Many current state bar character and fitness tests fail to identify bad actors, and at the same time, certain aspects of the queries can hurt efforts to increase diversity in the profession, according to panelists at the American Bar Association's 2025 Virtual Equity Summit on Friday.
Law360
White Collar
MONDAY, JUNE 9, 2025 Law360 iOS App Law360 Android App Follow Law360 on Facebook Follow Law360 on LinkedIn Follow Law360 on Twitter

TOP NEWS

Flaws Remain In Bar Fitness Queries, Summit Panelists Say

By Aebra Coe

Many current state bar character and fitness tests fail to identify bad actors, and at the same time, certain aspects of the queries can hurt efforts to increase diversity in the profession, according to panelists at the American Bar Association's 2025 Virtual Equity Summit on Friday.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Kilmar Abrego Garcia Back In US To Face Smuggling Charges

By Rae Ann Varona

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whom the Trump administration removed to an El Salvador prison in March, is back in the U.S. and charged by a federal grand jury in Tennessee with smuggling unauthorized immigrants, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Friday.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Analysis

Boston Feds Must Do 'More With Less' On White Collar Front

By Chris Villani

Defense attorneys say they see early signs of an uptick in white collar prosecutions under new Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Leah Foley, though depleted resources in the prominent Boston office and an overwhelming focus on immigration could limit the number of high-profile cases in the near future.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ex-SDNY Prosecutor Exits Paul Weiss For Jenner & Block

By Alison Knezevich

Just months after rejoining Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison LLP, the former U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York is leaving the firm to join Jenner & Block LLP.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Atty Gets Prison For Conn. Law Firm Parking Lot Shooting

By Aaron Keller

A onetime Cramer & Anderson LLP partner was sentenced Friday to a seven-year prison term after being convicted of first-degree manslaughter for fatally shooting an attacker in the parking lot of his rural Litchfield, Connecticut, law firm, although his incarceration will be suspended after 2½ years.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

High Court Says Software Glitch Led To Early Order List Drop

By Hailey Konnath

An "apparent software malfunction" caused the U.S. Supreme Court's order list to be issued early Friday, orders in which the justices granted certiorari in four cases and refused to take up a long list of other ones, including cases centered on Pennsylvania's election system and the Obama Presidential Center.

Order List attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

CONSUMER PROTECTION

NY AG Shuts Down 26 Online Sweepstakes Casinos

By Elaine Briseño

New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Friday that her office has shuttered the in-state operations of 26 online sweepstakes casinos, saying they are prohibited by state law because they involve risking something of value.

Letter attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

MONEY LAUNDERING

DOJ Says More IT Workers Laundered Crypto For North Korea

By Sydney Price

The U.S. Department of Justice filed a civil complaint alleging information technology workers from North Korea evaded U.S. sanctions and accumulated millions in cryptocurrency for the benefit of the North Korean government.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

PUBLIC POLICY

Judge Allows New Plaintiffs In 'Good Time' Sentencing Suit

By Danielle Ferguson

A Michigan federal judge said Friday that a proposed class alleging they were denied timely release from jail because the sheriff refused to provide so-called good-time credit to their criminal contempt sentences can add new plaintiffs to the case, rejecting the sheriff's arguments that the proposed new parties were improperly solicited.

3 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Brief

Bipartisan Bill Would Let Tribes Prosecute Drug Traffickers

By Joyce Hanson

Congressional lawmakers have introduced a bipartisan bill that would give tribal nations expanded authority to prosecute non-Native drug traffickers and combat the opioid crisis on their reservations.

Bill attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

FINTECH

Feds Seek 15 Months For Russian Crypto Market Manipulator

By Sydney Price

A Russian national who pled guilty to manipulating crypto markets through his market-making service says the time he has already served is sufficient punishment, but the government is seeking 15 months in addition to his company's $23 million forfeiture.

3 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

HEALTH

Fla. Medical Billing Co. Accused Of Filing False Genetic Tests

By Carolina Bolado

The U.S. government has filed a False Claims Act suit against a Florida medical billing and compliance services company for allegedly filing claims to Medicare for more than $15 million in medically unnecessary genetic laboratory tests.

Complaint attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

TAX

Lobbyist Seeks No Prison After Admitting $1.3M Tax Evasion

By Anna Scott Farrell

A Miami lobbyist who admitted to evading $1.3 million in taxes asked a Florida federal court not to sentence him to prison, saying he reported his tax obligations in full, even for the years when he didn't pay, and was overwhelmed by family expenses.

Brief attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

EXPERT ANALYSIS

How Attorneys Can Become Change Agents For Racial Equity

As the administration targets diversity, equity and inclusion efforts and law firms consider pulling back from their programs, lawyers who care about racial equity and justice can employ four strategies to create microspaces of justice, which can then be parlayed into drivers of transformational change, says Susan Sturm at Columbia Law School.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

5 Takeaways From DOJ's Media Compulsory Process Rules

The U.S. Department of Justice’s new rules, making it easier for law enforcement investigating leaks to compel members of the media and third parties to disclose information, could have wide-ranging impacts, from reduced protections for journalists and organizations, to an expanded focus on nonclassified material, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

What FCA Liability Looks Like In The Cybersecurity Realm

​Two recent settlements highlight how whistleblowers and the U.S. Department of Justice have been utilizing the False Claims Act to allege fraud predicated on violations of cybersecurity standards — timely lessons given new bipartisan legislation introducing potential FCA liability for artificial intelligence use, say​ attorneys Rachel Rose and Julie Bracker.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Foreign Sovereign Entities Should Heed 9th Circ. IP Ruling

After the Ninth Circuit recently held that four Chinese state-controlled companies were not immune from criminal indictment for alleged economic espionage, foreign sovereign-controlled entities should assess whether their operations and affiliation with their parent states qualify for sovereign immunity under the common law, say attorneys at Cleary.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

LEGAL INDUSTRY

Legal Sector Jobs Ticked Up In May Amid Uncertain Economy

By Alison Knezevich

The U.S. legal industry added 1,100 jobs in May, holding steady in the midst of economic uncertainty, according to preliminary data released Friday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Split DC Circ. Reinstates AP's White House Press Pool Ban

By Dorothy Atkins

A split D.C. Circuit panel reinstated the White House's decision to ban the Associated Press from the press pool covering the Oval Office, Air Force One and Mar-a-Lago on Friday, while a dissenting judge criticized her colleagues' rationale as being nonsensical and upending longstanding First Amendment precedent and generations of tradition.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Brief

Fox Rothschild Settles Suit Over $3M Real Estate Deal

By Ryan Harroff

Fox Rothschild LLP has settled a Colorado real estate investor's legal malpractice lawsuit over a $3 million development deal that went wrong, according to a new order filed in state court directing the parties to file for dismissal within a month.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Calif. Bar Hires Investigator To Review Exam Snafu

By Emily Sawicki

The State Bar of California's board of trustees voted to approve a $185,000 contract with a nonprofit to review "exam scoring irregularities and testing accommodations" from its fraught February 2025 bar exam.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Seeger Weiss Aims To Protect Bench With Duke Law Donation

By Madison Arnold

New Jersey-based Seeger Weiss LLP is seeking to help protect judges with a $500,000 donation to an institute at Duke Law School that is named in honor of the murdered son of a federal judge in the Garden State.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

By Michele Gorman

In corporate legal news from the past week,​ in-house lawyers' use of alternative legal service providers remains low, and the top Justice Department merger official said that the Trump administration welcomes "fix-it-first proposals," where merging companies arrange to sell off overlapping business lines.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

By Kevin Penton

The University of Virginia School of Law Supreme Court Litigation Clinic and attorney Edward Gilbert lead this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after the U.S. Supreme Court vacated the Sixth Circuit's ruling that plaintiffs claiming anti-heterosexual workplace discrimination need to provide extra "background circumstances" evidence.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

In Case You Missed It: Hottest Firms And Stories On Law360

For those who missed out, here's a look back at the law firms, stories and expert analyses that generated the most buzz on Law360 last week.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Titan Of The Plaintiffs Bar: Lieff Cabraser's Michael Sobol

By Kevin Penton

Michael Sobol has won significant settlements recently, including a $115 million deal over Oracle's allegedly unlawful sale of internet users' electronic profiles and a $62 million deal with Google over allegations it illegally stored and tracked the private location information of smartphone users, earning him a place among Law360's 2025 Titans of the Plaintiffs Bar.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Promo that reads Law360 Pulse Summer Associates Survey Promo that reads Law360 Pulse Lawyer Satisfaction Survey

LAW FIRMS IN TODAY'S NEWS

Baker & Hostetler

Ballard Spahr

Campbell Conroy

Cleary Gottlieb

Conti Levy

Cramer & Anderson

Cravath Swaine

Day Pitney

Dechert LLP

Fletcher Fealko

Fox Rothschild

Gibson Dunn

Greenberg Traurig

Gupta Wessler

Hinckley Allen

Jenner & Block

Jones Day

K&L Gates

Kirkland & Ellis

Latham & Watkins

Lieff Cabraser

Litchfield Cavo

McConnell Van Pelt

McDermott Will & Emery

McFarlin LLP

Michael J. Rosen PA

Morgan Lewis

Morrison Foerster

Morrison Mahoney

Murray Osorio

Outside Legal Counsel PLC

Paul Weiss

Perkins Coie

Pisciotti Lallis

Quinn Emanuel

Renzulli Law Firm

Seeger Weiss

Simon Paschal

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP

Skadden Arps

Smith Duggan

Squire Patton

Sullivan & Cromwell

Swanson Martin

Troutman

Tucker Ellis

Vinson & Elkins

Viorst Law Offices

Webb Daniel Friedlander

WilmerHale

Winston & Strawn

COMPANIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

American Bar Association

American Economic Liberties Project

Associated Press

Audi AG

BLOM Bank SAL

Binance Holdings Ltd.

Chart Industries, Inc.

CoinMarketCap OpCo LLC

Exceed Company Ltd.

Flowserve Corp.

George Washington University

Google LLC

Hatch Henderson Fivel LLC

MORSECORP Inc.

Practising Law Institute Inc.

Princeton University

RTX Corp.

Smith & Wesson Brands Inc.

State Bar of California

Sturm, Ruger & Co. Inc.

The Intergroup Corporation

Twitter Inc.

University of Miami

University of Virginia

Webster Financial Corp.

Witmer Public Safety Group Inc.

Wolters Kluwer

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

Bureau of Labor Statistics

Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes

Executive Office of the President

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Georgia Court of Appeals

Internal Revenue Service

Montana Department of Revenue

National Institute of Standards and Technology

National Security Council

New York Attorney General's Office

New York State Gaming Commission

Pennsylvania Supreme Court

U.S. Air Force

U.S. Army

U.S. Attorney's Office

U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida

U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit

U.S. Department of Defense

U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Department of the Treasury

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia

U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland

U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts

U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia

U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

U.S. Supreme Court

US Office of Management and Budget