International

Vatican Supplements 7 Sins List

Updated: While serious sins used to be a matter of individual misbehavior, in a global world they are often more political in nature and thus can affect large numbers of people, a top Vatican official says. Among the misconduct that Monsignor Gianfranco Girotti denounces as “violations of the fundamental rights…

Mar 10, 2008 6:58 PM CDT

Chinese Human Rights Lawyer Freed, Warned About Speaking Out

A Chinese human rights lawyer is free after spending 41 hours in government custody. Teng Biao said officers from the Beijing Public Security Bureau warned him about recent articles he had posted on the Internet and told him he should not speak out, the New York Times reports. Teng said…

Mar 10, 2008 5:39 PM CDT

No Associates at This Law Firm, Just Consultants

A Canadian law firm says it has never has a problem with associates over billable hours requirements. That’s because it has no associates. Instead, Thackray Burgess has “consultants” who hire desk space from the 34-attorney business firm at a cost of $800 per month, and do as much or as…

Mar 10, 2008 3:14 PM CDT

Clifford Chance to Open Kiev Office

Clifford Chance will open an office in the Ukraine capital of Kiev later this year. Central and Eastern Europe is one of the fastest growing regions for the U.K.-based firm, regional managing partner Michael Cuthbert said in a press release. Leading the new office will be Nick Fletcher, currently managing…

Mar 10, 2008 2:28 PM CDT

Up to 60 Lawyers Targeted in U.K. Bar Group’s Mortgage Fraud Probe

The Solicitors Regulation Authority reportedly has launched an investigation of 40 to 60 unnamed lawyers in the United Kingdom for possible mortgage fraud. Four law firms have also been searched as part of a different mortgage fraud investigation of attorneys and non-attorneys by the government’s Serious Fraud Office, according to…

Mar 8, 2008 1:59 AM CST

Another Chinese Human Rights Lawyer Disappears

A prominent Chinese human rights lawyer is missing. At least two other lawyers who have spoken out against the government have recently run into trouble with authorities, and activists now fear a third, Teng Biao, has been detained. Teng never returned home Thursday evening; witnesses said they saw a man…

Mar 7, 2008 1:53 PM CST

Competition Spurs Dubai Law Firms to Cut Fees

So many law firms have opened offices in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, that they are now cutting fees to grab more legal work. Lower fees are most likely in practice areas involving energy, project finance, construction and sovereign wealth funds, Legal Week reports. By some estimates, nearly 30 Western firms…

Mar 7, 2008 12:34 PM CST

Law School Accepts 8-Year-Old

An 8-year-old boy who passed the entrance exam was enrolled in a Brazilian law school. However, his academic career there came to an abrupt end when school officials realized he couldn’t yet have graduated from high school, which is a prerequisite for admission. “The Universidade Paulista, a multi-campus private university,…

Mar 7, 2008 2:06 AM CST

Allen & Overy’s Secret to Success: Yearbook and Musical

A musical. A website. A yearbook. Planned get-togethers with classmates. Seemingly, these must be part of a high school or college group’s activities, but they’re not. All are features of Allen & Overy’s program for law firm alumni. Launched in 2005, it now involves some 2,000 former lawyers and staff…

Mar 5, 2008 4:46 PM CST

Japan Releases U.S. Marine Accused in Rape of Teen

Japan has released a U.S. Marine accused in the rape of a 14-year-old Japanese girl to the custody of the U.S. military. Lt. Col. Douglas Powell confirmed the release of Staff Sgt. Tyrone Hadnot and told Reuters the U.S. Marines is still investigating the case. Kyodo News agency reported that…

Feb 29, 2008 2:20 PM CST

One of Two Dewey Offices in Beijing Moves to Reed Smith

When LeBoeuf Lamb Greene & MacRae combined with Dewey Ballantine, the newly merged firm had two offices in Beijing. Now the firm of Reed Smith “is essentially acquiring the Dewey Ballantine side of the practice,” the Legal Intelligencer reports. Among the Beijing lawyers moving to Reed Smith are corporate partner…

Feb 28, 2008 1:34 PM CST

2 Child-Rape Victims, Now 19: Here’s How We Moved On With Our Lives

Two 10-year-old girls who made national news in the U.K. in 1999, when a convicted pedophile abducted and held them for four days, are now young women of 19. And, contrary to what many might have guessed, Lisa Hoodless and Charlene Lunnon have moved on with their lives with remarkably…

Feb 27, 2008 7:59 PM CST

Spy Saga Sparked Liechtenstein Tax Probe

Liechtenstein is a small country the size of Washington, D.C., wedged between Austria and Switzerland. But it has been big news recently as a growing number of countries focus on the bank accounts there that many noncitizens reportedly have established to avoid paying taxes at home. Meanwhile, it appears that…

Feb 27, 2008 6:30 PM CST

Germany’s High Court Protects Computer Privacy

Germany’s highest court has ruled that the government may not use spy software to access information on personal computers absent a warrant and exceptional reasons to do so. The ruling by Germany’s Constitutional Court holds that government surveillance of information stored or exchanged on personal computers violates a right to…

Feb 27, 2008 3:14 PM CST

London BigLaw Associates Have Growing Role in Firm Management

Although they obviously don’t run the show, associates at major United Kingdom law firms are reportedly playing an increasing role in firm management. One common practice, for instance, is to have an associate forum that lobbies law firm leaders on behalf of the firm’s junior attorneys, reports the Lawyer. Even…

Feb 26, 2008 6:40 PM CST