International

Quinn Emanuel Opens Japan Office

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges has acquired a three-lawyer Los Angeles boutique and is sending one of the partners from the new acquisition to Tokyo to launch a new office. The lawyer, Henry Koda, focused his practice on patent and trademark prosecution and international intellectual property litigation for Japanese…

Dec 12, 2007 12:32 PM CST

Lawyer: CIA Has Photos of Outsourced Torture of Gitmo Suspect

A lawyer for a Guantanamo Bay terrorism suspect allegedly tortured in Morocco when his interrogation was outsourced by the U.S. says the CIA was present and has photographs of the physical abuse of his client. Binyam Mohamed, a 27-year-old Ethiopian was sliced in the chest and penis by interrogators during…

Dec 11, 2007 6:43 PM CST

Most U.K. Law Firms Plan to Poach Rival Legal Groups

Teams of lawyers are hopping from one U.K. law firm to another, and the trend appears likely to continue, according to a new survey. Three-quarters of U.K. law firms said they would consider hiring legal groups from competing firms in the next year, Times Online reports. And 61 percent said…

Dec 7, 2007 7:28 PM CST

Man Held in Law Firm Bombing

A suspect was detained overnight in the bombing yesterday of a Paris law firm in which a secretary was killed and an attorney was seriously injured. A 45-year-old architect who allegedly harassed a lawyer at the firm two years ago was arrested at his mother’s home and taken in for…

Dec 7, 2007 6:43 PM CST

U.K. Considering Sarbanes-Like Rules

In the wake of an unprecedented loss of a government database containing confidential information about tens of millions of people, British legislators are reportedly considering new data-protection safeguards. Possible changes in the law being discussed would hold company chief executives directly responsible for data protection and make it a crime…

Dec 7, 2007 5:51 PM CST

Pakistan Police Block March to Ex-Chief Justice’s Home

Police in Pakistan today blocked a planned march to the home of the country’s ousted chief justice. Marchers found the route to the home of former chief justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry was blocked by concrete blocks, steel and barbed wire, the Associated Press reports. Chaudhry is under house arrest. Meanwhile,…

Dec 6, 2007 6:37 PM CST

What Clients Think of Lawyers

A significant number of British clients are unhappy with their lawyers and, like their American counterparts, many complain about a lack of communication. According to a survey by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority, which regulates the profession in England and Wales, one in five clients feels let down by legal counsel,…

Dec 6, 2007 5:12 PM CST

New Push Targets Nazi War Criminals in South America

The Simon Wiesenthal Center has announced one last push to find Nazi war criminals hiding in South America. Driven by concerns that remaining war criminals will die before being brought to justice, the center has launched Operation Last Chance, the Washington Post reports. One of those being sought is Aribert…

Dec 6, 2007 5:04 PM CST

Legal Secretary Dies, Lawyer Injured in Paris Mail Bomb Blast

A legal secretary was killed and a lawyer seriously injured in a Paris mail bomb blast today at the Gouet-Jenselme law firm. The package had been addressed to the injured lawyer, Olivier Brane, Reuters reports. The law firm focuses on divorce, insurance and real estate cases. Four others were also…

Dec 6, 2007 4:27 PM CST

Foley & Lardner Opens Office in China

Foley & Lardner will expand into China with a Shanghai office led by a partner recruited from Weil, Gotshal & Manges. Partner Catherine Sun jumped to Foley earlier this year from Weil’s Shanghai office, Legal Times reports. Foley’s new office will focus on intellectual property matters, according to a press…

Dec 6, 2007 4:06 PM CST

Another U.S. Law Firm Opens Abu Dhabi Office

White & Case is expanding in the Middle East with the opening of an office in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and the addition of four lawyers to its office in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The moves bring the number of White & Case lawyers in the Middle East to more…

Dec 6, 2007 1:57 PM CST

Former Top Pakistan Judge Blames Country’s Western Allies

Although bar groups throughout the world, including the ABA, have made unprecedented efforts to lobby for the restoration of the rule of law in Pakistan, a deposed Pakistan supreme court judge contends government leaders in Western countries could and should do more. Held under house arrest at his home in…

Dec 5, 2007 11:22 PM CST

Mainstream Musicians Murdered in Mexican Drug Violence

A wave of violence in Mexico involving warring drug gangs has now apparently targeted several well-known musicians with no known ties to the organized-crime groups, sparking increased concern that no one is safe from the rampant brutality. Two musicians were killed within the past week, one of whom, Sergio Gomez,…

Dec 5, 2007 8:42 PM CST

ABA President Asks Attorneys to Sign Pakistan Petition

The president of the American Bar Association is calling on fellow attorneys to sign an online petition seeking the restoration of the rule of law in Pakistan. “I urge you not to look aside, as if standing up for the rule of law is somebody else’s job. Add your name,…

Dec 4, 2007 10:22 PM CST

A Mickey-Mouse Error: Disney Characters Ordered to Testify

Sufferin’ succotash! An Italian court has issued court summonses to several cartoon characters, apparently a result of a Mickey-Mouse kind of error. Tweety Bird, Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and his girlfriend Daisy have all been ordered to appear Friday in a criminal counterfeiting trial, the Associated Press reports. The defendant…

Dec 4, 2007 8:09 PM CST