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No doubt, Richard Goren is a good attorney. Apparently, he was too good for the opposing party who criticized him on the Ripoff Report. Goren then sued and obtained a judgment against his accuser. But the rub came in the subsequent case against the Ripoff Report. The U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals said the company was immune from liability in Small Justice LLC v. Xcentric Ventures LLC. Communications Decency Act The Communications Decency Act gives information content providers immunity from liability for various tort claims, including libel, intentional distress, and related claims....

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) turned its temporary rule banning abusive “naked” short selling of securities permanent earlier this week, just days before it was due to expire on July 31st. But not everyone is breaking out the champagne. Naked shorting, as the invidious practice is called, is selling stocks short without borrowing them first. Sellers then look to cover positions after the sale. The temporary rule was put in place as a stopgap measure last year at the time Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns were stumbling to demise....

What is a writ of error coram nobis and what does it take to have a court grant coram nobis relief? The First Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion earlier this week, stating that a writ of error coram nobis is the legal equivalent of a Hail Mary pass. The petitioner had been a court employee of the Massachusetts state court for 20 years. In 1995, he was charged with conspiracy to commit honest-services wire fraud....

Wikipedia is the largest online encyclopedia in the world, according to Wikipedia. It may not be entirely true, but it is true enough for some judges to take judicial notice of the information it contains. And if it’s good enough for court, it is probably good enough to be part of your marketing plan. Adding Wikipedia to your marketing plan is actually a great idea, based on internet search engine results....

What corporate legal lessons did you learn in 2012? It’s been a busy year for general counsel, as we witnessed an international patent war waged between two of the biggest tech companies in the world and the EEOC having perhaps its busiest year ever enforcing discrimination laws, just to name a few newsworthy developments. While there are undoubtedly some stories and events you will want to forget from 2012 (such as general counsel salaries falling), here are the Top 10 lessons all GCs will want to remember:...

Sentence vacated and reversed in conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm US v. Clay, 09-4572, concerned a challenge to the district court’s imposition of a 60-month sentence, in a conviction of defendant for being a felon in possession of a firearm. In vacating the sentence, the court remanded the case for resentencing as the district court erred in calculating defendant’s sentencing range under the Guidelines by counting his conviction for felony escape under Georgia law as a “crime of violence” under U....

For years, employees at Wells Fargo crushed sales targets and pulled down bonuses by opening millions of fake accounts on behalf of the bank’s real customers, all without those customers’ knowledge or consent. Those fake banking and credit card accounts would then wrack up fees which customers would be stuck with. In total, more than 2 million fake accounts could have been created, according to Wells Fargo’s own analysis. The massive fraud was made public today, when the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced it was fining the bank $100 million, its largest fine ever....

Some things are better left unsaid, and that includes text messaging. For lawyers, it goes without saying that they must protect client confidences. But when sending a text message, it’s easy to breach confidentiality because the sender doesn’t really know who will see it. That’s why there are some rules when it comes to lawyer-client texting. Here are some written ones: Consider Encryption WhatsApp, Signal, and iMessage offer some end-to-end encryption for messaging....

The case of Jarvis v. Village Vault was decided by the First Circuit last week in favor of the Massachusetts business, Village Vault. The legal issue revolves around how much government entanglement is needed in order to turn a seemingly private entity into an arm of the government thereby triggering due process concerns. Jarvis v. Village Vault involved the withholding and confiscation of firearms under Massachusetts law which requires a renewal of the state’s Firearms Identification (FID) card....

Are employees in your company traveling abroad for work? Depending on how high up they are in the company, what industry you’re in, and where they’re going, robbery and kidnapping are genuine concerns. So, too, are natural disasters and diseases. Pretty much same as here, but with a different legal system to content with. Don’t worry, though; you can keep them safe! Here are four things in-house legal counsel should know about mitigating the risks to your employees traveling abroad....

Like it or not, Microsoft Word is one of the two de facto word processing applications lawyers have to make peace with. (The other, WordPerfect, continues to enjoy widespread use, in spite of itself.) Many practitioners, though, don’t unlock the true power of Microsoft Word. Instead, they treat it as more or less a text-based word processor, which it is, but it’s also desktop publishing software. Take a look at these tips to see if you’re using Word to its full potential....

Custody issues aren’t a new thing in court but what about pet custody? Those battles are on the rise among couples that don’t have children but do have a beloved dog. In southern California there’s been a noticeable uptick in the number of pet custody cases. California is often a barometer for the rest of the nation so it’s fair to say these issues will keep coming up. For attorneys who work in family law, it’s a good chance you’ll see one cross your desk if you haven’t already....

Never underestimate the power of your brand. Your brand tells people where you stand, what type of clientele your firm takes and what your goals are. A brand helps attract clients– the right type of client. It also helps you gain recognition within your industry. And since usually people look for a lawyer online these days, your law firm’s online branding matters. Your online presence is your “storefront” these days. Clients will look for your website to get more information on you and what your firm offers....

She was eating a sandwich while sitting on a curb, waiting for her shift to start. Roxanna Orellana Santos was eating a freaking sandwich. Meanwhile, two astute officers, patrolling for wretched criminals, stopped her and asked her for her identification. She initially told them that she lacked an ID, but later found a copy of her El Salvadorian national ID. She was then detained, on the curb, while the officers checked for, and found, a civil immigration warrant that called for her immediate deportation....

We all know that as using social networking gains more and more ground, that it will eventually infiltrate our judicial system. Whether it is an alibi via Facebook status, violating a protective order via “poke” on Facebook, or even cyberbullying, social media is poised to enter the legal arena. It also brings up ethical issues for lawyers and judges. We’ve already seen one judge reprimanded for discussing a case with defense counsel through Facebook....

Maybe you Facebooked in college, or tweeted once or twice, just to see what the hype is about. Or perhaps you’ve been a luddite to this point and practiced online abstinence, eschewing social media as a venue for self-important twits to chat endlessly about their latest culinary consumption. Now you’re having second thoughts. You want to reach out to a new and broader clientele. You’ve heard about the benefits of online discussions with “thought leaders....

It’s not all sunshine, smiles, and drinks with little umbrellas in them in Puerto Rico today. Yesterday, a federal district judge upheld the territory’s ban on same-sex marriage, placing Puerto Rico in threadbare company with Louisiana as the only two jurisdictions whose federal courts upheld a state or territorial same-sex marriage ban. Unlike the Louisiana court, however, Judge Juan M. Perez-Gimenez dismissed on “procedural” grounds. Under a statute that goes back to at least 1902, Puerto Rico doesn’t recognize marriages between same-sex partners – or even “transsexuals” – performed in states where same-sex marriages are legal....

We’ve seen court after court after court, including a federal circuit court of appeal, rule in favor of gay marriage. But courts in the Eleventh Circuit have been conspicuously silent on the issue – until now. This afternoon, Monroe County Circuit Judge Luis Garica overturned Florida’s 2008 constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. It’s a narrow victory for gay rights proponents in Florida – it only applies to Monroe County (the Florida Keys) – but with four cases in the state racing towards decisions, it’s a good sign of things to come, and yet another entry in a long winning streak for gay marriage nationwide....

“The work of the Kennedy Commission that began 10 years ago is today an ongoing mission for the Criminal Justice Section and the ABA,” American Bar Association President Lauren Bellows remarked on Saturday, while introducing Justice Anthony Kennedy. “That report has become a blueprint for the ABA’s criminal justice agenda.” It may also have been a blueprint for Monday’s announced initiative and changes in policies by Attorney General Eric Holder on behalf of the Obama administration....

When you’re about to file a new case in a jurisdiction you’ve never filed before in, you might want to take a brief moment to review the local rules to make sure you crossed the right T’s and dotted the important I’s and made sure you were actually licensed in that jurisdiction. As misfortune would have, two attorneys in a putative class action against Trustmark National Bank have become the subject of a motion to disqualify them as counsel because they are not licensed in the state the matter was filed in, and, purportedly, have not been admitted to practice in that federal court....