Small Law

  • Conn. Atty May Face Discipline, Again, Over Probate Case

    A Connecticut attorney with an extensive disciplinary history is again in hot water with ethics regulators by failing to file a case in probate court following the death of a woman whose relatives he represented.

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    A Deep Dive Into In-House Counsel Pay

    The total compensation packages for in-house counsel at different levels of the corporate ladder can vary widely, with especially large variations seen in bonus amounts and long-term incentives, according to a new Law360 Pulse report.

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    To Go, Or Not To Go, To A Firm Directly From Law School

    Most legal professionals historically have emphasized the need for young attorneys to gain firm experience immediately after law school. However, that thought is shifting, as more junior lawyers graduate and go directly to a corporate legal team — movement that could eventually take hold as the in-house legal department continues to rise in prominence within businesses.

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    Here's How To Negotiate The Best Pay Packages For GCs

    Not all general counsel can pull in a pay package that places them near the top 10 highest-paid in-house lawyers. But every top legal officer can use some pro tips on how to negotiate the best deal possible. Law360 Pulse asked several executive compensation experts to share their advice.

  • Atty 'Malfeasance' Upends NY Manslaughter Conviction

    A New York state judge reversed a manslaughter conviction against a man who says he mistakenly killed his friend, ordering a retrial after it was revealed his then-attorney concealed information he obtained about the trial judge's concerns with the defense's case.

  • Houston Firm Says DQ Bid Is Attempt To Duck MDL Penalties

    Ahmad Zavitsanos & Mensing PLLC hit back Wednesday at Arnold & Itkin LLP's bid to disqualify it from Hurricane Zeta litigation, saying Arnold & Itkin's claim that a former law clerk took information for the defense team is an "illegitimate attempt" to "avoid legitimate merits discovery that goes to the heart of the case."

  • Texas High Court Skeptical Of Atty Solicitation Law Overreach

    The Texas Supreme Court on Wednesday appeared skeptical that an anti-solicitation statute should apply to lawyers licensed in the state who used "case runners" to attract personal injury clients who live out of state for lawsuits filed and decided beyond the borders of the Lone Star State.

  • 4th Circ. Says Murdaugh Can't Appeal Fraud Sentence

    Former South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh, who is serving life in prison for murder, was denied an appeal of a separate 40-year sentence after pleading guilty to stealing at least $9 million from clients by a Fourth Circuit panel that said he'd waived his right to appeal.

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    Bullying In Law Is Pervasive, Drives Turnover, Ill. Attys Say

    Nearly a quarter of those who responded to a recent large-scale survey of Illinois lawyers said they had been bullied at work within the last year, with those numbers spiking among women and other traditionally underrepresented attorneys in the profession, a report released Tuesday found.

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    A Deep Dive Into Top GC Pay

    Law360 Pulse looked beyond bare financials to see how business sectors, law firms and schools could influence the pay of top-earning GCs in S&P 500 companies. Here’s what we found.

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    These Are The Legal Chiefs Who Command Top Dollar

    With the increasingly dynamic role of the top corporate lawyer playing out across sectors — as well as stock awards that far outpace the amounts they see in their salaries and bonuses — the pay packages for most general counsel and chief legal officers continue to stay strong.

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    Everything You Need To Know About GC Pay

    Want to know which legal chief is earning the most at an S&P 500 company? How compensation compares across business sectors? Explore the ins and outs of general counsel compensation with our interactive graphic.

  • Attys Contest $1M Wrongful Conviction Referral Fee

    A Michigan attorney has accused a well-known wrongful conviction lawyer of withholding nearly $1 million in fees she says she's owed for referring a client who went on to win an $8.5 million settlement for his imprisonment, though the client says the attorney didn't actually help him find the firm that ended up representing him.

  • Water Firm Can't End Flint Children's Negligence Claims

    The federal judge presiding over Flint, Michigan, water crisis litigation again ruled on Tuesday that an engineering firm won't be able to avoid professional negligence claims related to its consulting work with the city, issuing the 70-page opinion days before jury selection for a bellwether trial begins.

  • Client's Late Arrival, Bankruptcy Complicate Age Bias Suit

    The co-owner for a bankrupt Pittsburgh hotel almost lost his lawyer Tuesday, arriving late and introducing himself to the attorney for the first time in person at a hearing on the attorney's motion to withdraw from defending him against an ex-employee's age bias claim.

  • Fla. Justices Urged To Nix Ruling Axing Malpractice Award

    A former client of The Ferraro Law Firm PA is asking the Florida Supreme Court to consider restoring its $1.5 million legal malpractice arbitration award, arguing the Third District Court of Appeal created a new pleading requirement in arbitrations.

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    Wigdor Sued For Dragging Cuomo Aide Into Harassment Case

    Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's spokesperson hit Wigdor LLP with a malicious prosecution suit Tuesday, claiming the well-known employment law firm filed a bogus retaliation claim against him for likening a sexual harassment suit against Cuomo to extortion.

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    Spencer Fane Combines With Las Vegas Boutique Firm

    Spencer Fane LLP announced Tuesday that it has merged with Las Vegas boutique Holley Driggs Law Firm, adding a further 14 attorneys to its operations in Nevada's most populous city.

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    Florida Firm Markowitz Ringel Brings On Bankruptcy Partner

    Markowitz Ringel Trusty & Hartog has bolstered its restructuring and insolvency practice group with a partner in Fort Lauderdale who came aboard from Miami-based Tabas & Silver PA.

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    Ex-NY AG Real Estate Chief Joins White Collar Boutique

    New York white collar boutique Clayman Rosenberg Kirshner & Linder LLP has announced that the former chief of the New York State Attorney General Office's real estate enforcement unit joined the firm as a partner.

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    Fennemore Launches AI Initiative With Wash. Firm Merger

    Western regional firm Fennemore Craig PC has undertaken its fifth merger of the year, combining with a Washington state business and real estate firm with flat fee offerings and a focus on technology, with Fennemore saying Tuesday the merger is part of an overall investment in artificial intelligence legal technologies.

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    Firms Add Nonequity Partners, And Many Aren't Happy

    Nonequity partners make up one of the fastest-growing tiers of lawyers at major law firms — and that tier is the most discontented, according to Law360 Pulse's 2024 Law Firm Compensation Survey.

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    Equity Partners At Smaller Firms Are Most Content With Pay

    Lawyers in private practice are generally happy with their compensation, and BigLaw associates are particularly satisfied, thanks to openly competitive rates of pay. But equity partners at smaller firms are happiest, according to a new Law360 Pulse survey.

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    A Deep Dive Into Law Firm Pay

    The legal industry may be known for its relatively high pay, but don't tell that to lawyers: Barely half of all attorneys feel satisfied or very satisfied with what they make, according to a new Law360 Pulse report.

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    Ex-Constantine Cannon, Robins Kaplan Attys Form Antitrust Firm

    A team of 10 attorneys formerly with Constantine Cannon LLP and Robins Kaplan LLP has formed a new boutique firm specializing in antitrust law, with offices in New York City and Washington, D.C., according to a Tuesday announcement.

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Expert Analysis

  • 3 Innovative Ways AI May Be Used In Legal Practice
    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
    Author Photo

    Artificial intelligence tools will increasingly be used by outside counsel to better predict the outcomes of litigation — thus informing legal strategy with greater precision — and by clients to scrutinize invoices and evaluate counsel’s performance, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.

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    My Nonpracticing Law Job: Librarian Author Photo

    Lisa A. Goodman at Texas A&M University shares how she went from a BigLaw associate who liked to hang out in the firm's law library to director of a law library herself in just over a decade, and provides considerations for anyone interested in pursuing a law librarian career.

  • Legal Briefs Can Benefit From Cleaned Up Case Citations Author Photo

    Federal courts have recently been changing the way they quote decisions to omit insignificant details and string cites, and lawyers should consider adopting this practice to enhance the readability of their briefs — as long as accuracy stays top of mind, says Diana Simon at the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law.

  • 5 Best Practices For Firms Designing DEI Programs Author Photo

    Nikki Lewis Simon, chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer at Greenberg Traurig, discusses best practices — and some pitfalls to avoid — for law firms looking to build programs aimed at driving inclusion in the workplace.

  • Former Minn. Chief Justice Instructs On Writing Better Briefs Author Photo

    Former Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Lorie Gildea, now at Greenberg Traurig, offers strategies on writing more effective appellate briefs from her time on the bench.

  • Ask A Mentor: How Do I Juggle Billables And Other Activities? Author Photo

    While involvement in internal firm initiatives can be rewarding both personally and professionally, associates' billable time requirements don’t leave much room for other work, meaning they must develop strategies to ensure they’re meeting all of their commitments while remaining balanced, says Melanie Webber at Fisher Phillips.

  • Making Legal Cents: How To Adapt As Clients Tighten Budgets Author Photo

    Amid a dip in corporate legal spending and client pushback on bills, Shireen Hilal at Maior Consultants highlights specific in-house counsel frustrations and explains how firms can provide customized legal advice with costs that are supported by undeniable value.

  • Spartan Arbitration Tactics Against Well-Funded Opponents Author Photo

    Like the ancient Spartans who held off a numerically superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, trial attorneys and clients faced with arbitration against an opponent with a bigger war chest can take a strategic approach to create a pass to victory, say Kostas Katsiris and Benjamin Argyle at Venable.

  • General Counsel And Legal Ops Must Work Together Author Photo

    It is critical for general counsel to ensure that a legal operations leader is viewed not only as a peer, but as a strategic leader for the organization, and there are several actionable ways general counsel can not only become more involved, but help champion legal operations teams and set them up for success, says Mary O'Carroll at Ironclad.

  • How Generative AI's Growing Memory Affects Lawyers Author Photo

    A new ChatGPT feature that can remember user information across different conversations has broad implications for attorneys, whose most pressing questions for the AI tool are usually based on specific, and large, datasets, says legal tech adviser Eric Wall.

  • A Model For Optimal Legal Tech Investment Strategy Author Photo

    Legal organizations struggling to work out the right technology investment strategy may benefit from using a matrix for legal department efficiency that is based on an understanding of where workloads belong, according to the basic functions and priorities of a corporate legal team, says Sylvain Magdinier at Integreon.

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    My Nonpracticing Law Job: Recruiter Author Photo

    Self-proclaimed "Lawyer Doula" Danielle Thompson at Major Lindsey shares how she went from Columbia Law School graduate and BigLaw employment associate to a career in legal recruiting — and discovered a passion for advocacy along the way.

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    Ask A Mentor: How Do I Balance Social Activism With My Job? Author Photo

    Corporate attorneys pursuing social justice causes outside of work should consider eight guidelines for finding equilibrium between their beliefs and their professional duties and reputation, say Diedrick Graham, Debra Friedman and Simeon Brier at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Personality Tests And Machine Learning Applications In Law Author Photo

    Mateusz Kulesza at McDonnell Boehnen looks at potential applications of personality testing based on machine learning techniques for law firms, and the implications this shift could have for lawyers, firms and judges, including how it could make the work of judges and other legal decision-makers much more difficult.

  • AI Is Reshaping Lawyering: What To Expect In 2024 Author Photo

    The future of lawyering is not about the wholesale replacement of attorneys by artificial intelligence, but as AI handles more of the routine legal work, the role of lawyers will evolve to be more strategic, requiring the development of competencies beyond traditional legal skills, says Colin Levy at Malbek.

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