Ethics

New Waterboarding Probe: Did Gov’t Lawyers Act Ethically?

A second Department of Justice investigation, in addition to the one launched last month by Attorney General Michael Mukasey, has been under way for “several years” concerning the propriety of the waterboarding interrogation technique that the CIA has admittedly used on several al-Qaida suspects. This newly revealed probe, which is…

Feb 22, 2008 8:23 PM CST

Appeals Court Upholds N.C. Judge’s Disbarment

A North Carolina judge who lost his law license based on accusations he took money and property from an elderly woman has also lost his appeal. James Ethridge had contended disbarment was too harsh a punishment, the Associated Press reports. The North Carolina Court of Appeals disagreed in a ruling…

Feb 22, 2008 2:41 PM CST

Lawyer Could Face Sanctions After Adding Images of Kangaroos, Swastikas to Filing

Anti-pornography lawyer Jack Thompson is once again citing the First Amendment in response to the latest action by a Florida court taking issue with his online filings. The Florida Supreme Court issued a show-cause order on Tuesday threatening Thompson with sanctions for his “constant abusive” and “numerous meritless filings,” the…

Feb 22, 2008 2:10 PM CST

Feds and State Investigate N.Y. Lawyer Who ‘Worked’ 1,286 Days in a Year

It hasn’t been a good week for Lawrence Reich. A Newsday article yesterday features a photograph of FBI and Internal Revenue Service agents wheeling a cart of document boxes containing business records for the New York lawyer, apparently en route to a federal grand jury investigation. Meanwhile, another Newsday article…

Feb 21, 2008 10:17 PM CST

Well-Known So. Illinois Attorney Pleads in Client Theft Case

In an apparent plea bargain, a prominent Southern Illinois attorney has pleaded guilty to a felony count in a client theft case. Patrick Cox is scheduled to be sentenced in April, and could get as little as four years of probation and as much as seven years in prison and…

Feb 21, 2008 5:52 PM CST

Excessive-Fees Case Focuses on Lawyer’s Media Strategy in Murder Trial

A criminal defense attorney on trial in Texas for allegedly overcharging his client in a high-profile murder case was accused in opening statements today of focusing on his own publicity to the detriment of defendant Clara Harris. Television camera crews conducted interviews and filmed the murder trial preparation, under an…

Feb 20, 2008 11:48 PM CST

New Legal Ethics Minefield: Metadata

Have you eliminated all metadata from electronic documents you send to opposing counsel? Do you look for metadata in the documents you receive? And, in both cases, does your approach, whatever it is, comply with applicable legal ethics standards? The correct answers to those questions aren’t necessarily clear, but a…

Feb 20, 2008 9:44 PM CST

Leniency Pleas for Judge Who Jailed 46 Over Ringing Cell Phone

A state commission on judicial conduct has recommended removal from office for a New York municipal jurist who jailed 46 people in what it terms “two hours of inexplicable madness” over a ringing cell phone. But amicus briefs from legal, judicial and civic groups are piling up in the case,…

Feb 20, 2008 8:07 PM CST

City Attorney’s Top Assistant Says Bar Probe May Be Political

The top assistant to San Diego City Attorney Michael Aguirre said yesterday that a California bar investigation of his boss might be politically motivated. Don McGrath, Aguirre’s top assistant, said yesterday that “somebody’s pressuring” the bar’s lead investigator to move ahead with the probe, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. “I…

Feb 20, 2008 6:21 PM CST

Disbarred Lawyer Freed on Bond, Awaits Retrial in Murder of Partner

A disbarred lawyer has been freed on $100,000 bond as he awaits retrial in the murder of his law partner. Former Kansas City, Mo., lawyer Richard Buchli III had been convicted in the death of his partner, Richard Armitage, in 2002, but an appeals court reversed the conviction because prosecutors…

Feb 20, 2008 2:06 PM CST

Fla. Law Firm Criticized for Collection Efforts Against Accused Shoplifters

A Florida law firm helps retailers discourage shoplifting by sending civil recovery letters to those who are caught, prompting criticism and complaints to the Florida bar. The Florida firm, Palmer Reifler & Associates, is one of several law firms and collection agencies that send such letters. The missives often threaten…

Feb 20, 2008 1:21 PM CST

Ex- Covington & Burling Lawyer Disbarred for Stealing Antiques

A former staff lawyer at Covington & Burling has been disbarred after she pleaded guilty to stealing antiques in two separate cases. Faith Ruderfer, who is 51, said in a statement that she went “downhill” as she reached midlife, when she began suffering from an undiagnosed lack of impulse control…

Feb 20, 2008 11:41 AM CST

New Issues for Lawyer Who ‘Worked’ 1,286 Days in One Year

Updated: A New York lawyer who reportedly was simultaneously listed as a full-time employee of five Long Island school districts for which he worked as legal counsel is seeing some fallout over a newspaper article about the situation. Lawrence Reich, 67, has now been suspended and asked to resign by…

Feb 19, 2008 7:07 PM CST

Client v. Law Firm: Judge Denies Withdrawal Motion in Med-Mal Case

Arguing her position pro se, a woman has persuaded a Suffolk County, N.Y., judge not to allow a Manhattan law firm to bow of out her ongoing medical malpractice case. The firm, Mirman, Markovitz & Landau, had sought the court’s permission to withdraw, contending that “the attorney-client relationship is at…

Feb 19, 2008 4:22 PM CST

Vote to End Jury Deadlock May Cost Attorney His Law License

A San Francisco attorney is facing potential disbarment because while serving on a jury in 2004, he reportedly cast the deciding vote to end a deadlock simply so that he could return to his law practice. Earlier this month, a State Bar Court judge in California recommended that Francis Fahy…

Feb 19, 2008 4:02 PM CST