In-house Counsel

In-House Counsel for Developer Didn’t Stop $98M Mortgage Fraud, Loses Law License for 4 Years

A sole practitioner who worked as in-house counsel for companies controlled by a New York real estate developer has lost his law license for four years, because he failed to detect and stop mortgage-origination fraud by the developer that cost lenders $98 million. There is no evidence that Thomas Cusack…

May 17, 2012 4:30 PM CDT

In-House Lawyers Provide Pro Bono; One Effort Upgrades Tech for Legal Aid Groups

Several major corporations are creating structured pro bono programs and setting benchmarks for contributions by their legal staffers. At the Pro Bono Institute’s annual conference last month, lawyers from 80 companies attended a training session, the Washington Post reports. The story profiles one project that will digitize legal files for…

May 9, 2012 10:30 AM CDT

A Trusted Adviser in the New Normal Must Be Like a Symphony Conductor

When I started practicing law in 1982, a good lawyer was one who possessed superior substantive knowledge of an area of the law. Those lawyers read cases and law review articles. Their ability to advise clients on what the law was made them masters of their craft. Things have changed.…

May 8, 2012 3:24 PM CDT

Handed Wal-Mart FCPA Case By NY Times, Feds May Be Tempted to Bring 1st SOX Certification Case

It’s easy to see why the feds have been reluctant to enforce the controversial gatekeeper provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which require individuals such as corporate attorneys to report company wrongdoing up the chain of command to the audit committee. Attorney-client privilege issues, for one thing, could create evidentiary problems,…

Apr 23, 2012 10:33 PM CDT

As Nonprofits Look to Hire In-House Lawyers, General Counsel Offers Tips to Those Who Want the Job

Once a BigLaw litigation associate, Lesley Rosenthal found a way to land a job many lawyers only dream of. Now the general counsel in charge of a small legal department at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York, the former Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison attorney…

Apr 17, 2012 10:54 PM CDT

The Rise of General Counsel: Prof Outlines Three Generations of Lawyering

The legal profession of generalist lawyers changed after the end of World War II, becoming a profession of specialists trained to serve the needs of industrial and financial clients, a law professor says. Now lawyering is entering a third generation, according to Indiana University law professor William Henderson. Lawyers are…

Apr 16, 2012 11:00 AM CDT

Detroit City Attorney Loses Law License for 90 Days for Lying re Then-Mayor’s Text-Message Scandal

Saying that Detroit City Attorney Valerie Colbert-Osamuede had no prior record of ethics violations, was unlikely to err again and gained no personal benefit from her misconduct, a state lawyer discipline board has suspended her law license for 90 days, reports the Detroit Free Press. The Michigan Attorney Grievance Commission…

Apr 6, 2012 6:51 PM CDT

City of Portland, Ore., Sues Insurer to Recover In-House Defense Costs of $1.5M

Saying that the use of its own in-house city attorneys to fight employment-related claims conferred a benefit to its insurance carrier, the city of Portland, Ore., has filed suit against its former liability insurer. Filed Friday in Multnomah County Circuit Court, the suit seeks reimbursement of nearly $1.5 million Portland…

Mar 6, 2012 9:37 PM CST

Around the Blawgosphere: A Stephen Colbert Hypo; Bloggers Pay Last Respects to One of Their Own

A Key Employee Chicago lawyer Jeff Nowak used Stephen Colbert’s recent absence from taping his Comedy Central program, The Colbert Report, to explain “a little-used, often forgotten rule under the Family and Medical Leave Act” at his blog, FMLA Insights. It has been widely reported that Colbert canceled those two…

Feb 24, 2012 3:01 PM CST

Lawyers Defending Former Glock General Counsel Question Company’s Involvement in His Prosecution

Jury selection began yesterday in the Georgia trial of a former general counsel and CEO in the U.S. headquarters of Glock Inc. He is facing theft and racketeering charges after police said he stole millions of dollars and a custom pistol from the renowned Austria-based firearms manufacturer. Paul Jannuzzo, 55,…

Feb 22, 2012 8:30 PM CST

Ex-U of Iowa Dean and GC Seek Damages for Firings Over Handling of Student Probe

A former longtime dean of students at the University of Iowa is seeking to join a former general counsel in litigation against the university and a private law firm, among other defendants, over the manner in which the two men handled a 2008 student sexual assault investigation. Last month, a…

Feb 15, 2012 10:30 PM CST

10 Concrete Ways to Measure Law Performance

A few days ago, my compadre Paul Lippe wrote a thoughtful post: What if Someone Could Measure What Lawyers Do? Paul addressed the “fancy term” for the argument that what lawyers do can’t be measured: “credence good.” As good as Paul’s post was, the comments on it were particularly interesting.…

Feb 15, 2012 10:21 PM CST

Hedge Fund Suit Accuses Minneapolis Law Firm of Aiding Criminal Enterprise

A hedge fund that lost money with a convicted Ponzi schemer has sued his in-house counsel and outside law firm. The suit accuses Minneapolis-based Fredrikson & Byron of materially aiding the criminal enterprise of convicted businessman Tom Petters over a 10-year period, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. The suit by…

Feb 8, 2012 1:19 PM CST

Panelists See Progress for Women of Color at Corporate Legal Departments, But Barriers Still Exist

Many large corporations are making significant progress in bringing diversity to their legal departments and creating opportunities for women of color to advance, but a panel of women lawyers in corporate leadership positions told a packed audience today that women also need to take control of their careers if they…

Feb 4, 2012 2:22 AM CST

Lawyer Comp: The Third Rail of Legal Value Conversations (Part II)

In Part Two of this article, Susan Hackett, the former general counsel for the Association of Corporate Counsel, and now the CEO of her own consulting practice, Legal Executive Leadership, explores new ways to assess lawyer compensation in the New Normal. In part one, she discussed her concerns with law…

Jan 31, 2012 11:21 PM CST