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Legal Ethics
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August 06, 2024
39 Law Firms Call On 6th Circ. To Reverse FirstEnergy Ruling
Dozens of law firms have signed on to an amicus curiae brief urging the Sixth Circuit to reverse a decision in a FirstEnergy shareholder litigation, the latest voices in the legal, insurance and business communities to call on the appellate court to reverse an Ohio federal judge's ruling they warn will threaten attorney-client privilege.
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August 06, 2024
Jones Day Slams Ex-Client's Bid To Exit $2M Fee Fight
Jones Day wants to prevent former client Soverain Software LLC from exiting a decade-long spat over $2 million in unpaid legal fees, telling an Illinois state court that Soverain's bid to bring the litigation to a close "is a house of cards that collapses with the slightest breeze."
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August 06, 2024
Plaintiff Drops Atty Malpractice Suit Filed After Appeal Loss
A woman who filed a malpractice lawsuit against her lawyer that Colorado justices found was untimely in a personal injury case has dropped the suit.
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August 06, 2024
Former Judge's Misconduct May Spark Fights Over Conflicts
Many of the defendants in criminal cases presided over by disgraced District of Alaska Judge Joshua Kindred could try to have their convictions or sentences overturned due to the judge's allegedly inappropriate relationships with attorneys, with ethics experts saying such attempts could prove successful but also challenging.
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August 06, 2024
Legal Service Co.'s Template Misused Identity Of Fla. Atty
Tampa Bay attorney Matthew Weidner has shared his work online before to help self-represented litigants, but a copy-paste error following a legal service company using his old pleading as a template recently led to his identity being misused in a Sixth Circuit case.
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August 06, 2024
Fla. Judicial Ethics Panel Sets Parameters For Elections
Florida's Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee has handed down a pair of opinions for judges navigating elections involving a judicial assistant and a judge's spouse.
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August 06, 2024
ABA Tells States To Nix Rape Disclosures For Bar Applicants
The American Bar Association unanimously passed a resolution Tuesday that calls on state admission authorities to stop asking would-be lawyers to disclose their experiences of sexual violence and harassment during the attorney licensure process.
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August 06, 2024
Atty Rips Lawyer's Suit Over $30K Law School Loan Judgment
A Florida employment lawyer's "absurdly long" federal complaint alleging his onetime romantic partner and her attorneys conspired with a Wells Fargo consultant to concoct a vexatious lawsuit against him should be trimmed, one defendant argued Tuesday, noting that an underlying judgment was entered against the plaintiff.
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August 06, 2024
Texas Justices Look To Non-Attys To Narrow 'Justice Gap'
In seeking to make legal help accessible to low-income residents of the Lone Star State, the Texas Supreme Court on Tuesday laid the groundwork for allowing nonattorneys to provide limited legal services, while remaining silent on the issue of nonlawyer ownership in organizations that provide legal services.
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August 06, 2024
NJ Firm Wants Sanctions In Dispute With Ex-Employees
Davis Saperstein & Salomon PC said eight former employees and the attorney representing them should be sanctioned for filing a pair of lawsuits in New Jersey state court alleging the firm violated wage and discrimination laws.
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August 06, 2024
Feds Say Marathon Bomber Can't Oust Judge Amid Retrial Bid
Federal prosecutors said lawyers for Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev misconstrued a local rule in seeking a different judge to consider his bid for a new sentencing trial.
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August 06, 2024
Defense Contractor Wants Maynard Nexsen DQed In Bias Case
Defense contractor Parsons Corp. urged an Alabama federal judge to disqualify Maynard Nexsen PC from representing a former engineer in his unlawful termination case against the company, saying the firm was also representing Parsons when he filed his case.
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August 05, 2024
Ex-Trump Atty Ellis To Cooperate In Ariz. Fake Electors Case
Jenna Ellis, former legal adviser to Donald Trump, has agreed to cooperate with Arizona prosecutors' case alleging allies of the former president made efforts to subvert the results of the 2020 presidential election, the Arizona Attorney General's Office announced Monday.
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August 05, 2024
5th Circ. Finds No Misconduct In Judges' Columbia Boycott
Eight federal judges did not violate ethical rules or standards when they decided earlier this year not to hire alumni of Columbia University or its law school as clerks in response to its handling of student protests over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Fifth Circuit Judicial Council decided Friday.
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August 05, 2024
Nondisclosure Led To 'Apparent Bias' In Nigeria Oil Case
A London court has ordered a tribunal to reconsider an arbitral award issued in a $2 billion case over a funding deal for Nigerian oil fields, ruling that a since-replaced arbitrator had wrongly failed to reveal the total extent of her relationship with Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP.
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August 05, 2024
New Colo. Chief Justice Angles For More Judges
Colorado Chief Justice Monica M. Márquez said Monday she is preparing to ask state lawmakers for more money to expand the state court bench, including possible additions to the intermediate court of appeals, which a National Center for State Courts report found is understaffed.
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August 05, 2024
Trustee Seeks Quick Clawback From Guo Ch. 11 Attys
The Chapter 11 trustee for the bankruptcy of Chinese exile Miles Guo has asked a Connecticut bankruptcy judge to issue an early judgment in an adversary proceeding that seeks to recover nearly $243,000 in legal fees paid by Guo to attorneys with Zeisler & Zeisler PC, the firm that represents Guo and his daughter.
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August 05, 2024
Deficient Defense Warrants New Trial, Mich. Panel Says
A split Michigan appellate panel has given a second chance at trial to a man accused of evading and resisting arrest, with judges finding his defense counsel was deficient in his first trial — failing to object to prosecutors' presentation of an unredacted warrant and assertion he is "a criminal."
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August 05, 2024
Girardi's Defense May Stand On His Deteriorating Mind
Although a federal judge ruled disbarred lawyer Tom Girardi mentally competent to stand trial this month for wire fraud, the 85-year-old's defense team may use his dementia diagnosis to attack prosecutors' allegations he knowingly and intentionally stole millions of dollars from his clients, experts said.
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August 05, 2024
NJ Firm Wants Fees Award To 2nd Firm Tossed In Crash Case
Nagel Rice LLP is hoping to toss an arbitration award of $56,250 in attorney fees to its clients' former lawyers at Blume Forte Fried Zerres & Molinari for their work related to a fatal school bus crash, saying the arbitrator didn't comply with New Jersey law in making his decision.
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August 05, 2024
Dems Unearth Another Thomas Trip Paid For By Harlan Crow
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas took a previously undisclosed trip between Hawaii and New Zealand on a billionaire Republican donor's private jet in 2010, lawmakers revealed in a letter Monday that offered the donor a "final opportunity" to explain how that trip and others don't constitute a tax fraud scheme.
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August 05, 2024
Jackson Walker, Ex-Judge Could Face Sanctions Over Chat
A Texas bankruptcy court is demanding answers and threatening sanctions over an "off-the-record" interview between former bankruptcy judge David R. Jones and attorneys for Jackson Walker LLP, in the midst of a federal investigation into Jones' secret romantic relationship with a onetime Jackson Walker attorney.
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August 05, 2024
Ex-GC Says Steakhouse Chain Can't Ax Or Arbitrate Bias Suit
A former general counsel at steakhouse chain Palm Management is asking a New York federal judge not to toss her lawsuit or force her into arbitration, calling the arbitration clause in her employment agreement "unenforceable due to unconscionability based on the content of the clause."
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August 05, 2024
Meet The Attorneys In Tom Girardi's Criminal Fraud Trial
When Tom Girardi's criminal fraud trial gets underway this week, the notorious disbarred attorney will be facing a team of seasoned federal prosecutors who've convicted several former Los Angeles City Council members, a sitting U.S. congressman, insider traders, Ponzi schemers and con artists who bilked millions from their victims.
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August 05, 2024
The 'No Nonsense' Calif. Judge Overseeing Girardi's Trial
The California federal judge who will preside over the closely watched criminal trial of disgraced attorney Tom Girardi is a veteran jurist who runs a tight ship, but is also known for being extraordinarily thorough and thoughtful.
Expert Analysis
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Opinion
Litigation Funding Needs Regulating To Meet Ethics Standards
Third-party litigation funding can provide litigants with access to the legal system, but, as recent cases show, the funding agreements carry the potential for exploitation and may conflict with core aspects of the attorney-client relationship, making the need for a balanced regulation self-evident, says Deborah Winokur at Cozen O'Connor.
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Opinion
Judicial Independence Is Imperative This Election Year
As the next election nears, the judges involved in the upcoming trials against former President Donald Trump increasingly face political pressures and threats of violence — revealing the urgent need to safeguard judicial independence and uphold the rule of law, says Benes Aldana at the National Judicial College.
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Series
Riding My Peloton Bike Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Using the Peloton platform for cycling, running, rowing and more taught me that fostering a mind-body connection will not only benefit you physically and emotionally, but also inspire stamina, focus, discipline and empathy in your legal career, says Christopher Ward at Polsinelli.
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Spartan Arbitration Tactics Against Well-Funded Opponents
Like the ancient Spartans who held off a numerically superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, trial attorneys and clients faced with arbitration against an opponent with a bigger war chest can take a strategic approach to create a pass to victory, say Kostas Katsiris and Benjamin Argyle at Venable.
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What Recent Study Shows About AI's Promise For Legal Tasks
Amid both skepticism and excitement about the promise of generative artificial intelligence in legal contexts, the first randomized controlled trial studying its impact on basic lawyering tasks shows mixed but promising results, and underscores the need for attorneys to proactively engage with AI, says Daniel Schwarcz at University of Minnesota Law School.
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For Now, Generative AI Is Risky For Class Action Counsel
Although a recent survey showed most in-house counsel think that their outside counsel should be using generative artificial intelligence "in some way" in class action work, the technology is more a target for class actions than it is a tool to be used in practice at present, says Matthew Allen at Carlton Fields.
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When Your Client Insists On Testifying In A Criminal Case
Speculation that former President Donald Trump could take the stand in any of the four criminal cases he faces serves as a reminder for counsel to consider their ethical obligations when a client insists on testifying, including the attorney’s duty of candor to the court and the depth of their discussions with clients, says Marissa Kingman at Fox Rothschild.
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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.