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Legal Ethics
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October 25, 2024
Trump Co-Defendants Stuck In Ga. State Court, 11th Circ. Says
The Eleventh Circuit on Thursday rejected attempts from four co-defendants of former President Donald Trump to have their Georgia election interference cases moved from state to federal court.
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October 25, 2024
Ga. Atty Can't Beat Contempt Charge Over Trial Tardiness
The Georgia Court of Appeals on Friday rejected an attorney's argument that his due process rights were violated when he was found in contempt, finding that his tardiness to a trial — where the judge sent the jury home due to the absence of the lawyer and his client — was direct contempt.
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October 25, 2024
Congress Urged To Further Inspect FBI's Kavanaugh Probe
More than 50 civil rights groups have called on members of the U.S. Congress to further investigate the Trump White House's role in restricting the FBI's investigation into sexual misconduct allegations lodged against U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his 2018 confirmation process.
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October 25, 2024
Ex-Judge Can't Hide Bank Records In Romance Cash Probe
A Texas bankruptcy court on Friday shot down a former judge's bid to shield his banking records from a U.S. Trustee's Office inquiry into his concealed romantic relationship with a former Jackson Walker LLP partner, giving Bank of America NA one week to provide six years of the former judge's bank statements.
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October 25, 2024
Baldwin 'Rust' Judge Rejects State's Bid To Revive Case
A New Mexico judge declined to reconsider a decision throwing out the "Rust" movie shooting case against actor-producer Alec Baldwin based on prosecutorial misconduct, according to an order released Friday.
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October 24, 2024
Trump Again Argues Jack Smith's Appointment Was Illegal
Former President Donald Trump on Thursday said a D.C. federal court should throw out prosecutors' election interference case, repeating the argument he made in the classified documents case against him in Florida and contending that the appointment of special prosecutor Jack Smith was illegal.
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October 24, 2024
4th Circ. Backs Sanctioning Firm $1M For 'Defiance' Of Court
The Fourth Circuit on Thursday upheld a roughly $1 million sanction against the law firm of New York plaintiffs attorney Paul J. Napoli for its purportedly frivolous filings in a battle with another firm over asbestos litigation client referrals, saying the firm's misconduct was in "direct defiance" of a Maryland federal court's authority.
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October 24, 2024
Alex Jones Atty Laments Sharing Sandy Hook Families' Info
The lead attorney in conspiracy theorist Alex Jones' Sandy Hook Elementary School defamation trial in Connecticut acknowledged Thursday that he "erred" when he allowed a hard drive containing the plaintiffs' confidential records to be transmitted to other attorneys, an act that led to ongoing disciplinary proceedings that threaten his law license.
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October 24, 2024
Incoming NJ Judge Wins Appellate Ruling To Collect Pension
A former deputy attorney general and Camden County prosecutor will be able to collect her state pension while serving on the Superior Court of New Jersey, a state appeals court ruled Thursday in a published opinion.
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October 24, 2024
Ga. Bar Eyes Atty Guardrails On Use Of Third-Party Vendors
A board for the State Bar of Georgia has said in a proposed ethics opinion that lawyers could be on the hook for the alleged misconduct of third-party vendors they use to request documents from a nonparty, such as medical records or bills.
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October 24, 2024
Private Enforcer Sues LA-Area Immigration Consulting Firm
A California organization that acts as a private enforcer of state rules that govern immigration consulting companies has sued a Los Angeles-area business, claiming it falsely presented itself to the public as an immigration law firm.
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October 24, 2024
Giuliani Admissions Sink Bid To Shield Fla. Condo, Court Told
Two former Georgia poll workers seeking to collect a $148 million defamation judgment against disgraced ex-lawyer Rudy Giuliani argued this week that the former New York City mayor has admitted he was not living in his luxury Florida condo around the time they filed a lien on it, and thus cannot prevent a sale of the property.
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October 24, 2024
Conn. High Court Snapshot: $13M Tax Appeals, Will Dispute
The Connecticut Supreme Court's second term of the 2024-2025 season will commence Monday with a dispute over whether an attorney bungled a will that sought to divide a $845,368 TD Ameritrade account among five beneficiaries, only one of whom received any cash.
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October 24, 2024
Atty Escapes Suspension Over $1M Fee Bid For $125K Awards
A Pennsylvania Supreme Court panel on Thursday denied a 90-day suspension recommendation by the Disciplinary Board against a Lackawanna County personal injury attorney who filed a petition for more than $1 million in attorney fees from an insurance company he sued on behalf of his client.
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October 24, 2024
Judge Orders Bangladeshi Officials Arrested In $32M Arb. Row
A D.C. federal judge on Thursday issued bench warrants for the arrest of two Bangladeshi officials whom a power company wants to depose as it seeks to enforce a collective $31.9 million in arbitration awards against Bangladesh, prompting an immediate appeal from the Bangladeshi government.
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October 24, 2024
Ex-Moody's GC Gets Prison For Tax-Filing Fail On $54M In Pay
The former general counsel for Moody's Corp. was sentenced Thursday to eight months in prison for willfully failing to file federal income tax returns for four years in which he collected $54 million in income.
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October 24, 2024
Conn. Firm Botched €1.6M Settlement For UK Client, Suit Says
Connecticut firm Carmody Torrance Sandak & Hennessey LLP is responsible for the loss of €1.6 million ($1.7 million) a U.K. client paid toward a failed global bankruptcy settlement agreement, according to a legal malpractice suit filed in Connecticut state court.
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October 23, 2024
Trump Shooting Suspect Seeks Fla. Judge's Recusal
A man charged with attempting to shoot former President Donald Trump wants the Trump-appointed judge overseeing his case to step aside to preserve the appearance of impartiality, pointing Wednesday to news articles speculating that she could be in the running for a top legal position if Trump wins reelection.
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October 23, 2024
Court Denies Fees In 'Objectively Specious' Trade Secrets Suit
A Seattle federal judge has agreed that a dental health insurer litigated an "objectively specious" trade secrets lawsuit against two of its former company officials, but ruled that not enough showed it was pursuing the case "in bad faith."
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October 23, 2024
Co. Misleads Claimants About Visa Mastercard MDL, Attys Say
Class counsel for plaintiffs in long-running multidistrict litigation accusing Visa and Mastercard of charging improper merchant fees asked a New York federal judge to demand explanations from a third-party company over misleading statements it allegedly made regarding the claims-submission process for recovering settlement payments.
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October 23, 2024
Tribes Want Magistrate Judge To Drop Out Of $12M Award Suit
Two Native American tribes have told a Wyoming federal court that a magistrate judge should recuse himself from an oil and gas company's lawsuit attempting to stop them from using their tribal judicial system to vacate a more than $12 million arbitration award.
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October 23, 2024
Judges Hint Settlement May Have Waived Atty's Free Speech
Attorney Timothy Brignole and his Hartford law firm, Brignole Bush & Lewis LLC, may have surrendered free speech rights when they signed a nondisparagement agreement with a former employee, stripping them of the ability to claim First Amendment protection over comments attributed to them in a lawsuit, judges of the Connecticut Appellate Court hinted Wednesday.
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October 23, 2024
Combs, Feds At Odds Over Gag Order Amid Press Blitz
Attorneys for Sean "Diddy" Combs told a Manhattan federal judge on Wednesday that they are unable to agree with prosecutors about who should be barred from talking to the press about the hip-hop mogul's sex-trafficking and racketeering case.
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October 23, 2024
Del. Judge Won't Yet Revisit $242K Atty Sanctions In Ch. 7
A Delaware bankruptcy judge said Wednesday that he won't, for now, set aside more than $242,000 in legal fees he ordered a lawyer representing the owners of an insolvent government contractor to pay in a clawback lawsuit, saying that since the sanctions order was appealed to the district court, he doesn't have jurisdiction.
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October 23, 2024
Feds Ask To Drop Conviction Tainted By Alaska Judge Scandal
Federal prosecutors in Alaska have moved to voluntarily vacate the conviction of a man who assaulted two jail employees, after determining the case was irrevocably tainted by the sexual misconduct scandal that toppled former U.S. District Judge Joshua Kindred.
Expert Analysis
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Series
Being An EMT Makes Me A Better Lawyer
While some of my experiences as an emergency medical technician have been unusually painful and searing, the skills I’ve learned — such as triage, empathy and preparedness — are just as useful in my work as a restructuring lawyer, says Marshall Huebner at Davis Polk.
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Exploring An Alternative Model Of Litigation Finance
A new model of litigation finance, most aptly described as insurance-backed litigation funding, differs from traditional funding in two key ways, and the process of securing it involves three primary steps, say Bob Koneck, Christopher Le Neve Foster and Richard Butters at Atlantic Global Risk LLC.
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Trump Hush Money Case Offers Master Class In Trial Strategy
The New York criminal hush money trial of former President Donald Trump typifies some of the greatest challenges that lawyers face in crafting persuasive presentations, providing lessons on how to handle bad facts, craft a simple story that withstands attack, and cross-examine with that story in mind, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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Series
Teaching Yoga Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Being a yoga instructor has helped me develop my confidence and authenticity, as well as stress management and people skills — all of which have crossed over into my career as an attorney, says Laura Gongaware at Clyde & Co.
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A Vision For Economic Clerkships In The Legal System
As courts handle increasingly complex damages analyses involving vast amounts of data, an economic clerkship program — integrating early-career economists into the judicial system — could improve legal outcomes and provide essential training to clerks, say Mona Birjandi at Data for Decisions and Matt Farber at Secretariat.
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E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On Text Message Data
Electronically stored information on cellphones, and in particular text messages, can present unique litigation challenges, and recent court decisions demonstrate that counsel must carefully balance what data should be preserved, collected, reviewed and produced, say attorneys at Sidley.
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'Fat Leonard' Case Shows High Bar For Rescinding Guilty Plea
Prosecutors’ recent move in the “Fat Leonard” bribery case, supporting several defendants’ motions to withdraw their guilty pleas, is extremely unusual – and its contrast with other prosecutions demonstrates that the procedural safeguards at plea hearings are far from enough, says Sara Kropf at Kropf Moseley.
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Series
Swimming Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Years of participation in swimming events, especially in the open water, have proven to be ideal preparation for appellate arguments in court — just as you must put your trust in the ocean when competing in a swim event, you must do the same with the judicial process, says John Kulewicz at Vorys.
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As Arbitrator Bias Claims Rise, Disclosure Standards Evolve
The growth in post-award challenges based on arbitrators' alleged conflicts of interest has led to the release of new guidance and new case law on the topic — both supporting the view that professional familiarity alone does not translate to a lack of impartiality, say attorneys at Skadden.
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Don't Use The Same Template For Every Client Alert
As the old marketing adage goes, consistency is key, but law firm style guides need consistency that contemplates variety when it comes to client alert formats, allowing attorneys to tailor alerts to best fit the audience and subject matter, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.
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Series
Walking With My Dog Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Thanks to my dog Birdie, I've learned that carving out an activity different from the practice of law — like daily outdoor walks that allow you to interact with new people — can contribute to professional success by boosting creativity and mental acuity, as well as expanding your social network, says Sarah Petrie at the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Follow The Iron Rule Of Trial Logic
Many diligent and eager attorneys include every good fact, point and rule in their trial narratives — spurred by the gnawing fear they’ll be second-guessed for leaving something out — but this approach ignores a fundamental principle of successful trial lawyering, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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The Art Of Asking: Leveraging Your Contacts For Referrals
Though attorneys may hesitate to ask for referral recommendations to generate new business, research shows that people want to help others they know, like and trust, so consider who in your network you should approach and how to make the ask, says Rebecca Hnatowski at Edwards Advisory.
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Series
Being An Equestrian Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Beyond getting experience thinking on my feet and tackling stressful situations, the skills I've gained from horseback riding have considerable overlap with the skills used to practice law, particularly in terms of team building, continuing education, and making an effort to reset and recharge, says Kerry Irwin at Moore & Van Allen.
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4 Ways To Refresh Your Law Firm's Marketing Strategy
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.