Legal Ethics

  • October 28, 2025

    Ex-Khashoggi Atty Gets One Year For Lying On Taxes

    A Maryland attorney with a high-profile client list who pled guilty to lying on his tax returns was sentenced Tuesday in Michigan federal court to spend a year in prison and pay $354,000 in restitution, as the judge said she felt that to "just lose some money" wasn't enough punishment.

  • October 28, 2025

    Grassley Calls On Judiciary To Formally Regulate AI Use

    Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is calling on the federal judiciary to set formal policies regarding artificial intelligence after he exposed two mishaps involving federal judges in New Jersey and Mississippi.

  • October 28, 2025

    Atty In Katt Williams Assault Case Sanctioned For Bogus Cites

    An attorney for four women suing comedian Katt Williams must notify a federal district court for the next five years that she was sanctioned for using suspected artificial intelligence-generated fake citations as part of a punishment handed down Tuesday by a Georgia federal judge.

  • October 28, 2025

    Akin Beats Malpractice Claim Over Alleged IP Theft Plot

    A Third Circuit panel on Tuesday refused to revive a malpractice claim against Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP lodged in a lawsuit that accused attorneys of manipulating patent litigation to steal a former Cornell University graduate student's DNA sequencing intellectual property.

  • October 28, 2025

    Calif. Atty Seeks $25K As Fee Sanction For AI Error

    A California attorney representing a mobile app platform in a small-time copyright and contract suit playing out in Oakland federal court has asked for $25,000 as reimbursement for work he said went into responding to an error-ridden motion and subsequent time spent on the matter.

  • October 28, 2025

    Fla. Judge DQs Lawyer In SEC Malpractice Case

    A Miami U.S. magistrate judge on Tuesday disqualified Boca Raton, Florida-based attorney Andre Raikhelson from representing the plaintiff in a legal malpractice suit over alleged bad advice in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission enforcement action, finding that he's a "central figure" and necessary witness to key disputed facts.

  • October 28, 2025

    Comey Gets Backing Of Ex-DOJ Officials, Lawmakers, Judges

    More than 100 former U.S. Department of Justice officials, a group of former federal judges and U.S. attorneys, current and former members of Congress, and a nonprofit focused on defending democracy are all backing former FBI Director James Comey's effort to nix his criminal prosecution.

  • October 28, 2025

    Ga. Defamation Case Against Atty Hinges On Doctor's Status

    The Georgia Court of Appeals asked a trial court Tuesday to determine whether an orthopedic surgeon in the Peach State is a public figure or private person, a question at the center of whether the physician can pursue a defamation suit against a defense attorney.

  • October 28, 2025

    Jackson Walker Atty Romance Deal Blasted As 'Collusion'

    A proposed settlement between Jackson Walker LLP and defunct life insurance bond seller GWG Holdings Inc. over a former Jackson Walker partner's secret romance with an ex-bankruptcy judge should be rejected because the deal "smacks of collusion," according to a recent objection.

  • October 28, 2025

    Mass. Bar Reprimands Ex-US Atty Rollins Over Leak, Texts

    A divided panel of state bar regulators voted to publicly reprimand former Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins for leaking confidential material about an investigation to a reporter and then trying to deflect suspicion in a deceptive message to subordinates, a lawyer for Rollins confirmed Tuesday.

  • October 28, 2025

    Trump Appeals 'Unprecedented' NY Criminal Conviction

    President Donald Trump appealed his New York criminal conviction for falsifying business records, arguing the charges were defective, the jury was improperly instructed, the judge was biased and that he was immune from prosecution.

  • October 27, 2025

    Tom Hayes Slaps UBS With $400M Malicious Prosecution Suit

    Former UBS trader Tom Hayes has filed a $400 million suit against his old employer, claiming the company "maliciously" framed him as the "evil mastermind" behind the company's Libor scandal despite the fact that he was explicitly directed to try to influence Libor submissions while at UBS.

  • October 27, 2025

    Minn. Court Blocks Immediate Appeal In Pork Price-Fixing Suit

    A Minnesota federal court refused Monday to allow immediate appeals for its summary judgment ruling in multidistrict litigation over alleged price-fixing in the pork industry, saying certain pork producers and a benchmarking company have not properly articulated a controlling question of law.

  • October 27, 2025

    Girardi Keese Trustees Sue Over $3.2M Settlement Transfers

    Bankruptcy trustees for disgraced California attorney Tom Girardi's defunct law firm and New York attorney Joseph DiNardo have filed suit to recover more than $3.1 million they allege should have been paid to a gas explosion settlement victim, but instead went to help finance food and beverage businesses.

  • October 27, 2025

    Judge OKs $2.4M PeopleFacts Background Checks Deal

    A Michigan federal judge Monday approved a $2.4 million settlement that PeopleFacts reached with a class of job-seekers whose criminal history was disclosed to potential employers, after those prospective workers had accused the background check company of making such disclosures without providing necessary notice.

  • October 27, 2025

    PayPal Accused Of Hiding Evidence In Charity Donation Suit

    PayPal has been accused of abusing confidentiality rules by mislabeling documents as secret to unjustly shield its business practices from scrutiny amid a lengthening discovery dispute in a user's federal suit over the platform's charitable distributions.

  • October 27, 2025

    Former Mintz Client Files Negligence Suit Over Patent Work

    A former Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky and Popeo PC client has hit the firm with a professional negligence suit in Texas federal court, saying the firm's allegedly "shoddy, substandard" legal work led to one of the company's patents being almost completely wiped out.

  • October 27, 2025

    Who Watches The Watchers? Conn. Justices Mull Court Bias

    A Connecticut Supreme Court justice said Monday that if the state's human rights watchdog cannot address claims of racial discrimination in attorney licensing, then there is "no oversight" when bias infects the process.

  • October 27, 2025

    NJ Town Atty Escapes Ethics Case Over Racial Remark

    The New Jersey Supreme Court dismissed an ethics charge against a municipal attorney over a controversial remark in 2021 referencing the U.S. Constitution's "three-fifths compromise," a clause in the original document that counted enslaved people as three-fifths of a person for purposes of taxation and congressional representation.

  • October 27, 2025

    Ga. Panel Urged Not To 'Bend Over Backwards' For Judge

    Georgia ethics prosecutors told a state judicial watchdog on Monday to press ahead with removal of a probate judge from the bench over allegations of yearslong case delays, urging a hearing panel not to "bend over backwards" to keep him in office under something akin to judicial probation.

  • October 27, 2025

    Ga. State Judge Wrongly Jailed Woman, Suit Alleges

    An Alabama woman has claimed that a Georgia state judge violated her constitutional rights by improperly jailing her when she was a witness in the judge's courtroom, a move that came as a state commission is seeking the judge's removal from the bench over that and other alleged misconduct.

  • October 27, 2025

    Timeshare Co.'s Fee Dispute Sent Back To Fla. State Court

    A Florida federal judge sent a timeshare company's complaint disputing legal fees back to state court, finding that a law firm didn't show that the amount it seeks meets the $75,000 threshold to keep the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. 

  • October 27, 2025

    Gold Star Mother Seeks Early Win In NJ Malpractice Case

    The mother of a deceased Army service member moved for a default this week in New Jersey federal court against a law firm she has accused of mishandling her case against the Army after she was the victim of a fraud.

  • October 27, 2025

    R. Kelly's Prison Leak Suit Tossed Again For Missed Deadlines

    R&B artist R. Kelly, 58, who is serving a 31-year sentence for sexually exploiting children and other crimes, saw his Illinois federal suit alleging prison officers leaked his private information to journalists and others dismissed due to his lawyers' "glaring" failure to meet deadlines.

  • October 27, 2025

    Retention Races For Pa. Justices Turn Into $8M Political Clash

    Pennsylvania voters hoping for a quiet off-year election following last year's contentious presidential race have found themselves being targeted by millions of dollars worth of ads this fall over whether to give three Democratic members of the state's Supreme Court fresh 10-year terms on the bench.

Expert Analysis

  • Key Ethical Issues For Gov't Attys Moving To Private Practice

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    Transitioning from government service to private practice presents complex ethical challenges for attorneys, including navigating conflicts of interest, confidential information rules and post-employment restrictions, say attorneys at HWG.

  • 7 Ways 2nd Trump Administration May Affect Partner Hiring

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    President-elect Donald Trump's return to the White House will likely have a number of downstream effects on partner hiring in the legal industry, from accelerated hiring timelines to increased vetting of prospective employees, say recruiters at Macrae.

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Rulings On Custodian Selection

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    Several recent rulings make clear that the proportionality of additional proposed custodians will depend on whether the custodians have unique relevant documents, and producing parties should consider whether information already in the record will show that they have relevant documents that otherwise might not be produced, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Series

    Exercising On My Peloton Bike Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    While I originally came to the Peloton bike for exercise, one cycling instructor’s teachings have come to serve as a road map for practicing law thoughtfully and mindfully, which has opened opportunities for growth and change in my career, says Andrea Kirshenbaum at Littler.

  • Exploring Venue Strategy For Trump-Era Regulatory Litigation

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    Litigation will likely play a prominent role in shaping policy outcomes during the second Trump administration, and stakeholders have several tools at their disposal to steer regulatory litigation toward more favorable venues, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Series

    Playing Esports Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Competing in a global esports tournament at Wimbledon last year not only fulfilled my childhood dream, but also sharpened skills that are essential to my day job, including strategic thinking, confidence and networking, says AJ Schuyler at Jackson Lewis.

  • An Associate's Guide To Career Development In 2025

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    As the new year begins, associates at all levels should consider establishing career metrics, fostering key relationships and employing other specific strategies to help move through the complexities of the legal profession with confidence and emerge as trailblazers, say EJ Stern and Amanda George at Fractional Law Firm.

  • Series

    Fixing Up Cars Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    From problem-solving to patience and adaptability to organization, the skills developed working under the hood of a car directly translate to being a more effective lawyer, says Christopher Mdeway at Kaufman Dolowich.

  • Making The Pitch To Grow Your Company's Legal Team

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    In a compressed economy, convincing the C-suite to invest in additional legal talent can be a herculean task, but a convincing pitch — supported by metrics and cost analyses — may help in-house counsel justify the growth of their team, say Elizabeth Smith and Roger Garceau at Major Lindsey.

  • The Implications Of 2024's AI Rules And Regs For Patent Attys

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    Christina Huang, John Smith and Devin Stein at Faegre Drinker review this year's new rules and regulations on the development and use of artificial intelligence — from the Biden administration, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the American Bar Association and various states — as they apply to patent attorneys.

  • When US Privilege Law Applies To Docs Made Outside The US

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    As globalization manifests itself in disputes over foreign-created documents, a California federal court’s recent trademark decision illustrates nuances of both U.S. privilege frameworks and foreign evidentiary protections that attorneys must increasingly bear in mind, say attorneys at Hunton.

  • What 2024 Trends In Marketing, Comms Hiring Mean For 2025

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    The state of hiring in legal industry marketing, business development and communications over the past 12 months was marked by a number of trends — from changes in the C-suite to lateral move challenges — providing clues for what’s to come in the year ahead, says Ben Curle at Ambition.

  • Series

    Group Running Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The combination of physical fitness and community connection derived from running with a group of business leaders has, among other things, helped me to stay grounded, improve my communication skills, and develop a deeper empathy for clients and colleagues, says Jessica Shpall Rosen at Greenwald Doherty.

  • How White Collar Defense Attys Can Use Summary Witnesses

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    Few criminal defense attorneys have successfully utilized summary witnesses in the past, but several recent success stories show that it can be a worthwhile trial tactic to help juries understand the complex decision-making at issue, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.

  • Opinion

    6 Changes I Would Make If I Ran A Law School

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    Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner identifies several key issues plaguing law schools and discusses potential solutions, such as opting out of the rankings game and mandating courses in basic writing skills.

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