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Legal Ethics
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December 17, 2024
NYC Mayor Must Face Bribery Charge For Turkish Travel Perks
A Manhattan federal judge on Tuesday rejected New York City Mayor Eric Adams' request to dismiss the bribery charge from his indictment, finding that prosecutors clearly alleged a corrupt bargain with Turkish government agents to receive lavish travel perks.
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December 17, 2024
NC Legal Advice Law Challenge Meets Early Demise
A lawsuit by two paralegals and a nonprofit challenging North Carolina's ban on the unauthorized practice of law restricting who can offer legal advice has been cut short after a federal judge found the statute falls within a substantial state interest to protect its citizens.
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December 17, 2024
Pa. Supreme Court Says Judge's Side Job Sinks Tax Rulings
A Pennsylvania state judge who held a side job on a Philadelphia tax appeals board had nullified rulings he made on a local hospital's tax cases, the state's Supreme Court said Tuesday, reasoning that holding both jobs was a "constitutionally impermissible conflict of duties."
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December 17, 2024
Colo. Atty Accused Of Poaching Seeks State Justices' Take
It's time for Colorado's Supreme Court to weigh whether law firms may prohibit attorneys from soliciting co-workers to depart their firm together, a lawyer accused of soliciting BigLaw firms to poach her department from a Denver personal injury firm argued Monday, asserting the case is a matter of first impression.
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December 17, 2024
Ex-Tenn. Law Firm Manager Accused Of $1.2M Embezzlement
A Tennessee federal grand jury indicted the former office manager of a Memphis law firm on charges she embezzled more than $1.2 million from the firm to buy luxury goods and travel for herself and her relatives.
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December 16, 2024
Circuit-By-Circuit Guide To 2024's Most Memorable Moments
One judge said a litigant's position would cause "an effing nightmare," and another decried the legal community's silence amid "illegitimate aspersions." Public officials literally trashed one court's opinion, and fateful rulings dealt with controversial politicians, social media and decades of environmental policy. Those were just a few appellate highlights in 2024, a year teeming with memorable moments both substantive and sensational.
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December 16, 2024
Menendez Prosecutors Say 'Chat Chains' Were Admitted In Error
Federal prosecutors in the government's case against former Sen. Bob Menendez on Monday notified the New York federal court of another evidentiary blunder, this time saying they mistakenly admitted "long chat chains" that included "small portions of material" that should've been excluded.
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December 16, 2024
Medical Facility Or Prison? Judge Mulls Tom Girardi's Fate
A California federal judge on Monday ordered federal prosecutors and Tom Girardi's defense counsel to make their case on whether the 85-year-old disbarred attorney should get lifetime confinement to a medical facility instead of prison for embezzling millions of dollars from clients, given his age and declining mental health.
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December 16, 2024
Alaska Plea Nixed Due To Ex-Judge's Sexts With Prosecutor
A visiting judge agreed Monday to overturn an Alaska guilty plea that was negotiated by a federal prosecutor who sent nude photographs to former U.S. District Judge Joshua Kindred, the latest fallout from the disgraced jurist's sexual misconduct scandal.
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December 16, 2024
NY Judge Denies Trump's 1st Immunity Dismissal Motion
The New York state judge overseeing President-elect Donald Trump's hush money case denied the first of his immunity-based dismissal motions on Monday, finding that the trial evidence in the criminal case was not tainted by "official acts" evidence from his first term in office.
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December 16, 2024
Boeing Says Records Loss Should Get 737 Max Suit Tossed
The Boeing Co. is asking a Washington federal court to throw out a suit from a defunct African airline over fallout from a 737 Max airplane deal, saying that the plaintiff airline's loss of records was intentional and warrants sanctions.
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December 16, 2024
Jay-Z Flags 'Glaring Inconsistencies' In Buzbee Rape Claims
Counsel for Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter told a New York federal judge Friday that new media reports reveal "glaring inconsistencies" in an anonymous woman's rape allegations against the rapper and fellow music mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs, suggesting that her attorney Tony Buzbee deserves sanctions for failing to vet the claims.
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December 16, 2024
Blindsided Developer Says $112K Legal Bill Should Be $25K
A real estate developer fighting a $112,000 legal bill from Conrad & Scherer LLP testified in a Florida state court Monday that he hired the firm for its banking regulation expertise but not for trial work in a lawsuit over a luxury house in Colorado.
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December 16, 2024
Atty Seeks To Escape Hurricane Ad Suit Against Texas Firm
A Houston-area lawyer is asking a Texas federal court to let him out of a proposed class action involving allegedly deceptive advertising targeting hurricane victims, saying discovery has closed, and the plaintiff has come up empty-handed in finding proof that he "solicited" her in violation of Lone Star State barratry laws.
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December 16, 2024
NJ Panel Tosses Contempt Sanctions Against Lawyer
A New Jersey appellate panel on Monday vacated contempt sanctions imposed by a Bergen County judge on a Northern New Jersey-based lawyer in an estate case, saying the attorney's conduct wasn't enough of a disruption.
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December 16, 2024
Battle Over Atty Speech Raises First Amendment Concerns
An attorney is challenging a local rule used to gag him in the Middle District of Tennessee, saying it goes too far in restricting lawyers from speaking to the press about their cases.
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December 16, 2024
Lin Wood Must Pay $2M To Ga. Court After Defamation Verdict
Embattled former attorney Lin Wood will have to hand over $2 million to a Georgia federal court and must ensure that property offered as collateral is accessible and maintained while he appeals a $4.5 million defamation award against him, a federal judge ruled Monday.
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December 16, 2024
Va. Commonwealth's Atty Wants Sanctions In FMLA Dispute
A Virginia commonwealth's attorney urged a federal court Monday to slap sanctions on a former assistant attorney who filed suit after he was fired for requesting time off to care for his mother, saying his failure to respond to discovery requests merits punishment.
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December 16, 2024
Firm Tells Colo. Justices To Ignore Ex-Atty's Poaching Petition
A petition to have the Colorado Supreme Court review a decision upholding a verdict against an attorney accused of soliciting BigLaw firms to poach her department at a personal injury firm must fail, her ex-firm told the high court, as it presents "no novel or complicating issue."
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December 16, 2024
3rd Circ. Nominee Decries 'Broken' Confirmation Process
Adeel Mangi, the nominee for the Third Circuit who would have been the first federal Muslim appellate judge if confirmed, sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Monday saying the selection process for federal judges is "broken."
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December 13, 2024
Calif. Fed. Judge Sued Over Fight That Broke Out At Party
A California federal judge and his wife have been accused of hosting a party that was attended by high school students, involved "significant underage drinking" and ended in a fight in front of their Pasadena home, according to a suit filed Thursday in California state court.
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December 13, 2024
Apple Can't Drag Out Privilege Claims Re-Review, Judge Says
A California federal magistrate judge on Friday rejected Apple's argument that Apple and Epic Games should agree on a document-review protocol before Apple re-reviews 57,000 documents it claims are attorney-client privileged in their antitrust fight, telling Apple's counsel such a process would likely drag out litigation without being useful.
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December 13, 2024
Ill. Atty Likened Court To Nazi Germany, Faces Disbarment
A hearing board of Illinois' attorney watchdog recommended Thursday that a recently suspended attorney now be disbarred for lying about a judge in her objection to the earlier discipline and for "shockingly unprofessional conduct" that included calling the board's chair an idiot and sending photos with her middle fingers extended.
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December 13, 2024
Prindle Goetz Says Attys Took Trade Secrets To Rival Firm
Prindle Goetz Barnes & Reinholtz LLP sued two former nonequity partners in California state court Thursday, accusing them of taking its confidential billing, compensation and client listing information with them in late 2022 before jumping to a rival law firm launched by a former equity owner at the law firm.
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December 13, 2024
Liner Co. Seeks PTAB Sanctions For Alleged False Testimony
After receiving the Patent Trial and Appeal Board's green light Friday, Omega Liner Co. quickly requested sanctions against German packaging company Buergofol GmbH, whose liner patent Omega is challenging, accusing Buergofol's counsel of knowingly submitting false testimony to the board.
Expert Analysis
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Why Preemption Args Wouldn't Stall Trump Hush-Money Case
With former President Donald Trump's New York hush-money criminal trial weeks away, some speculate that he may soon move to stay the case on preemption grounds, but under the Anti-Injunction Act and well-settled case law, that motion would likely be quickly denied, says former New York Supreme Court Justice Ethan Greenberg, now at Anderson Kill.
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Litigation Inspiration: A Source Of Untapped Fulfillment
As increasing numbers of attorneys struggle with stress and mental health issues, business litigators can find protection against burnout by remembering their important role in society — because fulfillment in one’s work isn’t just reserved for public interest lawyers, say Bennett Rawicki and Peter Bigelow at Hilgers Graben.
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Series
Skiing Makes Me A Better Lawyer
A lifetime of skiing has helped me develop important professional skills, and taught me that embracing challenges with a spirit of adventure can allow lawyers to push boundaries, expand their capabilities and ultimately excel in their careers, says Andrea Przybysz at Tucker Ellis.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Forget Everything You Know About IRAC
The mode of legal reasoning most students learn in law school, often called “Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion,” or IRAC, erroneously frames analysis as a separate, discrete step, resulting in disorganized briefs and untold obfuscation — but the fix is pretty simple, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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How Firms Can Ensure Associate Gender Parity Lasts
Among associates, women now outnumber men for the first time, but progress toward gender equality at the top of the legal profession remains glacially slow, and firms must implement time-tested solutions to ensure associates’ gender parity lasts throughout their careers, say Kelly Culhane and Nicole Joseph at Culhane Meadows.
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7 Common Myths About Lateral Partner Moves
As lateral recruiting remains a key factor for law firm growth, partners considering a lateral move should be aware of a few commonly held myths — some of which contain a kernel of truth, and some of which are flat out wrong, says Dave Maurer at Major Lindsey.
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Series
Cheering In The NFL Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Balancing my time between a BigLaw career and my role as an NFL cheerleader has taught me that pursuing your passions outside of work is not a distraction, but rather an opportunity to harness important skills that can positively affect how you approach work and view success in your career, says Rachel Schuster at Sheppard Mullin.
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6 Pointers For Attys To Build Trust, Credibility On Social Media
In an era of information overload, attorneys can use social media strategically — from making infographics to leveraging targeted advertising — to cut through the noise and establish a reputation among current and potential clients, says Marly Broudie at SocialEyes Communications.
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A Post-Mortem Analysis Of Stroock's Demise
After the dissolution of 147-year-old firm Stroock late last year shook up the legal world, a post-mortem analysis of the data reveals a long list of warning signs preceding the firm’s collapse — and provides some insight into how other firms might avoid the same disastrous fate, says Craig Savitzky at Leopard Solutions.
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Series
Coaching High School Wrestling Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Coaching my son’s high school wrestling team has been great fun, but it’s also demonstrated how a legal career can benefit from certain experiences, such as embracing the unknown, studying the rules and engaging with new people, says Richard Davis at Maynard Nexsen.
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SG's Office Is Case Study To Help Close Legal Gender Gap
As women continue to be underrepresented in the upper echelons of the legal profession, law firms could learn from the example set by the Office of the Solicitor General, where culture and workplace policies have helped foster greater gender equality, say attorneys at Ocean Tomo.
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Verizon Benefits Ruling Clears Up Lien Burden Of Proof
A Rhode Island federal court recently ruled that a Verizon benefits plan could not recoup a former employee’s settlement funds from the attorney who represented her in a personal injury case, importantly clarifying two Employee Retirement Income Security Act burden of proof issues that were previously unsettled, says Mark DeBofsky at DeBofsky Law.
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Reimagining Law Firm Culture To Break The Cycle Of Burnout
While attorney burnout remains a perennial issue in the legal profession, shifting post-pandemic expectations mean that law firms must adapt their office cultures to retain talent, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.
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Series
Competing In Dressage Makes Me A Better Lawyer
My lifelong participation in the sport of dressage — often called ballet on horses — has proven that several skills developed through training and competition are transferable to legal work, especially the ability to harness focus, persistence and versatility when negotiating a deal, says Stephanie Coco at V&E.
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Opinion
High Court's Gifts Problem Taints Public Corruption Cases
A history of U.S. Supreme Court justices failing to disclose luxurious gifts from wealthy donors coincides with a troubling line of court precedent overturning jury convictions in public corruption cases, indicating that perhaps justices aren't presently fit to be making these decisions, says Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I.