Corporate Law

Suspended lawyer can’t shield home in bankruptcy from malpractice judgment, 7th Circuit says

A suspended Illinois lawyer who had owned his home as a tenant by the entirety before his wife’s death won’t be able to shield the property in bankruptcy from a former client who won a default malpractice judgment.

Aug 6, 2019 10:13 AM CDT

Can suing a company’s board lead to more accountability for workplace misconduct?

When leaders behave badly, their conduct is often hidden in plain sight and insulated by enablers. So, it’s only fair to ask: When a corporate executive misbehaves, what did the board of directors know and when did they know it?

Aug 1, 2019 6:30 AM CDT

Ethics fix can stop CEOs from acting like sociopaths, former BigLaw lawyer says

Jamie Gamble, a former partner at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, has a problem with the legal obligation for corporate CEOs to make decisions that maximize corporate value. That obligation requires CEOs to act like sociopaths, Gamble wrote in an essay at Medium.com. “The corporate entity is obligated to care only…

Jul 31, 2019 12:41 PM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: $2B verdict against Roundup maker slashed; law firm breakup now a play

• For the second time in two weeks, a judge in California has reduced a verdict against the maker of Roundup weed killer in a suit by cancer victims. Judge Winifred Smith of Alameda County reduced the award to Alva and Alberta Pilliod from $2 billion to $86.7 million. Defendant…

Jul 26, 2019 5:02 PM CDT

Tech companies under fire: Facebook to pay $5B, antitrust probe opened, AG Barr criticizes encryption

Technology companies are under fire by the Trump administration. On Wednesday, the Federal Trade Commission announced that Facebook will pay a record $5 billion privacy penalty to settle allegations that the company deceived users about their ability to control disclosure of their personal information. The Washington Post has coverage. The…

Jul 24, 2019 10:27 AM CDT

In patent cases, imposing attorney fees will ‘hamper equal access to justice,’ ABA says

In an amicus brief filed with the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday, the ABA says: “Imposing governmental attorneys’ fees on patent applicants who choose civil actions under [the law] will hamper equal access to justice and chill the assertion of meritorious claims.” The Supreme Court is considering in Peter v.…

Jul 23, 2019 12:52 PM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: Teen vandal gets paint-with-a-toothbrush sentence; Equifax settles data breach claims

• Equifax has agreed to pay up to $700 million to settle state and federal claims related to a 2017 data breach that exposed the information of 147 million consumers. Up to $425 million of the settlement will pay consumers for time and money they spent to address identity theft…

Jul 22, 2019 4:15 PM CDT

Lawyer is accused of creating sham secured creditor to shield client assets

A former partner with Freeborn & Peters in Chicago has been charged in an alleged scheme to protect a client’s assets by creating a sham secured creditor with a senior lien on assets sought by other creditors. The former partner, Edward Lee Filer, was charged in a July 11 federal…

Jul 17, 2019 1:40 PM CDT

Lawyers can be sued for allegedly violating confidentiality deal in Monster Energy suit

A lawyer who sued Monster Energy in the cardiac death of a teenager can be sued for allegedly violating a confidentiality clause that was part of the case settlement, the California Supreme Court has ruled. In its July 11 decision, the court said Monster Energy could sue Bruce Schechter and…

Jul 16, 2019 1:30 PM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: R. Kelly accused of sexual racketeering; in vitro fertilization mix-up leads to lawsuits

• Federal indictments in New York and Chicago accuse R&B singer R. Kelly of racketeering, producing child pornography and obstructing justice in connection with sexual exploitation of young girls and women. The New York indictment says Kelly had strict rules of behavior for his sexual recruits, including that they call…

Jul 12, 2019 4:34 PM CDT

Sidley Austin is among defendants settling investor class action for $220M

Sidley Austin and Deloitte are among five professional firms agreeing to pay $220 million to settle claims for aiding securities sales by a now-defunct investment firm accused of operating as a Ponzi scheme. None of the defendants were charged with any wrongdoing, according to the proposed settlement filed in Oregon…

Jul 11, 2019 1:22 PM CDT

Impounded vehicles can’t be held after drivers file for bankruptcy, court says

Thousands of Chicago motorists may be able to get their cars and trucks out of city impound lots immediately after filing for Chapter 13 bankruptcy following a federal appeals court ruling that the city could no longer hold onto the vehicles.

Jul 10, 2019 9:28 AM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: Bar associations battle over trademark; New Jersey judge rebuked over rape case

• Even though the Association of Trial Lawyers of America changed its name to the American Association for Justice in 2006, the Washington, D.C.-based bar association is suing the California-based Association of American Trial Lawyers for trademark infringement and unfair competition. The suit says the American Association for Justice sent…

Jul 3, 2019 4:27 PM CDT

Afternoon Briefs: China forces tourists to download surveillance app; House Dems sue IRS for Trump’s taxes

• House Democrats filed a federal lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service and Treasury Department after months of requesting President Donald Trump’s tax returns. The lawsuit accuses the Trump administration of an “extraordinary attack” on Congress in preventing disclosure of the records. (Washington Post, CNN, Wall Street Journal) • The…

Jul 2, 2019 4:30 PM CDT

This state is set to expunge nearly 800,000 marijuana convictions in 2020

Illinois residents will automatically receive clemency for convictions of up to 30 grams of cannabis after a new state law goes into effect in 2020. The Cannabis Regulation & Tax Act, signed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker last week, makes cannabis legal for people age 21 and older and offers relief…

Jul 1, 2019 3:54 PM CDT