“You are known by the company you keep” – Aesop’s Fables As lawyers, we are often judged by prospective clients based upon the quality of our past or existing clients. If you represent a large, rich, powerful corporation, the message that sends to a prospective client is – if he or she is good enough
On Christmas Eve, I received quite an unexpected surprise–an unsolicited invitation to become a “LinkedIn” connection with none other than Harry S. Truman. Holy cow! After all, it isn’t every day that I am honored to network with a former Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the United States of America. Now, I must admit
Attorneys At Grave Risk For Online Fraud: LinkedIn Meets The Nigerian Letter Scam Read More »
On December 23, 2015, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court issued an opinion dismissing a malpractice complaint filed against an IP law firm for failure to state a claim. See Maling v. Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, LLP. A copy of the Massachusetts SJC’s opinion is here. For our previous discussions about the facts and procedural
In a 2-1 decision, a panel of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled it lacked jurisdiction to hear an appeal of an order imposing terminating sanctions in a patent case based upon trial counsels’ conduct in misleading the court about evidence of an on-sale bar. The Federal Circuit ruled that because the parties
CAFC Muzzles Attorneys’ Appeal From Terminating Sanctions In Patent Case Read More »
A common theme in attorney discipline cases is the lawyer’s failure to properly handle client funds. Law school, unfortunately, teaches lawyers-to-be little if anything about basic accounting principles or financial record-keeping. Lawyers owe a fiduciary duty to their clients which includes proper handling and documenting their money. For those interested in getting a basic understanding
Accounting 102 Course for Lawyers Read More »
The newly-branded Turkey of the Month (f/k/a Jackass of the Month) Award goes to David J. Steele. An attorney since 2003, Mr. Steele was disbarred by the Indiana Supreme Court, which charged him with eight counts of misconduct involving among other things “theft of client funds, retaliatory disclosures of clients’ confidential information, pervasive dishonesty, and
Theft, Intimidation, Lies and Obstruction Nets Turkey of the Month Award Read More »
This month’s “Jackass of the Month” award featured many fine contestants. Each exhibited the qualities of a true jackass — arrogance, intentional disregard of the law, superiority, and narcissim, to name a few. But one attorney stood out head and shoulders above the crowd for his truly loathsome behavior as not only an officer of
Former Prosecutor Who Forged Indictment Wins Jackass of Month Award Read More »
Lawyers often are accused of playing “tricks” in litigation. For those who are familiar with trial tactics, the “trick” label is usually nothing more than legal “tradecraft” – the techniques of experienced litigators to weave a story through a combination of arguments, documents, and witness testimony. Pretending to read from a document while asking a
