Legal Ethics

  • February 06, 2026

    NJ Watchdog Must Give Up Files In Hospital Row

    A New Jersey federal judge has refused to disturb a magistrate judge's decision compelling a state watchdog to turn over documents from its inquiry into CarePoint Health Systems Inc., rejecting the agency's bid to shield its files with grand-jury-like secrecy and reaffirming that federal privilege law governs discovery disputes in federal court.

  • February 06, 2026

    Insurer Gets Counterclaims Tossed In Pot Co. Fire Dispute

    A Maryland federal judge has dismissed counterclaims against Knight Specialty Insurance Co. in a suit over coverage of a fire that destroyed an insured's cannabis crop, while striking the cannabis grower's answer to the initial complaint.

  • February 06, 2026

    Beasley Allen Disqualified From NJ Talc Multicounty Litigation

    A New Jersey state appeals court disqualified the Beasley Allen Law Firm from representing plaintiffs in multicounty litigation over Johnson & Johnson's talc-based baby powder, ruling Friday that a former Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP lawyer's collaborative efforts with the firm's attorneys violated ethics rules.

  • February 06, 2026

    Ex-Ballard Spahr Atty, Rendell Aide Reinstated To The Bar

    A former chief of staff to Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell and onetime Ballard Spahr LLP partner was reinstated to the bar Friday after testimony from the ex-governor and the judge who sentenced him for stealing $13,000 in an FBI sting operation convinced a state disciplinary board of his rehabilitation and fitness.

  • February 06, 2026

    NJ Panel Won't Revive Arbitration Advice Malpractice Suit

    A New Jersey state appeals court has affirmed the dismissal of a long‑running legal malpractice suit against Leeds Morelli & Brown LLP, determining Friday that a former client was unable to show that a lower court judge abused his discretion in declining to accept expert reports as net opinion.

  • February 06, 2026

    Louisiana Attys Face Possible Sanctions For AI Slop Usage

    As part of an order dismissing the remaining claims in a real estate matter, a Louisiana federal judge has threatened to sanction attorneys from two local firms for submitting a brief riddled with errors generated by artificial intelligence.

  • February 06, 2026

    Ousted Conn. Public Defender Chief Loses Bias Suit

    The commission responsible for Connecticut's public defenders did not violate TaShun Bowden-Lewis' constitutional or legal rights when it removed her as chief of the office in 2024, a state Superior Court judge has ruled, finding no second hearing was necessary before the former top defense lawyer lost her job.

  • February 06, 2026

    Paymentus Settles Fintech Atty's Age Bias Suit Ahead Of Trial

    Billing company Paymentus Corp. has settled a former in-house attorney's retaliation, age discrimination and wrongful discharge lawsuit less than two weeks before the case was set to go to trial, court records show.

  • February 06, 2026

    Arbitrators Take Cautious Approach To Integrating AI

    Norms, practices and regulations surrounding the use of generative artificial intelligence in arbitration are developing just as rapidly as they are in the courts. Here, Law360 Pulse talks with legal tech vendor Veritext's senior vice president in charge of alternative dispute resolution about how the arbitration industry is interacting with AI.

  • February 06, 2026

    5th Circ. Nixes 50-Year Ponzi Sentence Due To Misinformation

    A former Texas lawyer who lost millions of dollars belonging to his clients as part of a sweeping Ponzi scheme has had his 50-year prison sentence vacated, after the Fifth Circuit agreed he was misled by the lower court regarding the maximum time he could face.

  • February 06, 2026

    Sen. Cruz Subpoena Nixed In Ex-Stone Hilton Employee's Suit

    An Austin, Texas, federal judge has quashed a subpoena seeking records from U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz's office amid a sexual harassment case against a Stone Hilton PLLC founding partner, finding the request would unduly burden the office.

  • February 06, 2026

    Graham Pushes Bill To Allow Suits Over Smith Investigations

    Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., is working on a bill to allow nonmembers of Congress to sue for damages after being investigated by special counsel Jack Smith.

  • February 05, 2026

    Deel Loses Bid To DQ Quinn Emanuel In Trade Secrets Fight

    Payroll and human resources company Deel Inc. cannot have Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP disqualified from representing its competitor Rippling in a trade secrets fight, a Delaware judge ruled Thursday, saying there is no "clear conflict" that would require booting the BigLaw firm.

  • February 05, 2026

    Judge Says AI Errors Show Atty Can't 'Learn' From Mistakes

    A New York federal judge concluded that an attorney who repeatedly submitted filings with false AI-generated citations must be punished with case-terminating sanctions against a client he was defending in a trademark lawsuit, saying Thursday that the lawyer "has not, and apparently cannot, learn from his mistakes."

  • February 05, 2026

    Lima Can't Escape $200M In Arbitral Awards, Court Hears

    A contractor urged a D.C. federal judge on Wednesday to deny the Peruvian city of Lima's bid to overturn an order enforcing $200 million in arbitral awards against it based on an alleged conflict involving law firm Foley Hoag LLP, calling the motion a "stunt."

  • February 05, 2026

    Wash. Lawyer Faces Sanction Threat Over Alleged AI Errors

    A federal judge has ordered an attorney in Washington state to submit a sworn declaration explaining why she shouldn't be sanctioned for what opposing counsel claimed are dozens of artificial intelligence "hallucinations" across multiple case filings.

  • February 05, 2026

    NY Times Article Excerpts Admitted In Goldstein Trial

    Federal prosecutors pressing their case against SCOTUSblog co-founder Thomas Goldstein for tax evasion and misleading statements on mortgage applications were finally able on Thursday to present jurors with key statements the U.S. Supreme Court lawyer made to legal journalist Jeffrey Toobin for a long New York Times Magazine article.

  • February 05, 2026

    Ex-Alex Jones Atty Asks Conn. Justices To Nix Suspension

    A Connecticut attorney who formerly represented conspiracy broadcaster Alex Jones in a $1.4 billion defamation case has asked the state's highest court to consider whether it was proper for a judge to suspend his law license for violating a protective order governing Sandy Hook families' personal information.

  • February 05, 2026

    NC Biz Court Bulletin: Dual Representation DQ, Biting Censure

    The North Carolina Business Court kicked off 2026 with a flurry of rulings and a few rebukes from the bench, including partially disqualifying counsel in a restaurant mismanagement melee and censuring a solo attorney who sought to circumvent the specialized superior court's rules.

  • February 05, 2026

    Fake Case Pulled From Toshiba Malicious Prosecution Suit

    A former printer toner salesman is trying to salvage his lawsuit against Toshiba after the company flagged nonexistent citations, apologizing to the California federal court in a corrected brief Thursday defending claims that the electronics company manufactured a criminal case against him and others to maintain an illegal monopoly.

  • February 05, 2026

    Texas Atty Must Explain AI 'Misuse' In Employment Case

    A prominent civil rights attorney representing a University of Texas at Austin nurse in an employment discrimination case must explain why he shouldn't be sanctioned "for his apparent misuse of artificial intelligence" to research and write a brief, a Texas federal judge ruled.

  • February 05, 2026

    Judge Affirms Health Cos.' Sanctions For Witness Omission

    An Illinois federal judge rejected a "vague and unsupported" bid by a home healthcare company accused of violating federal kickback laws to reconsider sanctions she ordered for failing to disclose witnesses, saying the motion "wastes everyone's time" and scolding the defendants for "impugning the character and professionalism of an able magistrate judge."

  • February 05, 2026

    Mich. Justices Uphold One-Man Grand Jury Murder Conviction

    A man indicted by a judge and found guilty of murder cannot have another shot at his case simply because he wasn't charged by a grand jury, Michigan's highest court determined, finding that a change in state law disallowing one-man grand juries did not apply retroactively.

  • February 05, 2026

    McCarter & English Wants To Torpedo $22M Malpractice Suit

    McCarter & English LLP on Thursday asked a Connecticut Superior Court judge to sink a $22.3 million professional negligence lawsuit by two struggling insurers, saying failures to provide documents or knowledgeable people to testify during pretrial depositions warrant a "harsh" end to the nearly decade-old case.

  • February 05, 2026

    Fla. Judge Recommends Axing Some Claims Against IP Atty

    A Florida federal judge Thursday recommended tossing several claims in a lawsuit alleging a patent attorney defamed an inventor in the press, saying the claims are unsupported.

Expert Analysis

  • Health, Legal Employers Face Unique Online Speech Hurdles

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    Employers in the legal and healthcare industries must consider distinctive ethical obligations and professional requirements when disciplining employees for social media posts, while anticipating an area of the law in flux as courts seek to balance speech rights and the workplace function, say attorneys at FordHarrison.

  • Series

    Nature Photography Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Nature photography reminds me to focus on what is in front of me and to slow down to achieve success, and, in embracing the value of viewing situations through different lenses, offers skills transferable to the practice of law, says Brian Willett at Saul Ewing.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Practical Problem Solving

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    Issue-spotting skills are well honed in law school, but practicing attorneys must also identify clients’ problems and true goals, and then be able to provide solutions, says Mary Kate Hogan at Quarles & Brady.

  • Opinion

    A Uniform Federal Rule Would Curb Gen AI Missteps In Court

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    To address the patchwork of courts’ standing orders on generative artificial intelligence, curbing abuses and relieving the burden on judges, the federal judiciary should consider amending its civil procedure rules to require litigants to certify they’ve reviewed legal filings for accuracy, say attorneys at Shook Hardy.

  • 3 Defense Strategies For Sporadically Prosecuted Conduct

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    Not to be confused with selective prosecutions, sporadic prosecutions — charging someone for conduct many others do without consequences — can be challenging to defend, but focusing on materiality, prosecutorial motivations and public opinion can be a winning strategy, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.

  • Series

    The Law Firm Merger Diaries: Integrating Practice Groups

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    Enacting unified leadership and consistent client service standards ensures law firm practice groups connect and collaborate around shared goals, turning a law firm merger into a platform for growth rather than a period of disruption, says Brian Catlett at Fennemore Craig.

  • Opinion

    Supreme Court Term Limits Would Carry Hidden Risk

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    While proposals for limiting the terms of U.S. Supreme Court justices are popular, a steady stream of relatively young, highly marketable ex-justices with unique knowledge and influence entering the marketplace of law and politics could create new problems, say Michael Broyde at Emory University and Hayden Hall at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

  • Series

    Knitting Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Stretching my skills as a knitter makes me a better antitrust attorney by challenging me to recalibrate after wrong turns, not rush outcomes, and trust that I can teach myself the skills to tackle new and difficult projects — even when I don’t have a pattern to work from, says Kara Kuritz at V&E.

  • Series

    The Biz Court Digest: Welcome To Miami

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    After nearly 20 years in operation, the Miami Complex Business Litigation Division is a pioneer upon which other jurisdictions in the state have been modeled, adopting many innovations to keep its cases running more efficiently and staffing experienced judges who are accustomed to hearing business disputes, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

  • What Law Firm Liability Risks In 2025 Signal For Year To Come

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    Trends and statistics reveal that law firms of all sizes and practice areas remained attractive litigation targets this year, so firms must take concrete steps to avoid professional liability risks in the year to come, say Douglas Richmond and Andrew Ricke at Lockton Companies.

  • AI Evidence Rule Tweaks Encourage Judicial Guardrails

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    Recent additions to a committee note on proposed Rule of Evidence 707 — governing evidence generated by artificial intelligence — seek to mitigate potential dangers that may arise once machine outputs are introduced at trial, encouraging judges to perform critical gatekeeping functions, say attorneys at Lankler Siffert & Wohl.

  • Series

    The Law Firm Merger Diaries: Getting The Message Across

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    Communications and brand strategy during a law firm merger represent a crucial thread that runs through every stage of a combination and should include clear messaging, leverage modern marketing tools and embrace the chance to evolve, says Ashley Horne at Womble Bond.

  • Opinion

    Horizontal Stare Decisis Should Not Be Casually Discarded

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    Eliminating the so-called law of the circuit doctrine — as recently proposed by a Fifth Circuit judge, echoing Justice Neil Gorsuch’s concurrence in Loper Bright — would undermine public confidence in the judiciary’s independence and create costly uncertainty for litigants, says Lawrence Bluestone at Genova Burns.

  • 10 Commandments For Agentic AI Tools In The Legal Industry

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    Though agentic artificial intelligence has demonstrated significant promise for optimizing legal work, it presents numerous risks, so specific ethical obligations should be built into the knowledge base of every agentic AI tool used in the legal industry, says Steven Cordero at Akerman LLP.

  • Series

    Preaching Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Becoming a Gospel preacher has enhanced my success as a trial lawyer by teaching me the importance of credibility, relatability, persuasiveness and thorough preparation for my congregants, the same skills needed with judges and juries in the courtroom, says Reginald Harris at Stinson.

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