New York

In-House Legal Chief Is Accused of Creating Fake Law Firm and Sending It $9M in Payments

A suspended New York lawyer is accused of creating a fictitious Texas law firm and then using his position as legal affairs chief at a Houston company to funnel $9 million in payments to the fake legal counsel. Anthony Chiofalo and his wife, Susan, face felony theft charges, according to…

Jun 11, 2012 10:11 PM CDT

Tenant Who Didn’t Pay Rent Since 2003 Can’t Be Evicted Because of Code Violations, NY Top Court Says

New York law bars a landlord from evicting a tenant who hasn’t paid rent since 2003, according to the state’s top court. The landlord, Chazon LLC, missed deadlines to bring its Brooklyn loft building up to code and did not receive an extension, according to the opinion (PDF) by the…

Jun 11, 2012 12:40 PM CDT

Dewey’s Downfall Creates Opportunity for Smaller Regional Firm as Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Unfolds

As the Chapter 11 bankruptcy of Dewey & LeBoeuf rolls ahead, the downfall of the onetime 1,300-attorney New York-based law firm continues to create opportunities for others. At what used to be the Albany, N.Y., office of Dewey, a longtime Brooklyn-based law firm, Cullen and Dykman, opened its doors on…

Jun 7, 2012 10:41 PM CDT

Federal Judge Strikes Down Portion of DOMA in Estate Tax Case

A federal judge in Manhattan has struck down a portion of the Defense of Marriage Act in a case involving estate taxes. U.S. District Judge Barbara Jones ruled that the provision denying equal federal benefits to gay married couples violates the equal protection clause, report the New York Law Journal,…

Jun 7, 2012 2:07 PM CDT

New York Judge Says Cop Struck Him After Apparently Mistaking Him for a Heckler

A New York judge says criminal charges may be warranted against a police officer who hit him after apparently mistaking him for a heckler. Judge Thomas Raffaele of Queens told the New York Times and the New York Law Journal that the incident occurred just after midnight on June 1.…

Jun 7, 2012 12:51 PM CDT

Cardozo Law Student Gets Unexpected Lesson from Federal Judge at Gupta Insider-Trading Case Hearing

Not having a job lined up for the summer, a student at Yeshiva University’s Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law has been spending her time watching proceedings in the high-profile Manhattan insider-trading case of Rajat K. Gupta Benula Bensam also wrote several letters to U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff,…

Jun 6, 2012 9:45 PM CDT

Brown Rudnick to Represent Creditors in Dewey Bankruptcy; Partners Tap Kasowitz and Flemming Firms

After a May 28 bankruptcy filing by Dewey & LeBoeuf, lawyers are signing on to represent those with a stake in what is expected to be a hotly contested and long-running case. Brown Rudnick will be counsel to the committee of unsecured creditors, Reuters reports, and two law firms are…

Jun 5, 2012 4:29 PM CDT

Judge OKs New Trial for Ex-Jenkens Tax Leader, Cites ‘Breathtaking’ Lies of Suspended Lawyer on Jury

A federal judge in Manhattan has thrown out guilty verdicts against a former head of the Chicago tax practice at now-shuttered Jenkens & Gilchrist and another ex-partner there, due to “breathtaking” lies by a suspended lawyer on the jury. Paul Daugerdas and Donna Guerin will now get new trials under…

Jun 5, 2012 3:04 PM CDT

Hughes Hubbard Seeks Court OK of Bill for First 4 Months of MF Global Bankruptcy: $17 Million

With trustee James Giddens at the helm, Hughes Hubbard & Reed has submitted its bill for the first four months of its work on the MF Global Inc. bankruptcy—$17 million. It must be approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan before it is paid, Reutersreports. The bill covers the…

Jun 5, 2012 1:42 PM CDT

Gay Label Is No Longer Per Se Defamation, New York Appeals Court Says

Falsely labeling someone as gay is no longer per se defamation, according to a New York appeals court. Prior decisions to the contrary “are based upon the flawed premise that it is shameful and disgraceful to be described as lesbian, gay or bisexual,” according to the decision (PDF) on Thursday…

Jun 1, 2012 4:54 PM CDT

Top NY Court Says Client with Reversed Conviction Can’t Sue Lawyer for Loss-of-Liberty Damages

Reversing a lower state appellate ruling, New York’s top appeals court has refused to recognize a novel legal theory for awarding damages to an individual who says he was incarcerated because of his criminal defense lawyer’s ineffective representation. Last year, the state supreme court’s Appellate Division, Fourth Department, had held…

Jun 1, 2012 4:09 PM CDT

British Fixed-Fee Legal Services Business to Open New York Office; DLA Piper Is Part Owner

A legal services business in the United Kingdom that offers fixed-price litigation packages is set to open in New York this week. The business, Riverview Law, is partly owned by DLA Piper, the Am Law Daily reports. The New York office will target American clients seeking representation in the United…

May 30, 2012 1:24 PM CDT

Dewey Partners in Name Only Led to Breakup, Looming Battles, Likely Clawback Fight, Columnist Says

Once upon a time, law partners routinely stayed together for their entire professional careers. But in today’s world partnership is a label rather than a bond, contributing to the unequal compensation, resentment and rapid exit of Dewey & LeBoeuf’s top lawyers as trouble loomed, writes Reynolds Holding in a Reuters…

May 29, 2012 9:45 PM CDT

Police: Man Admits to 33-year-old Murder of Etan Patz

A New Jersey man has confessed to the 1979 murder of Etan Patz, a 6-year-old boy who vanished on his way to school in lower Manhattan 33 years ago Friday, New York police say. The man, Pedro Hernandez, told police he strangled the boy, wrapped his body in a bag,…

May 24, 2012 7:26 PM CDT

Brooklyn Judge Admits He Broke the Law, Smoked Pot in Battle Against Pancreatic Cancer

Judge Gustin Reichbach of Brooklyn has survived three and a half years after his diagnosis of Stage 3 pancreatic cancer, and he credits medical marijuana for aiding him in the battle. Though the substance is banned for medical use in New York, Reichbach says in a New York Times op-ed…

May 17, 2012 2:05 PM CDT