Legal Ethics

  • July 30, 2026

    2 Traders Admit Guilt In Stolen BigLaw Info Scheme

    Two men pled guilty Thursday in Massachusetts federal court to their roles in a sweeping scheme to trade on inside information stolen from huge corporate law firms about upcoming deals.

  • July 30, 2026

    DA Says Trump's NY Hush Money Conviction Must Stand

    New York prosecutors told a state appellate court that President Donald Trump's 34-count felony conviction for falsifying business records is "unaffected" by the U.S. Supreme Court's watershed presidential immunity decision and should be upheld.

  • July 30, 2026

    Advocacy Group Says Law Firm Fellowship Program Biased

    A legal advocacy group said Thursday it had lodged U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission charges against a nonprofit and law firms including Jones Day, White & Case and Morgan Lewis, claiming Muslim and Middle Eastern students were getting unlawful preference in a fellowship program.

  • July 29, 2026

    9th Circ. Vacates Orrick Win In Stock Transfer Deal Dispute

    The Ninth Circuit on Wednesday reversed a lower court's finding that Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP can't be held liable in a battle over a stock transfer agreement gone awry, ruling that California law does allow a party to the transfer to pursue equitable indemnity in the case.

  • July 29, 2026

    2nd Circ. Backs Ex-Shkreli Atty's 401(k) Restitution Deal

    A New York trial judge erred in rejecting a retirement-fund garnishment deal that would have protected Martin Shkreli's convicted former lawyer from tax penalties, the Second Circuit ruled Wednesday.

  • July 29, 2026

    Comey Rips '86 47' Case, Says Warrants 'Misstated Facts'

    James Comey is taking another angle in his effort to dismiss an indictment stemming from a picture of seashells he posted on Instagram, telling a North Carolina federal judge that the government is pursuing the "vindictive" case because of President Donald Trump's "deep-seated animosity" toward the former FBI director.

  • July 29, 2026

    King & Spalding Told To End 'Shenanigans' In Bid To Exit Case

    The individual defendants in a $300 million fraud lawsuit have accused King & Spalding LLP of appellate "shenanigans" while it seeks to exit the case due to an alleged ethics conflict, claiming the firm has falsely denied representing corporate clients despite an attorney's appearance suggesting otherwise.

  • July 29, 2026

    Madigan Asks Supreme Court To Review His Bribery Verdict

    Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to review his conviction on bribery, conspiracy and wire fraud charges, arguing that the "novel" theories behind his prosecution "stretch federal bribery law in ways that threaten to criminalize and chill lawful interactions between state and local officials and their constituents."

  • July 29, 2026

    NJ Beauty Co. Suit Over Stock-For-Consulting Deal Survives

    A New Jersey federal judge allowed cosmetics company Glamour Dolls Inc. to pursue claims against an investor who the company claims promised to barter consulting services for a stake in the business, but then left it in the lurch when it needed financing.

  • July 29, 2026

    Apple, Amazon Beat Bid To Revive IPhone Sales Antitrust Suit

    A Washington federal judge has declined to reinstate a proposed class action accusing Apple and Amazon of illegally limiting iPhone and iPad sales, standing by her previous conclusion that Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP failed to promptly seek the approval of two substitute plaintiffs after the original lead consumer abandoned the case.

  • July 29, 2026

    DraftKings Offers Sports Bets In Barred States, Suit Alleges

    A proposed class action in Massachusetts federal court accuses DraftKings of conducting sports betting in states that outlaw it, through prediction markets that are accessible through the same app as its sportsbook and daily fantasy sports.

  • July 29, 2026

    Simpson Thacher Hung Client Out To Dry, Jury Hears

    A legal ethics expert told a Florida jury Wednesday that he believes Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP's actions when representing Patriot National Inc. constitute legal malpractice leading up to the insurance services company declaring bankruptcy.

  • July 29, 2026

    GOP Bill To Curb Judge Shopping May Have Limited Effect

    A Senate Republican has introduced legislation that he says will fix the judge shopping issue, but court observers don't think it will make much of a difference.

  • July 29, 2026

    DOJ Wants New Judge In Fired Court-Appointed US Atty's Suit

    A lawsuit from the Seattle U.S. attorney who was swiftly fired from his post by President Donald Trump shortly after being appointed to it by a federal court should be reassigned to a different judge, the administration has told a Washington federal court.

  • July 29, 2026

    Split Pa. Panel Won't Boot Judge From Property Cases

    A Pennsylvania appellate court says an Allegheny County trial judge properly denied a real estate developer's request for her to recuse herself from a property conservatorship case and that the judge's rulings were not affected by alleged bias from family connections to separate cases.

  • July 29, 2026

    Segal McCambridge Settles Fired Secretary's Age Bias Suit

    Law firm Segal McCambridge Singer & Mahoney Ltd. has struck a deal to end a New York federal court suit from a former secretary who said her colleagues mistreated her because of her age, according to a Wednesday court filing.

  • July 29, 2026

    Ethics Panel Seeks 9-Month Suspension For Detroit Judge

    A Detroit judge faces suspension without pay for nine months after Michigan's Judicial Tenure Commission found she knowingly made false claims that a Mackinac Island bicycle shop owner assaulted her during a dispute over a bike rental and later misled investigators about what happened. 

  • July 29, 2026

    Senate Postpones Key Vote For AG Nominee Blanche

    The committee vote on acting Attorney General Todd Blanche's bid to take the permanent role, slated for Thursday, was postponed after Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Thom Tillis, R-N.C., were not fully on board.

  • July 28, 2026

    Randy Quaid Loses Bid To Undo $3.5M Calif. Property Ruling

    Actor Randy Quaid and his wife cannot overturn a $3.5 million judgment awarded to a California couple who bought a Santa Barbara property that once belonged to the Quaids, an appeals court ruled Tuesday, finding substantial evidence supporting claims that the Quaids' false ownership assertions damaged the property's marketability.

  • July 28, 2026

    Texas Judge Calls Late Bid To Disqualify Atty 'Dilatory Tactic'

    A Texas federal judge on Tuesday denied a request to disqualify an attorney representing the former chief executive of a real estate company related to the late mogul Gene Phillips, saying the attempt to knock out the attorney came way too late in the game.

  • July 28, 2026

    Montgomery McCracken Must Face Suit Over NJ College Move

    A New Jersey state judge on Tuesday declined to dismiss Rider University's lawsuit alleging Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhoads LLP's negligence caused it to forfeit a property worth $42 million, ruling from the bench that the school adequately alleged it relied on guidance from one of its attorneys.

  • July 28, 2026

    Winston Taylor Seeks Sanction Against Ex-Client Hunter Biden

    Winston Taylor urged a D.C. state court on Monday to sanction its former client Hunter Biden in its legal bills collection suit, saying the former president's son destroyed Signal communications that would have proved he understood that he owes the law firm more than $50,000.

  • July 28, 2026

    BofA Must Face Consumer Suit Over Autopay Double Charges

    An Illinois federal judge has ruled that Bank of America NA cannot avoid facing a majority of the claims in a lawsuit accusing the bank of not adjusting automatic payments on credit cards when customers manually pay off their statement balance in the middle of a billing cycle, finding a consumer established standing and showed evidence of a deceptive practice.

  • July 28, 2026

    Queens Defenders Head Gets 3.5 Years For Looting The Nonprofit

    A Brooklyn federal judge on Tuesday sentenced the former director of the Queens Defenders to more than 3.5 years in prison after the longtime attorney admitted to a course of embezzlement that destroyed the group dedicated to legal services for the poor.

  • July 28, 2026

    Judge Calls Off IP Trial, Threatens Sanctions Against Apple

    A Texas federal judge has vacated an impending trial date for a patent infringement suit against Apple, saying he needed time to resolve outstanding jurisdictional issues, but ordered Apple to explain why it shouldn't be sanctioned for raising those issues so close to trial.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    The Biz Court Digest: Texas, One Year In

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    A year after the Texas Business Court's first decision, it's clear that Texas didn't just copy Delaware and instead built something uniquely its own, combining specialization with constitutional accountability and creating a model that looks forward without losing touch with the state's democratic and statutory roots, says Chris Bankler at Jackson Walker.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Educating Your Community

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    Nearly two decades prosecuting scammers and elder fraud taught me that proactively educating the public about the risks they face and the rights they possess is essential to building trust within our communities, empowering otherwise vulnerable citizens and preventing wrongdoers from gaining a foothold, says Roger Handberg at GrayRobinson.

  • 5 Crisis Lawyering Skills For An Age Of Uncertainty

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    As attorneys increasingly face unprecedented and pervasive situations — from prosecutions of law enforcement officials to executive orders targeting law firms — they must develop several essential competencies of effective crisis lawyering, says Ray Brescia at Albany Law School.

  • Opinion

    It's Time For The Judiciary To Fix Its Cybersecurity Problem

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    After recent reports that hackers have once again infiltrated federal courts’ electronic case management systems, the judiciary should strengthen its cybersecurity practices in line with executive branch standards, outlining clear roles and responsibilities for execution, says Ilona Cohen at HackerOne.

  • Series

    Writing Novels Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Writing my debut novel taught me to appreciate the value of critique and to never give up, no matter how long or tedious the journey, providing me with valuable skills that I now emphasize in my practice, says Daniel Buzzetta at BakerHostetler.

  • Trader Joe's Ruling Highlights Trademark Infringement Trends

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    The Ninth Circuit's recent decision in Trader Joe's Co. v. Trader Joe's United explores the legal boundaries between a union's right to advocate for workers and the protection of a brand's intellectual property, and illustrates a growing trend of courts disfavoring early dismissal of trademark infringement claims in the context of expressive speech, say attorneys at Mitchell Silberberg.

  • Decoding Arbitral Disputes: Arbitrator's Conviction Upheld

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    The Supreme Court of Spain recently upheld the criminal conviction of arbitrator Gonzalo Stampa for grave disobedience to judicial authority, rejecting the proposition that an arbitrator's independence can prevail over a court order retroactively disabling the very judicial act conferring arbitral jurisdiction, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.

  • SDNY OpenAI Order Clarifies Preservation Standards For AI

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    The Southern District of New York’s recent order in the OpenAI copyright infringement litigation, denying discovery of The New York Times' artificial intelligence technology use, clarifies that traditional preservation benchmarks apply to AI content, relieving organizations from using a “keep everything” approach, says Philip Favro at Favro Law.

  • In NY, Long COVID (Tolling) Still Applies

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    A series of pandemic-era executive orders in New York tolling state statutes of limitations for 228 days mean that many causes of action that appear time-barred on their face may continue to apply, including in federal practice, for the foreseeable future, say attorneys at Sher Tremonte.

  • Opinion

    High Court, Not A Single Justice, Should Decide On Recusal

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    As public trust in the U.S. Supreme Court continues to decline, the court should adopt a collegial framework in which all justices decide questions of recusal together — a reform that respects both judicial independence and due process for litigants, say Michael Broyde at Emory University and Hayden Hall at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

  • Reel Justice: 'One Battle After Another' And The Limits Of Zeal

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    The political thriller “One Battle After Another,” following a former revolutionary who became a recluse, offers a potent metaphor for attorneys on diligence and the ethical boundaries of zealous advocacy, says Veronica Finkelstein at Wilmington University School of Law.

  • Series

    Traveling Solo Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Traveling by myself has taught me to assess risk, understand tone and stay calm in high-pressure situations, which are not only useful life skills, but the foundation of how I support my clients, says Lacey Gutierrez at Group Five Legal.

  • 6th Circ. FirstEnergy Ruling Protects Key Legal Privileges

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    The Sixth Circuit’s recent grant of mandamus relief in In re: First Energy Corp. confirms that the attorney-client privilege and work-product protections apply to internal investigation materials, ultimately advancing the public interest, say attorneys at Cooley.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Client Service

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    Law school teaches you how to interpret the law, but it doesn't teach you some of the key ways to keeping clients satisfied, lessons that I've learned in the most unexpected of places: a book on how to be a butler, says Gregory Ramos at Armstrong Teasdale.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: 3 Tips On Finding The Right Job

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    After 23 years as a state and federal prosecutor, when I contemplated moving to a law firm, practicing solo or going in-house, I found there's a critical first step — deep self-reflection on what you truly want to do and where your strengths lie, says Rachael Jones at McKool Smith.

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