New York

NY Appeals Court OKs Retrial for Convict Who Waived Conflict re Lawyer’s Civil Work for Witness Cop

Attorney Michele Bergevin told a New York man she was defending in a child sex-abuse case that she also had as a client, in an unrelated civil matter, a police officer who was a witness in the criminal case. Although she obtained defendant Michael Soloman’s consent to a waiver of…

Oct 31, 2012 4:52 PM CDT

NY Top Court Upholds Murder Conviction Despite Alleged Sleeping Juror

New York’s highest court has ruled a trial judge didn’t abuse her discretion when she refused to dismiss a juror accused of falling asleep during deliberations in a murder trial. The New York Court of Appeals upheld the second-degree murder conviction of Carlos Herring, convicted for a fatal shooting in…

Oct 31, 2012 12:16 PM CDT

Some Law Firms and Courts in Storm-Ravaged Areas Remain Closed

Some law firms, law schools and courts in areas hit hard by Hurricane Sandy planned to be closed again on Wednesday. K&L Gates in Newark, N.J., has closed its 44-lawyer office indefinitely, the National Law Journal reports. The office is located in an area where transportation is difficult because of…

Oct 31, 2012 11:41 AM CDT

Friend Sues Ex-Partner and Law Firm, Says He Was Defrauded of Over $360K in Fake Mortgage Scheme

A former senior partner of a Buffalo, N.Y., law firm who has recently been working as a part-time town judge has been sued by a longtime friend who contends he was defrauded out of $368,000 he paid into a fraudulent mortgage investment scheme via a law firm client trust account.…

Oct 30, 2012 7:08 PM CDT

Federal Court Staff Attorney Takes Misdemeanor Plea in Child Sex-Abuse Case; Probation Expected

A lawyer who is employed as a staff attorney at a federal court in Syracuse, N.Y., has taken a misdemeanor plea in a child sex-abuse case and is expected to be sentenced to a six-year term of probation, a prosecutor tells the Post-Standard. Assistant District Attorney Jeremy Cali said Thomas…

Oct 30, 2012 5:47 PM CDT

Hurricane Sandy Didn’t Stop Some NY Lawyers—and One Law Firm Chef—From Coming to Work

A few lawyers and paralegals at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe’s New York headquarters made it to work on Monday, even though the office was officially closed for Hurricane Sandy. One person even came to work by bike. Peter Bicks, partner in charge of the office, told the New York Law…

Oct 30, 2012 11:45 AM CDT

Already Slapped with $10K Sanction for Depo Conduct, NY Lawyer Is Now Ordered to Pay $36K Legal Fees

Already slapped earlier this year with a $10,000 sanction by a state appeals court for his insulting deposition conduct toward a trial judge, her clerk, a court reporter and plaintiff’s counsel in a diamond dealer debt case, a New York lawyer must now pay a little over $36,000 in legal…

Oct 29, 2012 8:06 PM CDT

As Hurricane Sandy Sweeps In, Courts and Law Firms Close Down in DC, NJ and NY

Updated: As what is expected to be an epic storm sweeps into the East Coast from Florida to Canada and could hit the Northeast especially hard, courts and law firms both large and small joined numerous other establishments—including the U.S. Supreme Court—on Monday in announcing that their operations would be…

Oct 29, 2012 7:45 PM CDT

After Inmates Sue for Dental Floss, Jailers Explain the Security Risk

A jail in Westchester County, N.Y., offered a dental compromise of sorts after a group of inmates filed a $500 million lawsuit last month demanding access to dental floss. Officials at the jail in Valhalla initially cited security concerns, but they now supply inmates with “Floss Loops,” the Associated Press…

Oct 29, 2012 10:30 AM CDT

‘Big-Shot’ Lawyer Sues His Daughter for Libel Because She Sought Trust Fund Accounting

A New York lawyer has filed a $3 million libel suit against his daughter because she filed a petition seeking an accounting of her trust fund. Richard Fischbein, 70, claims his daughter, lawyer Beth Fischbein-Bodner, harmed his reputation when she alleged his handling of the fund had given her concerns…

Oct 24, 2012 11:37 AM CDT

NY Law Firms Aggressively Pursue Fees; Up to Seven Suits Filed Weekly in Manhattan

New York law firms are getting fed up with uncollected fees, and they are doing something about it. Increasingly the firms are suing their clients and risking a malpractice counterclaim, the New York Law Journal reports. In the last few months, between three and seven fee suits were filed on…

Oct 23, 2012 12:17 PM CDT

Tax Lawyer Raises Profile of Revolutionary War General

For the past 16 years on the Fourth of July, New York tax lawyer James Kaplan has been leading a 2 a.m. walking tour of Lower Manhattan that emphasizes the achievements of a little known Revolutionary War general, Horatio Gates. During his walking tours, Kaplan would note Gates’ unmarked grave,…

Oct 23, 2012 11:14 AM CDT

With Help from ‘Old Sage’ Environmental Lawyer, Inmate Wins Review of Conviction

At the age of 70, Syracuse, N.Y., lawyer Sidney Manes took on a new cause. Manes had developed an expertise in environmental law after giving up criminal defense in the 1950s, the Syracuse Post-Standard reports. But when he received a letter from inmate Hector Rivas in 1996, Manes started working…

Oct 23, 2012 10:29 AM CDT

NY Judge Pulled Over for Alleged Aggressive Driving, Now Faces DWI Case Despite Refusing Test

A Brookyn judge who sits in New York’s trial court has been charged with driving while intoxicated. Initially pulled over at about 4 p.m. on Wednesday for alleged aggressive driving in suburban Albany, Supreme Court Justice Carl J. Landicino is now facing a driving while intoxicated case, as well as…

Oct 19, 2012 3:35 PM CDT

NYU Law School Will Offer New Study and Internship Options for 3Ls

Third-year students at New York University School of Law will have new options under an initiative announced Wednesday aimed at making students into better lawyers. Students will have the option of studying abroad, pursuing specialized study in a “professional pathways” program, or spending a semester in Washington, D.C., where they…

Oct 19, 2012 11:00 AM CDT