’s ruling. Our focus is on white-collar criminal cases and matters relating to internal investigations. Our blog is written by a team of experienced attorneys, including many former law clerks for the Second Circuit and other federal courts. The blog’s editor in chief is a former Deputy Chief Appellate Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York who has appeared in more than 100 Second Circuit criminal appeals.

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Editor in Chief

  • Contact Harry Sandick.

    Harry Sandick

    212.336.2723

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  • Contact Anna Cox.

    Anna Cox

    212.336.2027

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  • Contact Daniel Feder.

    Daniel Feder

    212.336.2236

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  • Contact Joshua Kipnees.

    Joshua Kipnees

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  • Contact Ryan J. Kurtz.

    Ryan J. Kurtz

    212.336.2405

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  • Contact Jane Metcalf.

    Jane Metcalf

    212.336.2152

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  • Contact Hilarie Meyers.

    Hilarie Meyers

    212.336.2324

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  • Contact Madeline More Lane.

    Madeline More Lane

    212.336.2292

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  • Contact Clinton W. Morrison.

    Clinton W. Morrison

    212.336.2546

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  • Contact Maggie O'Neil.

    Maggie O'Neil

    212.336.2227

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  • Contact Faust Petkovich.

    Faust Petkovich

    212.336.2306

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  • Contact Anna Petrocelli.

    Anna Petrocelli

    212.336.2285

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  • Contact Harry Sandick.

    Harry Sandick

    212.336.2723

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  • Contact Nicole Scully.

    Nicole Scully

    212.336.2666

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  • Contact Isaiah Strong.

    Isaiah Strong

    212.336.2420

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  • Contact Jason Vitullo.

    Jason Vitullo

    212.336.2189

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  • Contact Caitlyn Wigler.

    Caitlyn Wigler

    212.336.2308

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Firm Highlights

Publication
How Cos. Can Fight Consumers' Tariff Refund Class Actions
On Feb. 20, the U.S. Supreme Court held in Learning Resources Inc. v. Trump that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, does not authorize the president to impose tariffs. The decision immediately invalidated an estimated $165 billion or more in customs duties collected on imports over the preceding year. In its wake, a wave of consumer class actions has emerged against retailers, brands, manufacturers and logistics companies, alleging that those businesses unjustly profited by passing unlawful tariff costs to consumers, while simultaneously pursuing, or being eligible for, government refunds of those same tariffs. In June, the federal government appealed the U.S. Court of International Trade's March 4 order requiring refunds on all duties paid under the IEEPA. Some companies have announced that they will pass refunds along to...
Blog Post
SEC Enforcement Launches New Financial Reporting and Accounting Unit
On August 5, 2026, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced its most recent step in its shift of enforcement priorities with the establishment of a new Financial Reporting and Accounting Unit.[1] According to the SEC’s press release, the Unit will operate within the Enforcement Division as a central resource for all SEC divisions pursuing financial reporting fraud as well as broader efforts.[2] This move is the latest in Chair Atkin’s efforts to “retur[n] the agency to its core mission of protecting investors; facilitating capital formation; and maintaining fair, orderly, and efficient markets.”[3] Commenting on the new unit’s launch, David Woodcock, Director of the Agency’s Enforcement Division, stated: Since my return to the Division, I have been assessing every aspect of our staffing to...
Event
Stephanie Bunting Glaser to Speak on SECPI Webinar
On Tuesday, September 22, Counsel Stephanie Bunting Glaser will speak on a Strengthening Evaluation Contracting Partnerships Initiative webinar titled "Gathering Space for Strengthening Evaluation Partnerships." Ms. Glaser will reflect on how evaluation firms can protect their intellectual property and the role of intellectual property contract clauses. To learn more, please click here.
Event
Clint Morrison to Speak at Association of Corporate Counsel NYC Strategic Counsel Summit
On Tuesday, September 22, Partner Clint Morrison will speak on a panel at the Association of Corporate Counsel NYC's 2026 Strategic Counsel Summit titled "Privilege and Ethical Implications of the In-House Use of GenAI Tools." Mr. Morrison will join Norman Greenberg (Deputy Chief Legal Office Managing Director and General Counsel for Credit and Real Estate, Sculptor Capital) and Sarah Kalin (Deputy General Counsel, Arevon) for a CLE program exploring legal trends relating to the intersection of attorney-client privilege and materials created by in-house lawyers and their non-lawyer colleagues through generative AI tools.  To learn more, please click here.
Publication
New York State Overhauls Employee Access to Workplace Records
Employers in New York State will soon face extensive mandates that grant New York employees unprecedented access to their personnel records. By November 8, 2026, employers must provide employees with copies of their personnel records within five days of request, notify employees when certain negative information is added to their files, and comply with new recordkeeping obligations. In a major expansion of employee rights, employers must also allow employees to dispute information contained in their file. Background On September 9, 2026, Governor Hochul signed New York Senate Bill S3460 into law, effective November 8, 2026. The law is codified at New York Labor Law § 210-b. Prior to this legislation, an employee’s personnel file was generally considered the property of the employer,...
Blog Post
AI Companies Find Value in Bankrupt Companies
Spirit Airlines filed for bankruptcy in November 2024 and, after emerging from bankruptcy, filed again in August 2025. During the second case, the company tried to find a way to keep the airline in business but to no avail. In May 2026, Spirit Airlines pivoted towards a wind-down and ceased operations. This summer, as a part of its wind-down, Spirit Airlines began marketing its remaining assets. It had plenty of traditional assets to sell. For example, the debtors’ bid procedures motion filed in May 2026 listed the following assets: takeoff and landing slots at LaGuardia Airport; aircraft hangar(s); corporate headquarters; training center; multi-family residential buildings; ground service equipment; spare engines; flight simulators; aircraft maintenance equipment; and assets related to the...
Firm News
Barbara Mullin Named Among Benchmark Litigation’s 2026 Top 250 Women in Litigation
Partner Barbara Mullin has been named one of Benchmark Litigation’s 2026 Top 250 Women in Litigation. The ranking uses an extensive research process, including “months of investigation into individual litigators’ professional activities as well as client feedback surveys and one-on-one interviews” to identify women who are “top players” in their field. To learn more, please click here.
Blog Post
You Win Some and Lose Some: Judge Liman Decides Competing Motions to Compel
On September 4, 2026, District Judge Lewis J. Liman (S.D.N.Y.) granted in part and denied in part Plaintiff Lashify, Inc.’s (“Lashify”) motion to compel discovery and denied Defendants Qingdao Network Technology Co., Ltd., d/b/a UCoolMe and Vivicute Limited’s (“UCoolMe”) motion to compel. Lashify, Inc. v. Qingdao Network Tech. Co., Ltd., No. 25-cv-4183 (S.D.N.Y. Sep. 4, 2026). Lashify’s Motion to Compel Lashify moved to compel UCoolMe to provide responses to discovery requests relating to: (i) product samples and raw materials; (ii) manufacturing; (iii) employees and supply chain; (iv) marketing; and (v) finances. Id. at *2. The Court found that each of those topics were relevant under Fed. R. Civ. P. 26(a) and that UCoolMe did not sufficiently respond to discovery requests related to...
Firm News
Firm Secures Complete Patent Litigation Victory on Behalf of J&J
On August 31, 2026, Patterson Belknap secured a victory on behalf of Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson) in a Hatch-Waxman patent infringement litigation relating to Spravato®, its blockbuster esketamine nasal spray approved for the treatment of treatment-resistant depression and major depressive disorder with suicidal ideation. This litigation was initiated after an ANDA filing by Sandoz, Inc. (“Sandoz”) in 2023, seeking FDA approval for its generic version of Spravato. Janssen asserted that Sandoz’s proposed generic product would infringe certain claims of U.S. Patent Nos. 11,446,260, 10,869,844; 11,173,134; and 11,311,500.  Sandoz counterclaimed for declaratory judgment that each of the asserted patent claims was invalid under 35 U.S.C. §103 and/or § 112.  On August 31, 2026, the U.S. District...
Publication
DOJ Issues Press Release on Liability for Unregistered Foreign Agents
On September 16, 2026, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) issued a press release “remind[ing] the public of federal laws that require individuals to register as foreign agents when they act in the United States at the direction or control of a foreign government or foreign principal, and that they will face civil and criminal liability if they fail to do so.” The press release points specifically to two federal laws that require such registration: the Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”), 22 U.S.C. § 611 et seq., and 18 U.S.C. § 951. The press release is a departure from former Attorney General Pam Bondi’s February 5, 2025 memorandum to DOJ employees, which directed that criminal charges under FARA should be limited...
Publication
How Cos. Can Fight Consumers' Tariff Refund Class Actions
On Feb. 20, the U.S. Supreme Court held in Learning Resources Inc. v. Trump that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, does not authorize the president to impose tariffs. The decision immediately invalidated an estimated $165 billion or more in customs duties collected on imports over the preceding year. In its wake, a wave of consumer class actions has emerged against retailers, brands, manufacturers and logistics companies, alleging that those businesses unjustly profited by passing unlawful tariff costs to consumers, while simultaneously pursuing, or being eligible for, government refunds of those same tariffs. In June, the federal government appealed the U.S. Court of International Trade's March 4 order requiring refunds on all duties paid under the IEEPA. Some companies have announced that they will pass refunds along to...
Blog Post
SEC Enforcement Launches New Financial Reporting and Accounting Unit
On August 5, 2026, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced its most recent step in its shift of enforcement priorities with the establishment of a new Financial Reporting and Accounting Unit.[1] According to the SEC’s press release, the Unit will operate within the Enforcement Division as a central resource for all SEC divisions pursuing financial reporting fraud as well as broader efforts.[2] This move is the latest in Chair Atkin’s efforts to “retur[n] the agency to its core mission of protecting investors; facilitating capital formation; and maintaining fair, orderly, and efficient markets.”[3] Commenting on the new unit’s launch, David Woodcock, Director of the Agency’s Enforcement Division, stated: Since my return to the Division, I have been assessing every aspect of our staffing to...
Event
Stephanie Bunting Glaser to Speak on SECPI Webinar
On Tuesday, September 22, Counsel Stephanie Bunting Glaser will speak on a Strengthening Evaluation Contracting Partnerships Initiative webinar titled "Gathering Space for Strengthening Evaluation Partnerships." Ms. Glaser will reflect on how evaluation firms can protect their intellectual property and the role of intellectual property contract clauses. To learn more, please click here.
Event
Clint Morrison to Speak at Association of Corporate Counsel NYC Strategic Counsel Summit
On Tuesday, September 22, Partner Clint Morrison will speak on a panel at the Association of Corporate Counsel NYC's 2026 Strategic Counsel Summit titled "Privilege and Ethical Implications of the In-House Use of GenAI Tools." Mr. Morrison will join Norman Greenberg (Deputy Chief Legal Office Managing Director and General Counsel for Credit and Real Estate, Sculptor Capital) and Sarah Kalin (Deputy General Counsel, Arevon) for a CLE program exploring legal trends relating to the intersection of attorney-client privilege and materials created by in-house lawyers and their non-lawyer colleagues through generative AI tools.  To learn more, please click here.
Publication
New York State Overhauls Employee Access to Workplace Records
Employers in New York State will soon face extensive mandates that grant New York employees unprecedented access to their personnel records. By November 8, 2026, employers must provide employees with copies of their personnel records within five days of request, notify employees when certain negative information is added to their files, and comply with new recordkeeping obligations. In a major expansion of employee rights, employers must also allow employees to dispute information contained in their file. Background On September 9, 2026, Governor Hochul signed New York Senate Bill S3460 into law, effective November 8, 2026. The law is codified at New York Labor Law § 210-b. Prior to this legislation, an employee’s personnel file was generally considered the property of the employer,...
Blog Post
AI Companies Find Value in Bankrupt Companies
Spirit Airlines filed for bankruptcy in November 2024 and, after emerging from bankruptcy, filed again in August 2025. During the second case, the company tried to find a way to keep the airline in business but to no avail. In May 2026, Spirit Airlines pivoted towards a wind-down and ceased operations. This summer, as a part of its wind-down, Spirit Airlines began marketing its remaining assets. It had plenty of traditional assets to sell. For example, the debtors’ bid procedures motion filed in May 2026 listed the following assets: takeoff and landing slots at LaGuardia Airport; aircraft hangar(s); corporate headquarters; training center; multi-family residential buildings; ground service equipment; spare engines; flight simulators; aircraft maintenance equipment; and assets related to the...
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