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Legal Ethics
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April 30, 2024
Buffalo Judge Won't Be Ejected For Brawl, Ethics Failures
New York state's judicial ethics watchdog said Tuesday that a Buffalo judge should be censured but not removed following an investigation into a street fight with neighbors during which the judge shoved an officer and touted his ties to the mayor and police, among other ethical lapses.
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April 30, 2024
Trial Set For Lin Wood's Ex-Partners' Defamation Suit
Controversial attorney Lin Wood will face trial in August in a defamation case brought by his former law partners who say he falsely accused them of trying to extort him, a Georgia federal judge decided Tuesday.
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April 30, 2024
Attys, Broker Can't Escape $4M Tax Fraud Convictions
A North Carolina federal judge has denied acquittal requests from two tax attorneys and an insurance agent who were convicted for their roles in a $4 million tax avoidance scheme, saying he agreed with federal prosecutors who argued there was sufficient evidence for the underlying charges.
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April 30, 2024
Conn. Firm Settles Copyright Feuds Over Website Photos
The Connecticut consumer law firm Lemberg Law LLC and its managing attorney have agreed to settle two suits tied to a multistate copyright battle with a stock photo provider that arose in 2020 after the firm was accused of using images on its website without permission, and then countered that it was the victim of an extortion attempt.
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April 30, 2024
Atty Sanctioned Over Missed Depo During Solar Eclipse Trip
A Florida lawyer whose client missed his own deposition while the attorney was solar eclipse viewing has been ordered to pay related attorney fees incurred by AAA as the business fights a gender discrimination lawsuit.
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April 30, 2024
DC Bar Prosecutors Say Jeffrey Clark 'Betrayed His Oath'
Attorney disciplinary authorities in Washington, D.C., have urged an ethics hearing committee to recommend disbarring former U.S. Department of Justice official Jeffrey Clark, saying he "betrayed his oath" to the Constitution by aiding former President Donald Trump's efforts to undermine the 2020 elections, and "is not fit to be a member of the District of Columbia Bar."
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April 30, 2024
Judge Says $4.5M Davis Wright Deal Should Be Approved
An Oregon federal magistrate judge has recommended approval of a $4.5 million deal resolving investor claims against Davis Wright Tremaine LLP for its role in endorsing an alleged real estate securities scheme.
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April 30, 2024
Ethics Probes Take Mental Toll On Solo, Small Firm Attorneys
Facing a disciplinary complaint can take a toll on any attorney’s mental health. But for solo practitioners and small firm lawyers, who typically juggle all aspects of their business from handling client matters to administrative tasks like managing trust accounts, it can threaten to upend their lives.
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April 30, 2024
Atty, Pot Entrepreneurs Get Conspiracy Claims Thrown Out
A California state appeals court has thrown out claims against a group of attorneys and cannabis entrepreneurs that they were part of a "straw man practice" conspiracy to monopolize the San Diego cannabis market, finding the complaint failed to allege they did anything illegal.
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April 30, 2024
Ga. High Court Tosses Atty's Road Rage Murder Conviction
The Supreme Court of Georgia threw out the murder conviction of a former corporate lawyer who was convicted of killing a real estate developer in a road rage incident, ruling Tuesday that the trial court erred by refusing to instruct the jury on the attorney's defense that the death was accidental.
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April 30, 2024
Trump Held In Contempt For Trashing Witnesses In NY Trial
A New York state judge on Tuesday found former President Donald Trump in contempt of court for repeatedly violating a gag order in his criminal hush money case by publicly attacking expected witnesses, including his former attorney Michael Cohen.
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April 30, 2024
Coverage Recap: Day 5 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 five.
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April 29, 2024
6th Circ. Revives Co.'s Malpractice Suit Against Ohio Firm
The Sixth Circuit on Monday revived a Texas real estate developer's legal malpractice claim against an Ohio law firm, remanding the case back to a lower court to consider the viability of certain professional negligence claims.
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April 29, 2024
Maker Of 'Let's Go Brandon' Coin Seeks Lawsuit Transfer
An attorney behind the digital asset inspired by the "Let's Go Brandon" meme urged a Florida federal judge to hand off to another court a securities fraud lawsuit against him, arguing Monday that the remaining parties in the suit have no connection to the district where the action was filed.
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April 29, 2024
Chicago IP Firm Sues Again Over Atty Impersonation
Intellectual property law firm Greer Burns & Crain Ltd. has filed a second trademark infringement suit claiming an unknown defendant has been using a nearly identical website domain name to impersonate its attorneys and request the release of court-ordered asset restraints, after winning a similar case last year.
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April 29, 2024
1st Circ. Slashes Atty's Convictions In Email Fraud Case
An Illinois lawyer convicted of receiving proceeds from a business email compromise scheme had three of six counts vacated Monday by the First Circuit, which ruled that Massachusetts wasn't the right venue for those charges.
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April 29, 2024
NY Atty Gets 10 Years In Prison For Trying To Have Ex Killed
A New York attorney convicted of arranging to pay a hitman to murder the mother of his two young children has been sentenced in California federal court to 10 years behind bars, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Friday.
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April 29, 2024
Dentons, Boies Schiller Hit With $300M Fraud Suit
The owner of a company that attempted to contract with Senegal to develop a power plant in the African nation has filed a $300 million racketeering suit against Dentons and Boies Schiller Flexner LLP, accusing the BigLaw firms of fraud and extortion in connection with their allegedly botched representation of the company.
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April 29, 2024
Colo. Judge Moves Toward Eastman DQ Over Calif. Discipline
A Colorado federal judge has ordered former Donald Trump lawyer John C. Eastman to explain why he shouldn't be disqualified from representing plaintiffs in a civil suit after a California disciplinary judge suspended his law license and recommended disbarment in March.
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April 29, 2024
4th Circ. OKs Sanctions Against Law Firm In Bestwall Ch. 11
A split Fourth Circuit panel on Monday refused to overturn more than $402,000 in sanctions against a law firm and its clients as part of bankruptcy proceedings for a Georgia-Pacific unit, saying the contempt and sanctions orders can't be appealed because they aren't final judgments.
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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.
Expert Analysis
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Series
Writing Thriller Novels Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Authoring several thriller novels has enriched my work by providing a fresh perspective on my privacy practice, expanding my knowledge, and keeping me alert to the next wave of issues in an increasingly complex space — a reminder to all lawyers that extracurricular activities can help sharpen professional instincts, says Reece Hirsch at Morgan Lewis.
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What Lawyers Must Know About Calif. State Bar's AI Guidance
Initial recommendations from the State Bar of California regarding use of generative artificial intelligence by lawyers have the potential to become a useful set of guidelines in the industry, covering confidentiality, supervision and training, communications, discrimination and more, say attorneys at Debevoise.
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Industry Must Elevate Native American Women Attys' Stories
The American Bar Association's recent research study into Native American women attorneys' experiences in the legal industry reveals the glacial pace of progress, and should inform efforts to amplify Native voices in the field, says Mary Smith, president of the ABA.
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Understanding Discovery Obligations In Era Of Generative AI
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
Attorneys and businesses must adapt to the unique discovery challenges presented by generative artificial intelligence, such as chatbot content and prompts, while upholding the principles of fairness, transparency and compliance with legal obligations in federal civil litigation, say attorneys at King & Spalding.
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Asserting 'Presence-Of-Counsel' Defense In Securities Trials
As illustrated by the fraud trial of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, defense attorneys in securities trials might consider arguing that counsel had some involvement in the conduct at issue — if the more formal advice-of-counsel defense is unavailable and circumstances allow for a privilege waiver, say Joseph Dever and Matthew Elkin at Cozen O'Connor.
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Key Takeaways From DOJ's Recent FARA Advisory Opinions
The U.S. Department of Justice recently published several redacted advisory opinions on the Foreign Agents Registration Act, clarifying its current thinking on when a person or entity is required to register as a foreign agent under the statute, and when they may qualify for an exemption, says Tessa Capeloto at Wiley Rein.
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The Case For Post-Bar Clerk Training Programs At Law Firms
In today's competitive legal hiring market, an intentionally designed training program for law school graduates awaiting bar admission can be an effective way of creating a pipeline of qualified candidates, says Brent Daub at Gilson Daub.
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Attorneys Have An Ethical Duty To Protect The Judiciary
The tenor of public disagreement and debate has become increasingly hostile against judges, and though the legislative branch is trying to ameliorate this safety gap, lawyers have a moral imperative and professional requirement to stand with judges in defusing attacks against them and their rulings, says Deborah Winokur at Cozen O'Connor.
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AI Can Help Lawyers Overcome The Programming Barrier
Legal professionals without programming expertise can use generative artificial intelligence to harness the power of automation and other technology solutions to streamline their work, without the steep learning curve traditionally associated with coding, says George Zalepa at Greenberg Traurig.
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Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World
As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.
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General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI
With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.
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Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information
As generative artificial intelligence tools become increasingly ubiquitous, companies must make sure to preserve generative AI data when there is reasonable expectation of litigation, and to include transcripts in litigation hold notices, as they may be relevant to discovery requests, say Nick Peterson and Corey Hauser at Wiley.
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Finding Focus: Strategies For Attorneys With ADHD
Given the prevalence of ADHD among attorneys, it is imperative that the legal community gain a better understanding of how ADHD affects well-being, and that resources and strategies exist for attorneys with this disability to manage their symptoms and achieve success, say Casey Dixon at Dixon Life Coaching and Krista Larson at Stinson.
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Attorneys, Law Schools Must Adapt To New Era Of Evidence
Technological advancements mean more direct evidence is being created than ever before, and attorneys as well as law schools must modify their methods to account for new challenges in how this evidence is collected and used to try cases, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.
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1st Tax Easement Convictions Will Likely Embolden DOJ, IRS
After recent convictions in the first criminal tax fraud trial over allegedly abusive syndicated conservation easements, the IRS and U.S. Department of Justice will likely pursue other promoters for similar alleged conspiracies — though one acquittal may help attorneys better evaluate their clients' exposure, say Bill Curtis and Lauren DeSantis-Then at Polsinelli.