Legal Ethics

  • January 15, 2026

    Trial 'No Longer Warranted' After Judge's Stelara Reversal

    The fate of insurer CareFirst's suit accusing Johnson & Johnson of using a merger and patent fraud to anticompetitively protect immunosuppressive drug Stelara from competition is in doubt after a Virginia federal judge reversed course and nixed key claims he had previously teed up for trial.

  • January 15, 2026

    5th Circ. Revives Allstate's Fraud Suit Over Car Crash Billing

    The Fifth Circuit on Wednesday revived Allstate's racketeering suit alleging doctors and personal injury lawyers unleashed a barrage of unnecessary treatments for car accident patients and caused Allstate to pay $4.7 million in claims, finding the insurer sufficiently pled details about the conspiracy and specifics surrounding each allegedly fake medical billing.

  • January 15, 2026

    DOJ Backed US Operation To Capture Maduro, Memo Shows

    President Donald Trump's legal advisers at the U.S. Department of Justice concluded days before Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's capture by U.S. military that the operation "falls short of war in the constitutional sense," according to a memo recently made public.

  • January 15, 2026

    Seattle Judge Fights Removal Rec Over Forged Parking Doc

    Washington state's high court seemed split Thursday on whether to bar a substitute county judge from the bench for using an official court stamp without permission in pursuit of a parking discount, with one justice remarking she "can't even imagine" behaving that way, while another suggested removal would be a disproportionate sanction.

  • January 15, 2026

    Ex-Judge Sues Atlanta For Wrongful Arrest, Excessive Force

    A former Douglas County Probate Judge has alleged that the City of Atlanta improperly trumped up a narrative that she committed violent felony crimes — although those charges were dismissed — after a city police officer wrongfully arrested her outside of a nightclub and used excessive force, including "slamm[ing] Plaintiff head-first to the ground."

  • January 15, 2026

    Calif. Justices Order Prosecutors To Explain Alleged AI Errors

    The California Supreme Court has ordered Nevada County prosecutors to explain to a lower court why they shouldn't be sanctioned for "apparent serial submission" of artificial intelligence-generated briefs with nonexistent legal citations in multiple criminal proceedings.

  • January 15, 2026

    MSG Bid To Punish Oakley Over $642K Owed Will Go Forward

    Madison Square Garden's quest to get former New York Knicks player Charles Oakley to pay court-ordered attorney fees will continue, according to a Thursday order by the New York federal judge overseeing the litigation over his 2017 arena ejection.

  • January 15, 2026

    Trump US Atty Pick In NM Bumped To First Assistant

    A New Mexico federal judge has ruled the Trump-appointed interim U.S. Attorney for New Mexico is not validly serving in the role but declined to disqualify the prosecutor from a slate of cases pending in the district, instead determining the lawyer may continue to work in the federal prosecutor's office as first assistant.

  • January 15, 2026

    Senior NY Judge Avoids $273K Fee Bid In Fla. Condo Suit

    A senior New York federal judge's pending appeal of the dismissal of his defamation action against condominium board members means that for now he can avoid their demand for nearly $273,000 in fees and costs, a Florida federal judge has ruled.

  • January 15, 2026

    Rehab Center's Suit Against Atty Can Proceed, 6th Circ. Says

    An Ohio attorney accused of mishandling the sale of a substance abuse treatment center in West Virginia is facing revived malpractice claims after the Sixth Circuit reversed a federal district court ruling that found the client waited too long to file suit against the lawyer.

  • January 14, 2026

    Sinema Sued Under Rare Law By Her Former Guard's Ex-Wife

    Former U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, now a Hogan Lovells attorney in Washington, D.C., destroyed a 14-year marriage by sustaining an affair with a former member of her security detail and U.S. Senate staff, according to a lawsuit that hit North Carolina federal court Wednesday.

  • January 14, 2026

    Graham Blocks Bill To Repeal DOJ Lawsuit Provision

    Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., tried and failed Wednesday to expedite the passage of a bill that would repeal a provision of the government funding package enacted in November that allows senators investigated by former special counsel Jack Smith to sue for damages.

  • January 14, 2026

    Judge Questions If Workers' Attys Can Handle AI Bias Class

    A California federal judge called out the attorneys for a proposed class of workers who accused human resources software company Workday of using biased artificial intelligence to screen out job applicants, saying Wednesday that evidence indicated they'd been "asleep at the wheel."

  • January 14, 2026

    House Blocks GOP Bid To Cut Funds For DC Judges, Courts

    The House on Wednesday failed to approve a Republican-led amendment to a government funding bill that would decrease the funding for D.C. courts and take aim at two federal judges Republicans are looking to impeach.

  • January 14, 2026

    Judicial Misconduct Prompts New Assault Trial In New York

    A man who was convicted of assault, disorderly conduct and criminal possession of a weapon will get a new trial, a New York appeals court ruled Wednesday, finding that a judge improperly inserted himself into the proceedings, appearing to favor the prosecution.

  • January 14, 2026

    DOJ Calls On 3rd Circ. To Rethink Habba DQ Ruling

    In a request for rehearing en banc filed Wednesday, the federal government asked the Third Circuit to reconsider its decision blocking Alina Habba from serving as acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey, saying the issue is "of exceptional importance."

  • January 14, 2026

    Fla. Atty Witness In Charity Probe Picked For Appellate Seat

    Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday nominated John Guard, senior counselor to the attorney general of Florida, to an appellate court seat, after his nomination for a federal judgeship fizzled once he came under scrutiny in a criminal probe regarding a charity connected to the governor.

  • January 14, 2026

    Judge 'Can't Ignore' Missed Atty Conflict In Oil Firm's Ch. 11

    A federal bankruptcy judge had pressing questions Wednesday about how many times the firm Calaiaro Valencik missed noticing that one of its attorneys had once represented a $32 million creditor for their client in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy case, even if the now-deceased lawyer had been guilty of sloppy record-keeping as the firm claimed.

  • January 14, 2026

    Trump Renominates NY, Virginia US Attorneys

    President Donald Trump is taking a second crack at securing his picks for federal prosecutors in districts where he previously failed to obtain U.S. Senate approval, including renominating Lindsey Halligan to the role of U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, weeks after a federal judge ruled she was not lawfully serving.

  • January 14, 2026

    Calif. Bill Would Ban AI From Replacing Arbitrators' Analysis

    A bill introduced in the California state Senate seeks to regulate attorneys' use of generative artificial intelligence statewide, including banning lawyers from entering private client information into public AI systems and prohibiting arbitrators from utilizing AI in decision-making.

  • January 14, 2026

    Supreme Court Rejects Cigar Maker's Appeal Over Atty Fees

    The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear cigar maker Swisher International Inc.'s appeal in a long-running contractual and antitrust dispute with Trendsettah USA Inc., leaving intact a Ninth Circuit ruling that revived part of a jury verdict and more than $10 million in related attorney fee awards.

  • January 13, 2026

    CoStar, Quinn Emanuel Spar Over Litigation Representation

    CoStar urged a California federal judge Tuesday to disqualify Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP from helping a rival commercial real estate platform pursue antitrust counterclaims in CoStar's copyright infringement suit, while the law firm moved to drop its representation of CoStar in separate litigation.

  • January 13, 2026

    Detroit Judge Urges Immunity In 6th Circ. Teen Arrest Appeal

    A Michigan state court judge has asked the Sixth Circuit to grant him judicial immunity from a civil rights lawsuit brought against him by a teenager who was handcuffed and put through a "judicial-like" proceeding for falling asleep during a school trip to his courtroom.

  • January 13, 2026

    Emotional Distress Claim Axed In Hartford Fire Coverage Row

    A federal magistrate judge dismissed a business owner's claim that Hartford Underwriters Insurance Co. intentionally caused her emotional distress through a "berating" phone call about a coverage dispute, ruling that she fell short of her burden to allege extreme conduct.

  • January 13, 2026

    No Jury Yet In Goldstein Trial, But Celeb Witnesses Possible

    Day two of jury selection in Tom Goldstein's tax and mortgage fraud case wrapped without a jury being seated Tuesday, but did reveal that the government could call celebrities Tobey Maguire and Kevin Hart to the stand.

Expert Analysis

  • 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.

  • Firms Still Have The Edge In Lateral Hiring, But Buyer Beware

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    Partner mobility data suggests that the third quarter of this year continued to be a buyer’s market, with the average candidate demanding less compensation for a larger book of business — but moving into the fourth quarter, firms should slow down their hiring process to minimize risks, say officers at Decipher Investigative Intelligence.

  • Top 10 Legal Malpractice Defenses As Claims Tick Up

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    As legal malpractice claims and payouts increase, law firms should remember certain time-tested defenses, such as asserting no duty to nonclients, omissions beyond the scope of engagement or lack of proximate cause, say attorneys at Goulston & Storrs.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: 1 Type Of Case Complexity Stands Out

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    In contrast to some cases that appear complex due to voluminous evidence or esoteric subject matter, a different kind of complexity involves tangled legal and factual questions, each with a range of possible outcomes, which require a “sliding scale” approach instead of syllogistic reasoning, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Immigration Atty Tips For Avoiding Prosecution Under Trump

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    Under the incoming Trump administration, immigration attorneys may need to protect themselves from prosecution when advising clients who may not qualify for relief sought by choosing their words carefully and keeping other key factors in mind, says Michele Carney at Carney & Marchi.

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