New Jersey

Harvard Law Grad Hopes to Be Nail Fungus King

A Harvard law graduate says he hopes to become the “nail fungus king” with a new concoction that cured his own problem. Jeff Treut of Tewksbury Township in New Jersey is a tax strategies consultant with a hedge fund advisory group, but he also has an entrepreneurial bent, the Hunterdon…

Aug 5, 2010 11:36 AM CDT

NJ Lawyer Gets 1-Year Suspension for Offering to Cut Fees in Exchange for Sexual Favors

A New Jersey lawyer has received a one-year suspension for offering clients discounted legal fees in exchange for sexual favors. David Witherspoon, a solo practitioner in Newark, told four female clients in bankruptcy cases that he would reduce or forgive his fees in return for acts of a sexual nature,…

Jul 30, 2010 4:14 PM CDT

Law Firm & Angry Ex-Associate Settle Suit Over Badmouth Blog

Whether you saw it as the “horrendous cyber-assault” claimed by Levinson Axelrod or simply an ex-associate’s legitimate expression of opinion, however unflattering, about the New Jersey law firm that formerly employed him, a badmouth blog that captured public attention with its angry audacity is no more. A confidential settlement last…

Jul 26, 2010 5:53 PM CDT

Law Firm Must Pay Ex-Client Legal Fees & Punitives for Filing Bad-Faith Bankruptcy Petition

Finding that a law firm made a bad-faith involuntary Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition in an effort to force an ex-client to abandon meritorious counterclaims in a fee-dispute case, a federal bankruptcy judge has dismissed the petition and awarded an as-yet-undetermined amount of attorney’s fees and punitive damages to the ex-client.…

Jul 21, 2010 5:38 PM CDT

Appeals Court Says ‘See No Evil’ Approach Can’t Shield Law Firm in Investor Suit

A “see no evil, hear no evil” approach can’t shield a law firm from an aiding-and-abetting claim in an investor suit, a New York appeals court has ruled. The appeals court reinstated the claim against Lum, Drasco & Positan, formerly known as Lum, Danzis, Drasco & Positan, the New York…

Jul 7, 2010 1:33 PM CDT

2 Small Law Firms Face Trial for Allegedly Aiding Parental Child Abduction

Two New Jersey attorneys and their matrimonial firms are facing a looming trial in a high-profile family law case that centers on a client’s transport of her then-4-year-old child to her native Spain, in violation of a United States parenting agreement. The agreement also called for the lawyer initially representing…

Jul 2, 2010 8:20 PM CDT

Court Shows No Mercy to Lawyer Who Missed Deadline After Tactical Filing Delay

A New Jersey lawyer whose delaying tactics caused him to miss a filing deadline in a workers’ compensation case is out of luck, a state appeals court ruled Wednesday. The court found there is no exception to the one-year statutory deadline for moving to reinstate workers compensation petitions dismissed for…

Jul 2, 2010 5:03 PM CDT

Man Sought for Questioning in Ex-Wife’s Slaying Is Charged with Threatening Her Lawyer

A 63-year-old security guard being sought for questioning as a person of interest in the slaying of his ex-wife over the weekend has been charged with making terroristic threats several months ago to the woman’s New Jersey divorce lawyer. A criminal complaint in the Boonton case alleges that Anthony Novellino…

Jun 25, 2010 10:30 AM CDT

Plaintiffs Claim Law Firm Took $5M from Prudential to Steer Them to ADR

More than 200 ex-employees of Prudential Life Insurance contend that the New York law firm representing them in discrimination claims took $5 million from the company in exchange for steering the plaintiffs away from filing discrimination suits and toward an alternative dispute resolution process that reduced their recoveries. The workers…

Jun 23, 2010 4:57 PM CDT

BigLaw Firm Hit with Big-Bucks Sanction for Pursuing Billionaire’s ‘Ridiculous’ Claim

A BigLaw firm and another well-known partnership face a likely seven-figure sanction for pursuing what a New Jersey judge described as a “ridiculous” frivolous claim on behalf of billionaire Ronald Perelman. Perelman, represented by Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison along with Lowenstein Sandler, had contended that his 85-year-old former…

Jun 16, 2010 6:50 PM CDT

Law Firm Spammed Our Investors, Contends Ex-Client in Fee Dispute

Without the permission of its then-client, Skyworks Ventures Inc., a New York law firm sent spam e-mail to the video game company’s investors seeking to perform legal work, contends the New Jersey-based company in an ongoing case. Sued by Scarola Ellis over a disputed bill, Skyworks contends that Scarola Ellis…

Jun 14, 2010 7:57 PM CDT

Accused of Pulling Fire Alarm & Arrested, Librarian Can Sue Law Firm, Federal Judge Rules

A fire alarm activated a year ago on the third floor of Parker McCay’s offices has left the New Jersey law firm still dealing with a super-heated situation. The day after the June 2, 2009 incident, law librarian Sheila Ciemniecki was called into a Parker McCay conference room, where she…

Jun 10, 2010 7:39 PM CDT

Major Law Firm Looks to ‘85 Broads’ for Female Attorney Empowerment

A major New Jersey-based law firm is looking to a global women’s networking group with a memorable name to help the firm’s seasoned female attorneys expand their professional contacts and influence. McCarter & English is now part of the 85 Broads community, reports the Hartford Business Journal. In a law…

Jun 4, 2010 6:05 PM CDT

Lawyer, Filmmaker & Now Ex-Judge Critical of Ethics Rules

At least for a time, Kenneth Del Vecchio found away to meld his two passions: the law and filmmaking. By day he was a part-time town judge in New Jersey, while much of the rest of his time was spent producing, writing, directing and acting in low-budget, often politically themed…

Jun 2, 2010 5:24 PM CDT

Disbarment Recommended for N.J. Lawyer Accused of Creating Phony Billings

A New Jersey ethics board is recommending disbarment for a lawyer accused of drawing a salary while creating phony billings at two law firms: Fox Rothschild and Margolis Edelstein. The New Jersey Disciplinary Review Board recommended the punishment after finding that the lawyer, Kenneth Denti, created more than $350,000 in…

May 25, 2010 12:36 PM CDT