Criminal Practice

  • October 17, 2025

    NC High Court Overturns Evidence Rule In Drug Case

    North Carolina's highest court overturned its own precedent on Friday and reversed a unanimous appeals court ruling, deciding to allow cell site location data as evidence in a drug-trafficking case and asserting that the state had the same good faith exceptions to privacy protections as federal law.

  • October 17, 2025

    NC High Court Tightens Rules On Review Of Jury Bias Claims

    A divided North Carolina Supreme Court on Friday admonished an intermediate appellate court for its use of a legal doctrine that allows expanded appellate review in instances where attorneys are alleged to have used racial bias in striking potential jurors from serving, reaffirming the narrow scope of the doctrine.

  • October 17, 2025

    Ex-Official Enforced Fee Deal With Job Threat, Jury Hears

    Connecticut school construction director Kosta Diamantis on Friday admitted during cross-examination that he threatened to yank a masonry subcontractor from jobs in Tolland and Hartford if it didn't pay him what he claimed was a legitimate, agreed-upon $70,000 fee for lining up an introduction to a general contractor.

  • October 17, 2025

    NJ Parents Keep Fighting State Over Storage Of Babies' DNA

    Across the U.S., health departments draw small blood samples from newborns' heels to test for metabolic and genetic disorders. After a new mother discovered that New Jersey police had used DNA extracted from such samples in criminal investigations, she signed on as plaintiff in a suit that says parents have a right to refuse these blood draws.

  • October 17, 2025

    An Unseen Epidemic: Correctional Officers Dying By Suicide

    It's not news that there are problems in America's prisons, including mass incarceration and forced labor, but another crisis in those same prisons doesn't always garner the same attention: the number of correctional officers dying by suicide.

  • October 17, 2025

    Trump Commutes Ex-Rep. Santos' 7-Year Fraud Sentence

    President Donald Trump announced on social media Friday that he has commuted the seven-year prison sentence of former U.S. Rep. George Santos, who admitted to falsely inflating fundraising reports to qualify for National Republican Congressional Committee funding during the 2022 election.

  • October 17, 2025

    3rd Circ. Says No Duty To Inform Criminal Clients Of Liability

    The Third Circuit in a precedential ruling Friday declined to apply immigration precedent concerning counsel's obligation to advise their criminal defendant clients about deportation risks associated with prosecutions to the civil setting, holding that the standard applies only in highly specific circumstances.

  • October 17, 2025

    Bolton Pleads Not Guilty To Mishandling Documents

    Former National Security Advisor John Bolton pled not guilty to charges that he illegally retained and shared classified national defense information Friday, a day after federal prosecutors unsealed an 18-count indictment against the former appointee of President Donald Trump who has become a critic of his administration since.

  • October 17, 2025

    Man Arrested In Mistaken ID Case Can Sue, 11th Circ. Says

    A Florida police officer cannot escape a lawsuit alleging the officer violated the Fourth Amendment when he entered a home without a warrant and then tasered and arrested the father of a suspect in a case of mistaken identity, the Eleventh Circuit has ruled, while remanding related claims for further review.

  • October 17, 2025

    Federal Courts To Scale Back Operations Amid Shutdown

    The federal court system has run out of money and will scale back operations beginning Monday as a result of the ongoing government shutdown, possibly leading to case delays.

  • October 17, 2025

    NY Court Orders Hearing On Counsel Conflict In Drug Case

    A man who pled guilty to gun and drug charges and was sentenced to 12 years in prison can argue for a new trial due to ineffective counsel after a similarly culpable co-defendant got a light sentence allegedly due to cooperation between their attorneys, a New York state appeals court said in a reversal.

  • October 16, 2025

    Boeing Can't Ax Witness Ahead Of 737 Trial

    A LOT Polish Airlines' expert witness will testify as to how much money the airline lost when it was forced to ground its fleet of 737 Max jets following two fatal crashes, a Washington federal judge has ruled, denying Boeing's bid to block the testimony during the upcoming Nov. 3 trial.

  • October 16, 2025

    Ex-Conn. Budget Official Testifies $70K Payments Were Legit

    Connecticut school construction director Kosta Diamantis believed state ethics statutes and a 2016 U.S. Supreme Court case allowed him to pocket roughly $70,000 in return for introducing his former brother-in-law's masonry company to a prominent general contractor, a federal jury heard Thursday.

  • October 16, 2025

    Fla. Panel Revives Relief Bid After Key Witnesses Recant

    A Florida appeals court ordered that a man should be given a second chance at post-conviction relief after finding his attorneys did not spend adequate time advising him on whether he should testify to rebut evidence from two key prosecution witnesses who later recanted.

  • October 16, 2025

    4th Circ. Says No Recourse For Men Imprisoned Extra Year

    The Fourth Circuit said there could be no recourse in federal court for two inmates who spent an extra year in prison because of Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares' incorrect interpretation of a state law that granted the men enough credits for good behavior to be released in 2022.

  • October 16, 2025

    Judge Shields Migrants From ICE After Courthouse Arrests

    A California federal judge on Thursday barred U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from detaining two asylum-seeking mothers without notice and a hearing, ruling the agency's courthouse arrest tactics likely violate due process.

  • October 16, 2025

    Judge Rejects Bid To DQ Wash. Atty In Her County Bias Suit

    A Seattle federal judge won't bar an attorney from representing herself in a racial discrimination lawsuit accusing a Washington county of sidelining her from hearing certain cases during her tenure as a part-time judge, rejecting the defense's claims of a conflict of interest.  

  • October 16, 2025

    Many NY Trial Judges Elevated In Secret, Report Finds

    Hundreds of New York state judges are permanently elevated to top trial courts via a secretive appointment process, according to a report released Thursday.

  • October 16, 2025

    Sheriff's Atty Says Work With Witness's Counsel Not Conflict

    The attorney for a Massachusetts sheriff charged with extorting a retail cannabis business denied that his past work with counsel for the alleged victim is a conflict of interest. 

  • October 15, 2025

    ICE Policies Harm Noncitizen Crime Survivors, Suit Says

    Legal advocacy groups and noncitizen victims of domestic violence and other serious crimes have lodged a proposed class action in California federal court, accusing the Trump administration of unlawfully ignoring deportation and exploitation protections that Congress took decades to craft.

  • October 15, 2025

    Goldstein Can't Dismiss 2016 Tax Charges As Time-Barred

    A Maryland federal judge denied SCOTUSblog co-founder Tom Goldstein's motion to dismiss four of the 22 federal tax charges brought against him in January, ruling that his defense that the counts stemming from the 2016 tax year should be time-barred will have to be raised at trial.

  • October 15, 2025

    Justices Doubt Need For Probable Cause In Emergency Entry

    U.S. Supreme Court justices on Wednesday seemed reluctant to raise the standard police must meet to enter a home without a warrant during a potential emergency, with several saying they did not see a reason to disturb past rulings on the subject.

  • October 15, 2025

    NC Man Can't Rehash Claims Of Faulty Evidence, Court Told

    A law enforcement officer and crime scene technician urged a North Carolina federal court Wednesday to free them from a civil lawsuit over allegedly faulty evidence used to secure a murder conviction, arguing that the claims have already been litigated.

  • October 15, 2025

    Court Ends Hemp Grower's Suit Over Seized Crop

    An Oregon cannabis cultivator can't sue the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on claims it failed to return 383 pounds of legal hemp mistakenly assumed to be illicit marijuana, a federal judge ruled, saying the government gets sovereign immunity.

  • October 15, 2025

    BofA, BNY Mellon Accused Of Enabling Epstein's Crimes

    Bank of America and the Bank of New York Mellon Corp. are the latest banks accused of enabling Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking enterprise and failing to timely report the late sex offender's suspicious transactions, according to a pair of proposed class actions filed Wednesday in New York federal court.

Expert Analysis

  • Unpacking Enforcement Challenges Of DOJ's Bulk Data Rule

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    Now fully effective, the U.S. Department of Justice's new data security program represents the U.S.' first data localization requirement ripe for enforcement, but its implementation faces substantial practical challenges that may hinder the DOJ's ability for wide-ranging or swift action, say attorneys at Cleary.

  • Series

    Playing Mah-Jongg Makes Me A Better Mediator

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    Mah-jongg rewards patience, pattern recognition, adaptability and keen observation, all skills that are invaluable to my role as a mediator, and to all mediating parties, says Marina Corodemus.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Navigating Client Trauma

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    Law schools don't train students to handle repeated exposure to clients' traumatic experiences, but for litigators practicing in areas like civil rights and personal injury, success depends on the ability to view cases clinically and to recognize when you may need to seek help, says Katie Bennett at Robins Kaplan.

  • Opinion

    Juries Are Key In Protecting The Rule Of Law

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    Absent from the recent discourse about U.S. rule of law is the crucial role of impartial jurors in protecting the equitable administration of justice, and attorneys and judges should take affirmative steps to reverse the yearslong decline of jury trials at this critical moment, says consultant Clint Townson.

  • Opinion

    4 Former Justices Would Likely Frown On Litigation Funding

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    As courts increasingly confront cases involving hidden litigation finance contracts, the jurisprudence of four former U.S. Supreme Court justices establishes a constitutional framework that risks erosion by undisclosed financial interests, says Roland Eisenhuth at the American Property Casualty Insurance Association.

  • DOJ Actions Signal Rising Enforcement Risk For Health Cos.

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    The U.S. Department of Justice's announcement of a new False Claims Act working group, together with the largest healthcare fraud takedown in history, underscore the importance of sophisticated compliance programs that align with the DOJ's data-driven approach, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • How Attys Can Use AI To Surface Narratives In E-Discovery

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    E-discovery has reached a turning point where document review is no longer just about procedural tasks like identifying relevance and redacting privilege — rather, generative artificial intelligence tools now allow attorneys to draw connections, extract meaning and tell a coherent story, says Rose Jones at Hilgers Graben.

  • How To Strengthen A Case By Mastering Expert Witness Prep

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    A well-prepared expert witness can bolster a case's credibility with persuasive qualifications, compelling voir dire responses and concise testimony that can withstand cross-examination, says Allison Rocker at Baker McKenzie.

  • ABA Opinion Makes It A Bit Easier To Drop A 'Hot Potato'

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    The American Bar Association's recent ethics opinion clarifies when attorneys may terminate clients without good cause, though courts may still disqualify a lawyer who drops a client like a hot potato, so sending a closeout letter is always a best practice, say attorneys at Thompson Hine.

  • Policy Shifts Bring New Anti-Money Laundering Challenges

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    In the second half of 2025, the U.S. anti-money laundering regulatory landscape is poised for decisive shifts in enforcement priorities, compliance expectations and legislative developments — so investment advisers and other financial institutions should take steps to prepare for potential new obligations and areas of risk, say attorneys at Linklaters.

  • 8 Ways Lawyers Can Protect The Rule Of Law In Their Work

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    Whether they are concerned with judicial independence, regulatory predictability or client confidence, lawyers can take specific meaningful actions on their own when traditional structures are too slow or too compromised to respond, says Angeli Patel at the Berkeley Center of Law and Business.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Communicating With Clients

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    Law school curricula often overlook client communication procedures, and those who actively teach this crucial facet of the practice can create exceptional client satisfaction and success, says Patrick Hanson at Wiggam Law.

  • Series

    Adapting To Private Practice: From US Rep. To Boutique Firm

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    My transition from serving as a member of Congress to becoming a partner at a boutique firm has been remarkably smooth, in part because I never stopped exercising my legal muscles, maintained relationships with my former colleagues and set the right tone at the outset, says Mondaire Jones at Friedman Kaplan.

  • Opinion

    FCPA Shift Is A Good Start, But There's More DOJ Should Do

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    The U.S. Department of Justice’s new Foreign Corrupt Practices Act guidelines bring a needed course correction amid overexpansive enforcement, but there’s more the DOJ can do to provide additional clarity and predictability for global companies, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

  • CARES Act Fraud Enforcement Is Unlikely To Slow Down

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    In the five years since the passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, the federal government has devoted massive resources to investigating CARES Act fraud — and all signs suggest the U.S. Department of Justice will continue vigorous enforcement in this area, say attorneys at Kostelanetz.

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