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Legal Ethics
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July 26, 2024
7th Circ. Nixes Ex-Immigration Attorney's Appeal
The Seventh Circuit nixed an appeal from a former immigration attorney found guilty of conspiring with clients, interpreters and employees to submit fabricated asylum applications, saying the lower court didn't err in its rulings about benefits the government provided to some witnesses.
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July 26, 2024
Ex-Calif. Bar Exec Misrepresented Bar Funds Use, Judge Says
A California State Bar Court judge on Wednesday recommended a one-year stayed suspension and one-year probationary period for a former California state senator and state bar executive director accused of using thousands of dollars from bar funds for a 2014 trip to Mongolia — a lesser penalty than the presumed professional sanctions.
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July 26, 2024
Hearing Set Over Bid To Recuse Judge In Philly Zantac Cases
A Philadelphia judge will hear arguments next month over a recusal motion filed by plaintiffs' counsel in the city's Zantac mass tort program that argues the judge should remove himself from the proceedings after he disclosed his wife is a partner at Reed Smith, which represents GlaxoSmithKline, a manufacturer of the drug.
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July 26, 2024
5th Circ. Can't Shake Remand Order In Firm Poaching Dispute
The Fifth Circuit is powerless to review a remand order issued by a Texas district court in a Houston law firm's poaching suit against a former associate, with a panel finding that, although "intuition and basic legal principles" suggest the circuit court holds appellate jurisdiction to weigh in, precedent forbids it.
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July 26, 2024
Ex-Thompson Hine Atty Says Firm Can't Oppose NY Jurisdiction
Former Thompson Hine LLP income partner Rebecca Brazzano fired back at efforts by two firm partners to dismiss her lawsuit alleging sexual harassment, contending among other arguments that they waived their right to contest personal jurisdiction by filing another motion that attempts to force arbitration that didn't raise the jurisdiction issue.
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July 26, 2024
Fla. Law Firm Settles Ex-Paralegal's Sex Harassment Suit
Florida-based insurance law firm Property Litigation Group PLLC has reached a settlement with a former paralegal who alleged she was fired after reporting unwanted sexual advances and case mismanagement by a senior attorney.
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July 26, 2024
Rutgers Fights Contempt Bid By Student Who Filed Bias Suit
Rutgers University wants a New Jersey state court to reject a bid by a law school student who filed a discrimination suit against it to hold the school in contempt for moving ahead with disciplinary measures against him, arguing there is "no basis" to grant the request.
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July 26, 2024
Bad Online Security Botched $800K Home Sale, Suit Says
A five-attorney Connecticut law firm's "archaic" email and computer systems allowed hackers to infiltrate an approximately $800,000 home sale and divert cash to fake accounts, a new federal lawsuit against Hastings Cohan & Walsh LLP and one of its attorneys alleges.
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July 26, 2024
NJ Justices Won't Discipline Ex-Judge Twice For Estate Work
The New Jersey Supreme Court has thrown out an ethics complaint against a retired state judge for continuing to administer a deceased client's estate for 13 years after being appointed to the bench.
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July 26, 2024
Wait For Depositions May Delay Cognizant Bribe Trial Again
Trial in a five-year-old case alleging two former Cognizant executives authorized a bribe to a government official in India could be delayed again after New Jersey federal prosecutors said on Friday that the current Sept. 9 date is too soon to complete necessary depositions in that country.
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July 25, 2024
DOJ Watchdog Criticizes Barr But Clears Him Of Wrongdoing
The U.S. Department of Justice's watchdog on Thursday chided former Attorney General William Barr for violating DOJ policies via his handling of information regarding an election fraud investigation in Pennsylvania during the 2020 presidential election, though it said he didn't technically commit misconduct.
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July 25, 2024
Girardi Can't Block Firm's Chapter 7 Evidence In Fraud Trial
Tom Girardi can't exclude evidence from his upcoming trial that he claims prosecutors illegally obtained from his firm's bankruptcy trustee, after a California federal judge said Thursday no constitutional rights were violated since the evidence was the bankruptcy estate's property and in the trustee's possession.
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July 25, 2024
Justice Kagan Floats Committee To Enforce High Court Ethics
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan said Thursday that the high court "should" and "could" create a mechanism like a committee of lower-court judges to enforce a code of conduct, while acknowledging the "complications" in deciding who should be the enforcers.
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July 25, 2024
Blue Bottle Won't Be Sanctioned Or Pay Atty Fees In TM Row
Blue Bottle won't be sanctioned nor ordered to pay $1.15 million in fees for losing its trademark suit against a company selling "Blue Brew" brand accessories, with a California federal judge ruling Wednesday that its infringement claims weren't frivolous and that its likelihood of confusion argument was "rooted in good faith."
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July 25, 2024
Trump Judge Won't Exit Over 'Nothingburger' Atty Encounter
The New York judge who ordered Donald Trump to pay $465 million in penalties in his civil fraud case Thursday rejected the former president's demand that he step down from the case, saying a brief hallway encounter with an attorney acquaintance was a "nothingburger" that did not influence his decision.
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July 25, 2024
Embattled Texas Law Firm Wants More Time For Ch. 11 Plan
Troubled Houston law firm MMA Law asked a Texas bankruptcy court to extend the exclusivity period to file a Chapter 11 plan for 120 more days, with a current filing exclusivity period set to end in early August.
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July 25, 2024
Defense Teams' Solidarity Key In Hawaii DA's Acquittal
California federal prosecutors' bribery case against a prosecutor, a businessman and an outside counsel collapsed after no defendant turned state's evidence and one even testified for the defense, showing the value of presenting a unified front, the winning lawyers said.
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July 25, 2024
DA Says Trump Immunity Ruling Doesn't Affect NY Convictions
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg told a New York judge Thursday that the U.S. Supreme Court's presidential immunity ruling has no bearing on Donald Trump's conviction in his hush-money case since the charges relate to unofficial acts.
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July 25, 2024
The 5 Biggest Mass. Top Court Rulings Of 2024 So Far
It was an eventful first half of 2024 for Massachusetts' top appellate panel, which issued a landmark sentencing ruling, weighed in on time limits in civil cases and addressed whether an attorney falling asleep mid-trial is grounds for a successful appeal.
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July 25, 2024
Conn. Firm Accused Of Maliciously Pressing Fraud Suit
A Connecticut woman is accusing personal injury law firm Carter Mario PC of maliciously filing a lawsuit demanding she turn over her house in an effort to harass her after her ex-husband was unable to satisfy a $500,000 judgment in a separate case alleging voyeurism.
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July 25, 2024
Ex-Pharma Exec's Counsel Accused Of Reading Stolen Emails
A New Jersey pharmaceutical startup wants to disqualify the "tainted" attorneys of a former executive who was allegedly caught spying on the CEO, claiming the attorneys should have immediately shielded their eyes when they realized their client was using stolen, privileged emails to carry out an "attempted shakedown."
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July 25, 2024
Dems, And Now Biden, Contemplate Supreme Court Reform
On the heels of President Joe Biden saying he will push for U.S. Supreme Court reform in the final months of his presidency, two Democratic lawmakers on Thursday rallied to promote a bill that would increase the number of seats on the court from nine to 13.
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July 25, 2024
Ex-Conn. Tax Official Cites 'Just Cause' To Challenge Firing
A former high-level legal director at the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services has asked the state's intermediate appellate court to reverse her termination, saying the agency, an employment review board and a state trial court judge all failed to apply "just cause" standards to her firing as a managerial worker.
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July 25, 2024
Loeb & Loeb Says Ex-GC's Sanctions Motion Is Bogus
Loeb & Loeb LLP urged a Colorado federal judge Wednesday to reject a former general counsel's allegations that it deliberately sent a thumb drive of documents that aren't text searchable, saying they are actually searchable and would have otherwise sent over 64,000 physical pages that weren't.
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July 25, 2024
Ex-Defender Says Judiciary Reform Study Buoys Bias Suit
A former public defender who accused the federal judiciary of flubbing its investigation of her sexual harassment claim has doubled down on her request for the court to take notice of a recent study promoting judiciary workplace reforms, hitting back at her opponent's attempt to discredit the report's relevance.
Expert Analysis
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1st Tax Easement Convictions Will Likely Embolden DOJ, IRS
After recent convictions in the first criminal tax fraud trial over allegedly abusive syndicated conservation easements, the IRS and U.S. Department of Justice will likely pursue other promoters for similar alleged conspiracies — though one acquittal may help attorneys better evaluate their clients' exposure, say Bill Curtis and Lauren DeSantis-Then at Polsinelli.
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Tips For Litigating Against Pro Se Parties In Complex Disputes
Litigating against self-represented parties in complex cases can pose unique challenges for attorneys, but for the most part, it requires the same skills that are useful in other cases — from documenting everything to understanding one’s ethical duties, says Bryan Ketroser at Alto Litigation.
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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.