The Zoom boom: How videoconferencing tools are changing the legal profession

Long before social distancing, Zoom touted its capabilities for lawyers. And the platform is booming, with a reported jump from 10 million daily users at the end of 2019 to 200 million in March. But lawyers must be extra careful when using Zoom or any other videoconferencing tool.

Jun 3, 2020 8:00 AM CDT

Proposal would require New Jersey lawyers to reveal client information showing wrongful conviction

An ethics proposal in New Jersey would create an exception to the duty of client confidentiality when a lawyer has information that an innocent person has been wrongly incarcerated.

May 28, 2020 10:06 AM CDT

Lawyer is thankful for second chances after suspension for erratic behavior, client neglect

Ohio lawyer William Matthew Tinch says he’s thankful for second chances after being indefinitely suspended Wednesday following “increasingly erratic” behavior and client neglect.

May 21, 2020 12:20 PM CDT

Lawyer indefinitely suspended for stealing from mentally ill client, charging legal rate for lawn mowing

The Ohio Supreme Court has indefinitely suspended a lawyer accused of transferring more than $147,000 from the accounts of a mentally ill client, although he and his law firm were only owed about $19,000.

Apr 29, 2020 9:31 AM CDT

Lawyer is accused of recruiting clients into prostitution ring he ran from his home

A 71-year-old criminal defense lawyer in Melbourne, Florida, was arrested Saturday for allegedly using his legal practice to recruit clients into a prostitution ring that he ran out of his home.

Apr 21, 2020 12:40 PM CDT

Legal reform supporters will keep advocating for California sandbox proposal

Advocates for legal regulatory reform say they are dismayed by the State Bar of California’s recent decision to postpone action on a proposed regulatory sandbox, but they have not given up the fight to convince the bar’s board of trustees to support further exploring the concept.

Mar 31, 2020 10:55 AM CDT

Is it time to reevaluate the standard for legal malpractice in criminal cases?

Feb 1, 2020 12:40 AM CST

Can Rudy Giuliani rely on attorney-client privilege to avoid congressional testimony?

Rudy Giuliani, President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer, has suggested that he is protected by attorney-client privilege in the impeachment inquiry by Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives. But at least one expert takes issue with that assertion.

Oct 1, 2019 1:44 PM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: Nursing home executives fined $400 daily; did black nationalism influence Justice Thomas?

New book seeks to explain conservatism of Justice Clarence Thomas A new book called The Enigma of Clarence Thomas contends that the justice’s conservatism is shaped by his immersion in black nationalism in the 1960s and 1970s. Author Corey Robin sees parallels between the movement and Thomas’ dedication to achievement…

Sep 24, 2019 3:11 PM CDT

Lawyer suspended for pocketing fees intended for law firm; court warns of tougher future penalties

A Cedar Rapids, Iowa, lawyer has been suspended for four months for keeping fees from clients that should have been split with his law firm.

Sep 17, 2019 10:04 AM CDT

To cooperate or not: That is a question for TV characters and real-life clients

Two examples of “snitching” on TV? That’s enough fodder to spark the flames of this week’s column from lawyer Adam Banner.

Sep 4, 2019 6:30 AM CDT

Nonlawyers could invest in law firms and own legal businesses under Utah work group’s proposal

A Utah task force is proposing a “regulatory sandbox” to allow experimentation with nonlawyer ownership of legal businesses and nonlawyer investment in law firms. New legal services providers would test their services in the regulatory sandbox, overseen by a new regulatory body that gathers data and tests revisions before granting…

Aug 28, 2019 11:13 AM CDT

Firm settles suit alleging it solicited fake online reviews that tricked woman into becoming client

Kraemer Manes & Associates has settled a lawsuit claiming that a client got bad legal advice after she was tricked into hiring the Pennsylvania law firm because of fake online reviews. Plaintiff Tabatha Wolfe filed a notice of the settlement in Allegheny County court Aug. 8, Law360 reports. Reuters had…

Aug 13, 2019 11:28 AM CDT

How to train your expert witness

Expert witnesses can make or break your case. In her new book, Janet S. Kole shares how you can make the most out of your witness.

Aug 8, 2019 1:16 PM CDT

In-House Ethics: Top state court says ethics rules haven’t ‘evolved with the profession’ and lawyer-client relationships

A fired in-house lawyer may sue his former employer for breach of contract and violation of public policy, despite an ethics rule that “robustly protects” a client’s right to terminate a lawyer at any time, for any reason, the Washington Supreme Court has ruled in a 6-3 decision.

Jul 25, 2019 3:31 PM CDT