In-house Counsel

General counsel for Midas parent company gets stayed suspension for unauthorized practice

A general counsel who failed to complete his continuing education requirements, leading to his suspension from law practice in Ohio, has received a two-year stayed suspension because of his legal work for his Florida corporation.

Feb 20, 2018 8:00 AM CST

No. 3 lawyer at Justice Department is leaving; what does it mean for the special counsel probe?

Associate Attorney General Rachel Brand, the third-highest ranking official at the Justice Department, is leaving for a top position with Walmart.

Feb 12, 2018 9:00 AM CST

Former in-house lawyer is suspended for disclosures to reporter and regulators

A lawyer who formerly worked for General Electric has been suspended for 60 days for disclosing confidential company information. The District of Columbia Court of Appeals imposed the suspension on lawyer M. Adriana Koeck in an opinion on Thursday, report the National Law Journal and the Legal Profession Blog. The…

Feb 8, 2018 5:00 PM CST

Accused of videotaping nude women at work, general counsel agrees to disbarment

The former general counsel of a Florida company has agreed to disbarment after he was accused of secretly videotaping women showering, using the restroom and changing clothes at the workplace. James Patrick Stanton, 43, signed a consent to disbarment on Tuesday, reports the Tampa Bay Times. Stanton was accused of…

Jan 18, 2018 7:00 AM CST

Microsoft backs bill barring mandatory arbitration of sex harassment claims, waives its own clause

Microsoft is backing federal legislation preventing mandatory arbitration of sexual harassment claims, while it takes steps to change its own contractual requirements with some employees. Chief legal officer Brad Smith announced the technology giant’s policy in a blog post, report the National Law Journal (sub. req.), the New York Times…

Dec 21, 2017 8:30 AM CST

Minorities are still scarce among law firm partners and general counsel

Minority lawyers are an increasing percentage of lawyers at law firms, but their numbers still lag at the partnership level, according to the Minority Corporate Counsel Association. Sixteen percent of lawyers at law firms are minorities, but only 9 percent of partners are minorities, the Washington Post reports. The pattern…

Nov 30, 2017 3:38 PM CST

Uber ousts in-house counsel who suppressed information about 2016 data breach

An in-house attorney for Uber is no longer with the company after it was discovered that he’d helped suppress news of a data breach, the Recorder has reported. Attorney Craig Clark and his direct supervisor, Uber chief security officer Joe Sullivan, were ousted for concealing an October 2016 breach. Bloomberg…

Nov 22, 2017 11:18 AM CST

Alternative fee arrangements have plateaued, survey author says

Two surveys of in-house counsel have drawn similar conclusions: There is some inertia in their use of alternative fees to control law firm costs.

Oct 30, 2017 7:25 AM CDT

PwC launches temporary lawyer service

Pricewaterhouse Coopers is launching a new service that will provide temporary lawyers for large in-house law departments.

Oct 16, 2017 7:00 AM CDT

SEC alleges general counsel aided Ponzi scheme, approved misleading ads

The Securities and Exchange Commission is alleging that a corporate general counsel participated in a Ponzi scheme that targeted naïve investors in ads that sometimes ran on the Rush Limbaugh Show.

Oct 11, 2017 7:45 AM CDT

Equifax is reportedly reviewing actions of its top lawyer, who oversaw security and stock sales

Equifax’s board of directors is reportedly scrutinizing the actions of the company’s chief legal officer, John Kelley, because of two of his duties—overseeing security and approving stock sales by executives.

Oct 2, 2017 9:04 AM CDT

Oops! WilmerHale email to reporter reveals apparent SEC probe into PepsiCo GC’s departure

Updated: A misaddressed email from WilmerHale informed a Wall Street Journal reporter that the Securities and Exchange Commission was investigating the departure of PepsiCo’s general counsel.

Sep 27, 2017 10:59 AM CDT

Charles Kenji Whitehead: Teaching startup law as startup products start up

Charles Kenji Whitehead

Sep 21, 2017 8:30 AM CDT

Venture-backed, technology-focused law firm launches

With $10.5 million, serial entrepreneur Justin Kan is about to take on Big Law. After three months operating under the radar, Atrium LLP publicly launched on Thursday with the stated goal of building “the technology-first law firm of the future,” according to the website. Atrium LLP will compliment, but is…

Sep 14, 2017 3:56 PM CDT

Delaware loses long-held No. 1 ranking for business-friendly legal climate to South Dakota

A periodic survey of corporations by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s legal-reform arm found that Delaware has lost its No. 1 ranking for being business-friendly in legal matters, dropping to No. 11, the Associated Press reports. Delaware had been No. 1 in the previous 10 surveys, and fell out of…

Sep 12, 2017 1:45 PM CDT