Practice Management

US Firms Lure U.K. Lawyers With $$$

As U.S.-based law firms have battled to establish a significant foothold in London in recent years, their U.K. counterparts have been engaged in similar efforts in New York. But one country is clearly prevailing right now in this ongoing international competition for legal market share, according to the London Times:…

Jan 8, 2008 12:43 AM CST

BigLaw Associate Moonlights as ER Doc

As if being a BigLaw associate wasn’t more than enough work for any ordinary attorney, one such California lawyer is moonlighting at a night job … as an emergency room physician. Okey Onyejekwe earned his M.D. degree in 2000 from Ohio State University, and began working in the emergency room…

Jan 7, 2008 10:52 PM CST

Pa. Firm Plans for Up to 50 New Lawyers in Philly

A well-known Pittsburgh-based law firm is reportedly making plans to increase its attorney roster in Philadelphia by 50 percent, signing a lease for first-class center city offices that will provide space for an addition 30 to 50 attorneys. Although Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney has agreed to lease three floors at…

Jan 7, 2008 10:24 PM CST

N.H. City Says Attorney Malpractice Nixed Insurance

A New Hampshire municipality has sued its former legal counsel for malpractice, contending that he not only failed to appropriately advise the city of Claremont of the legal risks associated with firing the city tax assessor in 2000 but also failed to advise the city that the tax assessor, Steve…

Jan 7, 2008 9:17 PM CST

Lawyer Installs Shark Tank in Office

A Montana lawyer said his decision to put a shark tank in his office started out as a joke. “I said, ‘What would it take to put a shark in a lawyer’s office?’ and it just kind of took off from there,” lawyer Christopher Gillette told the Bozeman Daily Chronicle.…

Jan 3, 2008 2:00 PM CST

Greenbacks for Going Green

When law firms talk about going green, they may be doing more than simply recycling scratch paper.

Jan 1, 2008 8:42 PM CST

New Practice Area for Nev. Firm: Suing State Over Child Abuse

To report a case of child abuse, you call a state agency. But what do you do when the state agency itself is mistreating a child? Two brothers who practice law together in Las Vegas have an answer to that question for people concerned about abused foster children in Nevada:…

Dec 21, 2007 2:18 AM CST

Conn. Lawyer Gets 16 Months for Tax Evasion

A Connecticut lawyer who worked with a well-known criminal defense attorney was sentenced this week to 16 months in prison for tax evasion. Joseph Richichi, who is in his early 60s, pleaded guilty in April in federal court in Bridgeport, Conn. His sentence this week included a $15,000 fine in…

Dec 20, 2007 5:36 PM CST

N.J. Legal Malpractice Suit is on Free-Speech Frontier

A controversial malpractice suit filed by a New Jersey town against its former municipal attorney over a real estate deal that was part of an environmental cleanup effort is also making waves on entirely different legal front—Internet free speech rights. The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit San Francisco advocacy group…

Dec 20, 2007 12:44 AM CST

Md. Attorney Discipline Questioned, Decades of Data Disclosed

Short of committing—or at least plotting—murder, it reportedly hasn’t been easy, historically, for the relatively small number of Maryland lawyers who misbehave professionally to qualify for severe professional discipline. “Maryland lawyers who plan to murder their spouse or have sex with minors have been swiftly disbarred, but many who repeatedly…

Dec 19, 2007 9:38 PM CST

China Law Firms Open US Offices

The globalization of law practice is a two-way street, and, just as U.S. law firms are seeking to establish a presence in China, Chinese law firms are looking to set up offices here. Among the Chinese law office leaders planting the law firm flag on American soil are Jun He,…

Dec 19, 2007 7:04 PM CST

Venable to Double N.Y. Attorneys

The two-year-old New York office of Washington, D.C.-based Venable is growing up fast. Now numbering about 30 attorneys, it may soon have another six to 10 lateral-hire lawyers on the firm roster, and administrators hope to at least double the number of New York attorneys within the next few years.…

Dec 19, 2007 6:00 PM CST

‘Lowball’ Bonuses at Some BigLaw Firms?

‘Tis the season for associates at major law firms to receive hefty year-end bonuses. But the BigLaw largesse is more generous at some law firms than others, and a number of associates receiving lesser amounts are not jumping for joy. At least two firms, DLA Piper and McDermott, Will &…

Dec 19, 2007 12:49 AM CST

Kinder, Gentler Collaborative Divorce Also Costs Less

A kinder, gentler method of getting divorced has won fans among both clients and counsel. But it has yet to win over some traditionalists, who wonder, for instance, why collaborative divorce must include a promise not to litigate. (Those who violate the ban on courtroom battle have to start over…

Dec 18, 2007 8:48 PM CST

Law Firm May Be Liable for Earlier Errors

A divided California appeals court has upheld a malicious prosecution claim against a law firm that apparently resulted from conduct of the plaintiff’s lead counsel. LaFave & Rice argued, essentially, that it didn’t know of alleged defects in the case, which was filed by another law firm, but the panel…

Dec 18, 2007 6:10 PM CST