Brent Kendall

I am taking on a new role as chief of the WSJ Law Bureau. Excited to work with so many talented colleagues to bring a great mix of coverage to the Journal. To my friends and sources over many years of legal affairs reporting, thanks for your trust and generosity. Keep in touch!

Joe Biden’s desire to cut short what he saw as disproportionately long drug sentences granted mercy to many with violent histories who didn’t deserve it, officials say on.wsj.com/4hjp9kN

@dibartz Best wishes on your next adventure! Always enjoyed working alongside you.

Today is my @WSJ friend and colleague Evan Gershkovich’s 32nd birthday. He’s spending it behind bars in Russia, where he is wrongfully detained for just doing his job. I’m in court today covering Sam Bankman-Fried’s expected testimony. The SBF press corps stands with Evan.

Happy 32nd birthday to our friend and colleague Evan Gershkovich, who has now been in prison in Russia awaiting trail on absurd charges of espionage for nearly 7 months. We continue to call for his release. Evan, we miss you.

Great showing by @WSJ DC bureau at the ⁦@JamesFoleyFund⁩ annual run. We ran for James’s legacy and for ⁦@evangershkovich⁩. Congratulations to ⁦@thetrough⁩ for placing 1st. #IStandfor Evan.

Justices Thomas & Sotomayor are among the first products of affirmative action—and carry away very different views about both the legality and the value of higher education’s efforts to promote student diversity. via @JessBravin wsj.com/articles/justi…

New from me: The Supreme Court will take a rare dive into the 16th Amendment. The justices said Monday they will hear a case that questions whether a key part of the 2017 tax law was unconstitutional. Implications are large. wsj.com/articles/supre…

America one year after Dobbs: Support for at least some measure of abortion rights, even in red states, has scrambled political dynamics and divided abortion opponents. via @LauraKusisto wsj.com/articles/abort…

The mens rea (degree of intent) for charges against Trump is “willfulness”, which means he had to know his actions were illegal. That’s why DOJ is citing his “lock her up” statements about Clinton. Thanks to @WSJ and @ByronTau for quoting me today. wsj.com/articles/donal…

A bitter court fight over hedge fund compensation has spawned a side battle over public access to offensive emails exchanged among a financier, Donald Trump Jr. and other businessmen, including former RNC co-chair Thomas Hicks Jr. @coryramey @fanellijames wsj.com/articles/offen…

@KenGiglio @DavidDJJames @kylegoon @JDDsays Ha, I have been a few times, but remain deeply irritated they moved the left field wall. It’s a stain on Camden and an embarrassment.

@DavidDJJames @kylegoon Well, I wouldn’t be the one to give him a quote, but, hey, @JDDsays or @brkend what you guys got?

Hey Orioles fans: Announced attendance at Camden Yards is up nearly 5K fans per game this season vs. last season. Looking to chat with fans who have either just made their return to the ballpark or are still holding out. Have you been on the fence? I'd like to hear your story!

The law was meant to make life easier for people allergic to sesame seeds. Instead, the opposite occurred. wsj.com/articles/sesam…

From family law to evictions, some of the most common legal issues are the ones in which it's most difficult to find a lawyer. States and courts are considering a solution that has sparked debate: allowing nonlawyers to give legal advice. wsj.com/articles/state…

Third Circuit weakens ban on gun possession by people convicted of serious crimes, via @jacobgershman wsj.com/articles/court…

Texas lawmakers are set to consider impeachment proceedings against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton after a hearing where a team of investigators spent three hours laying out crimes they said they believe Paxton has committed on.wsj.com/3WxOH3Y

As state legislatures wrap up their first full sessions since SCOTUS overruled Roe, Republican-led bodies found the votes to pass new abortion restrictions, but not without considerable political turbulence along the way. @LauraKusisto @JenCalfas wsj.com/articles/abort…

A Tennessee man was released from prison after serving more than 20 years for a murder that a court found he didn’t commit, the latest in a series of convictions tossed after judges gave inmates more room to make fresh innocence claims. @MariahTimms wsj.com/articles/tenne…

A Delaware federal judge is on a campaign to eliminate hidden funding of patent-infringement lawsuits, via @jacobgershman wsj.com/articles/delaw…

Arkansas is home to a complex legal battle over how to reconcile school choice programs with earlier consent decrees meant to ensure equal education in a state where federal troops were called in to integrate schools in the 1950s. @MariahTimms wsj.com/articles/arkan…

Billionaire Harlan Crow took Clarence Thomas on lavish trips and more, and that’s shining a spotlight on U.S. gift taxes for everyone. ‘It’s not a gift, it’s a party,’ one tax pro says. wsj.com/articles/you-t…