You’ve probably read about the New York Times reporter who says that he overheard lawyers for President Donald Trump discuss the ongoing Russia investigation at a Washington, D.C. restaurant, and then reported on the talk — which revealed details of a strategy debate, the alleged existence of documents “locked in a safe,” and other purported
Client confidentiality at the border: suit filed to block warrantless searches of e-devices
The ACLU and the Electronic Frontier Foundation have sued the Department of Homeland Security to block U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel from searching travelers’ electronic devices without warrants. This has implications for lawyers who cross in and out of the U.S. with phones and laptops containing confidential client information. The CBP’s policy, which the
Conducting third-party discovery against a current client? Tread carefully
What if you’re about to initiate litigation on behalf of your client, or you are in the middle of litigation, and you find that a different client you represent in another matter has documents relevant to the case? Can you subpoena the documents from your own client? Can you cross-examine that client at trial? Here
“Opioid haze” and chronic pain don’t mitigate theft of client funds; lawyer disbarred
A lawyer who was physically dependent on opioids and in an “opioid haze” was disbarred earlier this month for stealing more than $117,000 from a client. Her chronic pain and addiction were not “extraordinary mitigating” factors that justified departing from the presumptive penalty for client theft, the Washington Supreme Court held.
The decision is a
Using justice’s name as part of firm name was misleading, court says
Putting your law firm name on coffee mugs and giving away donuts to prospective clients is apparently not enough anymore. Recent firm branding campaigns have included sponsorships of pro golfers and cricket players, including emblazoning the bats with the firm name.
That may be the trend of the future in Biglaw, but a much
U.S. border searches of e-devices: NYC bar advises on confidentiality duty
Travelling abroad for work? What should you do if a Customs and Border Patrol agent, claiming lawful authority, demands that you unlock your computer or thumb drive or cell phone — full of client confidential information — and hand it over to be searched as you cross the U.S. border?
Prospective client? Not so fast, says district court in DQ ruling
If you’re driving from state to state, the rules of the road are generally consistent. While details may differ, a red light means “stop” in every state of the Union. But under our federal system, each U.S. jurisdiction has authority to regulate the practice of law — and under the resulting state ethics rules, not
Death of BigLaw partner spotlights problem of lawyer drug use, need for solutions
Hot on the heels of the publicity for Brian Cuban’s new book, “The Addicted Lawyer: Tales of the Bar, Booze, Blow and Redemption,” comes the searing account in the New York Times of the 2015 death of a former IP partner at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, who secretly battled drug addiction and reportedly
“Inexperience” reduces discipline for OK lawyer who displayed insolence and incompetence
Being inexperienced can contribute to getting into disciplinary trouble, but it can also be a mitigating factor in a bar disciplinary case. That’s the message of a recent opinion of the Oklahoma Supreme Court, which imposed a six month suspension from state practice as reciprocal discipline on a lawyer who had already been suspended from
No privilege for GC’s e-mails on company computer; but may be work product, NY court holds
The former general counsel for clothing retail giant Zara USA, Inc. can’t claim privilege in his discrimination-wrongful discharge suit for e-mails he created on a company-issued computer, said New York’s First Department court of appeals in an opinion last month — but the same material might be protected by the work-product doctrine, the court held.