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Legal Ethics
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January 22, 2025
Connell Foley Fights DQ Bid In Investment Firm's Bias Suit
A group of current and former New Jersey state officials blasted a motion to disqualify their counsel at Connell Foley LLP in a discrimination suit from a Black-owned investment firm in New Jersey federal court, calling the move a frivolous and bad faith stalling tactic.
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January 22, 2025
Committee's Trump Probe Subpoenas Are Moot, Willis Says
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has urged a Georgia state court to quash a bid to enforce subpoenas from a state Senate committee investigating her handling of the prosecution of President Donald Trump, arguing the subpoenas are moot because "the old special committee no longer exists."
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January 22, 2025
Case Removal Rules Aimed At Fairness, Ex-Atty Tells 5th Circ.
Several Fifth Circuit judges seemed keen Wednesday to clarify what activity in state court would bar litigants from removing their cases to federal court, as the full appeals court reconsidered a remand order for a Houston firm's poaching suit.
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January 22, 2025
Captive Insurance Co. Head Seeks Tax-Shelter Fine Refund
A tax attorney who heads a business that creates captive insurance companies said the IRS wrongly accused him of promoting an abusive tax shelter, telling an Ohio federal court the agency owes him a refund of penalties he handed over.
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January 22, 2025
Fla. Attys Face Ethics Charges For Settling Dead Client's Suits
Two Boca Raton, Florida-based lawyers cannot escape ethics charges after they conditionally admitted to settling cases after their client had died, the Florida Supreme Court has ruled, denying their proposed consent judgments, which would have suspended them for a period of nine months.
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January 21, 2025
SEC Sues Ex-Investment Firm Reps, GC Over 'Sham' Energy Co.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has accused former representatives of a wealth management firm of selling shares of a "sham" oil and gas company, and separately accused the firm's general counsel and chief compliance officer of playing an "active role" in the alleged misconduct by drawing up liability releases for the firm.
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January 21, 2025
Ch. 11 Judge Slams Firm's 'Extraordinary' Lack Of Knowledge
A New York bankruptcy judge has refused a fee bid and ordered a debtor's firm to return a nearly $30,000 retainer in a scathing opinion that warns lawyers against tiptoeing into bankruptcy practice and slams counsel for having an "extraordinary lack of basic Chapter 11 understanding."
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January 21, 2025
Miner Wins Challenge Of Ghana's Arbitrator In $277M Claim
An Australian mining company said Tuesday it has successfully challenged the Republic of Ghana's choice of arbitrator in its $277 million breach of contract claim before an ad hoc arbitral tribunal seated in the West African country's capital city of Accra.
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January 21, 2025
Firm Tells Fed. Circ. It Was Wrongly Sanctioned In Patent Row
Moarbes LLP has urged the Federal Circuit to overturn over $23,000 in sanctions against it for not complying with discovery orders in a door manufacturing patent suit, saying the ruling wrongly relied on a letter from the firm's client criticizing its work.
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January 21, 2025
Wash. Panel Suspends Judge, Recommends Removal
A judicial board has said a Washington municipal court judge should be removed from office, finding that the judge's mistreatment of attorneys and staff drove away two sets of court employees and deterred lawyers from further practicing in her jurisdiction.
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January 21, 2025
4th Circ. Backs NASCAR Team Owner's $31M Ch. 11 Sanction
The Fourth Circuit has backed a $31 million default judgment entered against a former NASCAR team manager as a sanction after what the published opinion called "egregious behavior" during discovery and "willful disregard of the bankruptcy code and the orders of the bankruptcy court."
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January 21, 2025
Artists Can't Broaden Meta IP Discovery As Deadline Looms
A California federal magistrate judge on Tuesday refused a request by a proposed class of artists to broaden discovery in high-stakes litigation alleging Meta Platforms Inc. has fostered rampant infringement of copyright-protected ads on its social media platforms, telling counsel during a hearing that their request is too close to the discovery deadline.
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January 21, 2025
Fee Sanctions Upheld For 'Frivolous' Defamation Suit
A Michigan appellate panel says a trial court did not err by sanctioning a Detroit-based cooking influencer for filing a "frivolous" defamation complaint over social media comments, with the panel agreeing the influencer's claims were "devoid of arguable legal merit."
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January 21, 2025
High Court Asked To Review Malpractice Insurance Claim Row
A California woman has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a First Circuit ruling that upheld a federal court's judgment despite it being "explicitly contrary" to Massachusetts law, telling the court that denying her bid for a certification by the state's high court punishes federal plaintiffs and encourages forum shopping.
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January 21, 2025
No Recusal Needed After Clerk Barred From Cases, Panel Rules
The Pennsylvania Superior Court backed the rejection of the Cumberland County District Attorney's Office's request that the county president judge be excluded from hearing all criminal cases because of his law clerk's alleged aggressiveness toward attorneys, reasoning there was nothing in the record to show that the judge was biased.
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January 21, 2025
Bondi Pledges To Consult DOJ Ethics Team On Trump Matters
Following last week's hearing for President Donald Trump's attorney general nominee, Democrats further questioned Pam Bondi on how she would maintain independence from Trump due to her past relationships with him.
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January 21, 2025
As Fire Victims Seek Legal Help, Experts Warn Of Red Flags
As lawyers from across the nation descend upon Southern California to sign up those affected by the devastating wildfires, fire victims should not rush to hire an attorney, lest they also become victims of fraud or other predatory practices, the state bar and ethics-savvy attorneys warn.
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January 21, 2025
Firm Slams Beasley Allen's Bid To Nix Suit Over Talc Team-Up
Smith Law Firm PLLC is urging a Mississippi federal court to reject Beasley Allen Law Firm's bid to dismiss or transfer a defamation and breach of contract lawsuit over their joint venture agreement for talc litigation against Johnson & Johnson, saying the case shouldn't be thrown out in favor of Beasley Allen's Alabama suit.
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January 21, 2025
Ex-Chemical Biz Atty Drops Claims Against Bain Capital
A former in-house attorney for chemicals company Arxada has agreed to remove Bain Capital as a defendant in her New Jersey state court suit alleging that she was unlawfully dismissed after she discussed taking leave to recover from a miscarriage.
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January 21, 2025
Womble Bond Atty Appeals Contempt Ruling To 4th Circ.
A Womble Bond Dickinson partner is appealing a North Carolina federal judge's December ruling holding him in contempt of court for failing to correct misrepresentations he allegedly made to a Dutch tribunal in parallel litigation involving a software developer and its former Dutch partner.
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January 21, 2025
Sex-Shaming Murder Conviction To Be Reviewed
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday revived claims from a woman on death row in Oklahoma that prosecutors unfairly sex-shamed her and relied on gender-based stereotypes to convince a jury that she had killed her estranged husband for insurance money.
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January 17, 2025
Law360 Names Practice Groups Of The Year
Law360 would like to congratulate the winners of its Practice Groups of the Year awards for 2024, which honor the attorney teams behind litigation wins and significant transaction work that resonated throughout the legal industry this past year.
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January 17, 2025
Law360 Names Firms Of The Year
Eight law firms have earned spots as Law360's Firms of the Year, with 54 Practice Group of the Year awards among them, steering some of the largest deals of 2024 and securing high-profile litigation wins, including at the U.S. Supreme Court.
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January 17, 2025
Feds Drop Bribery, Fraud Suit Against Ex-New York Lt. Gov.
Federal prosecutors on Friday dropped a bribery and fraud suit accusing former New York Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin of using his position to obtain state grant funds in exchange for campaign contributions, noting the death of a New York real estate lawyer who pled guilty as a cooperating witness in 2022.
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January 17, 2025
No Conflict In Judge's Friendship, John Deere, Farmers Say
John Deere and the farmers suing it in a right-to-repair suit said they have no concerns about the potential conflict of interest an Illinois federal judge flagged, saying there was "no reason" for the jurist to recuse himself, according to a joint letter filed by the parties.
Expert Analysis
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Lawyers Can Take Action To Honor The Voting Rights Act
As the Voting Rights Act reaches its 59th anniversary Tuesday, it must urgently be reinforced against recent efforts to dismantle voter protections, and lawyers can pitch in immediately by volunteering and taking on pro bono work to directly help safeguard the right to vote, says Anna Chu at We The Action.
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How To Grow Marketing, Biz Dev Teams In A Tight Market
Faced with fierce competition and rising operating costs, firms are feeling the pressure to build a well-oiled marketing and business development team that supports strategic priorities, but they’ll need to be flexible and creative given a tight talent market, says Ben Curle at Ambition.
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Series
Rock Climbing Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Rock climbing requires problem-solving, focus, risk management and resilience, skills that are also invaluable assets in my role as a finance lawyer, says Mei Zhang at Haynes and Boone.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Dance The Legal Standard Two-Step
From rookie brief writers to Chief Justice John Roberts, lawyers should master the legal standard two-step — framing the governing standard at the outset, and clarifying why they meet that standard — which has benefits for both the drafter and reader, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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Avoiding Legal Ethics Landmines In Preindictment Meetings
U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez's recent bribery conviction included obstruction charges based on his former lawyer's preindictment presentation to prosecutors, highlighting valuable lessons on the legal ethics rules implicated in these kinds of defense presentations, say Steve Miller and Hilary Gerzhoy at HWG.
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Series
Being A Luthier Makes Me A Better Lawyer
When I’m not working as an appellate lawyer, I spend my spare time building guitars — a craft known as luthiery — which has helped to enhance the discipline, patience and resilience needed to write better briefs, says Rob Carty at Nichols Brar.
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Lead Like 'Ted Lasso' By Embracing Cognitive Diversity
The Apple TV+ series “Ted Lasso” aptly illustrates how embracing cognitive diversity can be a winning strategy for teams, providing a useful lesson for law firms, which can benefit significantly from fresh, diverse perspectives and collaborative problem-solving, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.
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Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: July Lessons
In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy considers cases touching on pre- and post-conviction detainment conditions, communications with class representatives, when the American Pipe tolling doctrine stops applying to modified classes, and more.
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Opinion
Now More Than Ever, Lawyers Must Exhibit Professionalism
As society becomes increasingly fractured and workplace incivility is on the rise, attorneys must champion professionalism and lead by example, demonstrating how lawyers can respectfully disagree without being disagreeable, says Edward Casmere at Norton Rose.
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Series
Serving In The National Guard Makes Me A Better Lawyer
My ongoing military experience as a judge advocate general in the National Guard has shaped me as a person and a lawyer, teaching me the importance of embracing confidence, balance and teamwork in both my Army and civilian roles, says Danielle Aymond at Baker Donelson.
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Lawyers Must Be Careful When Using Listservs
The American Bar Association's formal opinion from May correctly states that attorneys must obtain clients' consent before posing related questions to listservs, but potential risks and drawbacks of using listservs go beyond those highlighted by the ABA, says Deborah Winokur at Cozen O'Connor.
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A Midyear Forecast: Tailwinds Expected For Atty Hourly Rates
Hourly rates for partners, associates and support staff continued to rise in the first half of this year, and this growth shows no signs of slowing for the rest of 2024 and into next year, driven in part by the return of mergers and acquisitions and the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence, says Chuck Chandler at Valeo Partners.
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Opinion
States Should Loosen Law Firm Ownership Restrictions
Despite growing buzz, normalized nonlawyer ownership of law firms is a distant prospect, so the legal community should focus first on liberalizing state restrictions on attorney and firm purchases of practices, which would bolster succession planning and improve access to justice, says Michael Di Gennaro at The Law Practice Exchange.
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Series
Solving Puzzles Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Tackling daily puzzles — like Wordle, KenKen and Connections — has bolstered my intellectual property litigation practice by helping me to exercise different mental skills, acknowledge minor but important details, and build and reinforce good habits, says Roy Wepner at Kaplan Breyer.
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Texas Ethics Opinion Flags Hazards Of Unauthorized Practice
The Texas Professional Ethics Committee's recently issued proposed opinion finding that in-house counsel providing legal services to the company's clients constitutes the unauthorized practice of law is a valuable clarification given that a UPL violation — a misdemeanor in most states — carries high stakes, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.