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Legal Ethics
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October 02, 2024
Atty 'Malfeasance' Upends NY Manslaughter Conviction
A New York state judge reversed a manslaughter conviction against a man who says he mistakenly killed his friend, ordering a retrial after it was revealed his then-attorney concealed information he obtained about the trial judge's concerns with the defense's case.
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October 02, 2024
Ex-Federal Judge's Sex Misconduct Spurs New Criminal Trial
The sexual misconduct scandal that toppled a federal judge in Alaska has now caused a criminal conviction to be overturned, despite prosecutors' insistence that the judge's "out-of-court judicial misconduct" had no effect on the trial.
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October 02, 2024
Convicted Judge Owes Feds Retirement Funds, 7th Circ. Says
A former Illinois judge convicted of running a $1.4 million mortgage fraud scheme must cough up assets from her retirement accounts to cover her restitution obligations, the Seventh Circuit ruled Wednesday, agreeing with a Chicago district court that the government can access her retirement savings to satisfy that debt.
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October 02, 2024
Houston Firm Says DQ Bid Is Attempt To Duck MDL Penalties
Ahmad Zavitsanos & Mensing PLLC hit back Wednesday at Arnold & Itkin LLP's bid to disqualify it from Hurricane Zeta litigation, saying Arnold & Itkin's claim that a former law clerk took information for the defense team is an "illegitimate attempt" to "avoid legitimate merits discovery that goes to the heart of the case."
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October 02, 2024
Gordon Rees Atty Asks Judge To Rethink Malpractice Ruling
A Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani LLP attorney urged a Washington state court to reconsider a recent ruling denying the dismissal of legal malpractice claims brought by the insurer for a climbing equipment manufacturer, saying the assignment and subrogation of professional liability claims is improper.
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October 02, 2024
Defense Atty Escapes DQ In $3M Transaction Row, For Now
An attorney representing a businessman facing a $3 million fraud suit over a botched business transaction will not be forced to step away from the case, a South Dakota federal judge determined Wednesday, denying a motion seeking to disqualify the lawyer because he worked on the deal at issue in the suit.
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October 02, 2024
State Farm's Sanctions Bid Nixed In Driver Tech Patent Tangle
Noting that both parties had unclean hands, a Texas federal judge denied State Farm's request for sanctions in consolidated patent infringement cases brought by an inventor who patented driver monitoring technology that he claims the insurer and automakers Mercedes-Benz and Honda used without permission.
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October 02, 2024
Game Artist's Discovery Violations Doom Gen Con Suit
A Washington state appeals court has refused to revive a role-playing game illustrator's defamation suit against the gaming convention Gen Con, concluding he deliberately violated discovery rules and court orders by failing to respond to defense attorneys' information requests.
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October 02, 2024
Madigan Can't Duck Bribery Claims After High Court Ruling
An Illinois federal judge on Wednesday declined to dismiss bribery charges against former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan after the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling limiting the reach of a bribery statute that once criminalized gratuities, while also refusing to sever his case from his co-defendant's.
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October 02, 2024
FisherBroyles Hit With Malpractice Suit Over Stem Cell Case
A Southern California stem cell treatment center hit FisherBroyles LLP with a $10 million malpractice suit in state court over the law firm's work defending it in a patent infringement case that settled, claiming the defense was so incompetently handled that it had to hire WilmerHale as the case approached trial.
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October 02, 2024
Ex-NJ Judge Wants Rethink Of Discovery Delay Bid Rebuff
A former New Jersey workers' compensation judge challenging her removal from the bench has asked a judge for more time to make her case, arguing that the matter is plagued by voluminous written discovery that leaves little time for depositions.
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October 02, 2024
Trump 'Resorted To Crimes' To Cling To Power, Feds Say
Donald Trump's alleged scheme to subvert the 2020 election results was "fundamentally a private one," special counsel Jack Smith told a D.C. federal judge in a newly unsealed brief that vies to prove that the former president is not immune from charges of election interference.
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October 02, 2024
Texas High Court Skeptical Of Atty Solicitation Law Overreach
The Texas Supreme Court on Wednesday appeared skeptical that an anti-solicitation statute should apply to lawyers licensed in the state who used "case runners" to attract personal injury clients who live out of state for lawsuits filed and decided beyond the borders of the Lone Star State.
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October 02, 2024
Wells Fargo Says Atty Can't Blame It For Getting Scammed
Wells Fargo has asked a Colorado state judge to dismiss claims brought by an attorney and conservative political figure alleging the bank failed to cancel his wire transfer from a client's account to what ended up being a scammer's Hong Kong account.
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October 02, 2024
Quinn Emanuel Can't Ignore Past Oro Negro Ties, Oil Co. Says
Oro Negro Drilling Pte. Ltd. said former counsel Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP must produce confidential information in a discovery bid to disqualify its attorneys in Mexican proceedings.
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October 02, 2024
Fla. Atty Disbarred For Abandoning Pharma Biz Before USPTO
The Florida Supreme Court on Wednesday disbarred an attorney for taking on intellectual property work for a pharmaceutical company only to later cease communications and keep the business in the dark about maintenance fees, causing its patents to expire.
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October 02, 2024
Ahmuty Demers Booted Off NJ Fatal Crash Case Over Conflict
A New Jersey state appeals court affirmed Wednesday that Ahmuty Demers & McManus is not allowed to represent both a paving company and one of its employees at the same time in a case in which the employee allegedly caused a fatal car crash.
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October 02, 2024
4th Circ. Says Murdaugh Can't Appeal Fraud Sentence
Former South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh, who is serving life in prison for murder, was denied an appeal of a separate 40-year sentence after pleading guilty to stealing at least $9 million from clients by a Fourth Circuit panel that said he'd waived his right to appeal.
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October 02, 2024
Morgan & Morgan Says Ex-Client 'Flat Wrong' Over Arbitration
Morgan & Morgan PA and one of its attorneys told a Georgia federal court on Tuesday that an ex-client is "flat wrong" in arguing that his legal malpractice proposed class action should stay out of arbitration, saying that Georgia's case law clearly allows arbitration clauses between attorneys and clients.
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October 02, 2024
Auto Biz Must Hand Emails Over To EEOC In Harassment Case
A Michigan federal magistrate judge has ordered an automotive services company to turn over certain emails sought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in a sexual harassment suit, saying only portions can be redacted due to attorney-client privilege.
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October 02, 2024
Progressive Group Staffs Up For Judicial Nominee Fights
With a little over a month until Election Day, a progressive organization announced a slate of new hires to prepare for judicial confirmation battles and fight for court reform on Wednesday.
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October 02, 2024
Tenn. Atty Sues Federal Court, Judges Over Gag Order Rule
A rule of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee barring attorneys from making "any extrajudicial statements" about cases pending in the district violates the First Amendment and should be blocked, according to a Nashville civil rights lawyer.
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October 02, 2024
Bullying In Law Is Pervasive, Drives Turnover, Ill. Attys Say
Nearly a quarter of those who responded to a recent large-scale survey of Illinois lawyers said they had been bullied at work within the last year, with those numbers spiking among women and other traditionally underrepresented attorneys in the profession, a report released Tuesday found.
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October 02, 2024
Baker Donelson Must Face Mississippi Ponzi Scheme Suit
A Mississippi federal judge has denied Baker Donelson's effort to escape civil conspiracy claims alleging the firm allowed a timber company's $164.5 million Ponzi scheme to unfold, with the judge stating he was "not persuaded" by the firm's argument, as it was based on the Eleventh Circuit's interpretation of Florida law.
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October 02, 2024
NYC Mayor Adams May Face More Charges, Feds Say
Prosecutors told a Manhattan federal judge Wednesday it was "possible" they would charge New York City Mayor Eric Adams with additional crimes in his corruption case, indicating they have evidence he told witnesses to lie to the FBI.
Expert Analysis
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'Blind Side' Family Case Is A Cautionary Tale For Attorneys
Former NFL player Michael Oher's recent allegations against Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy that they never legally adopted him and tricked him into conservatorship — which paint a very different picture than the 2009 film "The Blind Side" — demonstrate the importance of attorney due diligence and safeguards against abuse of process, says Roland Weekley at Smith Gambrell.
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The Basics Of Being A Knowledge Management Attorney
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
Michael Lehet at Ogletree Deakins discusses the role of knowledge management attorneys at law firms, the common tasks they perform and practical tips for lawyers who may be considering becoming one.
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To Hire And Keep Top Talent, Think Beyond Compensation
Firms seeking to appeal to sophisticated clients and top-level partners should promote mentorship, ensure that attorneys from diverse backgrounds feel valued, and clarify policies about at-home work, says Patrick Moya at Quaero Group.
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Ethics Issues For Mainland Firms Involved In Maui Fire Suits
Before law firms located outside of Hawaii represent clients affected by the Lahaina wildfires, they must be aware of local ethics rules and regulatory gray areas, as any any ethical missteps could have major ramifications for the firm's practice in its home jurisdiction, says Ryan Little at Klinedinst.
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Perspectives
More States Should Join Effort To Close Legal Services Gap
Colorado is the most recent state to allow other types of legal providers, not just attorneys, to offer specific services in certain circumstances — and more states should rethink the century-old assumptions that shape our current regulatory rules, say Natalie Anne Knowlton and Janet Drobinske at the University of Denver.
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Identifying Trends And Tips In Litigation Financing Disclosure
Growing interest and controversy in litigation financing raise several salient concerns, but exploring recent compelled disclosure trends from courts around the country can help practitioners further their clients' interests, say Sean Callagy and Samuel Sokolsky at Arnold & Porter.
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Attorneys Using AI Shouldn't Worry About Waiving Privilege
As large language models become more advanced, attorneys may be concerned that sending confidential data to companies like OpenAI risks waiving attorney-client or work-product privilege, but there’s nothing about such tools that would negate the reasonable expectation of privacy, say John Tredennick and William Webber at Merlin.
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Series
The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Elrod On 'Jury Duty'
Though the mockumentary series “Jury Duty” features purposely outrageous characters, it offers a solemn lesson about the simple but brilliant design of the right to trial by jury, with an unwitting protagonist who even John Adams may have welcomed as an impartial foreperson, says Fifth Circuit Judge Jennifer Elrod.
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NJ Justices Clarify Bribery Law Scope, But Questions Remain
The New Jersey Supreme Court’s recent State v. O'Donnell decision clarified that the state’s bribery law unambiguously applies to candidates for public office, but there are still unresolved questions about how the ruling may affect lobbyists, undeclared candidates and political speech, says Scott Coffina at Pietragallo Gordon.
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4 Business-Building Strategies For Introvert Attorneys
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
Introverted lawyers can build client bases to rival their extroverted peers’ by adapting time-tested strategies for business development that can work for any personality — such as claiming a niche, networking for maximum impact, drawing on existing contacts and more, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.
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Opinion
3 Ways Justices' Disclosure Defenses Miss The Ethical Point
The rule-bound interpretation of financial disclosures preferred by U.S. Supreme Court Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas — demonstrated in their respective statements defending their failure to disclose gifts from billionaires — show that they do not understand the ethical aspects of the public's concern, says Jim Moliterno at the Washington and Lee University School of Law.
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Trump's 'I Thought I Won' Jan. 6 Defense Is Unlikely To Prevail
Since being indicted for his alleged attempts to overthrow the 2020 presidential election, former President Donald Trump’s legal team has argued that because he genuinely believed he won, his actions were not fraudulent — but this so-called mistake of fact defense will face a steep uphill battle for several key reasons, says Elizabeth Roper at Baker McKenzie.
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Caregiver Flexibility Is Crucial For Atty Engagement, Retention
As the battle for top talent continues post-pandemic, many firms are attempting to attract employees with progressive hybrid working environments — and supporting caregivers before, during and after an extended leave is a critically important way to retain top talent, says Manar Morales at The Diversity & Flexibility Alliance.
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How Judicial Privilege Shields Attys Facing Wiretap Violations
A recent ruling from the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, as well as past rulings across the country, indicates that the judicial privilege is applicable to alleged violations of wiretapping laws, so attorneys presented with audio evidence beneficial to their case should not fear being sued, says David Scott at Kang Haggerty.
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In-Office Engagement Is Essential To Associate Development
As law firms develop return-to-office policies that allow hybrid work arrangements, they should incorporate the specific types of in-person engagement likely to help associates develop attributes common among successful firm leaders, says Liisa Thomas at Sheppard Mullin.