Âé¶¹´«Ã½

Legal Ethics

  • June 05, 2025

    Girardi's Son-In-Âé¶¹´«Ã½ Admits Contempt In Illinois Theft Case

    Tom Girardi's son-in-law pled guilty to criminal contempt Thursday in Illinois federal court, admitting he knew the once-celebrated plaintiffs lawyer failed to pay millions of dollars in plane crash settlement funds they had been ordered to distribute to their clients "as soon as practical."

  • June 05, 2025

    Convicted Fla. Atty Urges 11th Circ. To Reexamine Sentence

    A Florida lawyer sentenced to 75 months in prison over a COVID-19 loan fraud scheme has asked the Eleventh Circuit to rehear her sentencing en banc, arguing the appellate court should reexamine the district court's so-called Keane statement allegedly disregarding sentencing guidelines.

  • June 05, 2025

    Conn. Atty Seeks Digital Data To Unmask Alleged ID Thief

    Claggett Sykes & Garza LLC partner Andrew Garza told a Connecticut state court judge Thursday that someone used his identity to open bank accounts and file a fraudulent registration for his former law firm with the Secretary of the State's office, and he needs the court to order U.S. Bank and other companies to give him information that could reveal the perpetrator.

  • June 05, 2025

    Foley & Lardner Says Palestine Support Didn't Doom Job Offer

    Foley & Lardner LLP urged an Illinois federal judge to dismiss a bias suit by a former summer associate, arguing her job offer was rescinded not due to her Arab Muslim identity but because her public comments on Hamas' 2023 attack on Israel "violated the firm's core values" and showed "incredibly poor judgment."

  • June 05, 2025

    Atty Coalition Asks Fla. Bar To Open Ethics Probe Into Bondi

    A group of lawyers, law professors and former judges asked the Florida Bar on Thursday to open an ethics investigation into Pam Bondi's actions as attorney general, saying she has pushed U.S. Department of Justice attorneys to violate their ethical obligations under the guise of "zealous advocacy."

  • June 05, 2025

    Senate Panel Advances Picks For Nat. Sec. Post, Iowa US Atty

    The Senate voted 52-43 along party lines on Thursday to confirm John Andrew Eisenberg to be assistant attorney general for national security.

  • June 05, 2025

    Ga. Âé¶¹´«Ã½ Firm, Insurer Settle Over $6.4M Hotel Injury Case

    An insurance company that sued a law firm for malpractice in Georgia federal court after paying more than $6.4 million following a worker injury jury verdict against a construction company it insured, said Thursday that it had settled with the firm in connection with its representation of the company.

  • June 05, 2025

    Bernstein Litowitz Can Hire Ex-SEC Atty Over Musk Objection

    A New York federal judge on Thursday gave the all-clear for investor-side firm Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann LLP to hire the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's former litigation chief over the objections of Elon Musk.

  • June 04, 2025

    Apple Loses Bid To Pause App Store Order Amid Appeal

    A Ninth Circuit panel Wednesday refused to lift a lower court's injunction mandating certain App Store policy changes while Apple appeals it, saying that it wasn't "persuaded that a stay is appropriate" in the high-profile litigation brought by Epic Games.

  • June 04, 2025

    Skadden Foundation Chief Exits, Urging Pro Bono 'Courage'

    The executive director of Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP's Fellowship Foundation, which funds public interest legal work, announced her resignation Wednesday, two months after the firm struck a deal with President Donald Trump to avert an executive order that could have interfered with its business.

  • June 04, 2025

    High Court Told 'Categorical' Right To Counsel Must Persist

    A criminal defendant's right to consult with counsel during an overnight trial recess is "clear and categorical," a man who didn't receive that right has told the U.S. Supreme Court in preparation for his Sixth Amendment case to be heard before the justices.

  • June 04, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Pushes Back As Ramey Fights Fee Award To Google

    A Federal Circuit panel on Wednesday questioned Ramey LLP managing partner William Ramey's challenge to one of several sanctions that have recently been imposed on his firm in patent cases, with some judges suggesting that the order in question in a case against Google LLC appeared warranted.

  • June 04, 2025

    NC Biz Court Bulletin: TikTok Tussle And Merger Melee

    Spring has sprung momentous decisions and quiet resolutions in some of the North Carolina Business Court's top cases, from clearing for trial the attorney general's suit over a hospital's post-merger standard of care to Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft LLP dropping its coverage dispute over a 2022 data breach.

  • June 04, 2025

    FIFA Slams Atty's Bid To 'Circumvent' DQ In Puerto Rico Case

    A Puerto Rican attorney may not sidestep a disqualification order by dropping his personal claims from an antitrust case against FIFA in which he is both counsel and plaintiff, the organization told a federal judge Wednesday, arguing the lawyer is a "necessary fact witness" and therefore a conflict is unavoidable.

  • June 04, 2025

    Ill. Atty Faces 1 Year Suspension, Left Watchdog 'Baffled'

    An Illinois attorney who was sanctioned $1 million alongside his client for frivolously litigating a condominium governance fight and later helped that client engage in knowingly improper bankruptcy conduct should be suspended for a year and complete a professionalism seminar, a state disciplinary watchdog says.

  • June 04, 2025

    FTC Fights Attys Who Want State Bar Input On Ethics Worries

    The Federal Trade Commission doesn't want staff attorneys to be able to seek state bar association guidance if they dispute the legality of an instruction, arguing in a fight with the FTC's union that seeking such guidance would gum up the gears of commission work.

  • June 04, 2025

    Last Defendant In 'Shell Factory' Scheme Gets 1½ Yrs

    A Florida federal judge Wednesday sentenced the final defendant rounded up in the "Shell Factory Fraud" to 18 months in prison for his role in creating fake shell companies as part of a pump-and-dump scheme.

  • June 04, 2025

    Pa. Firm Defends Informal Biz Arrangement In Coverage Bid

    A Philadelphia law firm and its insurer sparred Wednesday in Pennsylvania court over whether the firm needed to be an incorporated business entity to have standing for a coverage lawsuit, with the firm's attorney saying that the insurer never questioned the informal business arrangement that consisted of two seasoned lawyers sharing office space and a secretary.

  • June 04, 2025

    Ex-Ga. Strip Club Workers Slam Bid To DQ Attys In Wage Suit

    Âé¶¹´«Ã½yers for a pair of former Atlanta strip club workers called on a federal judge Wednesday to reject an "extremely untimely" bid to disqualify them by the clubs' owners, arguing the owners don't bother to substantiate their claims that the plaintiffs can't be represented by the same counsel because one was the other's supervisor.

  • June 04, 2025

    SEC Says Accountant Errors Don't Doom Crowdfunding Case

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission told a Michigan federal judge Wednesday that mistakes in one of its accountant's declarations do not warrant the dismissal of its first crowdfunding enforcement action, arguing the SEC's lawyers acted in good faith when they alerted the court to the errors.

  • June 04, 2025

    NJ Judge Suspended Over Pro-Police 'Likes' On Facebook

    A New Jersey municipal court judge was hit with a two-month suspension without pay beginning Wednesday after an advisory committee took issue with his Facebook activity indicating support for pro-police movements, political candidates, individual lawyers and law firms.

  • June 04, 2025

    Judge Won't Block Amazon From Talking To Depo Witnesses

    A federal judge on Tuesday rejected the Federal Trade Commission's bid, in its antitrust case against Amazon, seeking to block lawyers representing the e-commerce giant from conferring with witnesses during breaks in their depositions.

  • June 04, 2025

    NJ Mayor Expands False Arrest Suit Against US Atty

    Mayor Ras Baraka of Newark, New Jersey, on Wednesday added a false light count to his defamation and malicious prosecution complaint against interim U.S. Attorney Alina Habba over his May 9 arrest outside an immigration detention center.

  • June 04, 2025

    Conn. Attorney Failed To Split $165K Fee, Watchdog Says

    Connecticut attorney J. Xavier Pryor breached four rules of professional conduct when he failed to split a $165,000 fee from a personal injury settlement with the lawyer who referred the case to him, the state's attorney ethics watchdog said in a disciplinary complaint.

  • June 04, 2025

    MoFo Can't Escape Perkins Coie's 'Taint' In IP Suit, Court Told

    Biometric security company FaceTec told a California federal judge that Morrison & Foerster LLP should be barred from representing identity verification platform Jumio in a patent suit, arguing that its participation is "tainted" by the actions of disqualified co-counsel Perkins Coie LLP.

Expert Analysis

  • Opinion

    Âé¶¹´«Ã½suits Shouldn't Be Shadow Assets For Foreign Capital

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    Third-party litigation financing amplifies inefficiencies from litigation and facilitates national exposure to foreign influence in the U.S. justice system, so full disclosure of financing arrangements should be required as a matter of institutional integrity, says Roland Eisenhuth at the American Property Casualty Insurance Association.

  • How To Accelerate Your Post-Attorney Career Transition

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    Professionals seeking to transition to nonattorney careers may encounter skepticism as nontraditional candidates, but there are opportunities for thought leadership and to leverage speaking and writing to accelerate a post-attorney career transition, say Janet Falk at Falk Communications and Evgeny Efremkin at Toronto Metropolitan University.

  • Series

    Âé¶¹´«Ã½ School's Missed Lessons: Be An Indispensable Associate

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    While law school teaches you to research, write and think critically, it often overlooks the professional skills you will need to make yourself an essential team player when transitioning from a summer to full-time associate, say attorneys at Stinson.

  • Series

    Birding Makes Me A Better Âé¶¹´«Ã½yer

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    Observing and documenting birds in their natural habitats fosters patience, sharpens observational skills and provides moments of pure wonder — qualities that foster personal growth and enrich my legal career, says Allison Raley at Arnall Golden.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From DOJ Leadership To BigÂé¶¹´«Ã½

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    The move from government service to private practice can feel like changing one’s identity, but as someone who has left the U.S. Department of Justice twice, I’ve learned that a successful transition requires patience, effort and the realization that the rewards of practicing law don’t come from one particular position, says Richard Donoghue at Pillsbury.

  • Âé¶¹´«Ã½ Firm Executive Orders Create A Legal Ethics Minefield

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    Recent executive orders targeting BigÂé¶¹´«Ã½ firms create ethical dilemmas — and raise the specter of civil or criminal liability — for the government attorneys tasked with implementing them and for the law firms that choose to make agreements with the administration, say attorneys at Buchalter.

  • Firms Must Embrace Alternative Billing Models Or Fall Behind

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    As artificial intelligence tools eliminate inefficiencies and the Big Four accounting firms enter the legal market, law firms that pivot from the entrenched billable hour model to outcomes-based pricing will see a distinct competitive advantage, says attorney William Brewer.

  • How Attorneys Can Master The Art Of On-Camera Presence

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    As attorneys are increasingly presented with on-camera opportunities, they can adapt their traditional legal skills for video contexts — such as virtual client meetings, marketing content or media interviews — by understanding the medium and making intentional adjustments, says Kerry Barrett.

  • Series

    Baseball Fantasy Camp Makes Me A Better Âé¶¹´«Ã½yer

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    With six baseball fantasy experiences under my belt, I've learned time and again that I didn't make the wrong career choice, but I've also learned that baseball lessons are life lessons, and I'm a better lawyer for my time at St. Louis Cardinals fantasy camp, says Scott Felder at Wiley.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From Fed. Prosecutor To BigÂé¶¹´«Ã½

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    Making the jump from government to private practice is no small feat, but, based on my experience transitioning to a business-driven environment after 15 years as an assistant U.S. attorney, it can be incredibly rewarding and help you become a more versatile lawyer, says Michael Beckwith at Dickinson Wright.

  • Justices' False Statement Ruling Curbs Half-Truth Liability

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Thompson v. U.S. decision clarified that a federal statute used to prosecute false statements made to bank regulators only criminalizes outright falsehoods, narrowing prosecutors’ reach and providing defense counsel a stronger basis to challenge indictments of merely misleading statements, says Tamara de Silva at De Silva Âé¶¹´«Ã½ Offices.

  • Firms Still Have Lateral Market Advantage, But Risks Persist

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    Partner and associate mobility data from the fourth quarter of 2024 shows that we’re in a new, stable era of lateral hiring where firms have the edge, but leaders should proceed cautiously, looking beyond expected revenue and compensation analyses for potential risks, say Julie Henson and Greg Hamman at Decipher Investigative Intelligence.

  • Opinion

    We Must Allow Judges To Use Their Independent Judgment

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    As two recent cases show, the ability of judges to access their independent judgment crucially enables courts to exercise the discretion needed to reach the right outcome based on the unique facts within the law, says John Siffert at Lankler Siffert & Wohl.

  • Deportation Flights May End Up A Legal And Strategic Error

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    Officials in the Trump administration could face criminal contempt charges if a D.C. judge finds that they flouted his orders last weekend to halt deportation flights to El Salvador, which could ultimately make mass deportations more difficult — and proving noncompliance a self-defeating strategy, says Ethan Greenberg at Anderson Kill.

  • Series

    Performing Stand-Up Comedy Makes Me A Better Âé¶¹´«Ã½yer

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    Whether I’m delivering a punchline on stage or a closing argument in court, balancing stand-up comedy performances and my legal career has demonstrated that the keys to success in both endeavors include reading the room, landing the right timing and making an impact, says attorney Rebecca Palmer.

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