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Legal Ethics

  • October 02, 2025

    Netflix Escapes Documentary IP Suit From Atty's Film Co.

    A film company owned by a trial lawyer this week lost its lawsuit accusing Netflix Inc. of infringing a copyright in its documentary about sexual abuse in the Boy Scouts of America, with a New Jersey federal judge finding the film deals with uncopyrightable facts.

  • October 02, 2025

    Dentons, Boies Schiller Escape $300M Fraud Suit

    A New York federal judge has dismissed with prejudice a $300 million fraud and racketeering lawsuit brought against Dentons and Boies Schiller Flexner LLP, in which the BigLaw firms were accused of misleading a former client with respect to a deal, and later arbitration, involving Senegal's state-owned energy company.

  • October 02, 2025

    4 Mass. Rulings You May Have Missed In September

    One attorney scored an early exit from a malpractice suit, another must face a long-delayed arbitration, and a judge has requested more information on a proposed settlement in a class action brought by gamblers at a Massachusetts casino. Here are four rulings from Suffolk Superior Court's business litigation session in September.

  • October 02, 2025

    Ex-Firm Can't Revive Malicious Prosecution Suit In 11th Circ.

    The Eleventh Circuit has refused to overturn lower court rulings nixing a malicious prosecution lawsuit brought by a now-defunct law firm against a surgical center, as well as a sanctions ruling against the firm's counsel.

  • October 02, 2025

    Gov't Shutdown Halts Fed. Circ. Response In Newman Case

    The Federal Circuit has asked the D.C. Circuit for permission to extend a deadline to respond to U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman's petition for an en banc rehearing to reconsider her suspension, citing the ongoing government shutdown.

  • October 02, 2025

    DOJ Beats Heritage Foundation Suit Over Hunter Biden Docs

    A Delaware federal judge has ruled against The Heritage Foundation in its Freedom of Information Act suit against the U.S. Department of Justice regarding documents withheld detailing the investigation of Hunter Biden, saying the government "adequately established" that harm would result from releasing the records.

  • October 02, 2025

    Comey's 1st Task: Decoding A Cryptic Indictment

    The criminal indictment of James B. Comey is unusually sparse for such a high-profile matter, leaving open questions for the ex-FBI director to probe that could shed more light on how the government intends to prove its case and create potential lines of attack for the defense, experts say.

  • October 02, 2025

    Attys Get Mixed NJ Discipline After Fraud Convictions

    The New Jersey Supreme Court has disbarred ex-Sacks Weston attorney Scott Diamond from the practice of law in the Garden State following his conviction for fraudulently resolving cases behind the back of his old firm, according to filings issued Thursday.

  • October 02, 2025

    Tenn. 'Gag Order' Ruling Against Atty Axed After Rule Change

    The Sixth Circuit has vacated a decision that a Nashville attorney lacked standing to challenge a since-rescinded Middle District of Tennessee rule restricting lawyers' so-called extrajudicial statements.

  • October 02, 2025

    Baker McKenzie Brings New Suit Against Ex-Associate In DC

    A former Baker McKenzie tax attorney who publicly accused the firm's Washington, D.C., managing partner of sexual assault was previously in a relationship with the managing partner's son, the firm has said in a revised defamation complaint.

  • October 02, 2025

    Michigan OKs Anti-Bias Rule For Judges, Delays Atty Version

    Michigan's top court adopted a rule Wednesday prohibiting judges from acting with bias or prejudice but held back a companion rule for lawyers for more deliberation.

  • October 02, 2025

    McCarter & English Won't Face Pretrial Win Bid In $22M Suit

    A Connecticut Superior Court judge has denied requests by Phoenix Life Insurance Co. and PHL Variable Insurance Co. to file late partial summary judgment motions in a $22.3 million professional negligence lawsuit against McCarter & English LLP over the law firm's work on a Long Island loan deal.

  • October 01, 2025

    Tyson Inks $85M Deal To Exit Consumers' Pork Antitrust Suit

    Pork consumers asked a Minnesota federal court Wednesday to greenlight an $85 million settlement resolving their claims against Tyson Foods Inc. in major antitrust litigation alleging pork producers conspired with data firm Agri Stats Inc. to inflate pork prices by limiting the supply in the U.S. market.

  • October 01, 2025

    Conn. Servers Defend Asking Judge To DQ From Wage Case

    A class of servers at a Foxwoods Resort Casino steakhouse have defended their request for a Connecticut judge to disqualify herself from overseeing an upcoming trial, saying she violated the presumption of an adversarial court system by generating new defense arguments.

  • October 01, 2025

    Reed Smith Seeks 2nd Circ. Help Over Eletson Orders

    Reed Smith LLP has urged the Second Circuit to nix an order displacing the firm as counsel and requiring it to turn over client files for international shipping group Eletson Holdings Inc. to lawyers representing the company's new owners, saying Eletson's bankruptcy plan has not validly taken effect.

  • October 01, 2025

    Mich. Panel OKs Fine For Atty's Gender-Based Slur At Judge

    A Michigan appellate panel has affirmed a $7,500 fine for a lawyer who called a judge a vulgar term during a virtual hearing, rejecting the lawyer's defense that he thought he had closed out of the video call when he made the remark.

  • October 01, 2025

    Ex-Burnham Law Atty Claims Pregnancy Bias Behind Demotions

    A Colorado law firm is under fire from one of its former attorneys who claims her pregnancy led to her receiving two demotions at the firm and eventually being forced out entirely.

  • October 01, 2025

    Fla. Judge Shuts Down Firm's Fee Fight With Film Producer

    A Florida judge on Tuesday dismissed a long-running suit by a Miami law firm against a Hollywood producer after finding the firm had abandoned its opportunity to pursue its claim over allegedly unpaid attorney fees by waiting two years to find successor counsel after its last attorney withdrew.

  • October 01, 2025

    Judge Warns Of 'Bickering' In Creditor's Row With Law Firm

    An Illinois federal judge on Wednesday gave Chicago law firm Johnson & Bell LLP just under two weeks to produce records or a privilege log to a New York creditor who says the firm unlawfully "paid itself" with a client's $500,000 settlement, and encouraged the parties to "take a breath" in what she called one of the most contentious cases on her docket.

  • October 01, 2025

    Fed. Bill Would Let Judges Be Sued Over Repeat Offenders

    A federal lawmaker from North Carolina has proposed a bill to create a pathway for crime victims and their families to sue judges found to have acted with "intentional disregard for public safety" by releasing individuals convicted of violent crime who go on to re-offend.

  • October 01, 2025

    NJ Panel Skeptical Of Giving Benefits To Disciplined Ex-Judge

    New Jersey appellate judges appeared doubtful Wednesday about a bid for disability retirement benefits from a former state judge who was accused of harboring her then-fugitive boyfriend, was disciplined and was criminally charged but not convicted, questioning her assertion that the misconduct was unrelated to her judicial position.

  • October 01, 2025

    Ex-School GC Beats Charge Of Violating Grand Jury Secrecy

    A split Florida state appellate panel on Wednesday called for tossing an indictment against a former school district general counsel for violating the secrecy of a grand jury related to a 2018 mass shooting, finding that the statewide grand jury that charged her did not have the authority to do so.

  • October 01, 2025

    Ga. Atty DQ'd From 'Extremely Weird' Pharma Fraud Case

    A Georgia federal judge said Wednesday she intends to disqualify a prominent defense attorney from representing a man charged with lying to investigators amid a criminal fraud probe into his employer, Hi-Tech Pharmaceuticals Inc., but would allow the company to continue footing his legal bills as he seeks new counsel.

  • October 01, 2025

    Hunter Biden Agrees To Conn. Disbarment After Convictions

    Connecticut's attorney ethics watchdog told a state court that Hunter Biden has agreed to give up his law license, mirroring a consensual disbarment in Washington, D.C., after his conviction on three federal gun charges and his guilty plea in a criminal tax case.

  • October 01, 2025

    Ga. Law Firm Looks To Ax Bank's Malpractice Suit Over Fraud

    Stanley Esrey & Buckley LLP has urged a Georgia state appeals court to dismiss claims from a bank accusing it of legal malpractice and negligence, arguing that it did not cause the bank to lose more than $8 million through bogus loan transactions.

Expert Analysis

  • How Attorneys Can Break Free From Career Enmeshment

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    Ambitious attorneys can sometimes experience career enmeshment — when your sense of self-worth becomes unhealthily tangled up in your legal vocation — but taking the time to discover and realign with your core personal values can help you recover your identity, says Janna Koretz at Azimuth Psychological.

  • Ex-Chicago Politician's Case May Further Curb Fraud Theories

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    The U.S. Supreme Court recently agreed to hear Thompson v. U.S. to determine whether a statement that is misleading but not false still violates federal law, potentially heralding the court’s largest check yet on prosecutors’ expansive fraud theories, with significant implications for sentencing, say attorneys at the Law Offices of Alan Ellis.

  • Lawyers With Disabilities Are Seeking Equity, Not Pity

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    Attorneys living with disabilities face extra challenges — including the need for special accommodations, the fear of stigmatization and the risk of being tokenized — but if given equitable opportunities, they can still rise to the top of their field, says Kate Reder Sheikh, a former attorney and legal recruiter at Major Lindsey & Africa.

  • Opinion

    Judicial Committee Best Venue For Litigation Funding Rules

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    The Advisory Committee on Civil Rules' recent decision to consider developing a rule for litigation funding disclosure is a welcome development, ensuring that the result will be the product of a thorough, inclusive and deliberative process that appropriately balances all interests, says Stewart Ackerly at Statera Capital.

  • The Strategic Advantages Of Appointing A Law Firm CEO

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    The impact on law firms of the recent CrowdStrike outage underscores that the business of law is no longer merely about providing supplemental support for legal practice — and helps explain why some law firms are appointing dedicated, full-time CEOs to navigate the challenges of the modern legal landscape, says Jennifer Johnson at Calibrate Strategies.

  • Series

    Beekeeping Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    The practice of patent law and beekeeping are not typically associated, but taking care of honeybees has enriched my legal practice by highlighting the importance of hands-on experience, continuous learning, mentorship and more, says David Longo at Oblon McClelland.

  • Opinion

    Legal Institutions Must Warn Against Phony Election Suits

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    With two weeks until the election, bar associations and courts have an urgent responsibility to warn lawyers about the consequences of filing unsubstantiated lawsuits claiming election fraud, says Elise Bean at the Carl Levin Center for Oversight and Democracy.

  • How Cos. Can Build A Strong In-House Pro Bono Program

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    During this year’s pro bono celebration week, companies should consider some key pointers to grow and maintain a vibrant in-house program for attorneys to provide free legal services for the public good, says Mary Benton at Alston & Bird.

  • Series

    Home Canning Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Making my own pickles and jams requires seeing a process through from start to finish, as does representing clients from the start of a dispute at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board through any appeals to the Federal Circuit, says attorney Kevin McNish.

  • Use The Right Kind Of Feedback To Help Gen Z Attorneys

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    Generation Z associates bring unique perspectives and expectations to the workplace, so it’s imperative that supervising attorneys adapt their feedback approach in order to help young lawyers learn and grow — which is good for law firms, too, says Rachael Bosch at Fringe Professional Development.

  • Opinion

    Congress Can And Must Enact A Supreme Court Ethics Code

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    As public confidence in the U.S. Supreme Court dips to historic lows following reports raising conflict of interest concerns, Congress must exercise its constitutional power to enact a mandatory and enforceable code of ethics for the high court, says Muhammad Faridi, president of the New York City Bar Association.

  • Series

    The Pop Culture Docket: Justice Lebovits On Gilbert And Sullivan

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    Characters in the 19th century comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan break the rules of good lawyering by shamelessly throwing responsible critical thought to the wind, providing hilarious lessons for lawyers and judges on how to avoid a surfeit of traps and tribulations, say acting New York Supreme Court Justice Gerald Lebovits and law student Tara Scown.

  • State Of The States' AI Legal Ethics Landscape

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    Over the past year, several state bar associations, as well as the American Bar Association, have released guidance on the ethical use of artificial intelligence in legal practice, all of which share overarching themes and some nuanced differences, say Eric Pacifici and Kevin Henderson at SMB Law Group.

  • 8 Childhood Lessons That Can Help You Be A Better Attorney

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    A new school year is underway, marking a fitting time for attorneys to reflect on some fundamental life lessons from early childhood that offer a framework for problems that no legal textbook can solve, say Chris Gismondi and Chris Campbell at DLA Piper.

  • Opinion

    This Election, We Need To Talk About Court Process

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    In recent decades, the U.S. Supreme Court has markedly transformed judicial processes — from summary judgment standards to notice pleadings — which has, in turn, affected individuals’ substantive rights, and we need to consider how the upcoming presidential election may continue this pattern, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

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