International Law

Young Ex-Associate Sues Aussie BigLaw, Says She Was Fired After Involvement with Firm Solicitor

In a case that is making waves in Australia, a former female associate is going head-to-head with one of the country’s major law firms, contending that she was harassed and fired after becoming “romantically involved” with a Clayton Utz solicitor. In an ongoing lawsuit against the firm, Bridgette Styles alleges…

Jun 8, 2011 6:07 PM CDT

EU Regulators Cast Wary Eye on New Facebook ‘Tag Suggestions’ Photo Facial Recognition Feature

A new Facebook feature that automatically offers “Tag Suggestions” about identifying individuals in photos is being scrutinized by European Union data-protection regulators concerned that it could violate privacy rules, reports Bloomberg. “Tags of people on pictures should only happen based on people’s prior consent and it can’t be activated by…

Jun 8, 2011 4:30 PM CDT

Lloyd’s of London Sues to Void $17.5M Insurance Policy for Michael Jackson Concerts

Contending that a required medical exam was never conducted and that a concert promoter withheld information about Michael Jackson’s drug abuse, insurer Lloyd’s of London is seeking a court ruling voiding a $17.5 million insurance policy. It provided coverage for the pop singer’s non-appearance or cancellation of concerts in which…

Jun 7, 2011 1:03 AM CDT

BigLaw Partner Scores Win in Retirement Fight; He’s an Employee, for Discrimination Law Purposes

A Vancouver partner in one of Canada’s biggest law firms has scored another victory in his fight to avoid retiring at age 65. In an opinion released today, the British Columbia Supreme Court upheld a ruling last year by the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal that Mitch McCormick, 66, would be…

Jun 2, 2011 10:57 PM CDT

Google Warns Gmail Users, Says China-Based Hackers are Reading High-Profile Content

Likely due to their falling for phishing schemes, a number of Gmail users are subject to having their email read by China-based hackers, Google Inc. is warning. In an Official Google Blog post today alerting Gmail users to be careful about security, the company says it has detected such schemes…

Jun 1, 2011 11:05 PM CDT

Ogilvy Jumps Gun on Tomorrow’s Merger with Norton Rose, Erases Name on Law Firm’s Doors

As of tomorrow, Canada’s Ogilvy Renault will officially merge with London-based Norton Rose. But, at its Montreal headquarters, the firm jumped the gun and had a new sign installed several days ago, reports the Globe and Mail. Other offices plan a similar makeover tonight, and partners in Toronto plan to…

Jun 1, 2011 12:20 AM CDT

Pentagon Defines Some Cyber Attacks as Acts of War, Finds Rules of Armed Conflict Apply

The Pentagon is preparing a report that concludes cyber attacks by another country could constitute an act of war meriting a military response. The report will conclude that the Laws of Armed Conflict apply in cyberspace as well as in traditional warfare, the Wall Street Journal reports. The newspaper’s sources…

May 31, 2011 12:41 PM CDT

UK Law Firm Ex-Partner Probed re 7-Figure Sum

For the second time in less than two weeks, a prominent London lawyer is in the news concerning a seven-figure sum. This time it’s a former partner of Ince & Co., Andrew Iyer. He’s being investigated by multiple agencies concerning what a spokesman for the law firm describes as “irregular…

May 27, 2011 11:06 PM CDT

Author Gets 6-Week Contempt Term for ‘Jolly Hangman’ Book re Singapore Justice System

A British author’s appeal of a contempt finding and six-week jail sentence for writing a book critical of the Singapore justice system has been unsuccessful. After the Singapore Court of Appeal’s affirmation of the sentence today, which also includes a fine of about $16,000 in U.S. dollars, author Alan Shadrake…

May 27, 2011 5:24 PM CDT

3rd Circuit Says Lawyers’ Involvement in ‘Crude’ Film Wasn’t a Subject-Matter Privilege Waiver

By allowing a filmmaker access to attorney-client meetings for his Crude documentary about a megabucks environmental case in Ecuador, lawyers for the plaintiffs did not create a subject-matter waiver for all privileged communications, a federal appeals court has ruled. Reversing a lower court decision that the attorneys involved would have…

May 27, 2011 12:01 AM CDT

Serbia Announces Arrest of Top War Crimes Suspect Mladic

Serbian war crimes fugitive Ratko Mladic has been arrested, Serbia’s president announced today. Mladic has been on the run since he was accused by a United Nations war crimes tribunal of masterminding the 1995 Srebrenica massacre of about 8,000 Bosnian Muslims, report the Associated Press, CNN and the New York…

May 26, 2011 11:51 AM CDT

Municipal Attorney’s Next Assignment: Military Counsel; ‘When the Navy Calls, You Go’

Married, a father and a name partner in a Colorado law firm, Carl McGuire seemingly had his life structure set. Then he got the news that he was headed to Afghanistan for a six-month Naval Reserves deployment. “When the Navy calls, you go,” he tells the Fort Morgan Times, noting…

May 24, 2011 6:34 PM CDT

Lead Defense Lawyer Disqualified in Trial of Alleged Mexican Drug Kingpin

Saying that allowing an alleged Mexican drug kingpin to be represented by the lead lawyer of his choice could create significant distraction and delay during trial, a federal judge in San Diego today disqualified Jan Ronis from continuing to defend Benjamin Arellano Felix. Although U.S. District Judge Larry Burns held…

May 23, 2011 9:03 PM CDT

Suit Accuses Cisco of Aiding Chinese Repression Through Sale of Internet Tracking Software

Cisco Systems Inc. is accused in a lawsuit of aiding torture and repression in China through sales of surveillance software to the Chinese government. The suit was filed by members of the persecuted spiritual group Falun Gong, report the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.). The…

May 23, 2011 11:25 AM CDT

Strauss-Kahn Formally Charged with Criminal Sex Acts, Granted $1M Bail

Updated: Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the French former IMF official accused of sexually assaulting a maid at New York’s Sofitel New York, was formally charged Thursday, Reuters reports. The Manhattan Criminal Court grand jury indictment charges Strauss-Kahn with a criminal sexual act, attempted rape, sexual abuse, unlawful imprisonment and forcible touching. If…

May 19, 2011 7:39 PM CDT