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Criminal Practice
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August 14, 2025
Va. Woman Asks 4th Circ. For Resentence Over Atty Failures
A Virginia woman has told the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals she should be resentenced because her attorney provided bad advice, resulting in her receiving a 30-year prison term for selling her boyfriend's property while he was incarcerated.
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August 14, 2025
Colo. Sex Offender Can't Nix Registry Over Expunged Record
A Colorado Court of Appeals panel held Thursday in a matter of first impression that an expunged juvenile sex offense can be a factor in determining lifetime registration as a sex offender, rejecting a defendant's arguments that it violates the ex post facto clause and the Eighth Amendment.
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August 14, 2025
4th Circ. Allows Trial For Prisoner's Excessive Force Claim
The Fourth Circuit said Thursday that a man incarcerated in a Maryland state prison should not have had claims that he was brutalized by correctional officers summarily dismissed because a reasonable jury could find that his allegations were credible.
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August 14, 2025
Okla. City Fights Creek Nation Over Tribal Court Authority
An Oklahoma city is looking to dismiss a challenge by the Muscogee (Creek) Nation that looks to block the municipality from prosecuting Native Americans for crimes committed on tribal lands, arguing that a 2022 Supreme Court ruling gives it concurrent jurisdiction with the federally recognized tribe.
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August 14, 2025
NJ Officials Indicted Over Alleged Political Payback Plot
A state grand jury has indicted a current and a former board member of a New Jersey transit agency for their roles in allegedly blocking payments to a contractor as political retribution, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin announced Thursday.
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August 14, 2025
Boston Bomber Asks Full 1st Circ. To Weigh Judge DQ Bid
The convicted Boston Marathon bomber on Thursday asked the full First Circuit to consider disqualifying his trial judge from leading an investigation into potential juror bias, arguing an appellate court panel failed to assess whether post-trial public comments tainted his impartiality.
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August 14, 2025
Senate Democrats Urge 'Robust' Funding For US Defenders
Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday implored congressional appropriators to ensure that the federal public defender program has adequate funding for fiscal year 2026 after budget shortfalls.Â
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August 14, 2025
Bipartisan Lawmaker Groups Lambaste Habba's Reappointment
A bipartisan group of current and former members of Congress on Wednesday criticized the Trump administration's appointment of acting New Jersey U.S. Attorney Alina Habba, saying doing it without congressional approval is unconstitutional.
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August 14, 2025
4th Circ. Won't DQ Judge From Church Mass Shooting Case
Hearsay evidence and conclusory allegations of impartiality are not enough to cause the Fourth Circuit to remove the federal judge presiding over white supremacist mass shooter Dylann Roof's criminal case in South Carolina, a panel of out-of-circuit judges determined in a nonprecedential ruling.
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August 14, 2025
Feds Urge Court Not To Toss Rep. Cuellar's Bribery Case
Allowing U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, to escape bribery charges under the Constitution's speech and debate clause would "eviscerate" several precedents set under the provision, prosecutors told a federal judge on Thursday.
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August 14, 2025
DOJ Employee Fired After Alleged Sandwich Assault On Agent
A man charged with felony assault for allegedly throwing a sandwich at a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent was a member of the U.S. Department of Justice and has been fired, Attorney General Pam Bondi said Thursday.
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August 14, 2025
2nd Circ. Publicly Reprimands Ghosting NY Attorney
The Second Circuit has rebuked a New York attorney who was removed from a case for disappearing on his client while appealing criminal migrant smuggling charges, and then failing to respond to a court order for years.
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August 13, 2025
Mich. Panel Says Teen's 67-Year Term 'Does Not Pass Muster'
A Michigan man who was sentenced to at least 67 years in prison for crimes allegedly committed when he was 17 will be resentenced after a state appeals court ruled the punishment was unconstitutionally long.
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August 13, 2025
10th Circ. Orders Redo Of 14-Year Fentanyl Sentence
The 10th Circuit on Tuesday affirmed a man's criminal conviction for conspiracy to distribute fentanyl but ordered a Wyoming federal court to redo his sentencing, saying in a published opinion that the lower court relied on unreliable hearsay from a confidential source.
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August 13, 2025
Wash. Court Allows Vacated Conviction DNA To Prove Rape
A Washington state appeals court on Wednesday affirmed a sentence of up to life in prison for a man convicted of rape, finding the state could use DNA taken from him in connection with a vacated drug conviction to match forensic evidence because state law permitted testing any sample in possession to solve crimes.
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August 13, 2025
Cannabis' Social Equity Efforts In Doubt After 2nd Circ. Ruling
A Second Circuit decision Tuesday, finding that the Constitution's dormant commerce clause applies to the federally illegal marijuana industry, further constricts states' ability to implement programs intended to award so-called social equity licenses favoring those harmed by past cannabis prohibition, experts told Law360.
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August 13, 2025
3rd Circ. Won't Revive Prisoner's Suit Over Toe Amputation
A federal prisoner who was taken off his diabetes medicine, developed an infection and lost his toe cannot sue the government or a U.S. Bureau of Prisons doctor because he still has administrative remedies available, the Third Circuit ruled Wednesday.
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August 13, 2025
NJ US Atty Defends Status, Says She Is 'Validly Serving'
Acting New Jersey U.S. Attorney Alina Habba has hit back against criminal defendants who claim her contentious appointment violates the U.S. Constitution, saying everything is above board and a "lengthy period of acting service is not unusual."
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August 13, 2025
Texas Malpractice Case Over Atty's Nixed Conviction Revived
A Texas state appellate court on Wednesday revived a malpractice case filed by a now-deceased attorney whose forgery conviction was vacated, saying the trial court must determine whether she was actually innocent before deciding whether her malpractice claim against her criminal defense lawyer can proceed.
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August 13, 2025
Convicted ComEd CEO Seeks Bond Pending 7th Circ. Appeal
Former Commonwealth Edison and Exelon Utilities CEO Anne Pramaggiore has requested to stay out of jail while she appeals her criminal conviction and two-year prison sentence, saying her case was "far from ordinary" and that bond would keep her from serving a substantial portion of her sentence unnecessarily if the Seventh Circuit finds in her favor.
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August 13, 2025
2nd Circ. Says Allowing Biased Jury Strikes Can Be Strategic
A unanimous Second Circuit panel found Wednesday that a Black man sentenced to 14 years in prison for attempted murder and other crimes cannot win release by arguing his lawyer failed to adequately object to the dismissal of Black potential jurors, saying the attorney may have been acting "strategically."
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August 12, 2025
DC Circ. Rules Pole-Camera Footage Doesn't Require Warrant
The D.C. Circuit on Tuesday ruled that pole-mounted surveillance cameras installed by police can be accessed without a warrant by law enforcement, and upheld the conviction of a man on federal drug and firearms charges as a result of the camera footage.
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August 12, 2025
4th Circ. Won't Consider Man's Unconstitutional Arrest Case
A North Carolina man arrested while protesting a Confederate monument in the wake of the death of George Floyd in 2020 cannot have his arrest declared unconstitutional by a federal court, the Fourth Circuit ruled Tuesday, sending the matter back to state court for lack of jurisdiction.
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August 12, 2025
Terraform Founder Cops To $40B Crypto Fraud Scheme
The founder and former CEO of Terraform Labs on Tuesday admitted to perpetrating a multibillion-dollar fraud by deceiving investors about its decentralized finance-based ecosystem of crypto products, a scheme that wiped out $40 billion in market value when it collapsed.
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August 12, 2025
NJ Appeals Court Clarifies Ghost Gun Law, Affirms Sentence
A New Jersey state appeals court found in a matter of first impression that a man who bought ghost gun kits in Pennsylvania, where they are legal, could be charged when he brought the non-serialized, unlicensed weapons back to his Garden State home, affirming his three-year sentence.
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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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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What Justices Left Unsaid About The Federal Tort Claims Act
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Martin v. U.S. rejected the Eleventh Circuit's interpretation of the Federal Tort Claims Act in the case of a botched police raid — but left unresolved many questions about plaintiffs' ability to hold the government accountable for officers' misdeeds, says Scott Brooks at Levy Firestone.
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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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Strategies For ICE Agent Misconduct Suits In The 11th Circ.
Attorneys have numerous pathways to pursue misconduct claims against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in the Eleventh Circuit, and they need not wait for the court to correct its misinterpretation of a Federal Tort Claims Act exception, says Lauren Bonds at the National Police Accountability Project.
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DOJ Consumer Branch's End Leaves FDA Litigation Questions
With the dissolution of the U.S. Department of Justice's Consumer Protection Branch set to occur by Sept. 30, companies must carefully monitor how responsibility is reallocated for civil and criminal enforcement cases related to products regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, say attorneys at Foley & Lardner.
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Cos. Must Tailor Due Diligence As Trafficking Risks Increase
As legislators, prosecutors and plaintiffs attorneys increasingly focus on labor and sex trafficking throughout the U.S., companies must tailor their due diligence strategies to protect against forced labor trafficking risks in their supply chains, say attorneys at Steptoe.
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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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'Pig Butchering' Seizure Is A Milestone In Crypto Crime Fight
The U.S.' recent seizure of $225 million in crypto funds in a massive "pig butchering" scheme highlights the transformative impact of blockchain analysis in law enforcement, and the increasing necessity of collaboration between law enforcement agencies, cryptocurrency exchanges and stablecoin issuers, says David Zaslowsky at Baker McKenzie.
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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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How DOJ's New Data Security Rules Leave HIPAA In The Dust
The U.S. Department of Justice's recently effective data security requirements carry profound implications for how healthcare providers collect, store, share and use data — and approach vendor oversight — that go far beyond the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, say attorneys at Nelson Mullins.