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Legal Ethics
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October 22, 2024
Ex-Google GC Must Be Investigated By Calif. Bar, Groups Say
A trio of groups led by the American Economic Liberties Project on Tuesday pressed the State Bar of California to investigate former Google general counsel Kent Walker for "coaching" the company to "engage in widespread and illegal destruction of records relevant to multiple ongoing federal trials."
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October 22, 2024
Legatum Exec Wins $8M Libel Trial Against D.C. Investigator
A D.C. federal jury has awarded the founder of Dubai-based investment company Legatum more than $8 million in his defamation case against a private investigator accused of preparing and disseminating a bogus "background report" falsely stating the executive was a Russian asset.
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October 22, 2024
Judge Tells Firm To Tighten Up Testimony In Nassar Fee Trial
A Michigan federal judge cautioned a local personal injury firm Tuesday to reel in the head of the firm on the witness stand, warning he was losing the jury in a long "inside baseball" legal discussion in his efforts to get a greater cut of fees from a Colorado firm for work on a Larry Nassar abuse settlement.
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October 22, 2024
Calif. Official Cops To Taking Bribes For $10M In Contracts
A member of the Orange County Board of Supervisors has admitted to steering $10 million worth of COVID-19 relief funds to a charity affiliated with his daughter in exchange for more than $500,000 in bribes, California federal prosecutors announced Tuesday.
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October 22, 2024
NJ Justices Cast Doubt On Out-Of-State Atty Referral Fee Ban
New Jersey Supreme Court justices on Tuesday sounded skeptical of an ethics rule change that would ban certified attorneys from paying referral fees to out-of-state lawyers, questioning an advisory panel's conclusion that such fees represent an authorized payment for legal services.
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October 22, 2024
Law Firm Wins Atty Fees In Texas Over Lies To Ghana Court
An African energy company has to pay nearly $166,000 in attorney fees to an international arbitration specialty law firm after the company was sanctioned for lying to a Ghanaian court about proceedings in Texas, a Texas federal judge has ruled.
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October 22, 2024
LegalZoom, Ex-User Clash Over Unlawful-Practice Arbitration
Legal services provider LegalZoom cannot force a proposed class action alleging unauthorized practice of law into arbitration, a former customer has told a New Jersey federal judge, because the web platform provided an inadequate explanation for a supposedly binding arbitration agreement.
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October 22, 2024
Fla. Judge Accused Of Misusing Contempt, Cuffing Victim
A Sunshine State judge has been hit with ethics charges for allegedly improperly holding people in her courtroom in contempt, including an alleged crime victim who was placed in handcuffs and held in custody for nearly three hours.
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October 22, 2024
Ex-Atty Charged With Stealing Settlement Funds From Clients
A former attorney who practiced in Oklahoma and gave up his law license in 2020 amid a disciplinary investigation has been charged in federal court with stealing money his then-clients were owed from settlements between 2015 and 2020.
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October 22, 2024
Hagens Berman Tells Amazon, Apple: Sure, Sanction Client
Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP is fine with a Washington federal court sanctioning the firm's client — formerly the lead plaintiff — in a putative antitrust class action against Apple and Amazon, saying it shares their goal of compelling document production after the plaintiff ghosted his attorneys.
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October 22, 2024
Detroit Judge Says He's Immune From Sleeping Teen's Suit
A Michigan judge accused of having a teenage girl detained and handcuffed after she fell asleep during a field trip to his courtroom is arguing that he is entitled to immunity from the teen's lawsuit because he was acting in his judicial capacity when he disciplined her.
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October 22, 2024
Judge Whose Son Was Killed Says States Must Step Up Safety
U.S. District Judge Esther Salas of New Jersey, whose son was killed at her home by an attorney who had litigated a case before her, says the federal law enacted in her late son's honor is working well, but more needs to be done on the state level.
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October 22, 2024
Georgia Supreme Court Forms Generative AI Committee
The Georgia Supreme Court has established a 16-person committee to explore uses of generative artificial intelligence in the judiciary, in partnership with the National Center for State Courts, the court said Tuesday.
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October 22, 2024
The 2024 Prestige Leaders
Check out our Prestige Leaders ranking, analysis and interactive graphics to see which firms stand out for their financial performance, attractiveness to attorneys and law students, ability to secure accolades and positive legal news media representation.
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October 22, 2024
How Law Firms Get And Keep Elite Status
For decades, a handful of New York-based law firms thoroughly dominated the national consciousness when it came to power, profitability and prestige. But in today's legal market, increased movement of partners and clients from one firm to the next has begun to shake things up and create opportunities for go-getters to ascend the ranks.
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October 22, 2024
Grassley Probes Delayed Charges For Threat To Trump Judge
U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley is seeking answers as to why it took the U.S. Department of Justice four months to indict an Illinois man for allegedly threatening to kidnap and murder the Florida federal judge who handled Donald Trump's classified documents case.
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October 22, 2024
Ex-Ga. Insurance Commissioner Gives Up Law License
Georgia's justices accepted John Oxendine's voluntary surrender of his law license on Tuesday, months after the former state insurance commissioner was sentenced to prison for his role in a multimillion-dollar medical testing kickback scheme.
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October 22, 2024
Reebok Settles Testy TM Suit With Italian Shoemaker
Reebok has settled a suit claiming Italian shoemaker Autry USA LLC ripped off several of the sneaker giant's trademarks, ending a contentious case that saw Reebok seek to sanction its rival for what it termed "underhanded" tactics.
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October 22, 2024
Ga. Justices Toss Young Thug Atty's Contempt Conviction
The Georgia Supreme Court on Tuesday threw out the contempt conviction of the attorney representing the rapper Young Thug over the lawyer's refusal to disclose how he learned about a judge's closed-door meeting with prosecutors and a witness, saying that judge was "involved in the controversy" and thus should not have handled the contempt hearing.
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October 21, 2024
Ex-Holland & Knight Atty Slams 'Incendiary' Client Info Suit
A former Holland & Knight LLP partner asked a Pennsylvania federal judge Monday to toss a lawsuit alleging he unlawfully accessed a client's confidential documents in order to gain an upper hand in his contentious divorce, saying the "incendiary and defamatory" complaint is vague and fails to state viable claims.
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October 21, 2024
Target Wants Sanctions For 'Bogus' BIPA Suit
An Illinois federal judge should sanction a group of Target customers and their lawyers for pursuing a facial recognition privacy case even though the plaintiffs had seen evidence their legal theory was "bogus," the retail giant says.
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October 21, 2024
Firm Fired HR Manager Because Of Pregnancy, Fla. Jury Told
The lawyer for a former human resources manager at a South Florida law firm told a federal jury Monday that she was fired for being pregnant, saying that her ex-employer made her come into work despite a doctor's note telling her to stay home after determining that she had a high-risk pregnancy.
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October 21, 2024
Wade Says Trump Probe Plans Began Before Willis Took Office
Former Fulton County special prosecutor Nathan Wade told Georgia House Judiciary Committee staff last week that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis planned to pursue charges against former president Donald Trump before she officially took the job and admitted to meeting with White House officials at least twice during the Georgia investigation.
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October 21, 2024
Calif. Atty Disbarred For Gambling With Client Cash
A California attorney has been disbarred after misappropriating almost $117,000 from his clients and using much of that money for his gambling habit while claiming to be terminally ill with cancer.
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October 21, 2024
Disbarred Conn. Atty Owed $52K In Fees, Appeals Court Told
An attorney disbarred for making false claims in a judicial recusal motion is seeking $52,100 in fees derived from a State Farm car accident settlement and various other sources, telling the Connecticut Appellate Court on Monday that a trial judge improperly weighed the fees during her later discipline case.
Expert Analysis
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Pro Bono Work Is Powerful Self-Help For Attorneys
Oct. 22-28 is Pro Bono Week, serving as a useful reminder that offering free legal help to the public can help attorneys expand their legal toolbox, forge community relationships and create human connections, despite the challenges of this kind of work, says Orlando Lopez at Culhane Meadows.
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Series
Playing In A Rock Cover Band Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Performing in a classic rock cover band has driven me to hone several skills — including focus, organization and networking — that have benefited my professional development, demonstrating that taking time to follow your muse outside of work can be a boon to your career, says Michael Gambro at Cadwalader.
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Series
The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Espinosa On 'Lincoln Lawyer'
The murder trials in Netflix’s “The Lincoln Lawyer” illustrate the stark contrast between the ethical high ground that fosters and maintains the criminal justice system's integrity, and the ethical abyss that can undermine it, with an important reminder for all legal practitioners, say Judge Adam Espinosa and Andrew Howard at the Colorado 2nd Judicial District Court.
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What Panama Canal Award Ruling Means For Int'l Arbitration
As the prevalence of international arbitration grows, the Eighth Circuit’s recent decision in Grupo Unidos v. Canal de Panama may change how practitioners decide what remedies to seek and where to raise them if claims are rejected, says Jerry Roth at FedArb.
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Opinion
Newman Suspension Shows Need For Judicial Reform
The recent suspension of U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman following her alleged refusal to participate in a disability inquiry reveals the need for judicial misconduct reforms to ensure that judges step down when they can no longer serve effectively, says Aliza Shatzman at The Legal Accountability Project.
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How And Why Your Firm Should Implement Fixed-Fee Billing
Amid rising burnout in the legal industry and client efforts to curtail spending, pivoting to a fixed-fee billing model may improve client-attorney relationships and offer lawyers financial, logistical and stress relief — while still maintaining profit margins, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.
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Opinion
Judicial Independence Needs Defense Amid Political Threats
Amid recent and historic challenges to the judiciary from political forces, safeguarding judicial independence and maintaining the integrity of the legal system is increasingly urgent, says Robert Peck at the Center for Constitutional Litigation.
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How Law Firms Can Use Account-Based Marketing Strategies
Amid several evolving legal industry trends, account-based marketing can help law firms uncover additional revenue-generating opportunities with existing clients, with key considerations ranging from data analytics to relationship building, say Jennifer Ramsey at stage LLC and consultant Gina Sponzilli.
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Strategic Succession Planning At Law Firms Is Crucial
Senior partners' reluctance to retire, the rise of the nonequity partner tier and generational differences in expectations are all contributing to an increasing number of departures from BigLaw, making it imperative for firms to encourage retirement among senior ranks and provide clearer leadership pathways to junior attorneys, says Laura Leopard at Leopard Solutions.
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Maximizing Law Firm Profitability In Uncertain Times
As threats of an economic downturn loom, firms can boost profits by embracing the power of bottom-line management and creating an ecosystem where strategic financial oversight and robust timekeeping practices meet evolved client relations, says Shireen Hilal at Maior Strategic Consulting.
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Alleged $636M Deal Error Highlights Ethics Considerations
Adelman v. Proskauer, a malpractice suit that allegedly arose from a cut-and-paste error resulting in potential damages of $636 million, presents an intriguing juxtaposition of facts and legal issues — and practical ethical considerations for transactions attorneys, says Richard Leisner at Trenam Law.
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5th Circ. Ruling Reminds Attys That CBP Can Search Devices
The Fifth Circuit’s recent Malik v. Department of Homeland Security decision adds to the chorus of federal courts holding that border agents don’t need a warrant to search travelers’ electronic devices, so attorneys should consider certain special precautions to secure privileged information when reentering the U.S., says Jennifer Freel at Jackson Walker.
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Alleged $636M Deal Error Shows Value Of Old-School Methods
Though Proskauer Rose has now settled claims involving a copy-paste error in deal documents that could have resulted in $636 million in damages, the debacle reminds attorneys that classic revision methods using paper copies can help avoid drafting errors and actually save time in the long run, says Richard Leisner at Trenam.
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Twitter Sanction Highlights Privacy Law's Complexity
The D.C. Circuit's recent decision to uphold a sanction against X Corp., formerly known as Twitter, for failing to produce account records in response to a subpoena highlights the importance of understanding the Stored Communications Act, particularly when deciding to produce or not produce data, says Cary Aronovitz at Holland & Knight.
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Avoiding The Ethical Pitfalls Of Crowdfunded Legal Fees
The crowdfunding of legal fees has become increasingly common, providing a new way for people to afford legal services, but attorneys who accept crowdsourced funds must remember several key ethical obligations to mitigate their risks, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.