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Pro se litigants are becoming increasingly common and while some self-represented parties do a pretty respectable job, others do not. Maybe they show up unprepared for their hearing. Or maybe their complaint is hand written. Perhaps they have … unique views on admiralty law and the federal legal system. But hey, what can you expect? These litigants don’t have years of legal training and much of their legal know-how comes from a Google search – if that....

Many lawyers wonder about opening second offices, sometimes known as “branch offices” or “satellite offices.” There are many factors to weigh before opening the doors to your second location, including whether business can justify the cost, and whether or not a second office would compromise the quality of the representation given to your current client base. Here are some of the most common reasons attorneys open secondary offices: Attorneys consider opening a second office in another region because they’ve penetrated their home region’s market for services to the greatest extent possible....

This changes e-Everything. As information security specialists sort out the aftermath of the 1 billion email hack at Yahoo, lawyers are circling the remains for future litigation issues. Will a billion customers rally for a class-action of privacy claims against Yahoo? Will Verizon retreat from its offer to pay $4.8 billion for the company’s core business? Will the federal government demand more records from Yahoo in its fight against cyberterrorism?...

In a RICO action claiming that because defendant health care corporation’s Medicare charge increases were unrelated to real cost increases, the excessive outlier payments it received from those inflated charges were unlawful, summary judgment for defendant is affirmed where the district court did not abuse its discretion by excluding plaintiff’s expert opinion on injury and damages for lack of fit with its liability theory. Read Boca Raton Comm. Hosp. v. Tenet Health Care Corp....

Waymo won the driverless car lottery, getting the first permit to go truly driverless in California. Scores of car companies have been operating autonomous cars with “safety drivers” for years. But according to reports, Waymo is the first to legally put cars on the street with nobody in the driver’s seat. Waymo vehicles have been rolling since 2014, but 2018 is the year they get their own license. That’s one small step for Waymo, one giant leap for the Department of Motor Vehicles....

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled this week in Simmons v. Epps that a trial court’s sentencing phase exclusion of a defendant’s self-made videotape expressing remorse was not objectively unreasonable. In 1996, Gary Carl Simmons killed his drug dealer, Jeffrey Wolfe, and raped Wolfe’s girlfriend, Charlene Leaser. After locking Leaser in a box, Simmons used butcher knives from his job at grocery store meat department to cut Wolfe’s body into small pieces and toss it in the bayou....

An alleged mixup made by an attorney could lead to a massive legal malpractice claim by whichever party ends up losing the case. The matter at issue is known as the “Dodgers Divorce” of Jamie and Frank McCourt, who owned the Dodgers. The case made headlines with an alleged affair, divorce, allegations of forged documents and provided plenty of material to keep journalists busy. Attorneys for former Dodger CEO Jamie McCourt each argue that their client is entitled to a portion of the Los Angeles Dodgers....

Dr. Alexander Fleming famously discovered penicillin by accident. He found the mold growing in his lab, leading to one of the greatest advances in human history – a cure for deadly infectious diseases. That’s like Patrick Wardle’s story – without the mold. The software security expert accidentally copied the wrong code and discovered a bypass to “do a lot of malicious stuff” to Apple products. Here’s how it happened. Accidental Discovery Wardle, a former National Security Agency hacker, was testing an old macOS attack....

The United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island vacated the conviction of Charles Moreau, former mayor of Central Falls, a financially troubled Rhode Island city. On Friday, the ex-Mayor walked out of prison after serving about half of his two-year prison term, reports the Associated Press. Illegal Gratuities? In 2012 Moreau pleaded guilty to illegally accepting gratuities in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 666, and was sentenced to two-years’ imprisonment on February 12, 2013....

Google rules everything around me. At this very moment they provide my email servers, handle my test messaging and voicemail, allow me to work on a collaborative blog post with six other people on Docs, created my web browser, and they even designed the Nexus phone and tablet on my desk. Google has a hand in nearly everything I will do today. And as of today’s update, it’ll even remind me to get a bag of brown rice when I drive by the grocery store on the way home....

A Haitian citizen’s petition for review of BIA’s denial of his application for relief from removal under the CAT is denied where: 1) the general detention conditions in Haiti are not sufficiently severe to rise to the level of torture; 2) the acts of mistreatment that petitioner will likely be subjected to in detention do not amount to torture; and 3) Court lacks jurisdiction to address petitioner’s remaining contentions that he has met his burden of proving that torture of criminal deportees in Haiti is widespread and that he is more likely to be singled out for mistreatment by Haitian authorities because of his personal characteristics....

For St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, this was merely a general post announcing the appointment of Robyn Diaz, JD, as their chief legal officer. For prospective in-house attorneys, it is much more. Reading about Diaz’s education and experience is like reading a case study in how to shape your career to eventually become a GC in a niche industry. She didn’t just know that she wanted to be a lawyer – she knew her interests were specifically within the healthcare industry....

Consolidated Cos. Inc. v. Lexington Ins. Co., No. 09-30178, involved an action against a commercial-property insurer seeking proceeds arising out of Hurricane Katrina-related damages. The court affirmed in part judgment for plaintiff on the grounds that 1) plaintiff was not required to draw a bright line in its evidence between loss stemming from property damage and loss stemming from market conditions; and 2) the district court did not abuse its discretion in granting defendant’s motion to enter a remittitur adjusting the verdict downward by $3 million....

Caroyln Elefant, the popular attorney-blogger, says it is time for old-school lawyers to step aside. Suggesting the legal profession take a cue from the Hebrew exodus, Elefant points out that Moses had to stay behind when his people reached the promised land. Likewise, she argues the older generation of lawyers has to leave it all behind. Not to be a noodge, but didn’t Moses miraculously part the Red Sea for the next generation to pass through to the other side?...

This is welcome news to come from the employment firm. Since it clocks in just under 800 attorneys, its pioneering move will set an example for other firms to take a similar path. Maybe the practice of law will be about service again. Too late to dream? Some people might describe the billable hour as the holy grail in the legal profession. Another word would be bane. Measuring associate performance by slavishly totting up the number of billable hours increases workplace stress....

A lawsuit filed by a group of 21 young people against the federal government due to climate change is less crazy than it actually sounds. A federal district court judge in Oregon ruled the case could proceed to trial, despite the government’s objections. However, due to a request for review filed by the White House, the Ninth Circuit has stayed the litigation in the district court pending its review. While there has not been any indication of whether the Ninth Circuit will actually disturb the lower court’s ruling, what is clear is that the appellate court is going to review the matter....

The First Circuit dealt with a contract matter, an immigration case and a case involving a district court’s dismissal as a sanction upon a party for discovery related matters. In Indigo Am., Inc. v. Big Impressions, LLC, the court vacated and remanded district court’s entry of default against the defendant in a breach of contract case. Under the factors set forth in KPS & Assocs., the court found that defendant ’s default was not willful, setting it aside would not prejudice plaintiff and that defendant met its burden of showing a meritorious defense....

For some lawyers, social media networks are a way to reach potential customers and build their name. For others, they’re a treasure trove of helpful evidence, with the errant Facebook post becoming the modern-day smoking bullet. There’s no escaping the fact that social media is a major part of today’s legal ecosystem. Master it, with these social media tips for attorneys, from the FindLaw archives. Social media isn’t just changing the way we connect to each other, it’s changing the way we practice law....

Conviction and sentence for firearms possession and other crimes is affirmed where: 1) the district court acted within its discretion in denying defendant’s third motion for a competency hearing based on the record evidence of his behavior; and 2) the court did not err in concluding that defendant’s three prior third-degree burglary convictions in Florida were violent felonies within the meaning of the Armed Career Criminal Act and sentencing him accordingly as the convictions satisfied the elements of the Act’s residual clause....

In a prosecution for being a felon in possession of a firearm, district court’s sentence of life imprisonment is affirmed where: 1) the district court properly relied on defendant’s prior juvenile convictions to enhance his sentence under the ACCA; 2) district court properly rejected defendant’s argument that his juvenile burglaries do not constitute prior offenses under the ACCA because he did not carry a firearm while committing a crime of violence; and 3) district court did not err in sentencing defendant to life in prison as the sentence was reasonable in light of his instant offense, his adult conviction for aggravated assault and battery, and his three prior convictions for burglary of firearms from residences....