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Legal Ethics
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April 11, 2024
Leonard Leo Rebuffs Senate Judiciary Committee Subpoena
Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, served influential conservative and longtime Federalist Society executive Leonard Leo with a subpoena on Thursday as part of his U.S. Supreme Court ethics probe, which Leo is refusing to comply with.
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April 11, 2024
Prosecutor Named In Ga. Lt. Gov. 2020 Fake Elector Probe
Nearly two years after a judge disqualified Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis from investigating Georgia Lieutenant Gov. Burt Jones over his alleged role in helping former President Donald Trump overturn the state's 2020 presidential election, a state prosecutor has been appointed to handle the case.
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April 11, 2024
Pro-Trump Mich. Atty Gets New Trial Date After Skipping Court
A Michigan attorney accused of accessing voting machines after the 2020 presidential election said Thursday her old lawyer was dragging his feet in sharing critical documents as a judge rescheduled her trial for July following her attorney swap and her arrest for failing to appear in court.
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April 11, 2024
11th Circ. Denies Atty DQ Bid From Gold Star Wives
The Eleventh Circuit on Thursday denied a request from Gold Star Wives of America Inc. to disqualify an attorney representing a former president of the organization in an appeal over a trademark suit settlement, rejecting its argument that the lawyer's time serving the group should prevent him from guiding its former leader.
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April 11, 2024
Ex-Atlanta Worker Says City's Missing Docs Merits Sanctions
Counsel for a former city of Atlanta department head who says she was fired after blowing the whistle on failures in its immigrant outreach services urged a Georgia federal judge on Thursday to hit the city with sanctions for reportedly destroying communications related to her termination.
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April 11, 2024
Software Co., NC Officials Want Out Of Digital Courts Row
Software company Tyler Technologies, North Carolina court administrators and two sheriffs have asked a federal court to release them from a proposed class action alleging the state's new digital filing system has led to unlawful arrests and detentions.
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April 11, 2024
Ex-COO Sues NJ Law Firm, Claiming Sexual Harassment
The former chief operating officer of New Jersey personal injury giant Garces Grabler & LeBrocq PC sued the firm Wednesday for sexual harassment and discrimination, alleging firm leaders unfairly impeded her from doing her job and made lewd comments about her.
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April 11, 2024
Insurer Says Firm Not Covered For Bogus Check Scheme
An insurance firm has filed a complaint in Washington federal court seeking a declaration that it doesn't owe coverage to a Seattle-area firm and its sole attorney, who are embroiled in litigation with a bank after the firm fell prey to a counterfeit check scheme.
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April 11, 2024
NC Justices Hint Holtzman Vogel Immune In Defamation Case
The North Carolina Supreme Court's Republican majority seems poised to reverse a Court of Appeals decision forcing Holtzman Vogel Baran Torchinsky & Josefiak PLLC to face voters' defamation claims, with one justice lamenting that revoking the law firm's privilege defense could upend decades of case law in the Tar Heel State.
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April 11, 2024
State Bar Attys Fight Eastman's Bid To Activate Law License
The State Bar of California has formally opposed John C. Eastman's motion to stay a March order placing him on inactive status pending appeal of a recommendation that he be disbarred.
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April 11, 2024
Houston Atty Beats Real Estate Deal Malpractice Suit
In a split decision Thursday, a Houston attorney accused of malpractice was handed a win by the majority of a three-justice Lone Star State appellate panel that cleared her of negligence in connection with a 2014 contract inked between the owner of a property management company and a pair of apartment complex investors, finding that she obtained no "improper benefit" from representing both sides.
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April 11, 2024
Ex-Ellenoff Grossman Atty Faces Possible Firing Suit Remand
A former Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP associate's suit saying she was fired for protesting sexual harassment should return to state court, a New York federal judge recommended, saying the federal court can't enforce arbitration pacts invalidated by a 2022 amendment to the Federal Arbitration Act.
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April 11, 2024
Conn. Attorney Accused Of Unreasonable Fees In VW Case
Connecticut's attorney disciplinary authority has accused an attorney of charging an unreasonable fee to a plaintiff in a 2022 defective product claim against Volkswagen of America and not providing documentation to support the fee, in violation of professional conduct rules.
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April 10, 2024
Nationwide Injunctions Spike Politicizes Judiciary, Study Says
Nationwide injunctions have dramatically increased in recent years, particularly during the Trump administration, a trend that has politicized the judiciary and risks further politicization without reforms, according to a study published in the Harvard Law Review on Wednesday.
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April 10, 2024
US News Fights Uphill To Block SF's 'Best Hospitals' Probe
A California federal judge indicated Wednesday he'll likely dismiss U.S. News & World Report's lawsuit challenging the San Francisco City Attorney's subpoenas seeking information about its methodology for ranking hospitals, saying the issue isn't ripe since the subpoenas aren't self-enforcing and the city hasn't yet sued for the information.
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April 10, 2024
DOJ's Apple Antitrust Suit Gets New Judge After Recusal
The New Jersey federal judge overseeing the U.S. Department of Justice's recent iPhone antitrust case against Apple recused himself from the litigation Wednesday, according to a text order posted to the docket reassigning the case.
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April 10, 2024
3rd Circ. Won't Revive White And Williams Malpractice Suit
The Third Circuit on Wednesday declined to revive a $30 million legal malpractice suit brought by a home improvement product manufacturer against White and Williams LLP, finding the claim should have been brought in an earlier action between the parties.
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April 10, 2024
Dems Introduce Bill To Codify Policy Barring Judge Shopping
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., along with 37 other Democratic and two independent senators, introduced legislation on Wednesday to codify the new Judicial Conference of the United States policy against judge shopping after pushback from Republicans and a Texas court.
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April 10, 2024
Chicago Man Wants New Judge In Facebook Defamation Suit
A Chicago-area resident suing Meta over allegedly false sexual misconduct accusations on an "Are We Dating the Same Guy?" Facebook page wants a different judge to handle his case, arguing his current judge's "extensive professional relationship" with Meta's counsel warrants her recusal.
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April 10, 2024
Deported Man Can't Undo Fraud Conviction After Feds' Error
A deported Nigerian national who confessed to fraud on promises that prosecutors would submit a letter to immigration authorities supporting his deportation defense couldn't convince the Eighth Circuit to toss his guilty plea after prosecutors mistakenly disavowed the letter.
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April 10, 2024
Wells Fargo Can't Bar Atty From Deposition, NC Judge Rules
Wells Fargo lost its bid to stop the lawyer of a fired investment director, who is accusing the bank of disability discrimination, from questioning his former supervisor, with a North Carolina federal judge saying the bank fell short of showing that the attorney's previous representation of the supervisor was related in any way to the current action.
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April 10, 2024
'Varsity Blues' Judge Won't Recuse From Bid For Plea Redo
The Boston federal judge overseeing the waning "Varsity Blues" college admissions case said Wednesday he should be the one to decide whether a parent who pled guilty in the scandal's early days should be able to have the conviction erased, calling her recusal bid "fraught with judge-shopping."
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April 10, 2024
Fla. Lawyer Seeks 'Compassion' After Loan Fraud Conviction
Fresh off a failed bid to have her wire fraud conspiracy conviction nixed, a Florida attorney found guilty of fraudulently obtaining federal COVID-19 relief loans asked a Georgia federal judge for leniency in her upcoming sentencing.
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April 10, 2024
Fla. Atty Gets 8 Years For Fraudulent Tax Shelter Scheme
A Florida attorney was sentenced Wednesday to eight years in prison after pleading guilty in federal court to tax evasion and defrauding the U.S. government through a tax shelter scheme he pitched to clients that involved making purported charitable contributions so his clients could claim millions of dollars in tax deductions they weren't qualified to receive.
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April 10, 2024
Trump Fails Again To Halt NY Trial Over Claim Judge Is Biased
Donald Trump on Wednesday tried and failed for the third time in as many days to delay his upcoming hush-money trial, after arguing the judge should be removed for supposed bias and that the judge's rules were preventing him from defending himself.
Expert Analysis
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Perspectives
How Attorneys Can Help Combat Anti-Asian Hate
Amid an exponential increase in violence against Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, unique obstacles stand in the way of accountability and justice — but lawyers can effect powerful change by raising awareness, offering legal representation, advocating for victims’ rights and more, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.
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Opinion
Congress Needs To Enact A Federal Anti-SLAPP Statute
Although many states have passed statutes meant to prevent individuals or entities from filing strategic lawsuits against public participation, other states have not, so it's time for Congress to enact a federal statute to ensure that free speech and petitioning rights are uniformly protected nationwide in federal court, say attorneys at Skadden.
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Some Client Speculations On AI And The Law Firm Biz Model
Generative artificial intelligence technologies will put pressure on the business of law as it is structured currently, but clients may end up with more price certainty for legal services, and lawyers may spend more time being lawyers, says Jonathan Cole at Melody Capital.
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A Lawyer's Guide To Approaching Digital Assets In Discovery
The booming growth of cryptocurrency and non-fungible tokens has made digital assets relevant in many legal disputes but also poses several challenges for discovery, so lawyers must garner an understanding of the technology behind these assets, the way they function, and how they're held, says Brett Sager at Ehrenstein Sager.
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Opinion
High Court's Ethics Statement Places Justices Above The Law
The U.S. Supreme Court justices' disappointing statement on the court's ethics principles and practices reveals that not only are they satisfied with a status quo in which they are bound by fewer ethics rules than other federal judges, but also that they've twisted the few rules that do apply to them, says David Janovsky at the Project on Government Oversight.
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Opinion
Time For Law Schools To Rethink Unsung Role Of Adjuncts
As law schools prepare for the fall 2023 semester, administrators should reevaluate the role of the underappreciated, indispensable adjunct, and consider 16 concrete actions to improve the adjuncts' teaching experience, overall happiness and feeling of belonging, say T. Markus Funk at Perkins Coie, Andrew Boutros at Dechert and Eugene Volokh at UCLA.
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Tips For In-House Legal Leaders In A Challenging Economy
Amid today's economic and geopolitical uncertainty, in-house legal teams are running lean and facing increased scrutiny and unique issues, but can step up and find innovative ways to manage outcomes and capitalize on good business opportunities, says Tim Parilla at LinkSquares.
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How Cognizant Bribery Case Could Shape DOJ Investigations
A case playing out in New Jersey federal court – U.S. v. Coburn, involving bribery charges against former Cognizant executives – will examine when a company’s cooperation becomes an outsourced investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice, and could potentially limit the government’s use of certain evidence, says Sara Kropf at Kropf Moseley.
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SEC May Be Regulating By Enforcement With Atty Actions
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent high-profile actions against Covington and Frost & Miller show the agency is taking "regulation by enforcement" to a new arena — attorney misconduct — despite having a never-used rule on the books at its disposal, say attorneys at Tarter Krinsky.
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What Associates Need To Know Before Switching Law Firms
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
The days of staying at the same firm for the duration of one's career are mostly a thing of the past as lateral moves by lawyers are commonplace, but there are several obstacles that associates should consider before making a move, say attorneys at HWG.
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A Case For Sharing Mediation Statements With Counterparties
In light of a potential growing mediation trend of only submitting statements to the mediator, litigants should think critically about the pros and cons of exchanging statements with opposing parties as it could boost the chances of reaching a settlement, says Arthur Eidelhoch at Eidelhoch Mediation.
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Ethics Lessons From Outside Counsel Plotline In 'Succession'
A Season 3 storyline from “Succession,” featuring an outside counsel's ham-handed missteps, provides ethics lessons for white collar defense lawyers, especially in light of the U.S. Department of Justice’s recent corporate enforcement policy shifts, says Megan McDermott at the University of Wisconsin.
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Preparing For Legal Scrutiny Of Data Retention Policies
Two recent cases involving Google and Meta should serve as a call to action for companies to ensure their data retention policies are updated and properly implemented to the degree of being able to withstand judicial scrutiny, especially as more data is generated by emerging technologies, say Jack Kallus and Labeed Choudhry at Kaufman Dolowich.
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Opinion
Attorneys Should Have An Ethical Duty To Advance DEI
National and state bar associations are encouraging attorneys to apply diversity, equity and inclusion practices in the legal profession and beyond, and these associations should take it one step further by formally recognizing ethical duties for attorneys to promote DEI, which could better the legal profession and society, says Elena Mitchell at Moore & Van Allen.
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Use Caution In Cases Involving Illegal Images Of Minors
In cases where underage victims of sexual assault and abuse have been coerced into sharing nude or sexual images, attorneys representing abuse survivors must understand the strict protocols that regulate the handling of such illegal images, while taking care to protect essential evidence, says Michelle Simpson Tuegel at Simpson Tuegel.