Career & Practice

Law Firms Deny Leaving Confidential Docs at Recycling Center

A state government office in Georgia opened a civil investigation yesterday after confidential documents reportedly were dropped off at a recycling center that may have come from law firm files. But two law firms that reportedly may have left files to be recycled say they are unaware of any wrongdoing,…

Feb 25, 2010 10:32 PM CST

Weil Gotshal Clocked $300K a Day on Lehman; Total Bill Now Nears $150M

As law firms struggled in a difficult economy last year, Weil Gotshal & Manges had the advantage not only of being a big name in a hot practice area but having a blockbuster client. The firm has billed some $300,000 a day on the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy case, racking up…

Feb 25, 2010 8:22 PM CST

Global White & Case IT Chair Joins Latham; 16th Partner to Depart This Month

Updated: The global information technology practice group chair at White & Case is leaving to join Latham & Watkins, his soon-to-be former firm has confirmed in an e-mailed statement to the ABA Journal. Steven Betensky “is an excellent lawyer,” says Dimitrios Drivas, the head of White & Case’s global intellectual…

Feb 25, 2010 7:57 PM CST

Bad-Check Schemes Targeting Lawyers Are ‘Increasingly Sophisticated’

Bad-check schemes specifically targeting law firms are becoming more and more sophisticated, prompting calls for vigilance and caution in the bar. Lately, family law firms appear to be the targets of scams which purport to involve the collection of outstanding spousal support and other divorce matters. Earlier this week, the…

Feb 25, 2010 4:29 PM CST

NALP Dropped Quest for Nonequity Partner Data After Law Firms Resisted

The career professionals group NALP dropped an effort to collect data on nonequity partners after most of its law firm members refused to supply the information. The American Lawyer has the reaction: “Women lawyers are furious,” the publication reports. Women and minorities are pressing for the information so law students…

Feb 25, 2010 2:13 PM CST

Despite Decreased Revenue at Some Law Firms in 2009, Sunnier Year May Be Ahead

After a year of unprecedented BigLaw cost-cutting and a new emphasis on delivering value to corporate clients in the aftermath of a global economic crisis, annual revenue reports for 2009 being released this month suggest a sunnier forecast for 2010. While revenue has dropped significantly at a number of firms,…

Feb 25, 2010 2:15 AM CST

Attorney in Federal Wire Fraud Case Allegedly Didn’t ID Buyers at Closings

A Virginia attorney has been federally charged with wire fraud after allegedly failing to disclose to lenders at real estate closings that third parties were involved in four home sales in 2006. Court papers made public today in U.S. District Court in Norfolk contend that mortgage lenders lost over $200,000…

Feb 24, 2010 9:37 PM CST

Judge to Compel 2 Rothstein Firm Lawyers to Turn Over Computer Passwords

A judge overseeing the bankruptcy of the dissolving South Florida law firm at the center of a claimed $7 billion Ponzi scheme says he will order two former partners to turn over their passwords to a secure offsite e-mail storage system. Granting a request by trustee Herbert Stettin, U.S. Bankruptcy…

Feb 24, 2010 7:58 PM CST

Former Managing Partner Gets 99 Years in $25M Investment Scheme

When Edward Digges Jr. bilked one of his best clients at Digges Wharton & Levin out of $3.1 million in an overbilling scheme, he served two years in federal prison after pleading guilty in 1990 to mail fraud. He also was fined $1 million and wound up with a $3.6…

Feb 24, 2010 7:17 PM CST

PI Lawyer Takes ‘Honest Services’ Plea; Case Once Thought ‘Massive’ Fizzles

A Nevada personal injury lawyer accused of settling cases to his clients’ detriment has taken a plea, on the eve of a second trial in a federal “honest services” medical insurance fraud case once thought potentially to involve hundreds of professionals. Attorney Noel Gage has agreed to plead guilty on…

Feb 23, 2010 10:02 PM CST

Cooley Godward Chair Points Finger at Wilson Sonsini as Brocade Backdating Trial Opens

Gregory Reyes received backdated stock options while serving as the CEO of Brocade Communications Systems Inc. But he can’t be convicted of a crime for doing so because he didn’t know what he was doing was wrong, argued chairman Stephen Neal of Cooley Godward Kronish yesterday at the opening of…

Feb 23, 2010 7:00 PM CST

Body of Victim in Lotto Winner Murder Case Found in Law Firm’s Back Yard

Life hasn’t been going well for attorney D. Howard Stitzel III in recent years, as he struggled with six-figure debt and health problems and got pushed out of his law firm. Then a new problem arose for the 45-year-old Plant City, Fla., attorney: The body of a man murdered after…

Feb 23, 2010 6:04 PM CST

Coasting Partners Beware: You Aren’t Out of the Woods Yet

A law firm consultant warns that there may be more partner ousters during the first half of 2010 to make way for promoted associates. Thomas Clay of Altman Weil told the Fulton County Daily Report the economic climate is changing the law firm business model. That means loyal, hardworking associates…

Feb 23, 2010 12:30 PM CST

Judge’s Latest E-Discovery Ruling Is ‘Wake-up Call to Litigants’

U.S. District Judge Schira Scheindlin is well known for a series of rulings six years ago that established what kind of electronic evidence is discoverable and how the costs should be apportioned. Now the New York federal judge has written a new opinion (PDF) that says the duty to preserve…

Feb 23, 2010 11:29 AM CST

Law Firms Swindled Out of $500K in E-Mail Scam

Two law firms in Honolulu were scammed out of $500,000 in an e-mail scheme that’s apparently targeting the legal community. During the past six weeks, six different law firms have been targeted, according to the FBI, which issued a warning today (PDF). Two of the six fell for the scheme…

Feb 23, 2010 1:17 AM CST