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Legal Ethics
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June 03, 2025
Tom Girardi Sentenced To Over 7 Years For $15M Client Fraud
A California federal judge sentenced Tom Girardi on Tuesday to over seven years in prison for his wire fraud conviction, granting some leniency to the disbarred attorney on his 86th birthday by imposing a sentence below the guidelines in recognition of his age and ailing health.
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June 03, 2025
The Law360 400: A Look At The Top 100 Firms
A rebound in client work sent the nation’s largest law firms into growth mode last year, driving a wave of hiring, mergers and strategic moves that reshaped the top tier of the Law360 400. Here's a preview of the 100 firms with the largest U.S. attorney headcounts.
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June 03, 2025
Text To Sanctions Trial Witness Just An 'Error,' Judge Agrees
A Manhattan federal judge declined on Tuesday to revoke bail for a businessman accused of helping a Russian banker evade sanctions on assets worth nearly $150 million, after his lawyer said his text to a trial witness was merely a phone flub.
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June 02, 2025
Jenner & Block Ruling 'Meant What It Said,' Judge Tells Feds
The order striking down the Trump administration's executive order targeting Jenner & Block LLP "meant what it said," a Washington, D.C., federal judge ruled Monday, saying the government must rescind enforcement of all parts of the president's directive.
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June 02, 2025
Fla. Sanitizer Co. Faces Penalties Over Fake AI Legal Citations
Two Florida federal judges have ordered a disinfectant sprayer business to explain why artificial intelligence-generated fake citations and quotes appeared in filings in lawsuits over corporate wrongdoing from a Canadian breach of contract case, saying it could face serious penalties for alleged intentional misrepresentations.
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June 02, 2025
Ga. Panel Urged To Back $17M Honda Seatbelt Verdict
A Georgia man whose wife was killed after being ejected from her Honda SUV asked a Georgia appellate panel Monday to uphold a $17 million verdict against the automaker, urging the court to reject Honda's arguments that it was wrongly denied the chance to defend itself after its attorneys introduced prohibited materials at the trial's opening.
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June 02, 2025
Girardi's Dropped Pants Don't Sway Judge From Sentencing
A California federal judge ruled Monday she will sentence Tom Girardi this week for his wire fraud conviction, finding him mentally competent enough to potentially serve prison time following a bizarre hearing where the disbarred attorney made an appearance on the witness stand that culminated in his pants falling down.
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June 02, 2025
Judge Finds Exec Sought To Dodge Chicago Hotel Fraud Order
A construction company and executive found by a jury in 2022 of misusing millions intended for Chicago's Nobu Hotel are facing contempt orders from an Illinois federal judge for concealing cash withdrawals and construction work as an investor attempts to collect a $22 million judgment.
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June 02, 2025
Jackson Walker, US Trustee Agree To Mediator In Fees Case
Jackson Walker LLP and the federal government's bankruptcy watchdog have agreed to mediation in their fee dispute stemming from an ethics scandal in Texas, with the two sides agreeing that retired judge Joan N. Feeney should mediate.
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June 02, 2025
Third Round Of Fixes Sought In Botched Calif. Bar Exam
The California state bar's committee of bar examiners has approved two additional remedies in an effort to help applicants who failed the troubled February exam, including asking the state Supreme Court to approve a further scoring adjustment that would bring the passing rate up to about 63%.
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June 02, 2025
Feds Want 12½ Years For Ex-Ill. Speaker Convicted Of Bribery
Prosecutors are urging an Illinois federal judge to sentence former state House Speaker Michael Madigan to prison for 12½ years for bribery, conspiracy and fraud, saying his conduct adds "another sordid chapter to Illinois' storied reputation of corruption" while Madigan, armed with more than 200 letters of support, seeks only probation.
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June 02, 2025
Ga. Appeals Court To Review Arbitration Of Firm Fee Fight
The Georgia state court of appeals on Monday agreed to consider whether a law firm's lawsuit against its former client over legal fees should move forward in the trial court that ordered the case to arbitration, with both sides accusing the other of "gamesmanship."
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June 02, 2025
Judicial Clerk Boycott May Be Unethical, Circ. Judge Says
A North Dakota federal judge's pledge not to hire law clerks from Columbia University because of the school's response to campus protests against Israel's war in Gaza may "cross an important line," the Eighth Circuit's chief judge said, even as he dismissed an ethics complaint stemming from the boycott.
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June 02, 2025
Retired Judges Call Wis. Judge's Prosecution 'Dangerous'
The Trump administration's prosecution of a Wisconsin state judge who refused to help federal agents arrest an immigrant is an "extraordinary and direct assault on the independence of the entire judicial system," according to a bipartisan group of 138 former state and federal judges.
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June 02, 2025
J&J Again Seeks To Block Beasley Allen In NJ Talc Litigation
Johnson & Johnson has opposed a New Jersey talc claimant's motion for the pro hac vice admission of two attorneys from The Beasley Allen Law Firm, claiming the partners' conduct in its talc unit's bankruptcy proceedings warrants denial of the application.
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June 02, 2025
Womble Bond Atty Asks 4th Circ. To Undo Contempt Order
A series of federal court errors led to a Womble Bond Dickinson partner being wrongly held in contempt over a $28 million trademark dispute between a Dutch technology company and its former U.S. partner, the lawyer told the Fourth Circuit in a brief Friday, urging the appeals panel to reverse the order.
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June 02, 2025
MSG Tries Again To Have Ex-Knick's Assault Suit Tossed
Madison Square Garden has returned fire against former New York Knicks icon Charles Oakley in their battle in New York federal court over his 2017 ejection from a game, demanding summary judgment in an assault suit he brought against it and asking for sanctions against Oakley six weeks after he requested sanctions against the organization.
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June 02, 2025
Union Loses Atty DQ Bid In NJ Wrongful Termination Dispute
A longshoremen's union has lost its bid to disqualify an attorney from representing a former member in a wrongful termination suit in New Jersey federal court that alleges the union gave him bad advice that prevented him from properly fighting claims that led to his termination.
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June 02, 2025
Immunity Shields Mich. AG From Flint Water Prosecution Suit
A Michigan federal judge has dismissed a wrongful prosecution lawsuit brought by a former aide to ex-Gov. Rick Snyder against the Michigan attorney general and Wayne County prosecutors, ruling that immunity shields the prosecutors from liability over their handling of charges against officials in the aftermath of the Flint water crisis.
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June 02, 2025
Schumer Pledges To Fight GOP's Limits On Court Power
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has vowed to challenge a provision in House Republicans' budget reconciliation package that would curtail courts' ability to issue contempt citations.
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May 30, 2025
No Sanctions For Stamford In Zoning Fight Over Gyms
A Connecticut judge declined to sanction the Stamford Board of Representatives after a real estate company accused it of withholding and destroying documents relevant to their zoning fight, ruling that "the evidence of withheld discovery was equivocal at best."
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May 30, 2025
Wheeling & Appealing: The Latest Must-Know Appellate Action
Saying that June's circuit court calendars include important arguments in all practice areas would be hyperbolic — but just slightly. That's because significant showdowns are imminent involving appellate procedure principles, "click-to-cancel" rules, government procurement protests, judiciary employment protections and litigation risk insurance — as well as President Donald Trump's felony convictions and extraordinary deportation measures.
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May 30, 2025
Texas Panel Keeps Intact Judge's LGBTQ+ Wedding Challenge
A Texas appeals court, in a Friday opinion, kept intact a judge's lawsuit against the state judicial ethics commission over sanctions for her refusal to officiate same-sex marriages, but left the issue of merits for the trial court to hash out.
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May 30, 2025
Ace Says Ga. Insureds Wrongly Added Atty To Coverage Fight
Ace Property and Casualty Insurance Co. has launched a sanctions bid in Georgia federal court against two policyholders and their counsel in a coverage suit, alleging they abused the judicial process by adding outside counsel as a defendant just to defeat diversity jurisdiction and remand the case to state court.
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May 30, 2025
Banks, Class Action Admins Ran Kickback Scheme, Suit Says
A group of class action settlement administrators and banks conspired to rip off settlement class members by offering lower bank interest rates in exchange for kickbacks, according to three identical lawsuits filed in three states.
Expert Analysis
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Series
Playing Music Makes Me A Better Lawyer
My deep and passionate involvement in playing, writing and producing music equipped me with skills — like creativity, improvisation and problem-solving — that contribute to the success of my legal career, says attorney Kenneth Greene.
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How Attys Can Avoid Pitfalls When Withdrawing From A Case
The Trump campaign's recent scuffle over its bid to replace its counsel in a pregnancy retaliation suit offers a chance to remind attorneys that many troubles inherent in withdrawing from a case can be mitigated or entirely avoided by communicating with clients openly and frequently, says Christopher Konneker at Orsinger Nelson.
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High Court Injunction Case Could Shake Up Fee-Shifting Rules
In agreeing to review a Virginia case rendered statutorily moot before final judgment, the U.S. Supreme Court could finally settle the question of if — and when — a preliminary injunction can win attorney fees for a prevailing party, but all possible answers could disrupt fee-shifting schemes written into major laws, says Laurens Wilkes at Winston & Strawn.
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Using A Children's Book Approach In Firm Marketing Content
From “The Giving Tree” to “Where the Wild Things Are,” most children’s books are easy to remember because they use simple words and numbers to tell stories with a human impact — a formula law firms should emulate in their marketing content to stay front of mind for potential clients, says Seema Desai Maglio at The Found Word.
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Series
Being An EMT Makes Me A Better Lawyer
While some of my experiences as an emergency medical technician have been unusually painful and searing, the skills I’ve learned — such as triage, empathy and preparedness — are just as useful in my work as a restructuring lawyer, says Marshall Huebner at Davis Polk.
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Exploring An Alternative Model Of Litigation Finance
A new model of litigation finance, most aptly described as insurance-backed litigation funding, differs from traditional funding in two key ways, and the process of securing it involves three primary steps, say Bob Koneck, Christopher Le Neve Foster and Richard Butters at Atlantic Global Risk LLC.
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Trump Hush Money Case Offers Master Class In Trial Strategy
The New York criminal hush money trial of former President Donald Trump typifies some of the greatest challenges that lawyers face in crafting persuasive presentations, providing lessons on how to handle bad facts, craft a simple story that withstands attack, and cross-examine with that story in mind, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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Series
Teaching Yoga Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Being a yoga instructor has helped me develop my confidence and authenticity, as well as stress management and people skills — all of which have crossed over into my career as an attorney, says Laura Gongaware at Clyde & Co.
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A Vision For Economic Clerkships In The Legal System
As courts handle increasingly complex damages analyses involving vast amounts of data, an economic clerkship program — integrating early-career economists into the judicial system — could improve legal outcomes and provide essential training to clerks, say Mona Birjandi at Data for Decisions and Matt Farber at Secretariat.
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E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On Text Message Data
Electronically stored information on cellphones, and in particular text messages, can present unique litigation challenges, and recent court decisions demonstrate that counsel must carefully balance what data should be preserved, collected, reviewed and produced, say attorneys at Sidley.
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'Fat Leonard' Case Shows High Bar For Rescinding Guilty Plea
Prosecutors’ recent move in the “Fat Leonard” bribery case, supporting several defendants’ motions to withdraw their guilty pleas, is extremely unusual – and its contrast with other prosecutions demonstrates that the procedural safeguards at plea hearings are far from enough, says Sara Kropf at Kropf Moseley.
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Series
Swimming Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Years of participation in swimming events, especially in the open water, have proven to be ideal preparation for appellate arguments in court — just as you must put your trust in the ocean when competing in a swim event, you must do the same with the judicial process, says John Kulewicz at Vorys.
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As Arbitrator Bias Claims Rise, Disclosure Standards Evolve
The growth in post-award challenges based on arbitrators' alleged conflicts of interest has led to the release of new guidance and new case law on the topic — both supporting the view that professional familiarity alone does not translate to a lack of impartiality, say attorneys at Skadden.
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Don't Use The Same Template For Every Client Alert
As the old marketing adage goes, consistency is key, but law firm style guides need consistency that contemplates variety when it comes to client alert formats, allowing attorneys to tailor alerts to best fit the audience and subject matter, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.
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Series
Walking With My Dog Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Thanks to my dog Birdie, I've learned that carving out an activity different from the practice of law — like daily outdoor walks that allow you to interact with new people — can contribute to professional success by boosting creativity and mental acuity, as well as expanding your social network, says Sarah Petrie at the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office.