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Legal Ethics

  • July 31, 2025

    4th Circ. Says Brokers Owe Atty Fees Over Case Removal Row

    A unanimous Fourth Circuit panel has affirmed a South Carolina federal judge's order requiring several financial firms to pay more than $63,000 in legal fees for improperly trying to remove a securities class action to federal court for a second time, but said they don't have to pay additional fees to cover the cost of the appeal.

  • July 31, 2025

    Wis. Judge Pushes For Immunity In ICE Arrest Case

    A Wisconsin state judge is pushing for the dismissal of criminal charges alleging she hindered an immigration enforcement arrest, reiterating her argument that she has immunity against what she called the "overreaching federal prosecution of a state court judge for acts within her official duties."

  • July 31, 2025

    ABA Seeks To Toss Race Bias Suit Over Scholarship Program

    The American Bar Association urged an Illinois federal court to throw out a lawsuit from The American Alliance for Equal Rights alleging the association's Legal Opportunity Scholarship Fund constitutes race-based discrimination, arguing that the claims are simply a "'desire to vindicate' a particular 'view of the law.'"

  • July 31, 2025

    8th Circ. Says Firm's Conspiracy Suit Wrongly Tossed

    The Eighth Circuit on Thursday revived a law firm's suit alleging that the defendants in a wrongful death suit conspired to have the firm withdraw from that suit after raising false accusations, saying the trial court "took a trip back in time" to an older interpretation of court doctrine.

  • July 31, 2025

    1st Circ. Denies Marathon Bomber's Bid To DQ Trial Judge

    The First Circuit on Thursday denied a request by convicted Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to have the judge who presided over his 2015 trial removed from conducting a probe into whether some of the jurors who sentenced him to death were biased.

  • July 31, 2025

    Conn. Atty Pins Failed Redaction On Tech In Gunmaker Suit

    A third party's ability to bypass redactions and view protected documents was due to a software issue, a Connecticut civil litigator has told a federal judge, urging the court not to authorize sanctions for what he said was a "good faith" effort at redacting filings amid his dueling lawsuits with gunmaker Sig Sauer.

  • July 31, 2025

    MSG Makes Play For $1.5M Fees In Oakley Dispute

    Madison Square Garden is seeking $1.5 million in attorney fees from former New York Knicks player Charles Oakley, laying out the efforts it took to uncover Oakley's efforts to destroy text messages connected with his long-running assault and battery suit against the arena.

  • July 31, 2025

    Baldwin Eyes Deal Over Failed 'Rust' Trial With Suit Dormant

    Alec Baldwin's lawsuit in New Mexico state court against prosecutors and others involved in his botched involuntary manslaughter case in the "Rust" film shooting has been temporarily thrown out, but the actor-producer's attorneys said Thursday that they've been in settlement discussions and will move to reinstate the suit if the talks fail.

  • July 30, 2025

    US Atty Swap Was 'Calculated' To Evade Senate, NJ Court Told

    The reappointment of Alina Habba from interim to acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey was an unconstitutional maneuver "calculated to bypass Senate confirmation," a defendant seeking dismissal of his drug trafficking indictment told a federal judge Wednesday, while prosecutors opposed the motion as a "dispute over titles, not authority."

  • July 30, 2025

    2nd Circ. Backs Live Well Founder's Bond Fraud Convictions

    The Second Circuit affirmed convictions for Live Well's founder for inducing lenders to extend credit by jacking up bond valuations to increase its debt and borrow against it, ruling Wednesday jurors had enough evidence to determine he misrepresented the value of collateral to secure loans and did so with fraudulent intent.

  • July 30, 2025

    Walmart Hoverboard Fire, Injury Case Ends After AI Scandal

    A Wyoming family of five that sued Walmart after a hoverboard they bought exploded, destroying their home and causing serious burns, has agreed to permanently end litigation in a case marred by plaintiffs counsel getting caught pushing case law "hallucinated" by artificial intelligence.

  • July 30, 2025

    High Court Urged To Review Ineffective-Counsel Case

    A man who threatened to sue his civil lawyer for malpractice has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to take up his case and find that such a situation creates an automatic conflict of interest when the same lawyer was also defending him in a criminal case.

  • July 30, 2025

    11th Circ. Revives Ga. Atty's Race Bias Suit Against State Bar

    The Eleventh Circuit has revived a Georgia attorney's suit accusing the state's bar association of racial bias, finding that a district court wrongly dismissed the case for lack of jurisdiction.

  • July 30, 2025

    TMX Customers Seek Final OK Of $42M Data Breach Suit Deal

    Customers of the title loan and payday lender TMX Finance have asked a Georgia federal judge to grant final approval of their $42 million settlement of claims arising from a data breach that affected an estimated 4.8 million people.

  • July 30, 2025

    Calif. Sens. Slam Trump's US Atty 'Hijacking' To Keep LA Ally

    California Sens. Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff issued a statement Wednesday condemning the Trump administration's decision to "circumvent the law" and appoint Bill Essayli as acting U.S. attorney in Los Angeles, in a move echoing the recent appointment of Alina Habba as acting U.S. attorney in New Jersey.

  • July 30, 2025

    Insurer Atty 'Error' Dooms Arbitration Bid In Fla. Injury Suit

    A Florida appellate court on Wednesday agreed with a trial court that a West Palm Beach prep school has abandoned its right to arbitrate cheerleading injury claims brought by a student by filing a response to the complaint, rejecting the school's argument that its insurer-provided lawyer was unauthorized to represent it.

  • July 30, 2025

    Black Atty Alleges McDermott Fired Her Because Of Her Race

    McDermott Will & Emery LLP failed to address racist comments made during a diversity presentation, kept Black attorneys out of leadership and fired a Black associate who complained that she was repeatedly sidelined because of her race, the former employee alleged Wednesday in Illinois federal court.

  • July 30, 2025

    Workday Wants Firm DQ'd Over Privileged Info In Atty's Suit

    Attorneys at Webb Law Group APC should be disqualified from representing an ex-Workday Inc. attorney in his bias suit against the company and should face sanctions for their "egregious behavior" in disclosing privileged information in a publicly filed document, Workday told a California federal magistrate judge.

  • July 30, 2025

    DC Judge Demands More Details On Atty's Fake Citations

    In a minute order entered Wednesday, the Washington, D.C., federal judge presiding over a former executive's qui tam False Claims Act suit against a government contractor ordered plaintiff's counsel to provide more information on how nine citation errors came to be included in a motion last week, calling explanations to date "wholly inadequate."

  • July 30, 2025

    NJ Judge Accused Of Berating Truant Teens Called One 'Vile'

    A New Jersey municipal court judge is accused of berating children in truancy hearings, threatening their families with deportation, and questioning their immigration status in open court — actions the state's judicial watchdog said violated multiple canons of judicial conduct.

  • July 30, 2025

    Family In Row With McCarter & English Wants $4.6M Set-Aside

    A deceased Connecticut shopping mall developer's family members want McCarter & English LLP and the estate of Laurence Rubinow, a lawyer with connections to the firm, to set aside $4.6 million in case they prevail in a lawsuit alleging mismanagement of the developer's estate and trust.

  • July 30, 2025

    2nd Circ. Hands Clerk Another Shot At Free Speech Firing Suit

    A Second Circuit panel reinstated a suit Wednesday from a court clerk who claimed she was fired for aiding an investigation into an ethics complaint against her former boss, ruling the lower court incorrectly found that her duties as a government worker shielded her from constitutional protection.

  • July 30, 2025

    Atty Sues Leech Tishman Over Referral Amid Girardi Scandal

    An attorney at Hunt Ortmann Palffy Nieves Darling & Mah Inc. has sued Leech Tishman Nelson Hardiman in California state court for allegedly refusing to pay her a $300,000 referral fee after she convinced her CEO father to hire the firm to represent him.

  • July 30, 2025

    Ga. Law Firm Fights Bid To Keep Fee Fight Out Of Arbitration

    Georgia law firm Herman Jones LLP has pushed back on a former client's claim that it waived arbitration in a dispute over unpaid legal fees, arguing the trial court should not have had to rule on a free speech motion before sending the case to arbitration.

  • July 29, 2025

    Jackson Walker Gets Another Deal On Judge-Romance Claims

    Jackson Walker LLP has reached another settlement with former bankruptcy clients to resolve fee disputes related to the concealed romance of a former partner with the firm and former Texas bankruptcy Judge David R. Jones, according to a motion filed Tuesday in Texas federal court.

Expert Analysis

  • How To Grow Marketing, Biz Dev Teams In A Tight Market

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    Faced with fierce competition and rising operating costs, firms are feeling the pressure to build a well-oiled marketing and business development team that supports strategic priorities, but they’ll need to be flexible and creative given a tight talent market, says Ben Curle at Ambition.

  • Series

    Rock Climbing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Rock climbing requires problem-solving, focus, risk management and resilience, skills that are also invaluable assets in my role as a finance lawyer, says Mei Zhang at Haynes and Boone.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: Dance The Legal Standard Two-Step

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    From rookie brief writers to Chief Justice John Roberts, lawyers should master the legal standard two-step — framing the governing standard at the outset, and clarifying why they meet that standard — which has benefits for both the drafter and reader, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • Avoiding Legal Ethics Landmines In Preindictment Meetings

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    U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez's recent bribery conviction included obstruction charges based on his former lawyer's preindictment presentation to prosecutors, highlighting valuable lessons on the legal ethics rules implicated in these kinds of defense presentations, say Steve Miller and Hilary Gerzhoy at HWG.

  • Series

    Being A Luthier Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    When I’m not working as an appellate lawyer, I spend my spare time building guitars — a craft known as luthiery — which has helped to enhance the discipline, patience and resilience needed to write better briefs, says Rob Carty at Nichols Brar.

  • Lead Like 'Ted Lasso' By Embracing Cognitive Diversity

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    The Apple TV+ series “Ted Lasso” aptly illustrates how embracing cognitive diversity can be a winning strategy for teams, providing a useful lesson for law firms, which can benefit significantly from fresh, diverse perspectives and collaborative problem-solving, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: July Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy considers cases touching on pre- and post-conviction detainment conditions, communications with class representatives, when the American Pipe tolling doctrine stops applying to modified classes, and more.

  • Opinion

    Now More Than Ever, Lawyers Must Exhibit Professionalism

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    As society becomes increasingly fractured and workplace incivility is on the rise, attorneys must champion professionalism and lead by example, demonstrating how lawyers can respectfully disagree without being disagreeable, says Edward Casmere at Norton Rose.

  • Series

    Serving In The National Guard Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My ongoing military experience as a judge advocate general in the National Guard has shaped me as a person and a lawyer, teaching me the importance of embracing confidence, balance and teamwork in both my Army and civilian roles, says Danielle Aymond at Baker Donelson.

  • Lawyers Must Be Careful When Using Listservs

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    The American Bar Association's formal opinion from May correctly states that attorneys must obtain clients' consent before posing related questions to listservs, but potential risks and drawbacks of using listservs go beyond those highlighted by the ABA, says Deborah Winokur at Cozen O'Connor.

  • A Midyear Forecast: Tailwinds Expected For Atty Hourly Rates

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    Hourly rates for partners, associates and support staff continued to rise in the first half of this year, and this growth shows no signs of slowing for the rest of 2024 and into next year, driven in part by the return of mergers and acquisitions and the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence, says Chuck Chandler at Valeo Partners.

  • Opinion

    States Should Loosen Law Firm Ownership Restrictions

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    Despite growing buzz, normalized nonlawyer ownership of law firms is a distant prospect, so the legal community should focus first on liberalizing state restrictions on attorney and firm purchases of practices, which would bolster succession planning and improve access to justice, says Michael Di Gennaro at The Law Practice Exchange.

  • Series

    Solving Puzzles Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Tackling daily puzzles — like Wordle, KenKen and Connections — has bolstered my intellectual property litigation practice by helping me to exercise different mental skills, acknowledge minor but important details, and build and reinforce good habits, says Roy Wepner at Kaplan Breyer.

  • Texas Ethics Opinion Flags Hazards Of Unauthorized Practice

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    The Texas Professional Ethics Committee's recently issued proposed opinion finding that in-house counsel providing legal services to the company's clients constitutes the unauthorized practice of law is a valuable clarification given that a UPL violation — a misdemeanor in most states — carries high stakes, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.

  • In Memoriam: The Modern Administrative State

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    On June 28, the modern administrative state, where courts deferred to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes, died when the U.S. Supreme Court overruled its previous decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council — but it is survived by many cases decided under the Chevron framework, say Joseph Schaeffer and Jessica Deyoe at Babst Calland.

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