Last week The Pew Forum released their findings of how certain professions are viewed by the public as contributing to society. Not surprisingly, lawyers were at the bottom of the list with 34% of people saying ’lawyers contribute not very much or nothing at all.' How did we get such a bad reputation? More importantly, if that’s how we’re perceived by potential clients, what can we do to improve the perception of our own firms?...
President Obama’s administration put the kibosh on an order from the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) which effectively banned select Apple products from being imported to U.S. markets. The Saturday veto came from U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman, the man tasked with presidential view of the USITC’s ruling, who believed the ruling would “hurt the U.S. economy and its consumers” as well as encourage a strange result in a standard-essential patent case, reports CNET....
You’ve passed the bar! Huzzahs all around, and with any luck you have a job waiting for you as well. But as the sparkles and warm fuzzies of bar passage fade, you’ll enter the cold, unfeeling world of being in active practice, and you will be assaulted with emails about your local bar associations. So, to the clear and present question: Are these local bar associations worth joining? Well, unlike your resident state bar association, those guys you paid hundreds of dollars for the privilege of taking the bar exam, the local bar associations (LBAs) are made up of groups of lawyers in your city/region and who are in your practice area....
Privacy Act Suit In Speaker v. US Dept. of Health & Hum. Servs., No. 09-16154, an action against the Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for violating the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. section 552a, by disclosing plaintiff’s identity and confidential medical information relating to the treatment of his tuberculosis, the court reversed the dismissal of the complaint where the district court’s order did not fully take into account the instances throughout the amended complaint in which plaintiff alleged a direct disclosure by the CDC....
This morning, desperate to find a topic to write about, I stumbled upon the Solo in Colo blog. As you might expect, it’s a blog, which deals with solo practice, in Colorado. Great name though, right? One of the more recent posts dealt with the issue of rural lawyering — a topic that has become increasingly intriguing, considering the glut of unemployed graduates and the dearth of legal services available in remote rural areas....
It is not uncommon to see attorneys practicing criminal justice change sides from defense to prosecution, or vice versa, when they decide it’s time for a career change. While sometimes (or probably most of the time) this change is fueled by more lucrative job opportunities, it can also be the result of a change in a lawyer’s moral compass. Once in a rare while, the switching of sides is actually a means to an end (other than more money)....
In house counsel and law firm attorney have traditionally been viewed as two distinct career paths for lawyers. Generally, in house counsel develop legal expertise for their organization and learn to handle a wide variety of matters. On the other hand, law firm attorneys are typically more specialized and their salary is based in large part on their rainmaking abilities. While success at a law firm and success as in house counsel oftentimes depends upon very different skills, recent data suggest that the lines separating these two careers are blurring as more and more in house counsel are leaving their jobs and joining firms....
The room rental company Airbnb, Inc. has just hired a new general counsel right in time to respond to an increasing number of legal headaches coming the company’s way. As Airbnb falls under the umbrella of the new “gig” economy, many of the legal issues will be new for in-house counsel. Rob Chestnut was named Airbnb’s new general counsel to replace the company’s Belinda Johnson who moved up the corporate ladder to Chief Business Affairs and Legal Officer late last year....
In a recent report, one of the key members of the House Financial Services Committee, Bill Huizenga, explained that Congress needs to act to protect crypto investors. But, according to Huizenga, how cryptocurrency will be classified by Congress is presenting a real challenge. He told Business Insider: “Everyone’s trying to figure out whether it’s fish or fowl. It turns out it might be a platypus. It’s kind of an unknown, or something sort of in between....
Here’s a clause you may not have noticed in your law firm’s cell phone policy: Your employer may have the power to delete everything on your cell phone – regardless who owns it. Any cell phone used for business purposes is likely covered by your law firm’s cell phone policy. That includes personal cell phones that are used to access the firm’s email system. But look closely. Many cell phone policies today allow employers to send a self-destruct message via your email server – and delete all data from your phone....
Imagine this, if you will: You wake up in the morning, have your breakfast, take the dog for a walk, sit down on your sofa, grab your VR headset from the wireless charging pad, put your VR headset on, and commute to the office at the speed of the internet. The virtual reality office could be a real boon for law firms and clients, big and small. Early adopters may be chanting “take my money,” but sadly this is still in the fantasyland of early production....
Do consumers have to dispute debts in writing in order to avail themselves of the protections of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA)? The Second, Ninth, and now Fourth Circuits all agree: the plain text of the FDCPA, even when the result is a wee bit odd, controls. Oral is okay, but written brings more protection. And then, there’s the Third Circuit, which is willing to read things into the text that aren’t there, for the sake of making the statute make sense....
If this were the Wild West, a $25,000 reward might have caught the attention of a lawman like Wyatt Earp. Earp, a special marshal and gunslinger, was most famous for the Gunfight at the OK Corral in 1881. In a town called Tombstone, the shootout left three outlaws dead and two lawmen wounded. But this is not the Wild West, Earp is long gone, and $25,000 isn’t exactly an enormous sum of cash these days....
H&R Block Eastern Enters., Inc. v. Morris, No. 09-11184, involved an action by a tax preparation firm against a former employee claiming that defendant violated the terms of her employment agreement by soliciting plaintiff’s clients, providing tax-preparation services to plaintiff’s former clients, and soliciting and hiring plaintiff’s employees. The Eleventh Circuit affirmed in part summary judgment dismissing both parties’ claims, on the grounds that 1) the district court did not err by granting summary judgment on defendant’s wrongful termination counterclaim because, even if defendant was hired for the 2006 tax season, no enforceable employment agreement governed the relationship; 2) defendant failed to exhaust her administrative remedies on her Title VII claim; and 3) an intra-corporate communication to someone who clearly had reason to receive the information did not constitute a publication for defamation purposes....
No one likes to work late, but one of the few perks is being reimbursed for what would otherwise be normal expenses. Need to order takeout because you’re staying late to finish a file? You might be able to get that reimbursed. The same goes for the cab you take home at 2am. But if you need to have your babysitter stay late because you’re going to be in the office all night, that’s another story....
Approval of a settlement in a class action lawsuit involving claims that AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals published artificially inflated prescription drug prices is affirmed where: 1) district court did not abuse its discretion by finding the settlement provision creating a cy pres fund was fair, adequate, and reasonable; 2) plaintiff’s objection to class counsel allegedly negotiating attorneys’ fees with the settlement is waived; 3) district court satisfied the requirements of Rule 23(c)(1)(B); and 4) plaintiff’s argument that the district court did not properly certify class counsel under Rule 23(g) is waived....
In 1996, Elmer and Nelva Brunsting established the Brunsting Family Living Trust for the benefit of their offspring. At the time of its creation, the Trust was funded with various assets, and both of the Brunstings’ wills included pour-over provisions, providing that all property in each estate is devised and bequeathed to the Trust. After the Brunstings passed, Candace Curtis alleged in a federal complaint that Amy and Anita Brunsting – her sisters, who were acting as co-trustees of the Trust – had breached their fiduciary duties to Curtis, a beneficiary of the Trust....
In a 42 U.S.C. section 1983 action claiming wrongful discharge based on Plaintiff police officers’ injuries suffered on duty, the dismissal of the complaint is affirmed, where Plaintiffs had no constitutionally protected property interest in reinstatement to their positions. Read LaSalle-Concepcion v. Toledo-Davila, No. 08-2048. Appellate Information: APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF PUERTO RICO. Hon. José Antonio Fusté, U.S. District Judge.Decided: June 18, 2009...
Elk Run, a coal mining company, did something most of us would find reprehensible. When an employee filed for Black Lung benefits, it had three experts analyze his pathology slides. Two provided unfavorable opinions. They went with the third, and handed that evidence to other experts, who found, based on that single report, that the employee, Gary N. Fox, did not have pneumoconiosis. Elk Run presented this at an administrative hearing in 1999....
Hiring freeze? Budget crunch? Hah! It seems that budget deal that ended the shutdown, and alleviated the effects of sequestration on the courts, has freed up some funds for a few staff positions at the Fourth Circuit. The Court of Appeals is looking for two librarians familiar with digital and electronic resources, and for an experienced attorney to lead the Office of Staff Counsel. Sound intriguing? Read on for the official job descriptions, and click the links for the full vacancy announcements, including duties and required qualifications:...
