Verdicts & Settlements

Brown Rudnick settles $300M malpractice suit over bankruptcy representation

Brown Rudnick has settled a $300 million malpractice lawsuit alleging that it mishandled its work as a litigation trustee in the 2009 bankruptcy of chemical company LyondellBasell.

Jan 28, 2021 10:22 AM CST

Afternoon Briefs: Law dean Chemerinsky opposes Trump Twitter ban; safe injection site shot down

Law dean Erwin Chemerinsky opposes Trump Twitter ban Twitter and Facebook had the right to remove posts by President Donald Trump that amounted to incitement, but a total ban on Trump’s social media accounts goes too far, according to an op-ed by Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the University of California…

Jan 14, 2021 4:38 PM CST

COVID-19 spurred more than a thousand workplace lawsuits in 2020, class action report says

At least 1,005 workplace lawsuits filed in 2020 stemmed from the COVID-19 pandemic, and more are expected in 2021, according to Seyfarth Shaw’s 17th Annual Workplace Class Action Litigation Report.

Jan 8, 2021 3:55 PM CST

Study examines decline in civil and criminal jury trials and how to bring them back

While judges and lawyers view jury trials as slower, less predictable and less cost-effective than other forms of case resolution, they also view them as fair and prefer them over alternatives, according to a national study released in December by the ABA Commission on the American Jury.

Jan 5, 2021 1:27 PM CST

COVID-19 causes Federal Circuit to cancel arguments in Nintendo case

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has canceled oral arguments in Nintendo’s case over its Wii gaming systems after its opposing counsel contracted COVID-19.

Jan 5, 2021 11:24 AM CST

Lawyer has filed nearly 100 consumer lawsuits over vanilla labeling

Long Island, New York, lawyer Spencer Sheehan wants consumers to know that they are sometimes being deceived by the "vanilla" label on the products that they buy.

Dec 23, 2020 1:19 PM CST

State supreme court calls prosecutor’s courthouse campaigning an ‘exploitation of the judicial system’

The Arkansas Supreme Court overturned a man's murder conviction Thursday after finding that the prosecutor improperly campaigned in the courthouse during the trial.

Dec 18, 2020 10:27 AM CST

Afternoon Briefs: At least 86 judges reject election claims; granddaughter of Biden joins BigLaw

At least 86 judges reject election claims At least 86 judges have rejected claims by President Donald Trump or his supporters in election lawsuits, according to a count published Dec. 12 by the Washington Post. “The dozens of opinions serve as a resounding reaffirmation of the judiciary’s nonpartisan commitment to…

Dec 14, 2020 4:39 PM CST

Judge freezes assets of winning ‘Erin Brockovich’ law firm after suit alleges stolen settlement funds

A federal judge has frozen the assets of the law firm Girardi Keese and founder Tom Girardi after a suit accused Girardi of embezzling settlement money to support his celebrity lifestyle.

Dec 14, 2020 1:51 PM CST

Lawsuit accuses lawyer and his ‘Real Housewives’ wife of stealing plane crash settlement funds

Lawyer Tom Girardi and his celebrity wife, Erika Jayne of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, are accused in a lawsuit of embezzling settlement money as they struggle to bolster their celebrity image of “obscene wealth.”

Dec 3, 2020 11:42 AM CST

Afternoon Briefs: 25 former DC bar leaders decry election suits; ousted 1L presses due process claim

25 ex-DC bar leaders decry election suits Twenty-five former presidents of the District of Columbia Bar are criticizing lawyers who attacked the electoral process through unfounded allegations of voter fraud or ballot tampering. “In the absence of any meaningful evidence, we must condemn the abuse of the judicial system to…

Dec 2, 2020 4:49 PM CST

On World AIDS Day, 9 organizations receive HIV Legal Services Fund grants

The ABA’s HIV/AIDS Impact Project announced Tuesday, on World AIDS Day, that nine organizations will receive grants of up to $150,000 each to improve the availability of HIV legal services in underserved areas across the country.

Dec 2, 2020 10:19 AM CST

Afternoon Briefs: Trump pardons Michael Flynn; lawyer suspended for cyberattack knowledge

Trump pardons former national security adviser Flynn President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he has pardoned former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI in the Russia probe and then sought to withdraw the plea. The Department of Justice moved to drop the case,…

Nov 25, 2020 4:00 PM CST

Afternoon Briefs: Trump campaign eschews conspiracy-minded lawyer; New Jersey law protects judges’ privacy

Trump campaign distances from lawyer Sidney Powell The Trump campaign has distanced itself from lawyer Sidney Powell after she made unsupported claims that voting machines had been rigged and Republican officials in Georgia were part of the scam. “Sidney Powell is practicing law on her own,” the campaign said in…

Nov 23, 2020 4:30 PM CST

Federal judge criticizes DOJ’s fee agreement with BigLaw firm, says the amount is unreasonable

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has questioned the U.S. Department of Justice’s agreement to pay more than $212,000 in fees and expenses to Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer to settle a case over the exclusion of New York residents from trusted traveler programs.

Nov 23, 2020 3:50 PM CST