President Obama returned to the pages of the Harvard Law Review last week, publishing a commentary on criminal justice reform in the journal he once edited. The 56-page article surveys the work the Obama administration has taken to address inequities in the criminal justice system while also detailing what remains to be done. It’s a strong defense of the president’s criminal justice legacy, as well as a roadmap for future reform....
We’ve all probably heard the joke about the lawyer that dies, goes up to heaven, and sees St. Peter at the pearly gates. St. Peter looks the lawyer up and down, then says: “There must be some mistake, you look far too young. According to your billable hour log, you should be 172 years old.” Traveling for work can have its perks, unfortunately those perks don’t include double billing, or even being able to bill your clients for first class plane tickets....
This past year has been a big one for GCs across the country. Quite a few got fired, stepped down, retired, or actual had to face consequences. But just like in life, when the door closes for one GC, it opens for another. Below, you can read about five of the biggest GC hires in 2018. Most recently, Tesla, one of the most talked about companies in the country, hired a new GC to replace the last one who, notably, was Musk’s divorce lawyer....
Encryption isn’t just about decoder rings and Nazi spies anymore; it’s one of the main legal and political issues of our time. It’s a topic lawyers need to understand, as encryption touches on everything from privileged communications, to cybersecurity, to the Fifth Amendment. Here’s our roundup of FindLaw’s best encryption-related Technologist posts. It’s much of what you need to know about encryption, in just a few posts. Confused about the basics of wireless security?...
District court’s order affirming a bankruptcy court judgment allowing the bankruptcy trustee to avoid and recover certain payments made to plaintiff during the 90 days prior to the bankruptcy petition is affirmed as, regardless of whether the transfers set in motion a chain of events that resulted in the debtor’s recoupment of the amounts paid, plaintiff did not show that such new value was given to the debtor as part of a contemporaneous exchange....
In recent years, the big buzzy catchphrase that online marketers relied on to upsell services was “pivot to video.” However, recently, the “pivot to video” movement has been criticized as a byproduct of Facebook’s miscalculations. According to the lawsuit over the 2016 Facebook video debacle, the company had inflated video view rates by as much as 900 percent. Those are, as one Ghost Buster would probably put it, numbers of a biblical proportion....
In a class action lawsuit against pharmaceutical companies claiming that they unfairly and deceptively inflate the drugs’ average wholesale prices (AWPs), district court’s judgment dismissing Class 1 plainitffs’ claims is vacated and remanded as there is a lack of clear understanding of both the scope of the district court’s judgment and the reasons for the judgment. Read Young v. Johnson & Johnson, No. 08-1002 Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts...
Tim Kentley-Klay was on a fast track in the self-driving car business. He co-founded Zoox in 2014, and today the startup is valued at $3.2 billion. The company is going places, especially after raising another half-billion in July. Not bad for a 43-year-old who had no prior experience in the car business or artificial intelligence. Of course, the board fired him. No Prior Experience The shock rumbled through Silicon Valley, where many neophyte entrepreneurs have made billions....
Things were easier before the advent of smartphones. Dumb phones, locked to one’s carrier, were mostly useless once stolen. The victim would call their carrier, report the flip phone as stolen, and the phone’s serial number would be blacklisted. A dumb phone, once blacklisted, might be worth $50 if sold abroad or parted out. Not exactly worth the trouble, right? Smartphones have changed that, somewhat. If a smartphone is stolen, that person’s carrier will probably block it....
Clients are hard to find, so the very last thing you want to do is lose them. You’ve put in so much work, invested so much effort, and – yes – relied on a fair bit of luck to convince someone to walk through your door. They’ve even hired you. So, shouldn’t you at least spend as much effort to retain them? Well, casual observations indicate that lawyers are not very good at this – the retention part....
Need some new toys, architectural models, or maybe an undetectable gun? No need to take a trip to the store. For a few hundred dollars, you can pick up a consumer-grade 3-D printer and start printing out everything from Japanese flutes to Adidas sneakers. For lawyers, 3D printers could also be pumping out new clients and extra billable hours, as consumer 3D printing leads to increased intellectual property disputes. 3D Printing a Lawsuit The laws regarding 3D printing are lax....
What happens when everyone suddenly has a smartphone and a wireless network? Appliance companies start making the same old things they used to – but with wireless capability and smartphone access. Seems preposterous? It can be. From the “smart” washing machine to the “smart” yoga mat, companies are coming up with new and interesting ways to make you pay $200 more for the same old crap you always had – but now you can control it with your iPad!...
Whether you’re headed into trial, or just some motion practice, being able to turn your case into a compelling story is critical to swaying a judge and/or jury. While applying the law to the facts might put your case at a disadvantage, if you can get the fact finder to see things from your perspective, it’ll be more difficult for the judge or jury to rule against you. But, unless you have clearly sympathetic facts, crafting a strong story for your case can be more challenging than it sounds....
Trying to cut down on overhead and save some office space? Need some extra help but not enough to bring on a full team of support staff? You might consider contracting with a virtual paralegal. Just like with the traditional paralegal set up, you’ll want to make sure your paralegal is credentialed. There are generally two types of credentials paralegals can obtain: a certification showing that the paralegal has passed a professional exam or a certificate, showing completion of an educational program....
You don’t have time to waste. Or if you do, you don’t want to waste it renumbering paragraphs in a document, or futzing with a malfunctioning printer. Thankfully, many of the obnoxious time sucks we encounter can be avoided, making our days more productive and less annoying. How? Here are our five top law firm productivity tips, from the FindLaw archives. You probably use Word every single day, for much of the day....
After jamming all that law into your head, the way you make money is by getting it out. Typically, lawyers do it by advising clients, drafting legal documents, and making arguments in court. But there are other ways, and most lawyers don’t do it. It’s surprising because it’s not like they have to learn anything more. The knowledge is already there for the paying. 1. Be a Coach Attorneys consult with clients all the time, but legal coaching is different....
The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act can’t be used against companies that “dispose” of hazardous substances through air pollution, the Ninth Circuit ruled last week, in a case of first impression. The State of Washington and Colville Tribes had sought to use CERCLA, also known as the Superfund Act, against a Canadian smelter that had released hazardous pollution into the air, pollution which was later deposited in Washington. But, the Ninth ruled, that smelter cannot be considered a person who “arranged for disposal” of hazardous substances under that law....
For the overly busy, the free two-day delivery on all orders alone makes membership worthwhile. And when Prime Day rolls around, you can easily net savings on items for the office that could cover the cost of your annual membership. Below, you can see some of best deals for office, but act fast as Prime Day ends in under 36 hours, on Tuesday, July 17 at 11:59pm. If you’re looking to score a deal on a netbook or tablet, Prime Day may have some worthwhile deals for you....
Getting a letter addressed from a law firm can be cause to cause consternation, but one signed off by nine different law firms can lead to a medical condition. Fortunately the letter sent to Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) signed by multiple law firms was in support of its proposal to beef up shareholder rights. Nine major securities and corporate governance law firms signed their support of the SEC initiative in a letter, in light of comments made by certain New York law firms challenging the SEC’s proposed rule....
Last month, we wondered whether lawyers should get involved in the debt collection business. It’s fraught with regulations, and this case from the First Circuit demonstrates what can happen to a law firm that doesn’t follow those regulations. Robbie Pollard had a debt of about $612. The Law Office of Mandy L. Spaulding sent Pollard a letter saying that it was collecting on the debt and that, you know what, she was just going to sue her to get this all over with....
