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LAW.COM Newswire Highlights June 1, 2009

By David Badertscher, PLL

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Big Issues Lurk Below Surface of Sotomayor Confirmation Hearings

The National Law Journal

The predictable menu of issues is already being written by senators and special interest groups for Judge Sonia Sotomayor's Supreme Court confirmation hearings. But key issues affecting businesses, workers, consumers and criminal defendants, though generally ignored, will have a profound impact on more people than will perennial favorites such as abortion and the death penalty, say some lawyers and scholars. And, they add, Sotomayor's views on those issues would be more predictive of her role as a justice.

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For Midsize Firms, Opportunities Abound

The Legal Intelligencer

While internal changes are few and far between at midsize firms, the world outside is morphing into a land of opportunity. Large corporate clients are on the hunt for better value and, more and more, they're setting their sights on smaller, regional firms. Many midsize firm leaders and legal experts say this shift could lead to permanent changes in the legal landscape as midsize and smaller firms gain more footing in markets previously cornered by megafirms.

Are Today's Lawyers Stretched Too Far?

The American Lawyer

These are hard times for most people who work at big law firms. For some, they are unbearable. Though deeply individual tragedies, the recent suicides of Kilpatrick Stockton's Mark Levy and a laid-off Simpson associate are also horrible reminders of the toll that a profession's stresses can take, especially in an ailing economy. And the truth is, lots of lawyers have been unhappy for years. It's time for lawyers at big firms to reassess their priorities and values, writes Susan Beck, who warns: You just can't keep going like this.

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Thelen Class Action Case Gets a Little Simpler

The Recorder

Two former Thelen employees are throwing in the towel after their attorney was accused of trying to get a piece of the action too many times. Cary Kletter filed three similar complaints in two courts and tried to intervene in a fourth case, but attorneys for Thelen threatened to seek sanctions, saying he was bogging down the courts so he could rack up fees for himself. Late Friday, Kletter said his clients, at the request of Thelen, had decided not to pursue the case, which would likely be "resolved or dismissed soon."

Do Bailout Firms Have a Conflict of Interest?

The American Lawyer

The Washington Independent reports that several law firms, including Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, appear to have conflicts of interest by doing bailout work and representing banking clients despite Treasury Department contracts forbidding the practice. The Am Law Daily made some calls of its own about another firm -- Squire, Sanders & Dempsey -- and concludes that the conflicts question doesn't look so cut-and-dried.

Judge Throws Out Discrimination Suit Against Covington & Burling

The National Law Journal

The legal battle between former Covington & Burling staff attorney Yolanda Young and the law firm came to an abrupt halt Friday, when a federal judge dismissed the case after Young and her lawyer failed to show up in court. Young had alleged that the firm discriminated against its black lawyers and that she was the target of racially insensitive remarks and suffered retaliation when she complained. She wrote about her time at Covington in an essay on the Huffington Post titled "Law Firm Segregation Reminiscent of Jim Crow."

Dutch Court Approves Landmark Royal Dutch Shell Shareholder 'Class Action'

The American Lawyer

Europe may not have a class action mechanism, but a securities fraud settlement approved Friday by a Dutch court comes pretty darn close. The Amsterdam Court of Appeals issued a binding declaration ordering Royal Dutch Shell to begin payment of $381 million to a foundation representing a group of more than 150 institutional investors from 17 European countries, plus Canada and Australia. The settlement resolves securities fraud claims stemming from Shell's overstatement of its proven oil and gas reserves.

House Task Force to Hold Hearing on Impeachment of Federal Judge

Texas Lawyer

Samuel B. Kent is set to report to federal prison on June 15, but even before the disgraced retired U.S. district judge begins to serve a 33-month sentence, the U.S. House will crank into high gear proceedings that could lead to Kent's impeachment. Kent, as well as the two former staff members he has admitted to sexually assaulting as part of a guilty plea to obstruction of justice, reportedly will testify at an evidentiary hearing Wednesday before the House Judiciary Committee Task Force on Impeachment.

Tough Economy Takes Heavy Toll on N.Y. Summer Associate Classes

New York Law Journal

After a season of layoffs and furloughs, most of the largest private New York law offices also have reduced the size of their incoming summer associate classes. According to the New York Law Journal's annual survey of the top 25 largest law offices in New York, some of the biggest cuts were made in firms that had already reduced their work force during the past year. "Historically, the game was kind of the other way, we wanted to see as many people as possible," said Cadwalader's New York hiring committee chair.

Pa. Judicial Corruption Probe Said to Be Eyeing Criminal Cases

The Legal Intelligencer

Federal investigators in the Luzerne County, Pa., judicial corruption probe are said to be looking at whether two indicted former judges may have helped fix criminal cases, sources have told The Legal Intelligencer. An investigation by the paper has turned up at least three criminal cases in which individuals with ties to the corruption probe or with political or personal ties to former Judges Michael T. Conahan and Mark A. Ciavarella appeared in front of them and received relatively light sentences.

Filmmaker's Antitrust Suit Against Andy Warhol Foundation to Go Forward

The American Lawyer

When filmmaker Joe Simon-Whelan decided to sell a Warhol self-portrait he had purchased in 1989 for $150,000, an art authentication board established by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts twice declared it a fake, even though the foundation had previously authenticated it. Simon-Whelan sued, claiming a "20-year scheme" to control the market for Warhol paintings. Last week, a New York federal judge ruled that there is sufficient evidence to allow most of the antitrust claims to go forward.

Appeals Follow Sentencing of Defendants in Holy Land Foundation Case

Texas Lawyer

After their sentencing last week, it took less than 24 hours for three of the five defendants in United States v. Holy Land Foundation to file notices of appeal with the 5th Circuit, and an attorney for one of the defendants said all five will appeal. The HLF defendants received a combined total of 180 years in prison on charges that they engaged in a conspiracy to help funnel at least $12.4 million to Hamas through a now-defunct Texas-based Muslim charity, among other things.

Music Producer Phil Spector Sentenced to 19 Years to Life for Murder of Actress

The Associated Press

Phil Spector was sentenced Friday to 19 years to life in prison for the murder of actress Lana Clarkson, who was shot through the mouth in the music producer's home six years ago. Much of the case hinged on the testimony of five women from Spector's past who said he threatened them with guns when they tried to leave his presence. A prosecutor called the case "rock solid," but Spector's defense attorney said an appeal will assert that the judge erred in allowing the women to testify.

Sidley Advising on Gome Share Sale in China

The American Lawyer

Sidley Austin is advising China's second-largest electronics retailer, Gome Electrical Appliances Ltd., on the potential sale of a major stake to overseas investors. U.S. private equity giants Bain Capital and Kohlberg Kravis & Roberts are said to be among the leading bidders for a stake in the Hong Kong-listed company. But any transaction will have to overcome the fact that Gome's founder and largest shareholder, Huang Guangyu, is now in police custody on suspicion of stock fraud.

Visit International News

The Thin Client Approach to Cutting Costs

The American Lawyer

In today's economy, what's a savvy technology chief to do to cut firm costs? One answer is to rethink the way the firm deploys its applications and consider a thin client approach. Instead of running an application on each user's PC, run it on a centralized server all users can access.

Visit Legal Technology

Relationships Are Key in Job Searches

Fulton County Daily Report

Traditional tools for finding a new job are not likely to work for the growing multitude of lawyers who have been laid off, according to a panel of recruiters and consultants who spoke in Atlanta last week. Resumes and recruiters are not going to be nearly as helpful as relationships and self-reliance, they said. And while it's important to talk with a recruiter and rewrite a resume, the key is working full time at looking for a job.

Visit In-House Counsel

How to Make a Graceful Exit as a Lateral

The American Lawyer

With all the lateral movement over the past few months, we'd like to believe all the partings have been amicable, but we know breakups aren't always easy. The Am Law Daily asked McDermott Will & Emery partner William Schuman, chairman of the firm's professional responsibility committee, how to make a graceful exit. Schuman says, "The first thing to remember is you're not allowed to solicit clients or the associates of your firm while you're still there. You can't take stuff that doesn't belong to you."

Visit the Career Center

Sabbatical Doesn't Come Easy at Small Firm

The Recorder

Many large law firms may be paying young lawyers to stay away, but one small firm associate had to work to get his firm's OK to take this summer off. Myles Solomon, a fifth-year at Bassi Edlin Huie & Blum, who also started a sports agency co-owned by the firm partners, will be leaving this month to volunteer in Africa for three months. Managing partner Noel Edlin says that allowing the sabbatical means a trade-off in extra hours for other lawyers, who have to use nonbillable time to learn Solomon's cases.

Visit Small Firm Business

Today's Stories at a Glance

? Big Issues Lurk Below Surface of Sotomayor Confirmation Hearings

? For Midsize Firms, Opportunities Abound

? Are Today's Lawyers Stretched Too Far?

? Thelen Class Action Case Gets a Little Simpler

? Do Bailout Firms Have a Conflict of Interest?

? Judge Throws Out Discrimination Suit Against Covington & Burling

? Dutch Court Approves Landmark Royal Dutch Shell Shareholder 'Class Action'

? House Task Force to Hold Hearing on Impeachment of Federal Judge

? Tough Economy Takes Heavy Toll on N.Y. Summer Associate Classes

? Pa. Judicial Corruption Probe Said to Be Eyeing Criminal Cases

? Filmmaker's Antitrust Suit Against Andy Warhol Foundation to Go Forward

? Appeals Follow Sentencing of Defendants in Holy Land Foundation Case

? Music Producer Phil Spector Sentenced to 19 Years to Life for Murder of Actress

? Sidley Advising on Gome Share Sale in China

? The Thin Client Approach to Cutting Costs

? Relationships Are Key in Job Searches

? How to Make a Graceful Exit as a Lateral

? Sabbatical Doesn't Come Easy at Small Firm

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Legal Support for Taxing E-Mails

One would think that the idea of taxing e-mails wouldn't find much support among lawyers. After all, large firms must send out thousands of e-mails a day, while Carolyn Elefant says that even a solo like herself can easily dispatch two dozen or more. But at least one lawyer is speaking up in favor of the practice, as shown by an opinion piece from a U.K.-based magazine.

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Big Issues Lurk Below Surface of Sotomayor Confirmation Hearings

The National Law Journal

The predictable menu of issues is already being written by senators and special interest groups for Judge Sonia Sotomayor's Supreme Court confirmation hearings. But key issues affecting businesses, workers, consumers and criminal defendants, though generally ignored, will have a profound impact on more people than will perennial favorites such as abortion and the death penalty, say some lawyers and scholars. And, they add, Sotomayor's views on those issues would be more predictive of her role as a justice.

For Midsize Firms, Opportunities Abound

The Legal Intelligencer

While internal changes are few and far between at midsize firms, the world outside is morphing into a land of opportunity. Large corporate clients are on the hunt for better value and, more and more, they're setting their sights on smaller, regional firms. Many midsize firm leaders and legal experts say this shift could lead to permanent changes in the legal landscape as midsize and smaller firms gain more footing in markets previously cornered by megafirms.

Are Today's Lawyers Stretched Too Far?

The American Lawyer

These are hard times for most people who work at big law firms. For some, they are unbearable. Though deeply individual tragedies, the recent suicides of Kilpatrick Stockton's Mark Levy and a laid-off Simpson associate are also horrible reminders of the toll that a profession's stresses can take, especially in an ailing economy. And the truth is, lots of lawyers have been unhappy for years. It's time for lawyers at big firms to reassess their priorities and values, writes Susan Beck, who warns: You just can't keep going like this.

Thelen Class Action Case Gets a Little Simpler

The Recorder

Two former Thelen employees are throwing in the towel after their attorney was accused of trying to get a piece of the action too many times. Cary Kletter filed three similar complaints in two courts and tried to intervene in a fourth case, but attorneys for Thelen threatened to seek sanctions, saying he was bogging down the courts so he could rack up fees for himself. Late Friday, Kletter said his clients, at the request of Thelen, had decided not to pursue the case, which would likely be "resolved or dismissed soon."

Do Bailout Firms Have a Conflict of Interest?

The American Lawyer

The Washington Independent reports that several law firms, including Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, appear to have conflicts of interest by doing bailout work and representing banking clients despite Treasury Department contracts forbidding the practice. The Am Law Daily made some calls of its own about another firm -- Squire, Sanders & Dempsey -- and concludes that the conflicts question doesn't look so cut-and-dried.

Judge Throws Out Discrimination Suit Against Covington & Burling

The National Law Journal

The legal battle between former Covington & Burling staff attorney Yolanda Young and the law firm came to an abrupt halt Friday, when a federal judge dismissed the case after Young and her lawyer failed to show up in court. Young had alleged that the firm discriminated against its black lawyers and that she was the target of racially insensitive remarks and suffered retaliation when she complained. She wrote about her time at Covington in an essay on the Huffington Post titled "Law Firm Segregation Reminiscent of Jim Crow."

Dutch Court Approves Landmark Royal Dutch Shell Shareholder 'Class Action'

The American Lawyer

Europe may not have a class action mechanism, but a securities fraud settlement approved Friday by a Dutch court comes pretty darn close. The Amsterdam Court of Appeals issued a binding declaration ordering Royal Dutch Shell to begin payment of $381 million to a foundation representing a group of more than 150 institutional investors from 17 European countries, plus Canada and Australia. The settlement resolves securities fraud claims stemming from Shell's overstatement of its proven oil and gas reserves.

House Task Force to Hold Hearing on Impeachment of Federal Judge

Texas Lawyer

Samuel B. Kent is set to report to federal prison on June 15, but even before the disgraced retired U.S. district judge begins to serve a 33-month sentence, the U.S. House will crank into high gear proceedings that could lead to Kent's impeachment. Kent, as well as the two former staff members he has admitted to sexually assaulting as part of a guilty plea to obstruction of justice, reportedly will testify at an evidentiary hearing Wednesday before the House Judiciary Committee Task Force on Impeachment.

Tough Economy Takes Heavy Toll on N.Y. Summer Associate Classes

New York Law Journal

After a season of layoffs and furloughs, most of the largest private New York law offices also have reduced the size of their incoming summer associate classes. According to the New York Law Journal's annual survey of the top 25 largest law offices in New York, some of the biggest cuts were made in firms that had already reduced their work force during the past year. "Historically, the game was kind of the other way, we wanted to see as many people as possible," said Cadwalader's New York hiring committee chair.

Pa. Judicial Corruption Probe Said to Be Eyeing Criminal Cases

The Legal Intelligencer

Federal investigators in the Luzerne County, Pa., judicial corruption probe are said to be looking at whether two indicted former judges may have helped fix criminal cases, sources have told The Legal Intelligencer. An investigation by the paper has turned up at least three criminal cases in which individuals with ties to the corruption probe or with political or personal ties to former Judges Michael T. Conahan and Mark A. Ciavarella appeared in front of them and received relatively light sentences.

Filmmaker's Antitrust Suit Against Andy Warhol Foundation to Go Forward

The American Lawyer

When filmmaker Joe Simon-Whelan decided to sell a Warhol self-portrait he had purchased in 1989 for $150,000, an art authentication board established by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts twice declared it a fake, even though the foundation had previously authenticated it. Simon-Whelan sued, claiming a "20-year scheme" to control the market for Warhol paintings. Last week, a New York federal judge ruled that there is sufficient evidence to allow most of the antitrust claims to go forward.

Appeals Follow Sentencing of Defendants in Holy Land Foundation Case

Texas Lawyer

After their sentencing last week, it took less than 24 hours for three of the five defendants in United States v. Holy Land Foundation to file notices of appeal with the 5th Circuit, and an attorney for one of the defendants said all five will appeal. The HLF defendants received a combined total of 180 years in prison on charges that they engaged in a conspiracy to help funnel at least $12.4 million to Hamas through a now-defunct Texas-based Muslim charity, among other things.

Music Producer Phil Spector Sentenced to 19 Years to Life for Murder of Actress

The Associated Press

Phil Spector was sentenced Friday to 19 years to life in prison for the murder of actress Lana Clarkson, who was shot through the mouth in the music producer's home six years ago. Much of the case hinged on the testimony of five women from Spector's past who said he threatened them with guns when they tried to leave his presence. A prosecutor called the case "rock solid," but Spector's defense attorney said an appeal will assert that the judge erred in allowing the women to testify.

Sidley Advising on Gome Share Sale in China

The American Lawyer

Sidley Austin is advising China's second-largest electronics retailer, Gome Electrical Appliances Ltd., on the potential sale of a major stake to overseas investors. U.S. private equity giants Bain Capital and Kohlberg Kravis & Roberts are said to be among the leading bidders for a stake in the Hong Kong-listed company. But any transaction will have to overcome the fact that Gome's founder and largest shareholder, Huang Guangyu, is now in police custody on suspicion of stock fraud.

Visit International News

The Thin Client Approach to Cutting Costs

The American Lawyer

In today's economy, what's a savvy technology chief to do to cut firm costs? One answer is to rethink the way the firm deploys its applications and consider a thin client approach. Instead of running an application on each user's PC, run it on a centralized server all users can access.

Visit Legal Technology

Relationships Are Key in Job Searches

Fulton County Daily Report

Traditional tools for finding a new job are not likely to work for the growing multitude of lawyers who have been laid off, according to a panel of recruiters and consultants who spoke in Atlanta last week. Resumes and recruiters are not going to be nearly as helpful as relationships and self-reliance, they said. And while it's important to talk with a recruiter and rewrite a resume, the key is working full time at looking for a job.

Visit In-House Counsel

How to Make a Graceful Exit as a Lateral

The American Lawyer

With all the lateral movement over the past few months, we'd like to believe all the partings have been amicable, but we know breakups aren't always easy. The Am Law Daily asked McDermott Will & Emery partner William Schuman, chairman of the firm's professional responsibility committee, how to make a graceful exit. Schuman says, "The first thing to remember is you're not allowed to solicit clients or the associates of your firm while you're still there. You can't take stuff that doesn't belong to you."

Visit the Career Center

Sabbatical Doesn't Come Easy at Small Firm

The Recorder

Many large law firms may be paying young lawyers to stay away, but one small firm associate had to work to get his firm's OK to take this summer off. Myles Solomon, a fifth-year at Bassi Edlin Huie & Blum, who also started a sports agency co-owned by the firm partners, will be leaving this month to volunteer in Africa for three months. Managing partner Noel Edlin says that allowing the sabbatical means a trade-off in extra hours for other lawyers, who have to use nonbillable time to learn Solomon's cases.

Visit Small Firm Business

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Full post as published by New York Supreme Court Criminal Term Library on June 01, 2009 (boomark / email).