Business Development

1540 ABA Journal Business Development articles.

Competition Spurs Dubai Law Firms to Cut Fees

So many law firms have opened offices in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, that they are now cutting fees to grab more legal work. Lower fees are most likely in practice areas involving energy, project finance, construction and sovereign wealth funds, Legal Week reports. By some estimates, nearly 30 Western firms…

Mar 7, 2008 12:34 PM CST

Lawyers in ‘Ethical Minefield’ in $8.4M Detroit Settlement Scandal

An exploding scandal in Detroit over an $8.4 million settlement apparently intended to cover up misconduct by city officials now involves claimed false testimony, concealment of information from the city council and possible destruction of evidence. All create an “ethical minefield” for the lawyers involved, according to legal experts interviewed…

Mar 6, 2008 4:35 PM CST

Court: ‘No Way on Earth’ Should Lawyers Get Fee of $46K for $45 Error

An off-duty police officer sought class action status for his lawsuit after he was shorted $45 in pay for crowd control, and following a settlement, his law firm sought $46,000 in attorney fees. That’s not going to happen. “No way on earth,” says a California appeals court, which slashed the…

Mar 5, 2008 3:25 PM CST

Judith Regan, Would-Be O.J. Book Publisher, Sued by Former Counsel

Last year, the Dreier and Redniss and Associates law firms were representing high-profile publisher Judith Regan, perhaps best known for her controversial attempt to publish the O.J. Simpson book If I Did It in a much-publicized $100 million lawsuit. This year, they are suing her, contending that she stiffed them…

Mar 4, 2008 4:40 PM CST

Jury OKs Texas Lawyer’s Focus on Media Strategy in Murder Case

A Texas lawyer who allegedly focused on media strategy rather than the best interests of the client he was defending in a high-profile murder trial in 2003 has won the sympathy of the jury in an excessive-fees case brought by his now-convicted client. By an 11-1 vote, the jury decided…

Feb 29, 2008 8:39 PM CST

Legal Costs in Sen. Craig’s Restroom Case Near $250,000

Ongoing litigation over Sen. Larry Craig’s disorderly conduct plea last year in a case sparked by a restroom sting operation hasn’t come cheap. Total legal costs for both sides are now nearing $250,000, as the Republican senator from Idaho continues to seek a Minnesota appellate court ruling that he can…

Feb 28, 2008 8:45 PM CST

Excessive-Fees Case Focuses on Lawyer’s Media Strategy in Murder Trial

A criminal defense attorney on trial in Texas for allegedly overcharging his client in a high-profile murder case was accused in opening statements today of focusing on his own publicity to the detriment of defendant Clara Harris. Television camera crews conducted interviews and filmed the murder trial preparation, under an…

Feb 20, 2008 11:48 PM CST

McDermott Ordered to Pay Attorney Fees for ‘Abuse of Advocacy’

A federal judge in Colorado has ordered McDermott Will & Emery and one of its clients to pay the legal fees of an opponent in a patent infringement case because of “abuse of advocacy.” U.S. District Judge Richard Matsch chastised two McDermott lawyers, Terrence McMahon and Vera Elson, in his…

Feb 15, 2008 12:57 PM CST

Lerach Gets 2 Years in Claimed Milberg Weiss Kickbacks Case

A once-mighty partner at the nation’s biggest and best-known plaintiffs securities firm was given a two-year federal prison sentence today for his role in an alleged law firm scheme to pay $11.3 million in kickbacks to lead plaintiffs in securities class actions. In addition to the prison term, William Lerach,…

Feb 11, 2008 9:44 PM CST

Murder Defendant Sues Ga. Judge Over Change of Counsel

A defendant in a capital murder case who was represented for more than a year by private lawyers paid for by the state of Georgia has sued his trial judge for replacing the private attorneys with public defenders. Meanwhile, the salaried public defenders selected by Pike County Superior Court Judge…

Feb 11, 2008 8:56 PM CST

Duane Morris Defends $1.6M Malpractice Claim

Duane Morris maintained in opening statements this week that it didn’t commit malpractice by failing to include a security guarantee in a settlement agreement it drafted for a client, the Legal Intelligencer reports. The law firm has been sued for $1.6 million by an ex-client who says he received only…

Feb 6, 2008 1:56 PM CST

Three Firms Try Taming the Billable Beast

By David Gialanella The billable hour is the dandelion of law practice: pervasive and not so popular. So, when seeking to avoid the negative effects of a system that provides the profits for many a firm, there can be as many approaches as there are landscapers in the phone book.…

Feb 5, 2008 4:28 PM CST

Judge Raps ‘Cat and Mouse Game,’ Withholds Attorney Fees

A federal bankruptcy judge has refused to approve a fee request of almost $75,000 by a New York law firm because it did not clearly disclose the relationship between the lead lawyer and one of the unsecured creditors he represented. Lawyer Douglas Spelfogel of Berkman, Henoch, Peterson & Peddy of…

Feb 4, 2008 4:27 PM CST

Taming the Billable Beast

Three firms take different approaches to change by-the-hour billing

Feb 1, 2008 3:33 PM CST

Lawsuit Costs Furrier $97K in Attorney Fees for Animal Rights Protesters

A well-known furrier in Portland, Ore., has been ordered by a federal judge to pay nearly $100,000 in legal fees to protesters who demonstrated aggressively outside its downtown store for years, allegedly driving the longtime merchant out of business. Although Schumacher Furs & Outerwear may well have had legitimate complaints…

Jan 25, 2008 11:51 PM CST

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