District of Columbia

Federal appeals judge, 97, who refused to cooperate in fitness probe loses challenge to disability law

Updated: A federal judge has upheld a disability law used to suspend a 97-year-old federal appeals judge from hearing new cases while dismissing the remaining claims in her legal challenge.

Jul 9, 2024 12:20 PM CDT

Lawyer freed pending appeal of Jan. 6 conviction because of Supreme Court decision

A U.S. Supreme Court decision on the scope of an obstruction statute has led a judge to order the early release of a Georgia lawyer convicted in the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot.

Jul 3, 2024 11:15 AM CDT

DC law licensing board recommends Rudy Giuliani be disbarred

The District of Columbia board that oversees attorney discipline recommended Friday that Rudy Giuliani, the former New York mayor and personal attorney to former president Donald Trump, not be allowed to practice law in the nation’s capital.

May 31, 2024 3:55 PM CDT

Budding cannabis law courses are growing—but not fast enough

An increasing number of law schools around the country are offering cannabis law courses, but some professors think that even more are needed. “We’re still playing catch-up.”

Apr 15, 2024 9:30 AM CDT

Which judges are most likely to issue nationwide injunctions? Party of appointing president makes a difference

Fifty-nine out of the 64 nationwide injunctions blocking Trump administration policies were issued by judges appointed by Democratic presidents, according to a study in the Harvard Law Review.

Apr 12, 2024 9:25 AM CDT

‘Venue is not a continental breakfast’ judge forced to eat his words after 5th Circuit blocks transfer

A federal judge in Texas who declared that “venue is not a continental breakfast,” allowing litigants to pick and choose where to file a lawsuit, should not have transferred a case to Washington, D.C., a federal appeals court has ruled.

Apr 9, 2024 2:13 PM CDT

Former DOJ official who alleged election fraud violated at least one ethics rule, ethics committee says

Former U.S. Department of Justice official Jeffrey Clark violated at least one ethics rule in connection with his false claims of election fraud during the 2020 presidential election, according to a preliminary finding announced Thursday by an ethics hearing committee.

Apr 5, 2024 9:14 AM CDT

Weekly performance meetings in glass room visible to others were retaliatory, plaintiff says in suit against Morgan Lewis

A Black patent prosecution specialist born in 1962 alleges that Morgan, Lewis & Bockius gave better opportunities to white, younger co-workers and retaliated when she complained by holding weekly performance meetings in a glass-walled conference room visible to colleagues.

Apr 1, 2024 3:37 PM CDT

‘Venue Is Not a Continental Breakfast’: Judge transfers case as district declares it won’t adopt anti-‘judge shopping’ policy

The federal courts in the Northern District of Texas won’t implement a new policy that aims to curb "judge shopping" by randomly assigning some civil cases filed in single-judge divisions to judges throughout the district.

Apr 1, 2024 10:18 AM CDT

Is ex-DOJ official facing ethics trial for ‘thought crime’? His election-fraud letter was based on sincerely held belief, lawyer says

A former Department of Justice official accused of drafting a letter with false allegations of election fraud that he hoped to send to Georgia officials did not violate ethics rules, his lawyer said at a disciplinary hearing Tuesday.

Mar 27, 2024 10:01 AM CDT

Lawyer defending ex-CEO of Overstock arrested after she is no-show on voting-machine-possession charge

A Michigan lawyer was arrested in Washington, D.C., on Monday for failing to appear for a March 7 hearing on charges that she possessed and damaged a voting machine.

Mar 20, 2024 9:44 AM CDT

The fate of billable hours is in the hands of artificial intelligence

The billable hour has long been the subject of much debate. Whether you love it or hate it, the billable hour could face an existential crisis, thanks to the rapid introduction of generative artificial intelligence tools.

Mar 12, 2024 2:11 PM CDT

What happens next after Supreme Court agrees to hear Trump immunity case

The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to weigh Donald Trump’s claim that he is immune from criminal prosecution on charges of trying to overturn the 2020 election while president, setting historic oral arguments for the week of April 22 and further delaying his trial in Washington, D.C., during this presidential election year.

Feb 29, 2024 10:00 AM CST

Contracts imposing $50K in liquidated damages for lawyer departures lead to suspension recommendation

The founding partners of Tully Rinckey should each be suspended for 90 days because of employment and separation agreements that restricted departing lawyers’ right to practice, according to an ethics recommendation.

Feb 22, 2024 1:17 PM CST

Federal judge refuses to order reinstatement of 96-year-old federal appeals judge, her second loss in a week

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has refused to order reinstatement to new case assignments for a 96-year-old federal appeals judge who claims that the laws governing judicial disability are unconstitutional.

Feb 12, 2024 3:56 PM CST