Legal Ethics

  • July 02, 2024

    Debevoise Can't Avoid Testifying In Ex-Cognizant Execs' Trial

    A New Jersey federal judge denied Tuesday a bid by Debevoise & Plimpton LLP to quash a subpoena seeking testimony from a firm partner for the coming bribery trial of two former Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. executives.

  • July 02, 2024

    Ex-Senior Apple Atty To Pay SEC $1.1M For Insider Trading

    Apple's former director of corporate law must pay $1.1 million to securities regulators stemming from criminal insider trading charges to which he pled guilty in 2022, a New Jersey federal judge said Tuesday, finding that his "egregious" violations warrant the penalty since "his very job" was to ensure compliance with securities laws.

  • July 02, 2024

    Samsung Says IP Law Firm, Litigation Funder Misused Info

    Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. says an intellectual property law firm and a Chinese litigation funder used its confidential information without permission to help Staton Techiya LLC assert patent infringement allegations, telling a Texas federal judge that the conduct demonstrated why the court should add the other companies to Samsung's suit.

  • July 02, 2024

    Wash. Court OKs Anti-Masker's School Recall Sanctions

    Washington appellate judges said Tuesday an Evergreen State man waited too long to appeal $30,000 in sanctions and ruled the trial court was justified in pinning most of the blame on him — instead of his attorneys — for filing baseless recall petitions to dissuade school board members from complying with a state COVID-19 mask mandate. 

  • July 02, 2024

    YSL Judge Shares Transcript Of Secret Witness Meeting

    The transcript of a secret meeting involving Fulton County prosecutors, a key state's witness and the judge overseeing the Young Slime Life case was released Monday, shortly after it was announced that proceedings in the case would be paused until an outside judge reviews motions for the judge's recusal.

  • July 02, 2024

    Calif. Atty Facing Disbarment After Admitting To $4.8M Fraud

    The California State Bar announced Tuesday that a prominent Golden State family law attorney has agreed to be disbarred after she admitted to misappropriating "virtually the entirety" of a more than $4.8 million client trust account, then attempting to cover up the theft of funds by filing false documents.

  • July 02, 2024

    'Shark Tank' Sweatshirt Biz Lands Injunction, But No Atty Fees

    The startup behind "The Comfy" sweatshirt featured in an episode of "Shark Tank" that won an $18 million verdict against a rival sweatshirt brand has secured an injunction against the competitor, but it has failed to collect nearly $2 million in requested legal fees on account of "quarrelsome conduct on both sides," according to an Arizona federal judge.

  • July 02, 2024

    Beasley Allen Slams J&J's DQ Bid 'Check-Up' In Talc Tort

    The Beasley Allen Law Firm and Johnson & Johnson continue to spar over the firm and attorney Andy Birchfield's role in long-running federal and state mass torts over talcum powder injuries, with the firm calling out J&J on Tuesday for "prodding" the New Jersey courts to boot the lawyers from the litigation.

  • July 02, 2024

    Ex-Bankruptcy Judge Will Be Deposed Over Atty Romance

    The former Texas bankruptcy judge whose secret relationship with a Jackson Walker LLP attorney ignited a major judicial ethics scandal has agreed to sit for a seven-hour deposition to answer questions about the episode.

  • July 02, 2024

    Seton Hall Says Ex-Prez's Whistleblower Suit Must Be Axed

    A New Jersey trial court was urged to toss retaliation, sexual harassment and discrimination claims against Seton Hall University and its board of regents by its former president, with the school arguing the whistleblower suit is rife with "gamesmanship," ignoring both case law and the underlying facts.

  • July 02, 2024

    Dentons Says Ex-Client Can't Escape $4.7M Fee Suit In Texas

    International law firm Dentons Europe CS LLP urged a Texas federal court Tuesday to keep alive its suit accusing a Houston-area crisis response business of failing to pay more than $4.7 million in legal fees and said the correct venue was Texas, not England, as the business has argued.

  • July 02, 2024

    Bond-Rigging Suit Revived Over Judge's Wife's Stock Conflict

    The Second Circuit on Tuesday revived a proposed class action accusing big banks of rigging corporate bonds, ruling that the New York federal judge who previously dismissed the suit should have recused himself due to his wife's ownership of Bank of America stock.

  • July 02, 2024

    Pa. Clerk Named After Departures Spur 'Judicial Emergency'

    Dauphin County, Pennsylvania's president judge has selected an interim clerk of courts to take over the office's duties following last week's sudden resignation of the elected clerk and the Supreme Court's declaration of a judicial emergency.

  • July 02, 2024

    Fla. Bar Drops Kennedys Ethics Case Over Unlawful Practice

    The Florida Bar has dropped an ethics complaint against Kennedys CMK and three of its attorneys over allegations the firm improperly presented the lawyers as permitted to practice law in the Sunshine State.

  • July 02, 2024

    Mich. Justices Pass Up 'Most Famous' Atty's Malpractice Case

    The Michigan Supreme Court on Tuesday left in place an appellate ruling that said comments by self-proclaimed "America's most famous trial lawyer" during a press conference can be used in a malpractice suit brought against him by a former client.

  • July 02, 2024

    Ga. Justices Say Atty Ethics Rules Only Apply To Legal Work

    A Georgia lawyer did not violate attorney ethics rules when she allegedly mishandled trust funds since she was managing those funds only as a fiduciary and not as a lawyer, the Georgia Supreme Court ruled Tuesday.

  • July 02, 2024

    Dykstra Denied Early Win In Embezzlement Suit Against Atty

    Former MLB All-Star Lenny Dykstra swung for an early win but missed in his lawsuit accusing his former attorney and the attorney's firm, Galanter Associates, of embezzling funds from him, when a California judge denied his summary judgment motion Tuesday. 

  • July 02, 2024

    After Fischer, Judge Releases Atty Convicted In Jan. 6 Riot

    A D.C. federal judge ordered the release of a Georgia attorney imprisoned for storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, saying his pending appeal would likely result in his freedom after the U.S. Supreme Court narrowed an obstruction of Congress law used to convict him and others involved in the assault.

  • July 02, 2024

    DLA Piper Tells Judge Fired Associate Got Proper Discovery

    Counsel for DLA Piper LLP told a Manhattan federal judge on Tuesday the firm has provided responsive information to a former associate who claims she was unlawfully fired while pregnant, adding it is confident her termination was lawful.

  • July 02, 2024

    Therapy Co. Sues Littler For Alleged Bad Advice

    A Chicago-based therapy company has sued Littler Mendelson PC in Cook County Circuit Court, accusing the firm of failing to advise against a labor contract that was not permitted, which ended up costing the company nearly $225,000.

  • July 02, 2024

    Giuliani Disbarred In New York Over Election Falsehoods

    A New York appellate court Tuesday barred Rudolph Giuliani from practicing law in New York, citing ample evidence that the former New York City mayor made repeated false statements about the 2020 presidential election.

  • July 02, 2024

    Trump's NY Sentencing Pushed To Sept. After Immunity Ruling

    A New York judge on Tuesday delayed Donald Trump's criminal sentencing from July 11 until Sept. 18 to give prosecutors and the former president's attorneys time to argue over whether the U.S. Supreme Court's immunity decision vacates his conviction.

  • July 01, 2024

    Trump Seeks To Vacate NY Verdict, Citing Immunity Decision

    Former President Donald Trump's attorneys asked the New York state judge overseeing his hush money case to delay sentencing and consider setting aside the jury's guilty verdict in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on presidential immunity Monday.

  • July 01, 2024

    Ex-Ozy Media CEO Carlos Watson Takes Stand, Denies Fraud

    Former Ozy Media CEO Carlos Watson on Monday testified that he is not guilty of charges that he deceived financial backers of the media and entertainment company about its allegedly dire financial state, while casting himself as the founder of an idealistic and scrappy startup that had more value than the government claims.

  • July 01, 2024

    Could Trump Get Jail In NY? We Dug Into 10 Years Of Data

    Donald Trump could well be sentenced to a prison term after a New York state jury found him guilty on 34 felony counts, according to criminal justice data showing that many New York defendants convicted of those crimes face incarceration.

Expert Analysis

  • 4 Ways To Refresh Your Law Firm's Marketing Strategy

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    With many BigLaw firms relying on an increasingly obsolete marketing approach that prioritizes stiff professionalism over authentic connection, adopting a few key communications strategies to better connect with today's clients and prospects can make all the difference, say Eric Pacifici and Kevin Henderson at SMB Law.

  • What Law Firms Should Know Amid Rise In DQ Motions

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    As disqualification motions proliferate, law firms need to be aware of the types of conflicts that most often lead to disqualification, the types of attorneys who may be affected and how to reduce their exposure to these motions, says Matthew Henderson at Hinshaw.

  • Data Protection Steps To Consider After Biden Privacy Order

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    A recent White House executive order casts a spotlight on the criticality of securing sensitive content communications, presenting challenges and necessitating a recalibration of practices, especially for lawyers, says Camilo Artiga-Purcell at Kiteworks.

  • Surveying Legislative Trends As States Rush To Regulate AI

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    With Congress unlikely to pass comprehensive artificial intelligence legislation any time soon, just four months into 2024, nearly every state has introduced legislation aimed at the development and use of AI on subjects from algorithmic discrimination risk to generative AI disclosures, say David Kappos and Sasha Rosenthal-Larrea at Cravath.

  • How Duty Of Candor Figures In USPTO AI Ethics Guidance

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    The duty of candor and good faith is an important part of the artificial intelligence ethics guidance issued last week by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and serious consequences can visit patent and trademark applicants who violate that duty, not just their attorneys and agents, says Michael Cicero at Taylor English.

  • Series

    Whitewater Kayaking Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Whether it's seeing clients and their issues from a new perspective, or staying nimble in a moment of intense challenge, the lessons learned from whitewater kayaking transcend the rapids of a river and prepare attorneys for the courtroom and beyond, says Matthew Kent at Alston & Bird.

  • This Earth Day, Consider How Your Firm Can Go Greener

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    As Earth Day approaches, law firms and attorneys should consider adopting more sustainable practices to reduce their carbon footprint — from minimizing single-use plastics to purchasing carbon offsets for air travel — which ultimately can also reduce costs for clients, say M’Lynn Phillips and Lisa Walters at IMS Legal Strategies.

  • Weisselberg's Perjury At Trial Spotlights Atty Ethics Issues

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    Former Trump Organization executive Allen Weisselberg’s recent guilty plea for perjury in the New York attorney general's civil fraud trial should serve as a reminder to attorneys of their ethical duties when they know a client has lied or plans to lie in court, and the potential penalties for not fulfilling those obligations, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.

  • Practicing Law With Parkinson's Disease

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    This Parkinson’s Awareness Month, Adam Siegler at Greenberg Traurig discusses his experience working as a lawyer with Parkinson’s disease, sharing both lessons on how to cope with a diagnosis and advice for supporting colleagues who live with the disease.

  • Why Incorporating By Reference Is Rarely Good Practice

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    The Federal Circuit’s recent ruling in Promptu Systems v. Comcast serves as a reminder that while incorporating by reference may seem efficient, it is generally prohibited by courts and can lead to sanctions when used to bypass a word count limit, says Cullen Seltzer at Sands Anderson.

  • Series

    Playing Hockey Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Nearly a lifetime of playing hockey taught me the importance of avoiding burnout in all aspects of life, and the game ultimately ended up providing me with the balance I needed to maintain success in my legal career, says John Riccione at Taft.

  • For Lawyers, Pessimism Should Be A Job Skill, Not A Life Skill

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    A pessimistic mindset allows attorneys to be effective advocates for their clients, but it can come with serious costs for their personal well-being, so it’s crucial to exercise strategies that produce flexible optimism and connect lawyers with their core values, says Krista Larson at Stinson.

  • Trump's NY Civil Fraud Trial Spotlights Long-Criticized Law

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    A New York court’s recent decision holding former President Donald Trump liable for fraud brought old criticisms of the state law used against him back into the limelight — including its strikingly broad scope and its major departures from the traditional elements of common law fraud, say Mark Kelley and Lois Ahn at MoloLamken.

  • Opinion

    Requiring Leave To File Amicus Briefs Is A Bad Idea

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    A proposal to amend the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure that would require parties to get court permission before filing federal amicus briefs would eliminate the long-standing practice of consent filing and thereby make the process less open and democratic, says Lawrence Ebner at the Atlantic Legal Foundation and DRI Center.

  • 4 Ways To Motivate Junior Attorneys To Bring Their Best

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    As Gen Z and younger millennial attorneys increasingly express dissatisfaction with their work and head for the exits, the lawyers who manage them must understand and attend to their needs and priorities to boost engagement and increase retention, says Stacey Schwartz at Katten.

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