Litigation Management

Weekly Briefs: New ethics rule considered in Virginia; name partner launches new firm

Virginia proposes ban on agreements limiting ethics complaints A proposed ethics rule in Virginia would ban lawyers from making agreements with clients or former clients that limit their right to pursue disciplinary complaints. The Virginia State Bar is seeking public comment on the proposal, which would be added to Rule…

May 26, 2023 10:48 AM CDT

Pre/Dicta takes a radically different approach to predictive analytics than others

In addition to looking at rulings and jurisprudence, Pre/Dicta also examines a judge’s political affiliation, net worth, area of residence, career and other personal and demographic data.

May 17, 2023 8:38 AM CDT

How lawyers can embrace their inner ‘chicken’

"Chicken?" Why not? I would like to talk about a subject many of us in the legal profession are afraid to discuss: fear. As lawyers, our work can be stressful, leaving us gripped with fear. This must be a relevant issue, as with my glance at a thesaurus, I note that there are at least three synonyms for fear beginning with the just letter “a” alone—namely “anxiety,” “alarm” and “angst.”

May 15, 2023 9:00 AM CDT

Judge in abortion pill case substituted other names on controversial article before nomination to bench

A Texas federal judge who ruled against the government in an abortion pill case withdrew his name from a controversial law review article before his nomination to the bench.

Apr 17, 2023 12:16 PM CDT

Johnson & Johnson tries once again to settle talc claims through ‘Texas two-step’ bankruptcy

A Johnson & Johnson unit is back in bankruptcy court again, after its first attempt to settle looming talcum powder cases failed because it wasn’t in financial distress.

Apr 7, 2023 11:06 AM CDT

STD contracted during car sex isn’t covered by GEICO auto policy, federal judge rules

A federal judge in the Western District of Missouri has ruled for GEICO in a lawsuit seeking a declaratory judgment that its auto policy doesn’t cover damages for a sexually transmitted disease contracted during car sex.

Mar 14, 2023 8:35 AM CDT

Meet Abbe Lowell, the Hunter Biden lawyer who formerly represented Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner

Winston & Strawn partner Abbe Lowell is representing President Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden in congressional investigations after building ties to the Trump White House and representing former President Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, the New York Times reports.

Mar 6, 2023 10:25 AM CST

Universal Migrator snags first prize at ABA Techshow 2023’s Startup Alley competition

Universal Migrator won first prize at the seventh annual Startup Alley pitch competition at the ABA Techshow 2023 on Wednesday evening after facing off against 14 other finalists.

Mar 2, 2023 8:39 AM CST

Choice-of-law questions for state ethics rules examined in new ABA opinion

Lawyers admitted to multiple jurisdictions may be subject to different ethical requirements in the different states in which they are licensed to practice law, according to a new ABA ethics opinion.

Mar 1, 2023 12:31 PM CST

Backers of Equal Rights Amendment lose mandamus bid in DC Circuit

The states of Illinois and Nevada lost their bid to make the Equal Rights Amendment part of the Constitution on Tuesday, when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that they did not satisfy the high threshold needed to obtain a writ of mandamus.

Mar 1, 2023 9:31 AM CST

3rd Circuit tosses talc defendant’s ‘Texas two-step’ bankruptcy

A federal appeals court has dismissed a petition for Chapter 11 bankruptcy filed by a new unit of Johnson & Johnson that was formed to assume liabilities in litigation over talc contained in its baby powder.

Jan 31, 2023 10:09 AM CST

After seeing attitude shifts about opiate addiction, MDL lawyer targets Facebook

In 2022, a multidistrict litigation lawyer brought a federal action against Meta Platforms Inc. alleging that the algorithms are designed to be addictive.

Jan 30, 2023 8:30 AM CST

Mistaken disclosure of confidential documents leads to suspension for lawyer representing Infowars host

Updated: A Connecticut judge has ordered a six-month suspension for a lawyer representing Infowars host and founder Alex Jones because the attorney “carelessly” handled confidential documents mistakenly released to the opposing counsel in a defamation trial against Jones.

Jan 9, 2023 2:04 PM CST

Lawyer is convicted in staged slip-and-fall scheme that involved unnecessary surgeries

A New York lawyer was convicted Friday in a scheme to recruit people to participate in staged slip-and-fall accidents and then to undergo unnecessary surgeries to increase the value of their claims.

Dec 20, 2022 9:05 AM CST

Arnold & Porter is ordered to pay more than $150K in sanctions for discovery ‘poor judgment’

Updated: A New York judge has ordered Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer to pay more than $150,000 for failing to notify the state of New York of relevant late-discovered documents in opioid litigation and for other "discovery breaches."

Dec 8, 2022 1:22 PM CST