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Legal Ethics
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January 16, 2025
Paxton Seeks To Nix Ethics Case After Deputy Beats Suit
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton asked the Texas Supreme Court to toss an ethics case against him over a lawsuit challenging 2020 election results, saying the matter fails on the same separation of powers grounds that the court recently cited in nixing a similar case against his first assistant.
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January 16, 2025
1st Circ. Vacates Most Of Atty's Marijuana Bribe Conviction
The First Circuit vacated a pair of fraud convictions for a Massachusetts attorney charged in a marijuana bribery scheme, finding that sending an iMessage through an Apple cellphone is not enough to satisfy the wire fraud element requiring interstate communication.
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January 16, 2025
Giuliani Settles NY Asset Turnover Case After Trial No-Show
Rudy Giuliani on Thursday settled claims that he must turn over assets to fund a $148 million judgment for defaming two Georgia poll workers, after his failure to show up in court delayed the start of a scheduled bench trial.
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January 15, 2025
Colo. Panel Mulls If Atty Violations Can Nix Gov't Immunity
A Colorado appellate panel on Wednesday pressed a utility regulator staffer who accused state lawyers of smearing her at work, questioning whether nixing the lawyers' governmental immunity based on alleged professional misconduct would go too far.
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January 15, 2025
Davis Wright Atty Says Firm Is Trying To Push Him Out
An attorney employed by Davis Wright has launched a pro se employment discrimination lawsuit in Washington state court, accusing the firm of trying to "strong-arm" him into leaving after he reported what he described as misconduct by a partner and banishing him from its Seattle office when he threatened legal action.
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January 15, 2025
Boeing Vexes Judge In 737 Max Records Flap With Airline
The Boeing Co. can't use a now-defunct South African airline's loss of records to dodge a suit over fallout from a 737 Max airplane deal, a Washington federal judge has said, chiding the aerospace giant for offering thin circumstantial evidence of intent without any "smoking gun."
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January 15, 2025
9th Circ. Won't Review Nixed Deductions For Disbarred Atty
The Ninth Circuit on Wednesday rejected a disbarred California attorney's requests to review its December decision to uphold a U.S. Tax Court ruling denying his bid to take business deductions for the cost of challenging his disbarment and a court's declaration that he is a "vexatious litigant."
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January 15, 2025
Judge OKs More Fees In Calif. Debt Relief Firm's Bankruptcy
A California bankruptcy judge has tentatively approved an additional $2.1 million in professional fees in the bankruptcy case of a troubled debt relief firm, despite the amount of professional fees already exceeding the amount paid out to creditors so far.
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January 15, 2025
NJ Prosecutors Can Shield Certain Docs In Atty Bribe Cases
New Jersey prosecutors won't have to turn over certain documents related to investigations involving potential crimes committed by a tax attorney who was a cooperating witness in a bribery case against three former public officials, a state appeals panel has ruled.
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January 15, 2025
Attys Must Show They Obeyed Candor Rule In Shell Discovery
A Delaware federal court has ordered attorneys from Heyman Enerio Gattuso & Hirzel LLP, Wachtel Lipton Rosen & Katz, and White & Case LLP to show why they should not be found in violation of professional conduct rules over their handling of discovery requests while defending corporate clients amid a Shell Chemical LP antitrust proceeding in the Netherlands.
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January 15, 2025
McElroy Deutsch Can Go After Ex-Exec's $1M Home
A former business development director for McElroy Deutsch Mulvaney & Carpenter LLP, whose husband pled guilty to stealing millions of dollars from the law firm, where they were both employed, cannot duck her onetime employer's legal claim on her $1 million house, a New Jersey state court judge has ruled.
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January 15, 2025
Trump's AG Pick Tries To Assure Congress On Independence
President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for attorney general attempted to assuage uneasiness from Democrats on Wednesday, saying the U.S. Department of Justice will be free of politics and will not go after perceived enemies.
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January 15, 2025
Elusive Cognizant Witness Ready To Testify, Gov't Says
A witness from India whose 2023 absence on the brink of the foreign bribery trial of two former Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. executives set off a lengthy delay is now willing to testify, federal prosecutors said, despite stating they were under no obligation to respond to defense counsel's concerns.
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January 15, 2025
Mass. Atty Charged In $2.5M Embezzlement Schemes
A Massachusetts attorney blamed an addiction to prostitutes and a failed spa investment for his embezzling a total of $2.5 million from a couple and their multiple businesses, according to federal prosecutors.
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January 15, 2025
Boston Lawyers Accused Of Bungling Exec's Bias Claim
A former executive at roofing manufacturer GAF Materials is accusing her former lawyers of mishandling a potential age and gender discrimination case by failing to meet a key procedural deadline, according to a lawsuit filed in Massachusetts state court.
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January 14, 2025
London Judge Affirms Wind Energy's Non-Liability Award
A London judge on Tuesday refused to set aside an arbitral award finding that Thai renewable energy company Wind Energy Holding was not responsible for paying defense costs incurred by former board members in litigation that ended with a $1 billion judgment against them.
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January 14, 2025
Mich. Judge Won't Step Aside After Atty Turnover Quip
A Michigan federal judge refused to step aside from overseeing a lawsuit from a pastor who alleges a township's zoning ordinance discriminates against religious entities, ruling Monday that comments he made about the number of attorneys the pastor has had or praise he gave prior counsel do not show any bias against the plaintiffs.
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January 14, 2025
DA Says Trump's Appeals To Intervene In NY Case Now 'Moot'
Counsel for the Manhattan district attorney urged both a federal and a state appeals court to toss out Donald Trump's lingering invitations to intervene in his hush money case now that he's been sentenced, arguing there's no need for a "bizarre mechanism" when Trump can appeal normally.
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January 14, 2025
RNC Preempts Dem Attacks Ahead Of AG Nominee's Hearing
Ahead of the confirmation hearing for President-elect Donald Trump's attorney general nominee on Wednesday, the chair of the Republican National Committee and other Trump allies brushed off concerns about Pam Bondi's possible conflicts of interest and close ties to the president-elect.
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January 14, 2025
Meta Atty Quits IP Case Over Zuckerberg's 'Toxic Masculinity'
An attorney helping defend Meta Platforms in copyright litigation brought by artists who claim their content was used to train the large language model Llama has dropped the tech company as his client, citing Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg's "descent into toxic masculinity and Neo-Nazi madness" in a LinkedIn post.
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January 14, 2025
Justices Suggest 7th Circ. Revisit False Statement Decision
Several U.S. Supreme Court justices seemed ready Tuesday to ask the Seventh Circuit to review a former Chicago alderman's conviction for lying about money he borrowed from a now-shuttered bank under a narrower standard, but the justices appeared skeptical that he would beat the case even with a fresh look.
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January 14, 2025
Ex-Cognizant Execs Seek Update On Elusive Gov't Witness
A vital prosecution witness whose unavailability delayed the highly anticipated 2023 trial of two former Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. executives on foreign bribery charges in New Jersey federal court might again be missing in action as the new trial date of March 3 approaches, according to court filings.
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January 14, 2025
NJ Atty Disbarred For Stealing From Firm To Gamble Online
The New Jersey Supreme Court has disbarred an attorney for stealing at least $16,000 from his firm by using its credit card to buy tokens for an online casino video game under the guise of buying office supplies.
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January 14, 2025
Trump Org. Taps Quinn Emanuel Atty For Ethics Adviser
A co-managing partner of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP has been selected to step into the role of outside ethics adviser for the Trump Organization, President-elect Donald Trump's real estate conglomerate, according to an announcement by its executive vice president.
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January 14, 2025
Fed. Court, Judges Beat Atty's Challenge To 'Gag Order' Rule
Sovereign immunity bars a Nashville civil rights lawyer from challenging a U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee rule barring attorneys from making "any extrajudicial statements" about cases pending in the district, a federal judge ruled Tuesday.
Expert Analysis
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Firms Must Rethink How They Train New Lawyers In AI Age
As law firms begin to use generative artificial intelligence to complete lower-level legal tasks, they’ll need to consider new ways to train summer associates and early-career attorneys, keeping in mind the five stages of skill acquisition, says Liisa Thomas at Sheppard Mullin.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Always Be Closing
When a lawyer presents their case with the right propulsive structure throughout trial, there is little need for further argument after the close of evidence — and in fact, rehashing it all may test jurors’ patience — so attorneys should consider other strategies for closing arguments, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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Series
Playing Chess Makes Me A Better Lawyer
There are many ways that chess skills translate directly into lawyer skills, but for me, the bigger career lessons go beyond the direct parallels — playing chess has shown me the value of seeing gradual improvement in and focusing deep concentration on a nonwork endeavor, says attorney Steven Fink.
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Litigation Inspiration: Attys Can Be Heroic Like Olympians
Although litigation won’t earn anyone an Olympic medal in Paris this summer, it can be worthy of the same lasting honor if attorneys exercise focused restraint — seeking both their clients’ interests and those of the court — instead of merely pursuing every advantage short of sanctionable conduct, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.
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Lean Into The 'Great Restoration' To Retain Legal Talent
As the “great resignation,” in which employees voluntarily left their jobs in droves, has largely dissipated, legal employers should now work toward the idea of a “great restoration,” adopting strategies to effectively hire, onboard and retain top legal talent, says Molly McGrath at Hiring & Empowering Solutions.
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Series
Fishing Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Atop the list of ways fishing makes me a better lawyer is the relief it offers from the chronic stress of a demanding caseload, but it has also improved my listening skills and patience, and has served as an exceptional setting for building earnest relationships, says Steven DeGeorge at Robinson Bradshaw.
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A Healthier Legal Industry Starts With Emotional Intelligence
The legal profession has long been plagued by high rates of mental health issues, in part due to attorneys’ early training and broader societal stereotypes — but developing one’s emotional intelligence is one way to foster positive change, collectively and individually, says attorney Esperanza Franco.
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To Make Your Legal Writing Clear, Emulate A Master Chef
To deliver clear and effective written advocacy, lawyers should follow the model of a fine dining chef — seasoning a foundation of pure facts with punchy descriptors, spicing it up with analogies, refining the recipe and trimming the fat — thus catering to a sophisticated audience of decision-makers, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.
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Circuit Judge Writes An Opinion, AI Helps: What Now?
Last week's Eleventh Circuit opinion in Snell v. United Specialty Insurance, notable for a concurrence outlining the use of artificial intelligence to evaluate a term's common meaning, is hopefully the first step toward developing a coherent basis for the judiciary's generative AI use, says David Zaslowsky at Baker McKenzie.
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Perspectives
Trauma-Informed Legal Approaches For Pro Bono Attorneys
As National Trauma Awareness Month ends, pro bono attorneys should nevertheless continue to acknowledge the mental and physical effects of trauma, allowing them to better represent clients, and protect themselves from compassion fatigue and burnout, say Katherine Cronin at Stinson and Katharine Manning at Blackbird.
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Opinion
NY Should Pass Litigation Funding Bill To Protect Plaintiffs
New York state should embrace the regulatory framework proposed in the Consumer Litigation Funding Act, which would suppress the unregulated predatory lenders that currently prey on vulnerable litigants but preserve a funding option that helps personal injury plaintiffs stand up to deep-pocketed corporate defendants, says Alan Ripka at Alan Ripka & Associates.
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Series
Playing Music Makes Me A Better Lawyer
My deep and passionate involvement in playing, writing and producing music equipped me with skills — like creativity, improvisation and problem-solving — that contribute to the success of my legal career, says attorney Kenneth Greene.
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How Attys Can Avoid Pitfalls When Withdrawing From A Case
The Trump campaign's recent scuffle over its bid to replace its counsel in a pregnancy retaliation suit offers a chance to remind attorneys that many troubles inherent in withdrawing from a case can be mitigated or entirely avoided by communicating with clients openly and frequently, says Christopher Konneker at Orsinger Nelson.
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High Court Injunction Case Could Shake Up Fee-Shifting Rules
In agreeing to review a Virginia case rendered statutorily moot before final judgment, the U.S. Supreme Court could finally settle the question of if — and when — a preliminary injunction can win attorney fees for a prevailing party, but all possible answers could disrupt fee-shifting schemes written into major laws, says Laurens Wilkes at Winston & Strawn.
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Using A Children's Book Approach In Firm Marketing Content
From “The Giving Tree” to “Where the Wild Things Are,” most children’s books are easy to remember because they use simple words and numbers to tell stories with a human impact — a formula law firms should emulate in their marketing content to stay front of mind for potential clients, says Seema Desai Maglio at The Found Word.