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Legal Ethics
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April 29, 2024
Ga. Judicial Watchdog Sets Date For Judge's Ethics Trial
The ethics hearing of a Georgia judge accused of calling litigants names, sexually harassing attorneys and courthouse employees, and trying to get a friend's children out of legal trouble is set for June, according to an order filed Friday in the Georgia Supreme Court.
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April 29, 2024
Pa. County Counters Sanctions Bid In Dominion Suit
Local officials in Fulton County, Pennsylvania, have urged a federal judge to punish Dominion Voting Systems Inc. for its motion filed last month calling for sanctions against two county commissioners for filing an amended complaint in a breach of contract suit.
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April 29, 2024
Smollett Atty Wants Sanctions Over Missing Therapy Records
An attorney for Jussie Smollett has asked an Illinois federal judge for another round of sanctions after two brothers who allegedly helped stage a hate crime against the actor failed to turn over discovery, saying they've refused to turn over records or answer questions in the defamation suit pertaining to their mental health treatment.
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April 29, 2024
NJ Legal Groups Fight Ban On Out-Of-State Atty Referral Fees
The New Jersey State Bar Association and other Garden State professional legal groups are looking to reverse guidance from a New Jersey Supreme Court ethics committee prohibiting the state's certified attorneys from paying referral fees to out-of-state lawyers.
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April 29, 2024
NJ Justices Spell Out Atty Fee Rules In Fee-Shifting Cases
The New Jersey Supreme Court has put out rules governing fee agreements for attorneys representing clients in statutorily based fee-shifting cases, capping off years of ethical debate stemming from a case where an individual client was charged $286,000 for legal work on a discrimination lawsuit.
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April 29, 2024
11th Circ. Should Nix Tax Court Judges' Shield, Widow Says
The widow of a supermarket butcher told the Eleventh Circuit that the U.S. Tax Court not only wrongly upheld tax liabilities against her stemming from her husband's tax filings but also erroneously affirmed unconstitutional job protections for its judges.
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April 29, 2024
Venezuela Says It Has Proof Of Special Master Improprieties
Venezuela has asked a Delaware federal judge to disqualify the special master overseeing the sale of Citgo Petroleum Corp.'s parent company to repay billions of dollars in Venezuelan debt, saying it now has proof he engaged in improper advocacy before the Biden administration.
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April 29, 2024
Turkey Cos. Seek Swift Appeal Of Burford's Ability To Sue
Some of the country's largest turkey producers have asked an Illinois federal court for permission to immediately appeal a March ruling that allows a Burford Capital investment unit to pursue price-fixing allegations against them, arguing the Seventh Circuit should weigh in on whether the investor is permitted to bring such a claim.
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April 29, 2024
Feds Accused Of 'Outrageous' Misconduct In Ozy Media Case
Ozy Media and the defunct startup's founder want a New York federal judge to toss a criminal fraud case against them, accusing the government of prosecutorial misconduct and violating attorney-client privilege protections.
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April 26, 2024
Law360 Reveals Titans Of The Plaintiffs Bar
In the past year, plaintiffs have won settlements and judgments for millions and billions of dollars from companies such as Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, Facebook and Fox News, with many high-profile cases finally wrapping up after years of fighting. Such cases — involving over-the-top compensation packages, chemical contamination, gender discrimination and data mining — were led by attorneys whose accomplishments earned them recognition as Law360's Titans of the Plaintiffs Bar for 2024.
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April 26, 2024
Trump Casts Tabloid Deal As 'Standard Operating Procedure'
Donald Trump's attorneys tried to undermine Manhattan prosecutors' lead witness in his criminal trial on Friday, casting his deal to boost his presidency with the help of a friendly tabloid baron as nothing more than a savvy business relationship that was perfectly legal.
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April 26, 2024
L'Occitane's Claim Zimmerman Reed Weaponized Law Tossed
A California federal judge has thrown out L'Occitane's allegations that Zimmerman Reed LLP and thousands of clients conspired to "weaponize" a California wiretapping law against the luxury retailer, while chastising both sides' counsel in a footnote for their "overwrought, unjustified and misguided" arguments during litigation.
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April 26, 2024
Wash. Judge To Resign, Denies Domestic Abuse Allegations
A Washington state superior court judge announced he will resign next month after the state judicial conduct commission accused him last fall of domestic abuse against his ex-wife and a court clerk, saying the commission has pressured him to admit to wrongdoing that never happened.
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April 26, 2024
Confusion Over Law Led To Doc Fight, Astroworld Judge Says
A special master appointed to the civil litigation stemming from the deadly 2021 Astroworld festival told attorneys Friday that a "good faith misunderstanding" of criminal statutes has likely led to several discovery disputes, encouraging the parties to try to come to an agreement about what portion of the Houston Police Department's investigative file on the tragedy is discoverable.
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April 26, 2024
Texas Justices Rule Trial Court Must Admit Out-Of-State Attys
An El Paso court that barred two out-of-state attorneys from appearing pro hac vice because they seemed to have signed a filing prior to being admitted must let the lawyers into the case, the state high court ruled Friday, finding the trial court abused its discretion in blocking them.
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April 26, 2024
50 Cent's GC Beats Wiretap Claim In Liquor Feud, For Now
A Manhattan judge on Friday threw out a claim that the general counsel for rapper Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson illegally recorded a former Beam Suntory Inc. sales contractor during an embezzlement investigation, but allowed the consultant to revise his pleading.
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April 26, 2024
Latham, Akin Beat NJ Suit Over Alleged IP Theft Scheme
A New Jersey federal court on Friday tossed a lawsuit claiming attorneys from Latham & Watkins LLP and Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP manipulated patent litigation to steal a former Cornell University graduate student's DNA sequencing intellectual property, calling that graduate student's claims "conspiracy theories."
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April 26, 2024
Coverage Recap: Day 4 Of Trump's NY Hush Money Trial
Law360 reporters are providing live updates from the Manhattan criminal courthouse as Donald Trump goes on trial for allegedly falsifying business records related to hush money payments ahead of the 2016 election. Here's a recap from day four.
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April 26, 2024
11th Circ. Finds No Anti-Black Juror Bias In Murder Trial
The Eleventh Circuit has denied a new trial to a Mexican man arguing prosecutors used all but one of their peremptory strikes to exclude potential jurors who were Black or Hispanic at the trial in Georgia where he was sentenced to life in prison for murdering a whistleblower connected to his work.
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April 26, 2024
Ex-NY Court Atty Slapped With Fine After Misconduct Verdict
A Manhattan judge hit a former appeals court attorney with a $55,000 fine Friday after a jury found that she unlawfully used her position to help her husband and his law firm earn that same amount from a well-heeled client.
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April 26, 2024
Locke Lord Strikes $12M Deal To End Claims Over Gas Fraud
Locke Lord LLP will likely pony up $12.5 million to settle claims it stood by as its clients carried out a fraudulent $122 million oil and gas scheme, with a Texas federal magistrate judge recommending approval of the settlement at a hearing in Fort Worth.
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April 26, 2024
Senators Urge ABA To Look Into Rape Questions On Bar Apps
Several members of the Senate Judiciary Committee wrote to the American Bar Association on Friday urging it to study how state bar applications require would-be attorneys to disclose sexual violence.
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April 26, 2024
NJ Judicial Info Law Dodges Free Speech Challenge, For Now
A New Jersey law intended to protect the personal information of judges, prosecutors and police officers could be headed to the state Supreme Court after an appellate panel ruled Friday that it does not unconstitutionally violate the free speech rights of a local journalist.
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April 26, 2024
NH Atty Disbarred After Failed Try At Creating False Evidence
The New Hampshire Supreme Court has ordered the disbarment of an attorney who created false documents and later destroyed evidence in a years-long attempt to duck disciplinary proceedings over his alleged mishandling of client funds.
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April 26, 2024
Mass. Justices Dash Deported Man's Hope For Remote Retrial
Massachusetts' high court ruled Friday that a man deported to the Dominican Republic cannot appear remotely for his retrial on charges that the justices previously vacated, citing court rules.
Expert Analysis
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Avoiding The Ethical Pitfalls Of Crowdfunded Legal Fees
The crowdfunding of legal fees has become increasingly common, providing a new way for people to afford legal services, but attorneys who accept crowdsourced funds must remember several key ethical obligations to mitigate their risks, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.
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What Large Language Models Mean For Document Review
Courts often subject parties using technology assisted review to greater scrutiny than parties conducting linear, manual document review, so parties using large language models for document review should expect even more attention, along with a corresponding need for quality control and validation, say attorneys at Sidley.
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Series
Participating In Living History Makes Me A Better Lawyer
My role as a baron in a living history group, and my work as volunteer corporate counsel for a book series fan association, has provided me several opportunities to practice in unexpected areas of law — opening doors to experiences that have nurtured invaluable personal and professional skills, says Matthew Parker at the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.
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Opinion
Private Equity Owners Can Remedy Law Firms' Agency Issues
Nonlawyer, private-equity ownership of law firms can benefit shareholders and others vulnerable to governance issues such as disparate interests, and can in turn help resolve agency problems, says Michael Di Gennaro at The Law Practice Exchange.
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How To Protect Atty-Client Privilege While Using Generative AI
When using generative artificial intelligence tools, attorneys should consider several safeguards to avoid breaches or complications in attorney-client privilege, say Antonious Sadek and Christopher Campbell at DLA Piper.
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How New Lawyers Can Leverage Feedback For Growth
Embracing constructive criticism as a tool for success can help new lawyers accelerate their professional growth and law firms build a culture of continuous improvement, says Katie Aldrich at Fringe Professional Development.
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Twitter Legal Fees Suit Offers Crash Course In Billing Ethics
X Corp.'s suit alleging that Wachtell grossly inflated its fees in the final days of Elon Musk’s Twitter acquisition provides a case study in how firms should protect their reputations by hewing to ethical billing practices and the high standards for professional conduct that govern attorney-client relationships, says Lourdes Fuentes at Karta Legal.
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ABA's Money-Laundering Resolution Is A Balancing Act
While the American Bar Association’s recently passed resolution recognizes a lawyer's duty to discontinue representation that could facilitate money laundering and other fraudulent activity, it preserves, at least for now, the delicate balance of judicial, state-based regulation of the legal profession and the sanctity of the attorney-client relationship, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.
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Law Firm Professional Development Steps To Thrive In AI Era
As generative artificial intelligence tools rapidly evolve, professional development leaders are instrumental in preparing law firms for the paradigm shifts ahead, and should consider three strategies to help empower legal talent with the skills required to succeed in an increasingly complex technological landscape, say Steve Gluckman and Anusia Gillespie at SkillBurst Interactive.
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Nev. Insurance Law May Mean Turmoil In Liability Market
Nevada's new law prohibiting insurers from issuing or renewing defense-within-limits liability policies in the state could cause professional liability insurers to withdraw certain products or prohibitively increase premiums — and while an emergency regulation allows for exceptions, the situation remains fluid, says Joshua Leach at Atheria Law.
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Lessons From High-Profile Witness Tampering Allegations
As demonstrated by recent developments in the cases against former President Donald Trump and FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, allegations of witness tampering can carry serious consequences — but attorneys can employ certain strategies to mitigate the risk that accusations arise, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.
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Covington Ruling Strengthens SEC's Enforcement Powers
A Washington, D.C., federal court’s recent order that Covington & Burling provide the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission with the identities of its clients in response to a subpoena reinforces the agency’s broad authority to investigate cybersecurity violations, and suggests law firms must take steps to strengthen data privacy, say Elisha Kobre and Ryan Dean at Bradley Arant.
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'Blind Side' Family Case Is A Cautionary Tale For Attorneys
Former NFL player Michael Oher's recent allegations against Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy that they never legally adopted him and tricked him into conservatorship — which paint a very different picture than the 2009 film "The Blind Side" — demonstrate the importance of attorney due diligence and safeguards against abuse of process, says Roland Weekley at Smith Gambrell.
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The Basics Of Being A Knowledge Management Attorney
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
Michael Lehet at Ogletree Deakins discusses the role of knowledge management attorneys at law firms, the common tasks they perform and practical tips for lawyers who may be considering becoming one.
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To Hire And Keep Top Talent, Think Beyond Compensation
Firms seeking to appeal to sophisticated clients and top-level partners should promote mentorship, ensure that attorneys from diverse backgrounds feel valued, and clarify policies about at-home work, says Patrick Moya at Quaero Group.