Legal Ethics

  • September 30, 2026

    Ill. Judge To Hear Fight Over Prosecutor Contempt Probe

    An Illinois federal judge is set to hear arguments Thursday on whether fallout from a failed prosecution of six anti-ICE protesters should extend beyond dismissed charges and internal reforms to an evidentiary sanctions hearing and a deeper probe into possible criminal contempt by Chicago federal prosecutors.

  • September 30, 2026

    NY DA: Construction Exec Offered 'Quid Pro Quo' To Atty

    The Manhattan District Attorney's Office seized the phone of The Rinaldi Group's managing director as part of a criminal investigation into allegations that he proposed a "quid pro quo" to a defense attorney representing another longtime TRG executive in a bribery case, a prosecutor has told a state court judge.

  • September 30, 2026

    Biz Groups Urge 5th Circ. To Back Texas Derivative-Suits Limit

    The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Texas Association of Business on Wednesday urged the Fifth Circuit to uphold the dismissal of a Southwest Airlines shareholder's derivative suit, saying Texas law properly blocks such suits for those who hold less than 3% of shares.

  • September 30, 2026

    DOJ Accuses Judges Of Ethics Violations With Press Remarks

    Several Minnesota federal judges ran afoul of their ethical obligations when they commented on President Donald Trump's immigration policies in a recent news article, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a judicial misconduct complaint filed Wednesday.

  • September 30, 2026

    DOJ Atty Picked For Judgeship Probed On Fulton County Raid

    A top U.S. Department of Justice official tapped for a federal judgeship faced questions from Democratic lawmakers on Wednesday about the department's investigation in Fulton County, Georgia, over Trump's allegations of fraud in the 2020 election.

  • September 30, 2026

    Mid-Atlantic Law Firm Hit With Data Breach Class Action

    A Virginia woman filed a proposed class action on Tuesday accusing Midkiff Muncie & Ross PC of failing to protect her personal information from a cyberattack that the mid-Atlantic firm says it discovered in December.

  • September 30, 2026

    Texas AG Says ABA Stifling Law School Competition

    The Texas Attorney General announced an investigation into the American Bar Association relating to alleged anticompetitive conduct in the association's accreditation of law schools, claiming Wednesday that the ABA "weaponized its accreditation authority" to push "unconstitutional racial and gender preference requirements."

  • September 30, 2026

    Sen. Blackburn Sues Smith For Seizing Phone Records

    U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn alleges in a federal complaint filed Wednesday that Jack Smith illegally subpoenaed her phone records as part of an investigation into alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

  • September 30, 2026

    Cigna, Fla. Atty Resolve $21M Claim In Ch. 7 Case

    A Florida federal bankruptcy judge on Wednesday approved a settlement between a lawyer and Cigna in a Chapter 7 lawsuit, resolving a $21 million claim the health insurer once disputed as nondischargeable for only a fraction of the amount. 

  • September 29, 2026

    Geico Call Class Sunk After Plaintiff Tosses Phone In River

    A Maryland federal judge has refused to certify a class of thousands of insurance claimants who received allegedly unauthorized prerecorded medical appointment reminders from a scheduling vendor retained by Geico, finding that factors such as the plaintiff's decision to throw his cellphone into the Mississippi River made him an inadequate class representative.

  • September 29, 2026

    Tommy's Boats Owner Says Atty Error Led To $65M Judgment

    The owner of defunct boat and water sports dealer Tommy's Boats sued the company's former attorneys from Miller Johnson Snell & Cummiskey in Michigan state court, accusing them of failing to ensure its supplier would buy back unsold inventory in the event of a loan default, an alleged oversight that left the owner personally liable for $65 million.

  • September 29, 2026

    NY, Florida, Mass. Bar Officials Duck Disbarred Atty Suit

    A New York federal judge threw out a permanently disbarred attorney's due process claims against New York state, Massachusetts and Florida disciplinary officials Monday, finding no New York ties to the out-of-state officials and concluding the New York disbarment came not from disciplinary officials but from a state court.

  • September 29, 2026

    Summer Vacation Rules Save Texas Slip-And-Fall Suit

    A Texas appeals panel on Tuesday revived a woman's slip-and-fall suit, finding the trial court judge abused their discretion by ignoring her attorney's summer vacation designation and dismissing the case with prejudice when he was unprepared at trial.

  • September 29, 2026

    DC Circ. Weighs Limits On Boasberg's Contempt Inquiry

    A top Justice Department official told an en banc D.C. Circuit panel that a district judge should refer former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for contempt over the 2025 deportation flights to El Salvador and move on, saying the judge had no authority to wrap others into his inquiry.

  • September 29, 2026

    Ga. Judge Flags Suspected AI Misuse In Pipe Coverage Row

    A Georgia federal judge chided counsel for a former golf clubhouse owner in an insurance coverage dispute over burst pipes for what the court called errors "typical" of AI hallucinations.

  • September 29, 2026

    NY Court Officials Must Disclose Secret Guidance To Judges

    The New York State Office of Court Administration must hand over a batch of memos instructing state judges how to interpret the law after fighting for years to keep them under wraps, a New York state appeals court ruled Tuesday.

  • September 29, 2026

    NJ Panel Questions Atty's Authority In $600K Injury Settlement

    A New Jersey appellate panel Tuesday vacated a trial court's orders enforcing a $600,000 settlement in a personal injury case, sending the case back for an evidentiary hearing to determine whether counsel for one of the settling defendants had the authority to settle.

  • September 29, 2026

    NJ Atty Can Pursue Defamation Suit Over Social Media Posts

    A New Jersey federal judge denied a Texas-based social media personality's request that she rethink her decision to allow a New Jersey attorney's defamation suit to continue.

  • September 29, 2026

    Embattled Ga. Judge Looks To Oust JQC Panel Member

    A Georgia state judge said a Judicial Qualifications Commission panel member needs to step away from an ethics case against her because of the member's close friendship with a potential witness. 

  • September 29, 2026

    Baker Botts Atty Disputes Inventor's Claim Of Defamation Deal

    A Baker Botts LLP patent attorney is pushing back on an inventor's claim that they reached a settlement agreement in the inventor's defamation suit in Florida federal court.

  • September 29, 2026

    Philly Plaintiffs' Firm Says Uber Can't Support RICO Claims

    Philadelphia personal injury firm Simon & Simon PC is again urging a Pennsylvania federal judge to throw out Uber Technologies Inc.'s racketeering claims alleging Simon & Simon masterminded a scheme to inflate settlements, saying none of the ride-sharing company's arguments or evidence show it was injured.

  • September 29, 2026

    11th Circ. Won't Pause Sanctions Against Trump In IRS Case

    An Eleventh Circuit panel refused Tuesday to pause a district court's sanctions order barring President Donald Trump and others from citing the agreement he made to settle his $10 billion suit against the Internal Revenue Service while they appeal the order.

  • September 29, 2026

    Prosecutor's CLE Records Blocked In Death Penalty Case

    A death row prisoner can't subpoena Continuing Legal Education records for a prosecutor who worked on his case, because a Pennsylvania federal magistrate judge held that the decades-old records — if they still exist — are unlikely to contain evidence supporting the defense's allegations of racism at the district attorney's office.

  • September 29, 2026

    Agtech Biz Founder Loses Chancery Judge Recusal Bid

    A Delaware Chancery Court magistrate has denied a motion from HerdDogg Inc.'s founder to recuse himself from presiding over litigation she brought seeking to place the agricultural technology company into receivership, saying "unequivocally" that the founder had not shown disqualification would be appropriate.

  • September 28, 2026

    Calif. Attys Face New Penalties For Paying To Recruit Clients

    Lawyers convicted of felony "capping" — or illegally paying for client recruitment — in California will now face a $25,000 civil penalty and face disbarment under a bill signed Sunday by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Trail Running Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Navigating the muddy, root-filled path of trail marathons and ultramarathons provides fertile training ground for my high-stakes fractional general counsel work, teaching me to slow down my mind when the terrain shifts, sharpen my focus and trust my training, says Eric Proos at Next Era Legal.

  • Malpractice Claim Assignability Continues To Divide Courts

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    Recent decisions from courts across the country demonstrate how different jurisdictions balance competing policy interests in determining whether legal malpractice claims can be assigned, providing a framework to identify when and how to challenge any attempted assignment, says Christopher Blazejewski at Sherin & Lodgen.

  • Series

    Teaching Logic Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Teaching middle and high school students the skills to untangle complicated arguments and identify faulty reasoning has made me reacquaint myself with the defined structure of thought, reminding me why logic should remain foundational in the practice of law, says Tom Barrow at Woods Rogers.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Practicing Resilience

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    Resilience is a skill acquired through daily practices that focus on learning from missteps, recovering quickly without internalizing defeat and moving forward with intention, says Nicholas Meza at Quarles & Brady.

  • NYC Bar Opinion Warns Attys On Use Of AI Recording Tools

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    Attorneys who use artificial intelligence tools to record, transcribe and summarize conversations with clients should heed the New York City Bar Association’s recent opinion addressing the legal and ethical risks posed by such tools, and follow several best practices to avoid violating the Rules of Professional Conduct, say attorneys at Smith Gambrell.

  • Series

    The Biz Court Digest: Dispatches From Utah's Newest Court

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    While a robust body of law hasn't yet developed since the Utah Business and Chancery Court's founding in October 2024, the number of cases filed there has recently picked up, and its existence illustrates Utah's desire to be top of mind for businesses across the country, says Evan Strassberg at Michael Best.

  • 4 Quick Emotional Resets For Lawyers With Conflict Fatigue

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    Though the emotional wear and tear of legal work can trap attorneys in conflict fatigue — leaving them unable to shake off tense interactions or return to a calm baseline — simple therapeutic techniques for resetting the nervous system can help break the cycle, says Chantel Cohen at CWC Coaching & Therapy.

  • Series

    Playing Tennis Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    An instinct to turn pain into purpose meant frequent trips to the tennis court, where learning to move ahead one point at a time was a lesson that also applied to the steep learning curve of patent prosecution law, says Daniel Henry at Marshall Gerstein.

  • Series

    Judges On AI: How Judicial Use Informs Guardrails

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    U.S. Magistrate Judge Maritza Dominguez Braswell at the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado discusses why having a sense of how generative AI tools behave, where they add value, where they introduce risk and how they are reshaping the practice of law is key for today's judges.

  • Presidential Pardon Brokering Can Create Risks For Attys

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    The emergence of an apparent “pardon shopping” marketplace, in which attorneys treat presidential pardons as a market product, may invite investigative scrutiny of counsel and potential criminal charges grounded in bribery, wire fraud and other statutes, says David Klasing at The Tax Law Offices of David W. Klasing.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: 5 Tips From Ex-SEC Unit Chief

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    My move to private practice has reaffirmed my belief in the value of adaptability, collaboration and strategic thinking — qualities that are essential not only for successful client outcomes, but also for sustained professional satisfaction, says Dabney O’Riordan at Fried Frank.

  • Prisoners' Access To Health Info Should Have No Bars

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    To safeguard against unnecessary deaths in custody, courts and policymakers should clarify that incarcerated individuals’ constitutional right to medical care also includes access to sufficient information about their medical conditions, lifting current restrictions that can lead to crucial information being withheld, says Jaehyun Oh at Jacob Fuchsberg Law.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: How To Start A Law Firm

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    Launching and sustaining a law firm requires skills most law schools don't teach, but every lawyer should understand a few core principles that can make the leap calculated rather than reckless, says Sam Katz at Athlaw.

  • Series

    Hosting Exchange Students Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Opening my home to foreign exchange students makes me a better lawyer not just because prioritizing visiting high schoolers forces me to hone my organization and time management skills but also because sharing the study-abroad experience with newcomers and locals reconnects me to my community, says Alison Lippa at Nicolaides Fink.

  • How A 1947 Tugboat Ruling May Shape Work Product In AI Era

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    Rapid advances in generative artificial intelligence test work-product principles first articulated in the U.S. Supreme Court’s nearly 80-year-old Hickman v. Taylor decision, as courts and ethics bodies confront whether disclosure of attorneys’ AI prompts and outputs would reveal their thought processes, say Larry Silver and Sasha Burton at Langsam Stevens.

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