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Heller's Last Laterals Took $7 Million

The Recorder

Heller Ehrman paid out more than $7 million to 35 departing or retiring partners in 2008, a Friday bankruptcy filing by the firm shows. The filing paints a picture of Heller's shrinking capital coffers as a steady stream of partners left in 2008. The departures led to the firm's breaking a loan covenant and having its accounts frozen, which precipitated its collapse. The document also shows who Heller's creditors could target as they seek to be paid through Heller's bankruptcy.

Fish & Richardson Sued Over 'Hot Potato' Move

The Recorder

A San Francisco Bluetooth headset maker says Fish & Richardson played an unseemly game of hot potato by dropping it as a client and then turning around and suing for patent infringement the very next day. Aliph Inc. moved to disqualify Fish from representing bluetooth rival Plantronics in the patent case two weeks ago, arguing that the firm shouldn't be allowed to sue its own client or get out of the mess by suddenly disowning Aliph at 8:30 p.m. the night before.

Stanford Clients Sending Out an SOS

Daily Business Review

Over 20 years, R. Allen Stanford's companies and his distinctive eagle logo became an established fixture in South Florida, a key outpost of the billionaire banker's financial empire. But longtime observers say they remained suspicious. Now, in the wake of last week's SEC lawsuit accusing Stanford of a "massive" fraud, international banking attorneys are being deluged by Stanford clients fearing the worst and hoping that somehow their money can be recovered.

3rd Circuit Deals Blow to Class-Arbitration Waivers

The Legal Intelligencer

Consumers and the lawyers who aim to represent them en masse scored a major victory Tuesday when the 3rd Circuit held that arbitration clauses may be struck down -- under state law -- as unconscionable if they prohibit the class action vehicle in cases where a large number of consumers have claims that would individually yield only small sums -- even if the contract included a choice-of-law provision that called for applying the law of a state that is decidedly amenable to such pro-business provisions.

Lawyer Can Be Sued Over Wording of Real Estate Contract 20 Years Earlier

New Jersey Law Journal

Proving that a lawyer's dereliction of duty to a client can come back to haunt him many years later, a New Jersey appeals court has reinstated a malpractice suit against a lawyer over his roles in two land deals two decades apart. The judges reversed dismissal of the suit, finding that where a clause in a 1986 contract was meant to "survive the passage of time," the lawyer could be found to have a professional responsibility to protect it in a transaction nearly 20 years later.

Plan Implemented to Resolve Complex Suits in World Trade Center Cleanup

New York Law Journal

More than seven years after the Sept. 11 terror attacks, plaintiffs lawyers and New York City are now following a road map a federal judge hopes will result in settlements next year in the complicated process of determining liability for respiratory damage allegedly suffered by thousands of workers who participated in the cleanup of the World Trade Center site. The judge decided to focus first on the most severely injured workers to produce a sample of trial-ready cases that will set the parameters for settlement.

Justice Stevens to Moderate Discussion on 'Marbury'

Legal Times

Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens will make a rare public appearance Thursday at the Newseum, marking the publication of a new book on the landmark 1803 decision Marbury v. Madison. Stevens will moderate a discussion with the book's authors, who describe an interview with Stevens in his chambers last June, in which the justice confided that he tries to cite Marbury in his opinions every chance he can get, explaining that it is "the whole basis for constitutional law" in the United States.

U.S. Supreme Court Won't Review 'Rocket Docket' Ruling

The Recorder

The U.S. Supreme Court decided Monday that it had better things to do than contemplate whether or not too many patent cases are getting stuck in the so-called rocket docket of the Eastern District of Texas. The high court denied a petition for certiorari in In re Volkswagen, a product liability suit that the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said should never have been kept in the Eastern District.

Former Guantanamo Detainees Seek Habeas Even After Release

Legal Times

A group of defense lawyers representing former Guantanamo detainees are arguing that their clients should still be able to challenge their designation as enemy combatants in U.S. court, even though they have already been released from American custody. The lawyers, led by Shayana Kadidal of the Center for Constitutional Rights, contend that many former Gitmo inmates have continued to suffer severe personal hardship since their release because the United States has not cleared their legal status.

N.Y. Court Upholds Dismissal of 9/11 Defamation Lawsuit

New York Law Journal

A New York appeals panel has upheld the dismissal of a defamation suit by a claimed rescuer at the World Trade Center site against NBC's "Dateline," three of its editorial employees and several others interviewed on the show, including an Albuquerque Journal reporter. The ruling affirmed a lower court decision that dismissed the complaint because Doug Copp had failed to prove the falsity of the statements he alleged to be defamatory and that found a lack of long-arm jurisdiction over the New Mexico-based defendants.

Jayson Williams' Lawyers May Scour Documents for Taint of Investigator's Racial Slur

New Jersey Law Journal

Former basketball star Jayson Williams' lawyers may examine relevant evidence of whether an investigator's use of a racial epithet tainted his prosecution on manslaughter charges, New Jersey's Supreme Court has ruled. The justices ordered the trial judge to decide what evidence is relevant to the remark, which the defense argues is central to Williams' upcoming retrial. Williams was convicted in 2004 of covering up his complicity in the shooting of his limo driver, but the jury deadlocked on a reckless homicide charge.

From the Emerald Isle to Down Under, Firms Tightening Belts

The American Lawyer

It seems the abrupt end of Ireland's decade-long economic boom is now squeezing the country's lawyers. Last week one of the Emerald Isle's largest law firms, A&L Goodbody, announced that it was seeking to cut 45 jobs -- 20 from the firm's stable of solicitors and 25 from the support staff ranks. With business slowing down at home, many Irish lawyers are looking to Australia for employment opportunities.

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Law Firms Question Cost of Responding to Corporate RFPs

The National Law Journal

Law firms are increasingly questioning the practice of spending tens of thousands of dollars responding to corporate requests for proposals, or invitations to compete for legal work, given that companies reject most bids, according to legal consulting firm Altman Weil. Its recent report pegged the outlay at $35,000 to $65,000, or between 100 to 200 partner hours. "There are many things that may be more productive for that time and those resources," says Altman Weil GC Pamela Woldow.

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An IT Inventory to Meet Your EDD Needs

Law Technology News

A debate has raged about the value of technology inventories for disaster recovery and whether they should be performed by internal IT staff or an outside entity. Now, there's a new twist to the argument: How much will inventories help you prepare for litigation and e-discovery?

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The Legal Minefield of Cutting Workers' Health Care Benefits

The National Law Journal

General Motors is fighting to prove its viability to the federal government or risk losing a $13.4 billion loan. That predicament has GM executives pushing union leaders for concessions on retiree health care benefits. The union is bracing for the worst, fearing for their already negotiated lifetime health benefits. WolfBlock partner Jim Redeker discusses the crisis facing GM and its union workers, and the legal pitfalls of modifying a union contract and trimming health care for retirees.

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The Fine Art of Overbilling

The American Lawyer

While the billable hour is still alive and kicking, legal bloggers are opining on some of the more nefarious means of separating clients from their hard-earned cash. And we're not talking about bill padding, but good old-fashioned, fraudulent overbilling. For instance, Bitter Lawyer features the anonymous Philadelphia Lawyer's list of eight routine overbilling scams. Even in these tough economic times, don't use these tips unless you really don't like your job -- and your bar membership.

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Managing During a Death Spiral

The American Lawyer

In every law firm failure there is a window -- sometimes called the "death spiral" -- between the moment when the leader realizes that the firm likely cannot survive, and the moment the firm votes to dissolve. During this window, the chairman's role is fraught with conflicting interests -- but perhaps especially as it nears an end, a firm continues to require strong management. Consultant Peter D. Zeughauser discusses four critical responsibilities a firm's manager must remember during a death spiral.