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Legal Ethics
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September 08, 2025
Watchdog Wants Discipline For Atty Ensnared In Murder Case
Connecticut's legal ethics watchdog is targeting an attorney who was convicted of interfering with an officer in a high-profile murder case, saying in a court filing that he's "guilty of misconduct" and should face discipline from the state.
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September 08, 2025
Attys Accused Of Filing Fake Docs In Miss America Dispute
A real estate developer, his associates and his current and past attorneys submitted fake contracts as evidence of their ownership of the company that runs the Miss America pageant in a $500 million lawsuit and should face sanctions, the plaintiffs — who allege they're the rightful owners — told a Florida federal judge Saturday.
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September 08, 2025
Conn. Tax Atty Wants Full Appeals Court To Rethink Her Firing
Connecticut's former tax legal director has asked the full Connecticut Appellate Court to reconsider an appellate panel's ruling that found her firing was proper after she used her work computer to send unauthorized draft legislation to a lobbyist, arguing that as a case of first impression it is important for the full court to weigh in.
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September 08, 2025
Appeal Limited To NJ US Atty DQ Ruling, 3rd Circ. Told
The federal government and defense counsel have agreed that the scope of a Third Circuit appeal is limited to the disqualification of New Jersey Acting U.S. Attorney Alina Habba from overseeing two cases.
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September 08, 2025
Dems Again Ask NY Ethics Body To Investigate Bove
Two Democratic senators filed an updated ethics complaint with the New York State Courts' attorney ethics body against recently confirmed Third Circuit Judge Emil Bove, citing what they called his "quid pro quo deal" to drop criminal charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams and other alleged ethical violations.
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September 08, 2025
NC High Court Snapshot: Pot Smell Test, Atty's Divorce Feud
North Carolina's top court will return from its summer hiatus in September to address whether law enforcement can rely on the smell of marijuana alone in the age of legalized hemp to justify a warrantless search. Here are some highlights of the high court's September lineup.
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September 08, 2025
Mass. Justices Asked To Find Atty Had Duty To Seek Plea Deal
A man who has spent more than four decades in prison for a 1983 murder asked Massachusetts' high court Monday to find that his defense attorney's failure to pursue a plea bargain with prosecutors entitles him to a new trial, in a case that could alter the standard for finding a lawyer's work was ineffective.
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September 08, 2025
Timeshare Biz Fights Law Firm's Arbitration Bid In Fee Fight
Timeshares Direct Inc. urged a Florida federal court to reject an arbitration bid from Watstein Terepka LLP in a dispute over approximately $25,000 in legal fees because the company claimed the firm "flip-flopped" on its stance on arbitration.
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September 08, 2025
Texas Couple Fights Firm's Sanctions Bid In Crash Data Suit
A Houston couple who accused a law firm and a since-dismissed Progressive unit of conspiring to share car crash victims' private information told a Texas federal court that their suit is "neither frivolous, unreasonable, nor improper" as they pushed back against the law firm's sanctions request.Â
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September 08, 2025
Ex-Judge Says Wash. DA, Court Sabotaged Election Bid
A Washington state attorney and former pro tem judge in Seattle has filed a lawsuit alleging she was racially discriminated against when a county prosecutor's office had her disqualified from hearing cases due to rulings she made from the bench.
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September 05, 2025
OnlyFans Users May Face Sanctions Over AI 'Misuse'
OnlyFans users who have alleged the site employs professional "chatters" to impersonate content creators are facing possible sanctions in their case, as a California federal judge ordered their attorneys to appear in court for filing briefs with nonexistent citations and quotations generated by an AI chatbot.
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September 05, 2025
Munchkin Says 'Unhinged' GC Was Fired For Good Reason
Munchkin Inc. says it had multiple legitimate reasons to terminate the baby company's general counsel for cause after he launched a "retaliatory and vindictive campaign" against another executive, calling him "unhinged" and slamming his suit against the company as "harassing," according to a filing in California state court.
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September 05, 2025
DOJ Pushes To DQ Attorney Over Conflict In Fraud Case
Federal prosecutors in Georgia are seeking to disqualify an attorney from representing a defendant accused of making false statements in relation to a criminal fraud investigation of Hi-Tech Pharmaceuticals Inc., arguing the lawyer was previously disqualified from representing the company's CEO for a conflict and that "the same is true now."
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September 05, 2025
Judge Awards Over $6M In Atty Fees In Bluetooth Co.'s IP Suit
A Colorado federal judge has awarded the attorneys representing a Bluetooth technology company more than $6 million after the company won on the bulk of its claims at trial last year in its trade secrets and breach of confidentiality case against a Massachusetts display technology company.
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September 05, 2025
Fed. Circ. Sinks Inventor's Bid To Escape $214K In Sanctions
The Federal Circuit on Friday denied efforts by the inventor of a patent covering a type of marking tape to escape a nearly $214,000 sanctions order from a lower court, saying it had previously upheld the award for bad faith litigation and won't alter it now.
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September 05, 2025
Judicial Nominee Expands On Testimony About Ky. Pardons
A judicial nominee for the Eastern District of Kentucky continues to distance himself from the controversial pardons issued by former Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin, for whom he was counsel.
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September 05, 2025
Fla. Bar Moves To Suspend Atty Accused Of Widespread Scam
The Florida Bar filed a petition Friday seeking the emergency suspension of a lawyer accused of scamming dozens of clients, failing to pay associates and paralegals who worked at his firm and repeatedly violating court orders.
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September 05, 2025
Solicitor Can Argue As Amicus In Right-To-Counsel Case
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday granted the U.S. solicitor general time to argue as an amicus in the Sixth Amendment case of a criminal defendant who was denied the opportunity to consult fully with his lawyer during an overnight break in his testimony.
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September 05, 2025
Motley Rice Fights OptumRx DQ Bid In Utah Opioid Suit
Pharmacy benefit manager OptumRx cannot disqualify Motley Rice LLC from representing Utah in a lawsuit over the opioid crisis, since any information the firm obtained during its involvement in earlier government investigations is available to all other parties in the multidistrict litigation and so isn't confidential, the state has told a federal court.
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September 05, 2025
Judges Warn ICE Is Turning Courts Into Deportation Traps
As Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers violently arrest unauthorized immigrants in court buildings' hallways, former and current judges warn that the Trump administration is using courts as a dragnet, arresting people indiscriminately and expelling them with little to no due process in a bid to fulfill President Donald Trump’s goal of mass deportations.
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September 05, 2025
Atty Can't Duck ID Theft Conviction Over High Court Ruling
A 2023 U.S. Supreme Court ruling narrowing the definition of aggravated identity theft may not be used to vacate a former attorney's prison sentence for a mortgage fraud scheme, a Massachusetts federal judge ruled Thursday, denying a request to throw out his plea deal and order a new trial.
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September 05, 2025
Ex-Mass. Trial Court Chief Justice Tapped As DA Integrity Chief
A longtime Massachusetts superior court judge and retired chief justice of the state's trial court has been named chief of the Suffolk County, Massachusetts, Integrity Review Bureau, tasked with investigating and reviewing potential wrongful convictions by the Boston-area district attorney's office.
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September 05, 2025
Ex-Bankruptcy Clients Defend Deal Over Jackson Walker Affair
Former Jackson Walker LLP bankruptcy clients said Friday that a proposed settlement meant to resolve a dispute regarding the concealed romance between a judge and attorney should go through as planned because the U.S. Trustee lacks jurisdiction to challenge the deals.
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September 05, 2025
3rd Circ. Says Atty Needs Client OK To Admit Crime Elements
The Third Circuit has upheld a New Jersey man's conviction for unlawfully possessing a firearm as a felon, ruling that his lawyer could not admit part of the crime on his behalf when the client himself objected.
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September 05, 2025
Pa. Atty Suspended 2 Years Over Relationships With Clients
A Greene County, Pennsylvania, criminal defense attorney had her license suspended for two years Thursday after the state's Disciplinary Board found that she'd had inappropriate romantic relationships with two incarcerated clients, and had secretly allowed one of them to listen in on a phone conversation with another attorney.
Expert Analysis
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Series
Hiking Makes Me A Better Lawyer
On the trail, I have thought often about the parallels between hiking and high-stakes patent litigation, and why strategizing, preparation, perseverance and joy are important skills for success in both endeavors, says Barbara Fiacco at Foley Hoag.
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Opinion
Time For Full Disclosure Of Third-Party Funding In MDLs
It is appropriate that the Federal Advisory Committee on Civil Rules is considering a rule to require disclosure of third-party litigation funding in civil litigation — something that is particularly needed in multidistrict litigation, which now comprises more than half of all civil cases in the federal courts, says Eric Hudson at Butler Snow.
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DC Circ. Ruling Augurs More Scrutiny Of Blanket Gag Orders
The D.C. Circuit’s recent ruling in In re: Sealed Case, finding that an omnibus nondisclosure order was too sweeping, should serve as a wake-up call to prosecutors and provide a road map for private parties to push back on overbroad secrecy demands, says Gregory Rosen at Rogers Joseph.
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Series
Law School's Missed Lessons: Negotiation Skills
I took one negotiation course in law school, but most of the techniques I rely on today I learned in practice, where I've discovered that the process is less about tricks or tactics, and more about clarity, preparation and communication, says Grant Schrantz at Haug Barron.
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Opinion
Bar Exam Reform Must Expand Beyond A Single Updated Test
Recently released information about the National Conference of Bar Examiners’ new NextGen Uniform Bar Exam highlights why a single test is not ideal for measuring newly licensed lawyers’ competency, demonstrating the need for collaborative development, implementation and reform processes, says Gregory Bordelon at Suffolk University.
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A Simple Way Courts Can Help Attys Avoid AI Hallucinations
As attorneys increasingly rely on generative artificial intelligence for legal research, courts should consider expanding online quality control programs to flag potential hallucinations — permitting counsel to correct mistakes and sparing judges the burden of imposing sanctions, say attorneys at Lankler Siffert & Wohl and Connors.
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Series
Creating Botanical Art Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Pressing and framing plants that I grow has shown me that pursuing an endeavor that brings you joy can lead to surprising benefits for a legal career, including mental clarity, perspective and even a bit of humility, says Douglas Selph at Morris Manning.
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Supreme Court's Criminal Law Decisions: The Term In Review
Though the U.S. Supreme Court’s criminal law decisions in its recently concluded term proved underwhelming by many measures, their opinions revealed trends in how the justices approach criminal cases and offered reminders for practitioners, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.
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Opinion
The Legal Education Status Quo Is No Longer Tenable
As underscored by the fallout from California’s February bar exam, legal education and licensure are tethered to outdated systems, and the industry must implement several key reforms to remain relevant and responsive to 21st century legal needs, says Matthew Nehmer at The Colleges of Law.
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E-Discovery Quarterly: Rulings On Relevance Redactions
In recent cases addressing redactions that parties sought to apply based on the relevance of information — as opposed to considerations of privilege — courts have generally limited a party’s ability to withhold nonresponsive or irrelevant material, providing a few lessons for discovery strategy, say attorneys at Sidley.
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Opinion
Section 1983 Has Promise After End Of Nationwide Injunctions
After the U.S. Supreme Court recently struck down the practice of nationwide injunctions in Trump v. Casa, Section 1983 civil rights suits can provide a better pathway to hold the government accountable — but this will require reforms to qualified immunity, says Marc Levin at the Council on Criminal Justice.
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Reel Justice: 'Oh, Hi!' Teaches Attys To Return To The Statute
The new dark comedy film “Oh, Hi!” — depicting a romantic vacation that turns into an inadvertent kidnapping — should remind criminal practitioners to always reread the statute to avoid assumptions, meet their ethical duties and finesse their trial strategy, says Veronica Finkelstein at Wilmington University School of Law.
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Series
Playing Soccer Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Soccer has become a key contributor to how I approach my work, and the lessons I’ve learned on the pitch about leadership, adaptability, resilience and communication make me better at what I do every day in my legal career, says Whitney O’Byrne at MoFo.
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Series
Law School's Missed Lessons: Learning From Failure
While law school often focuses on the importance of precision, correctness and perfection, mistakes are inevitable in real-world practice — but failure is not the opposite of progress, and real talent comes from the ability to recover, rethink and reshape, says Brooke Pauley at Tucker Ellis.
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Series
Adapting To Private Practice: From ATF Director To BigLaw
As a two-time boomerang partner, returning to BigLaw after stints as a U.S. attorney and the director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, people ask me how I know when to move on, but there’s no single answer — just clearly set your priorities, says Steven Dettelbach at BakerHostetler.