Whenever a new petition is granted, I always check the counsel of record. I keep a running tally of how many cases leading members of the bar argue. When the Court granted cert in T.M. v. University of Maryland Medical System Corporation, I took note. The Counsel of Record for the Petitioner was Kannon Shanmugam of Paul Weiss. This was (likely) a pro bono case, as T.M. sued the hospital system for medical malpractice. The Counsel of Record for the Respondent was Lisa Blatt of Williams & Connolly. I remember looking forward to seeing Shanmugam and Blatt argue. These two are titans of the Supreme Court bar.
Except it wasn't meant to be. For reasons that are not clear, Elizabeth Prelogar of Cooley LLP argued the case today. Prelogar's name was not on the Petitioner's opening brief or the reply brief.
