Legal Ethics

  • August 23, 2024

    Former Snyder Aide Says No Immunity For Flint Prosecutors

    A top aide to former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder who had faced criminal charges for the Flint water crisis is fighting Michigan prosecutors' attempts to dodge a lawsuit claiming that they violated his due process rights.

  • August 23, 2024

    NC Justice Dept. Atty's Promotion Bias Suit Cleared For Trial

    The North Carolina Department of Justice will face an attorney's race and sex discrimination claims at trial after a federal judge rejected the agency's bid for summary judgment, finding that a dispute remains about whether there was a legitimate reason for not promoting her.

  • August 23, 2024

    Wash. Justices Affirm Convicted Ex-State Auditor Disbarment

    The Washington Supreme Court affirmed a recommendation to disbar convicted former state auditor Troy X. Kelley after he was imprisoned on felony theft charges, finding that Kelley's crimes justified the disbarment sanction.

  • August 23, 2024

    Ex-Reed Smith Atty Wants Pay Data In Bias Suit Against Firm

    A former Reed Smith LLP attorney suing the firm for gender discrimination has told a New Jersey state court that the firm must turn over pay data for nonequity partners stretching back years for her to make her case.

  • August 23, 2024

    Client Wants Atty's Wife Held In Contempt In Malpractice Case

    A couple awarded a $1.2 million default malpractice judgment against their former lawyer have asked a Colorado state judge to hold the attorney's wife in contempt after she said in a deposition she failed to check whether she and her husband had joint bank accounts or to bring documents, as required by a subpoena. 

  • August 23, 2024

    Young Thug Atty Says Contempt Charge Must Be Overturned

    An attorney representing Atlanta rapper Young Thug urged the Georgia Supreme Court on Thursday to reverse the 20-day jail sentence and contempt of court conviction he received after refusing to divulge how he learned about a closed-door meeting between prosecutors, a witness and the original judge presiding over the rapper's racketeering trial.

  • August 23, 2024

    JPMorgan's $26K Atty Fee Award Overturned By Conn. Panel

    A Connecticut appeals court on Friday reversed JPMorgan's nearly $26,000 attorney fee-shift and cost award in a case involving a $250,000 promissory note, holding a trial judge improperly awarded the recovery because the bank waited "more than one year" to seek it after scoring summary judgment.

  • August 23, 2024

    Mich. Atty Guilty Of Murdering Client Faces Disbarment

    The Michigan Supreme Court's prosecutorial arm on Friday urged the state's attorney watchdog to disbar a lawyer who was sentenced to spend life in prison for conspiring to kill his wealthy client to gain access to the client's trust, saying the attorney's conduct was "heinous and reprehensible."

  • August 23, 2024

    Former NY Atty Gets Prison For Theft Of $800K From Clients

    A disbarred New York real estate attorney has been sentenced to prison and ordered to pay restitution for stealing over $800,000 from three former clients by taking their money from his escrow account.

  • August 23, 2024

    ABA Guides Lawyers On Avoiding Criminal Transactions

    Just over a year after the American Bar Association formalized long-standing due diligence rules for attorneys' interactions with clients, an ABA committee on Friday released its first ethics opinion providing guidance on interpreting the rules amendment.

  • August 23, 2024

    Georgia Cases To Watch In The Last Half Of 2024

    The prosecutions of former President Donald Trump and his election interference case codefendants, along with Atlanta rapper Young Thug's bid to have the judge overseeing his racketeering trial removed from the case, will take center stage in Georgia's courts as we enter the second half of 2024.

  • August 23, 2024

    Attys Fight Over Fee Award In Conservative Group's IRS Win

    A prominent conservative lawyer says like-minded election integrity group True the Vote owes his firm over $500,000 in attorney fees for a suit against the Internal Revenue Service that was settled years ago, telling a D.C. federal judge Friday that it's time for TTV to pay up.

  • August 23, 2024

    NJ Panel Backs Dismissal Of Whistleblower Suit

    A former New Jersey assistant prosecutor did not provide a clear enough link between complaints he filed against his boss and an alleged retaliatory disciplinary action, a New Jersey appellate panel ruled Friday when it dismissed his whistleblower suit.

  • August 23, 2024

    Client Says Negligence Led To NJ Firm's Ransomware Attack

    A client of The Wacks Law Group LLC hit the New Jersey firm with a proposed class action claiming that its negligence in properly securing its data storage led to the theft of hundreds of clients' personal information in a March cyberattack.

  • August 23, 2024

    Ohio Judge Dinged For Public Posts About Guardianship Spat

    The Ohio Supreme Court has publicly reprimanded a probate court judge for allowing staff to make inaccurate comments to the press about a guardianship case and for posting comments about the case on the court's Facebook page, including accusing a man of elder abuse without evidence.

  • August 23, 2024

    On Final Night Of DNC, Prosecutors Ruled The Stage

    Vice President Kamala Harris invoked her experience as a prosecutor and an attorney general in her speech Thursday night in Chicago accepting the Democratic nomination for president.

  • August 22, 2024

    Panel Backs Sex Misconduct Findings About Ex-Alaska Judge

    A judicial conference review panel affirmed Thursday the Ninth Circuit Judicial Council's finding that former U.S. District Judge Joshua Kindred of the District of Alaska had an "inappropriately sexualized relationship" with a law clerk and created a hostile work environment.

  • August 22, 2024

    Calif. Justices Revive PwC's $2.5M Sanction Against LA

    The California Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously restored a $2.5 million sanction sought by PwC against the city of Los Angeles for pervasive discovery misconduct in an underlying utility billing fight, finding that the trial court had the authority to impose monetary sanctions under the state's Code of Civil Procedure.

  • August 22, 2024

    Calif. Justices OK Argentine Atty's Uber Fraud Fight

    California justices gave an Argentinian lawyer a green light Thursday to pursue allegations that Uber fraudulently hid crucial information as he represented Uber before its Buenos Aires launch, clarifying that his tort fraudulent-concealment claim is not necessarily barred by the so-called economic loss doctrine if his employment contract never contemplated the alleged fraud.

  • August 22, 2024

    Texas Appeals Knocks $1M Hernia Mesh Fee Ask Down To $135K

    A Texas appeals court on Wednesday upheld an arbitration award of $135,000 in attorney's fees in a decadeslong hernia mesh litigation dispute while denying the firm's request for $1 million.

  • August 22, 2024

    5th Circ. Says No Tolling For COVID, Trims Atty's Conviction

    The Fifth Circuit on Thursday knocked a false statement charge off Houston attorney Richard Plezia's conviction for his involvement in a multimillion-dollar ambulance-chasing kickback scheme but upheld the rest of his conviction, including conspiracy to defraud the U.S. by helping another lawyer evade federal income taxes.

  • August 22, 2024

    Denver Firm Says Ex-Client's Settlement Bars Malpractice Suit

    The Denver law firm of Fairfield and Woods PC is firing back at a malpractice suit in which it's accused of causing a former client more than a million dollars in damages, saying the client had already settled with the firm and agreed not to sue.

  • August 22, 2024

    Calif. Atty Can't Beat Sanctions In Geragos Malpractice Suit

    A California state appeals court on Wednesday affirmed $23,000 in sanctions for discovery violations on the part of a lawyer representing clients in a malpractice case against Hollywood litigator Mark Geragos.

  • August 22, 2024

    Nadine Menendez's Bribery Trial Delayed Until 2025

    The bribery trial of former U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez's wife is delayed until at least January because she is being treated for cancer, a New York federal judge ruled Thursday.

  • August 22, 2024

    NY AG Tells Appeals Court To Uphold $465M Trump Judgment

    Donald Trump has barely challenged the extensive proof of financial statement lies undergirding a $465 million civil fraud judgment against him and his co-defendants, New York's attorney general said in an appeals brief looking to preserve the bench verdict.

Expert Analysis

  • Employee Experience Strategy Can Boost Law Firm Success

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    Amid continuing business uncertainty, law firms should consider adopting a holistic employee experience strategy — prioritizing consistency, targeting signature moments and leveraging measurement tools — to maximize productivity and profitability, says Haley Revel at Calibrate Consulting.

  • Series

    Competing In Triathlons Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    While practicing law and competing in long-distance triathlons can make work and life feel unbalanced at times, participating in the sport has revealed important lessons about versatility, self-care and perseverance that apply to the office as much as they do the racecourse, says Laura Heusel at Butler Snow.

  • Opinion

    History Reveals Folly Of Absolute Presidential Immunity

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    As a federal appeals court grapples with former President Donald Trump’s claims that he’s immune from prosecution on election interference charges, it’s a fitting time for lawyers to reflect on the rule of law — from 13th century jurisprudence to Watergate and the Clinton impeachment — and how the idea of absolute presidential immunity is unwise, says attorney Steven Reske.

  • Where Justices Stand On Chevron Doctrine Post-Argument

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    Following recent oral argument at the U.S. Supreme Court, at least four justices appear to be in favor of overturning the long-standing Chevron deference, and three justices seem ready to uphold it, which means the ultimate decision may rest on Chief Justice John Roberts' vote, say Wayne D'Angelo and Zachary Lee at Kelley Drye.

  • Perspectives

    6 Practice Pointers For Pro Bono Immigration Practice

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    An attorney taking on their first pro bono immigration matter may find the law and procedures beguiling, but understanding key deadlines, the significance of individual immigration judges' rules and specialized aspects of the practice can help avoid common missteps, says Steven Malm at Haynes Boone.

  • Lessons From Country Singer's Personal Service Saga

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    Recent reports that country singer Luke Combs won a judgment against a Florida woman who didn’t receive notice of the counterfeit suit against her should serve as a reminder for attorneys on best practices for effectuating service by electronic means, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • Series

    Baking Bread Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    After many years practicing law, and a few years baking bread, I have learned that there are a few keys to success in both endeavors, including the assembly of a nourishing and resilient culture, and the ability to learn from failure and exercise patience, says Rick Robinson at Reed Smith.

  • Federal Courts And AI Standing Orders: Safety Or Overkill?

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    Several district court judges have issued standing orders regulating the use of artificial intelligence in their courts, but courts should consider following ordinary notice and comment procedures before implementing sweeping mandates that could be unnecessarily burdensome and counterproductive, say attorneys at Curtis.

  • Wachtell-X Ruling Highlights Trend On Arbitrability Question

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    A growing body of case law, including a California state court's recent decision in X Corp. v. Wachtell, holds that incorporation of specific arbitral body rules in an arbitration provision may in and of itself constitute clear and unmistakable evidence of delegation of arbitrability to an arbitrator, and thus such clauses should be drafted carefully, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

  • 7 E-Discovery Predictions For 2024 And Beyond

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    The legal and technical issues of e-discovery now affect virtually every lawsuit, and in the year to come, practitioners can expect practices and policies to evolve in a number of ways, from the expanded use of relevancy redactions to mandated information security provisions in protective orders, say attorneys at Littler.

  • On The Edge: Lessons In Patent Litigation Financing

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    A federal judge's recent request that the U.S. Department of Justice look into IP Edge patent litigation, and that counsel be disciplined, serves as a reminder for parties asserting intellectual property rights — and their attorneys — to exercise caution when structuring a litigation financing agreement, say Samuel Habein and James De Vellis at Foley & Lardner.

  • 5 Litigation Funding Trends To Note In 2024

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    Over the next year and beyond, litigation funding will continue to evolve in ways that affect attorneys and the larger litigation landscape, from the growth of a secondary market for funded claims, to rising interest rates restricting the availability of capital, says Jeffery Lula at GLS Capital.

  • Opinion

    Stronger Attorney Rules Are Needed To Avoid A Jan. 6 Repeat

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    Given the key role lawyers played in the events leading up to the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, the legal profession must shore up its rules before this year’s presidential election to make clear that lawyers who undermine the rule of law will face severe penalties, including disbarment, says Ray Brescia at Albany Law School.

  • 4 Legal Ethics Considerations For The New Year

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    As attorneys and clients reset for a new year, now is a good time to take a step back and review some core ethical issues that attorneys should keep front of mind in 2024, including approaching generative artificial intelligence with caution and care, and avoiding pitfalls in outside counsel guidelines, say attorneys at HWG.

  • What The Law Firm Of The Future Will Look Like

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    As the legal landscape shifts, it’s become increasingly clear that the BigLaw business model must adapt in four key ways to remain viable, from fostering workplace flexibility to embracing technology, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.

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