District of Columbia

Shoot a Gun, Drive a Cruiser, Appear in a Lineup at New D.C. Museum

A new National Museum of Crime & Punishment is set to open this week in Washington, D.C., and according to the Washington Post, it aspires to be “a blend of theme park and TV show.” A release (PDF) promoting the opening notes that “the museum invites you to emerge from…

May 20, 2008 8:09 PM CDT

Lawyer Who Fought Nuclear Waste Had Unusual Last Request

A lawyer who died at the age of 53 after a campaign to ban a nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain had an unusual request in the obituary he wrote for himself. Joseph Egan wrote in the obit, posted on his firm’s website, that he had arranged for his ashes…

May 13, 2008 3:58 PM CDT

Kilpatrick Stockton Merges with 22-Lawyer D.C. Firm

Kilpatrick Stockton is merging with a 22-lawyer Washington, D.C., firm known for its work with financial institutions. Paul Aguggia, the chairman of the smaller firm, Muldoon Murphy & Aguggia, will head Kilpatrick’s financial institutions team in Washington, D.C., according to a press release (PDF). The combined firm would be ranked…

May 12, 2008 1:11 PM CDT

‘Pants Suit’ Judge Back in Court, Now Suing for Job and $1 Million

A former administrative law judge in Washington, D.C., who infamously filed suit against his dry cleaner for $67 million (he later reduced his claim to $54 million) is back in court again. Now Roy Pearson is seeking reinstatement to the job he may have lost, at least in part, as…

May 6, 2008 11:51 PM CDT

FBI Raids Federal Watchdog Agency

The FBI has raided the watchdog agency created to investigate complaints by federal employees and battle fraud in the U.S. government. Agents searched the Office of Special Counsel this morning and shut down its computer network, the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) reports. Investigators seized computers and documents belonging to…

May 6, 2008 5:38 PM CDT

Rule of Law ‘Crucial’ to Economic Success

Because the rule of law cannot be solely the province of lawyers, it was only fitting Wednesday afternoon that an economist on a panel made mostly of lawyers offered the most scientific and concrete example of the good it can bring. Daniel Kaufmann, director of global programs and governance at…

May 1, 2008 1:46 AM CDT

Mistakenly Revealed Logbook Has Lawyers Convinced They Are Monitored

Lawyers in Oregon and Washington, D.C., who represent a Saudi charity believe they have proof that the government improperly monitored their conversations with clients accused of financing terrorism. It’s in the form of a logbook stamped “top secret” that was mistakenly handed over to the lawyers in August 2004, the…

Apr 28, 2008 10:36 AM CDT

DOJ’s Abramoff Probe Ensares One of Its Own

A former Justice Department official is among those ensnared by a DOJ corruption probe into the activities of convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Robert E. Coughlin II, who served in the DOJ’s legislative affairs office from 2001 to 2003, was charged Monday in federal court with violating federal conflict-of-interest laws, the…

Apr 22, 2008 1:01 PM CDT

D.C. Madam Convicted

The so-called “D.C. Madam” accused of running a Washington, D.C., prostitution ring under the guise of an upscale escort service has been convicted on all charges. Deborah Jeane Palfrey, 52, was convicted today of racketeering, money laundering and two counts of using the mail for illegal purposes, reports the Washington…

Apr 15, 2008 6:23 PM CDT

Lawyer Hated Securities Practice, But Loves Fox News

As a practicing lawyer, Megyn Kelly hated her long work days. But now, four years after pleading her way into a part-time gig as a legal affairs expert in Washington, D.C., the 37-year-old Fox News anchor loves her job, reports the Washington Post. “When I was practicing law and had…

Apr 14, 2008 9:31 PM CDT

Alberto Gonzales Is Still Looking for Work

Usually a former U.S. attorney general has no trouble finding work at a prestigious law firm. But that’s not the case for Alberto Gonzales. Friends have inquired whether any Washington law firms are interested in hiring Gonzales, but none of them have made an offer, sources told the New York…

Apr 14, 2008 11:37 AM CDT

D.C. Madam Case Rough on Witnesses

Most of the powerful men who were the clients of the so-called D.C. Madam have avoided the limelight in her ongoing trial. But over a dozen of the relatively low-paid prostitutes who provided the sex for which they paid are being publicly humiliated as witnesses in the case, and many…

Apr 11, 2008 7:20 PM CDT

Lawsuit Against Powell Goldstein Lobbyist Breaks D.C. Norms

A May 1 settlement conference is scheduled in an unusual lawsuit against a lobbyist who jumped to Powell Goldstein last October. The $530,000 lawsuit against lobbyist Harry Sporidis “is a rare window into matters usually settled privately and quietly,” Legal Times reports. The plaintiff is Sporidis’ former employer, the Washington…

Apr 11, 2008 4:37 PM CDT

Patton Boggs Faces Suit by California Bank

A California bank claims in a lawsuit that the law firm Patton Boggs breached its duty as the lender’s general counsel by advising a group of activist shareholders who are planning a takeover. The suit says Patton Boggs served as the general counsel for Vineyard National Bancorp from 2003 to…

Apr 3, 2008 1:54 PM CDT

Sonnenschein Snags 18 Energy-Member Energy Group and Its Clients

Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal is gaining an 18-member energy practice group as well as the group’s entire book of clients. The team is moving to Sonnenschein from Sullivan & Worcester, Legal Times reports. Among those who are making the leap are Clinton Vince, managing partner of Sullivan & Worcester’s Washington,…

Apr 2, 2008 2:08 PM CDT