Libel claim fails because in-house lawyer’s letter was opinion, judge rules

A contractor who didn’t like what an in-house lawyer for Merck had to say about him sued the company and the lawyer. But a federal judge in Pennsylvania has tossed the claim, saying the letter was opinion and fell short of the standard for defamation, the Legal Intelligencer reports. At…

Mar 27, 2013 7:56 PM CDT

Lawyer’s dad who favored ‘fashion house Fruit of the Loom’ and Bunny Bread is honored in obit

The life of Harry Weathersby Stamps, a man who “only stayed in the finest quality AAA-rated campgrounds,” is being honored in an obituary written by his daughter, an in-house lawyer in Texas. Stamps died on March 9, the day of the switch to what he called “the devil’s time,” according…

Mar 13, 2013 12:04 PM CDT

Hearsay: Do you have an unusual hobby?

Mar 1, 2013 9:50 AM CST

Why clients fear alternative fee arrangements

I was catching up on a pile of reading when I was confronted with a piece about the “fear” among general counsel of alternative fee arrangements. Just a few days before, I had highlighted a piece in Richard Susskind’s new book, Tomorrow’s Lawyers, where he observed that “in truth, hourly…

Feb 27, 2013 2:30 PM CST

3 lawyers facing theft and RICO cases over private investigation work for Glock get reprieve

Three lawyers facing criminal charges over $3 million in private investigation work they did for gun maker Glock Inc. got a reprieve Monday from the Georgia Supreme Court. Suggesting the 4-year statute of limitations had run on theft and attempted theft charges against Jerry Chapman, former federal prosecutor Jim Harper…

Feb 19, 2013 10:10 PM CST

In-house counsel ‘woefully unprepared’ to deal with cybersecurity issues

More than a quarter of the respondents to a 2012 general counsel survey say their companies experienced a cybersecurity breach during the last year or so. And that number may well be too low; given the expense and embarrassment associated with hacking and data security breaches, some individuals who discover…

Feb 13, 2013 2:29 PM CST

Foreign lawyers could work in US as in-house counsel under model rule change

Foreign lawyers would have limited authority to serve as in-house counsel in the United States under a resolution approved on Monday by the ABA House of Delegates. Resolution 107A is among a series of proposed amendments to the ABA model ethics rules that acknowledge the globalization of law practice. It…

Feb 11, 2013 8:35 PM CST

Legal know-how and yen for gin helps retired litigation chief launch new business

After years of running a litigation team as a Verizon in-house lawyer, Michael Lowe soon found that practicing his yoga moves could only keep him busy for a limited amount of time in retirement. So the 63-year-old former Navy officer launched a craft distillery with his son-in-law, investing about $1…

Feb 11, 2013 2:37 PM CST

SEC Taps Bingham McCutchen’s Geoffrey Aronow as New General Counsel

Geoffrey F. Aronow has been named as the new general counsel of the Securities and Exchange Commission. A partner in the Washington, D.C., office of Bingham McCutchen, he formerly served for nearly four years as director of the federal Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s enforcement division. Both Bloomberg and Reuters have…

Jan 7, 2013 5:50 PM CST

In-House Counsel, Accused of Stealing $9M By Paying Fake Law Firm Bills, Gives Himself Up to Police

A suspended New York lawyer who has been accused of embezzling $9 million while working as an in-house counsel in Houston gave himself up weeks ago at a Rhode Island police station, his lawyer says. And when Anthony Chiofalo turned himself in, he also gave up something else, his lawyer,…

Jan 4, 2013 5:58 PM CST

The Aftermath of Urging Law Firms Not to Send Out Price-Increase Letters

I recently wrote a piece for Corporate Counsel magazine that suggested that law firms might want to think twice about sending out their annual rate increase letter. The response has been incredible. And vehement. From every side. No surprise, eh? I’ll assume that you’ve either read the article, or that…

Dec 13, 2012 6:06 PM CST

General Counsel for SC Motor Vehicles Dept Is Reprimanded for Writing Judges, Not Copying Parties

The general counsel for South Carolina’s department of motor vehicles has been reprimanded by the state supreme court for writing a number of letters to judges to express objections to their orders concerning tickets, but not copying pro se defendants. General counsel Frank Valenta didn’t realize the ex parte communications…

Dec 10, 2012 9:22 PM CST

Around the Blawgosphere: The ‘Lawyer Brain’ and Parenting; Should Firms Blaze Two Trails to the Top?

When JDs Know Best At Lawyerist, U.S. Bank attorney Andy Mergendahl acknowledges that having a “lawyer brain” can be harmful in many interpersonal situations. But he also sees where it can be an advantage in parenting—particularly in dealing with disputes between children. “For example, when rough play leads to a…

Dec 7, 2012 2:30 PM CST

SEC General Counsel Mark Cahn to Leave Job; Three Other Top Regulators Are Also Exiting

The general counsel of the Securities and Exchange Commission will leave his job there at the end of the year to return to the private sector, the federal agency announced Wednesday in a press release. It doesn’t say what exactly Mark D. Cahn plans to do after leaving the SEC.…

Dec 5, 2012 6:32 PM CST

Should Law Firms Get More Money for Simply Showing Up? Reasons to Nix Rate-Increase Letters

Those December BigLaw rate-increase letters dispatched to corporate clients are as unwelcome as holiday fruitcake, according to the former general counsel of the Association of Corporate Counsel. Writing for Corporate Counsel, former ACC official Susan Hackett outlines five reasons why law firms should not send out those December letters. Here…

Dec 5, 2012 1:05 PM CST