California

COVID-related backlogs no longer reason to delay misdemeanor trials, appeals court says

An appellate court in California has admonished a lower court for continuing to cite the COVID-19 pandemic as a valid reason to delay trials.

Jul 17, 2024 8:45 AM CDT

San Francisco and Los Angeles are seeing a shakeup in law firm leases

Law firms in both San Francisco and Los Angeles are increasingly moving their offices out of downtown areas, as more than 30 million square feet of law firm leases in nine key markets are due to expire.

Jul 17, 2024 8:00 AM CDT

Lawyer’s conduct must be ‘seriously’ annoying to warrant restraining order, appeals court says

Updated: A lawyer who accused another attorney of yelling and glaring at her, ranting “in an unintelligible manner” and serving her with bogus documents is not entitled to a permanent restraining order, a California appeals court has ruled.

Jul 3, 2024 9:14 AM CDT

Purdue Global will add full-time JD program, while 2 small California law schools will close

The State Bar of California’s Committee of Bar Examiners approved several policy changes regarding its state-accredited and unaccredited law schools, along with unveiling a new report detailing their outcomes at its June 21 meeting.

Jun 26, 2024 11:20 AM CDT

These 3 law firms are paying summer bonuses; will BigLaw follow?

Is the summer-bonus bandwagon for associates getting revved up? Law firms in California, Texas and New York have announced summer bonuses collectively ranging from $2,500 to $30,000.

Jun 25, 2024 9:02 AM CDT

As copyright concerns halt California’s plan for Kaplan bar exam, non-NCBE options being explored

The State Bar of California says it will continue to explore options outside of the National Conference of Board Examiners’ bar exam offerings after putting on a hold a plan to create a proprietary exam with Kaplan North America.

Jun 20, 2024 3:11 PM CDT

Has litigation ended between Littler and ex-associate? Settlement cited, but resolution unclear

Littler Mendelson told a Texas court last week it is dropping its lawsuit accusing a former associate of uploading confidential law firm documents to her Dropbox.

Jun 17, 2024 10:37 AM CDT

Does SCOTUS decision in ‘Trump too small’ case show ‘rifts in the originalist consensus’?

Updated: The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office did not violate the First Amendment rights of a trademark applicant when it refused to register the phrase “Trump too small.”

Jun 13, 2024 12:40 PM CDT

Winner of ABA Thurgood Marshall Award got an early start in civil rights work

A civil rights lawyer who once debated then-Vice President Spiro Agnew is the winner of the ABA Thurgood Marshall Award.

Jun 12, 2024 12:53 PM CDT

Lawyer accused of seeking Israeli hackers to obtain judge’s personal emails

A California lawyer is accused of planning to hire Israeli hackers to access the personal email and phone accounts of a judge who later ordered him to disgorge $1.65 million in attorney fees.

Jun 12, 2024 9:26 AM CDT

‘Robot lawyer’ DoNotPay reaches settlement in suit alleging it’s neither robot nor lawyer

“Robot lawyer” DoNotPay has agreed to settle a lawsuit alleging that the website engaged in the unauthorized practice of law and provided substandard legal services.

Jun 11, 2024 3:47 PM CDT

Disney Channel actress is now a Harvard Law grad—and that’s not all

An actress who starred in the Disney Channel TV series Good Luck Charlie isn’t limiting her career path to acting.

May 30, 2024 9:10 AM CDT

Scheme by former Samsung lawyers was ‘dishonest, unfair, deceitful and repugnant,’ judge says

A federal judge in Texas has tossed a patent infringement lawsuit against Samsung Electronics because of evidence that the claims were “infected” by the theft of information protected by attorney-client privilege.

May 29, 2024 1:25 PM CDT

Family members sue networks after learning of loved ones’ deaths by seeing bodies on TV

Family members of a California couple who died in the 2022 McKinney wildfire have sued two television networks for broadcasting images of their loved ones’ bodies.

May 23, 2024 12:30 PM CDT

California bar plans to expunge attorney discipline records under certain conditions

The State Bar of California's board of trustees approved a plan last week to expunge discipline records automatically for attorneys who have not been disbarred.

May 20, 2024 9:21 AM CDT