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Legal Ethics
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September 20, 2024
Litigation Funding Firm Likely Out Of Hurricane Ad Class Action
A Texas federal judge said Thursday that a funding company that lent $20 million to a law firm accused in a proposed class action of conspiring to deceptively solicit hurricane victims should be dropped as a defendant.
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September 20, 2024
NY Judge Resigns Amid Ethics Charges of Corruption, Abuse
A New York state judge in Westchester County has agreed to resign from the bench after the New York Commission on Judicial Conduct charged him last month with multiple counts of judicial misconduct, including dismissing traffic tickets for friends, sexually harassing a newly appointed judge, and berating court staffers and attorneys.
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September 20, 2024
Eviction Law Firm Says Tenant's Fee Class Action Untimely
An eviction law firm pushed a Colorado federal court to toss a proposed class action filed by tenants who claim the firm illegally charged them attorney fees before their eviction proceedings were resolved.
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September 20, 2024
Veteran High Court Litigator Warns Of Ethics Debate's Impact
Accusations that U.S. Supreme Court justices are corrupt or nothing more than politicians in robes are unwarranted, tremendously dangerous and threaten to irreparably harm the institution's legitimacy, veteran high court litigator Kannon Shanmugam warns.
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September 20, 2024
Plaintiffs Firms Battle Over Proposed $9B Deal In J&J Talc Suit
Two leading plaintiffs law firms in the multibillion-dollar litigation over Johnson & Johnson's tainted talcum powder are now warring among themselves, with Smith Law Firm PLLC suing Beasley Allen Law Firm for defamation after Beasley Allen accused the former of selling out clients to pay off litigation funders.
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September 20, 2024
Ex-Healthcare Exec Can't Sue GC Over Probe Advice
A former Baxter International treasurer who was fired amid an investigation into improper foreign exchange transactions was correctly blocked from pursuing claims against the healthcare company and its general counsel over advice he received on navigating the probe, an Illinois appellate panel said Friday.
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September 20, 2024
Insurer Off Hook For Late-Reported Malpractice Claim
An insurance carrier had no obligation to defend or indemnify a Massachusetts attorney who failed to report a malpractice lawsuit for more than a year, the First Circuit said, affirming a lower court's decision to vacate a $1.1 million jury verdict against the insurer.
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September 20, 2024
Jenner & Block Seeks Exit From Plane Crash Fees Suit
Jenner & Block LLP wants out of a lawsuit brought by Kenyan law firm Arwa & Change Advocates LLP related to a 2019 Boeing aircraft crash that killed all passengers on board, arguing that it can't be sued for providing legal advice to a client.
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September 20, 2024
What A Second Trump Term Could Mean For The Courts
During his speech in Milwaukee in July accepting the Republican nomination for president, former President Donald Trump called Judge Aileen Cannon of the Southern District of Florida a "highly respected federal judge" and touted her ruling a few days earlier throwing out the "fake" case against him involving his alleged mishandling of classified documents.
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September 20, 2024
Morgan Law, Morgan & Morgan Ad Spat Breaks Open Again
National personal injury firm Morgan & Morgan PA is back in court with a rival Florida-based firm with a similar name, alleging that Morgan Law Group PA is once again poaching its search engine keywords in violation of a 2020 settlement between the two firms.
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September 20, 2024
Houston Judge Won't Take Up Prosecutor License Issue
A Houston judge declined to take up allegations that a government prosecutor participated in a case against a Texas surgeon while her law license was suspended, denying the doctor's show cause motion in a brief order Thursday.
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September 20, 2024
King & Spalding Fights Bias Suit Over Summer Program
King & Spalding LLP is urging a Maryland federal judge to toss a discrimination suit filed by a straight white woman who says she was dissuaded from applying to a summer associate program open only to "diverse" applicants, arguing the student suffered no injury since she did not apply.
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September 20, 2024
Firm Won't Be Sanctioned For 'Fabricated' Baby Death Suit
A Connecticut law firm will not be sanctioned for filing an allegedly fabricated product liability lawsuit against Target Corp. and the maker of an infant lounger over the death of a baby, whose death the companies say was actually caused by homicide, a Connecticut federal judge decided the same day that he trimmed most of the complaint's claims.
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September 20, 2024
NY Firm Settles With Chinese Exile Guo's Ch. 11 Trustee
Wildes & Weinberg PC, a New York-based immigration law firm, has penned a confidential settlement with the Chapter 11 trustee overseeing Chinese exile Miles Guo's bankruptcy in Connecticut, a deal that appears to be the first one the trustee struck with a law firm since he began filing clawback actions earlier this year.
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September 20, 2024
Seward & Kissel Says NJ Malpractice Docs Are Privileged
Seward & Kissel LLP has asked a New Jersey state judge to reject a discovery bid from the wife of hedge fund Two Sigma Investments LP's founder in her malpractice suit, arguing that the documents in question are protected by attorney-client privilege.
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September 20, 2024
Drew Eckl Battles Ex-Firm Attys Over Fees Arbitration
Drew Eckl & Farnham LLP and breakaway firm Burke Moore Law Group LLP filed competing briefs with the Georgia Court of Appeals this week, as Drew Eckl fought to uphold a trial court's ruling that Burke Moore must arbitrate a dispute over fees earned by its name partners when they left to start their own shop.
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September 20, 2024
Ellenoff Grossman Denied Arbitration In Ex-Atty's Firing Suit
A New York federal judge has sent a former Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP associate's suit saying she was fired for protesting sexual harassment back to state court and denied the firm's motion to compel arbitration of the matter.
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September 20, 2024
Trump Again Asks To Delay Evidence In DC Election Suit
Attorneys for former President Donald Trump again asked the Washington, D.C., federal judge overseeing his election interference case to push back a highly anticipated evidentiary filing from prosecutors, saying special counsel Jack Smith's office shouldn't be allowed to publicly lay out evidence until the court addresses Trump's concerns about the scope of discovery.
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September 20, 2024
Illinois Justices Affirm Fired Attorneys' $1.7M Fee Award
The Illinois Supreme Court held Thursday that two attorneys who represented clients in contentious proceedings over family assets are entitled to $1.7 million in fees for nearly a year and a half of legal work they did before they were terminated, reversing an appellate court that found their attorney-client agreement void.
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September 20, 2024
Steel Biz Investors Sue Atty Over 'Father-Son'-Like Conflict
A Pennsylvania couple have filed a malpractice suit accusing a lawyer of helping a steel distribution company induce them into investing about $800,000 and defrauding them, saying the attorney didn't disclose his relationship with the company's owners and "father-son"-like bond with one of them.
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September 20, 2024
Former Wilson Elser Attorney Drops 9th Circ. Benefits Appeal
The Ninth Circuit has agreed to dismiss a federal benefits lawsuit from a former Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP partner who claimed he was owed long-term disability benefits tied to chronic fatigue, after the parties held a lengthy mediation of the dispute.
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September 19, 2024
Dechert Settles Aviation Exec's Hack Cover-Up RICO Claims
An airline mogul has cut a confidential deal with Dechert and two former partners of the firm to let them off the hook in his sprawling civil Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act lawsuit in New York federal court, the settling parties announced Thursday.
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September 19, 2024
Ex-George Mason Law Prof Can't Stop Title IX Investigation
A former George Mason University law professor can't stop the school or its Title IX coordinator from investigating sexual misconduct claims lodged against him, but he can pursue some of the claims in his suit over the university's handling of the sexual misconduct accusations, a Virginia federal judge ruled Thursday.
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September 19, 2024
Why Justice Thomas' Gifts Probe Is Likely Taking So Long
The federal judiciary's governing body has spent more than a year reviewing complaints alleging U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas unlawfully failed to disclose decades of luxury gifts and travel. Ethics watchdogs argue it's time to wrap up the investigation, but politics — in every sense of the word — may cause further delay.
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September 19, 2024
10th Circ. Says Disbarred Atty Mooted Appeal With Guilty Plea
The Tenth Circuit dismissed a disbarred immigration attorney's efforts at obtaining an injunction that would force a state court to appoint counsel for her in a forgery case, saying Thursday that she mooted her own appeal by pleading guilty.
Expert Analysis
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Series
Teaching Scuba Diving Makes Me A Better Lawyer
As a master scuba instructor, I’ve learned how to prepare for the unexpected, overcome fears and practice patience, and each of these skills – among the many others I’ve developed – has profoundly enhanced my work as a lawyer, says Ron Raether at Troutman Pepper.
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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.