Legal Ethics

Expert Analysis

• Remembering Justice Stevens As A Law Firm Leader

  

  Rothschild Barry's John Coffey, who joined Justice John Paul Stevens' law firm in 1965, shares what it was like to watch Justice Stevens practice law, mentor younger lawyers and land a malfunctioning plane.

• Answers To Key Legal Finance Ethics Questions

  

  While there is discussion in some quarters about new regulations on commercial legal finance, the hands-off approach taken by the majority of courts and legislatures is an implicit recognition that it is already sufficiently regulated, says Danielle Cutrona of Burford Capital.

• Inside A Closely Watched FCA And FIRREA Decision

  

  Last week’s district court decision in Luce v. U.S. interprets a stricter standard of causation for False Claims Act cases and, significantly, makes a helpful contribution to a dearth of case law interpreting the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act’s penalty provisions, says Derek Adams of Feldesman Tucker.

• Federal Agencies Need A Uniform Record-Keeping Process

  

  The administrative record is very important to federal agency litigation — as showcased in last month's U.S. Supreme Court decision concerning the addition of a citizenship question to the 2020 census — yet there is no set of consistent principles to guide agencies in compiling these official records, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

• The Role Of Dictionaries In Last Term's High Court Decisions

  

  Since 32 of the 67 decisions issued by the U.S. Supreme Court during its October term cite dictionaries, it’s worth reviewing the opinions to learn which dictionaries the justices consulted and how they used them, say Bruce Wessel and Brian Weissenberg of Irell & Manella.

• How To Evaluate The Rise In Legal Employment

  

  Although the rate of employment for law school graduates — which had been falling steadily — saw a small increase over the last year, other factors, such as fewer graduates overall and potential future job growth stagnation, temper the good news for those pursuing law degrees, say Tiffane Cochran and Tyler Grimm of AccessLex Institute.

• Opinion

  Pa. Court Muddies Privilege And Work-Product Waters

  

  With respect to attorney-client privilege and the work-product doctrine in Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Superior Court's recent decision in Newsuan v. Republic Services is significantly flawed and will contribute to confusion, uncertainty and risks, says Kevin Allen of Eckert Seamans.

• Opinion

  The Business Case For Championing Diverse Legal Teams

  

  Leveraging the collective strengths of a diverse workforce is not only the right thing to do, it’s a strategic imperative for any successful firm or business, says Louise Pentland, executive vice president and chief business affairs and legal officer of PayPal.

• Rethinking The Tech-First Approach To Law Firm Solutions

  

  When a lawyer complains about some workflow inefficiency they are having, the knee-jerk reaction of many firms is to look for a technology-based workaround. This overlooks the importance of human psychology and behavior, which may be the root of the problem, says Ryan Steadman of Zero.

• Top 10 Techniques For Crafting A Dazzling Brief

  

  Legal writing often falls flat not because it’s unorganized, but because it’s technically unsound and riddled with gaffes that cheapen and degrade it. Avoiding the most common mistakes will keep judges interested and, most importantly, make them trust you, says Daniel Karon of Karon LLC.

• Inside The New Anti-Money Laundering Guidance For Attys

  

  The Paris-based Financial Action Task Force recently updated its global guidance for lawyers on how to detect and prevent money laundering and terrorist financing. The 2019 guidance bears structural similarities to the 2008 version, but contains several significant changes, says Kevin Shepherd of Venable.

• Q&A

  A Chat With Ballard Spahr Diversity Chief Virginia Essandoh

  

  In the final installment of this monthly series, legal recruiting expert Carlos Pauling from Major Lindsey & Africa talks with Virginia Essandoh about the trends and challenges she sees as chief diversity officer at Ballard Spahr.

• Series

  Judging A Book: McMahon On 'Roosevelt For The Defense'

  

  In "Theodore Roosevelt for the Defense," authors Dan Abrams and David Fisher meticulously chronicle the forgotten high-profile 1915 libel trial of Teddy Roosevelt, capturing the interesting legal customs of an era before things like notice pleading and pretrial discovery, says Chief U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon of the Southern District of New York.

• New Scrutiny For NDAs In Sexual Harassment Matters

  

  Recent government scrutiny of nondisclosure agreements related to allegations of sexual harassment and misconduct against Steve Wynn and Harvey Weinstein raises the question of whether some uses of NDAs could amount to obstruction of justice or a violation of lawyers' ethical obligations, say attorneys at Cleary.

• Rohrmoos Highlights Steps To Securing Atty Fees In Texas

  

  The contours of the Texas Supreme Court's decision in Rohrmoos Venture v. UTSW DVA Healthcare provide important clarifications, reminders and cautions regarding attorney fee claims — most importantly, that providing billing records is essentially indispensable, say attorneys at Jones Walker.