State Government

ABA supports victims of California wildfires

The ABA is mobilizing to help victims of the devastating wildfires in Southern California.

Jan 15, 2025 12:11 PM CST

KPMG advances in bid to deliver legal services in Arizona

KPMG US has moved one step closer to forming the Big Four’s first law firm in the United States.

Jan 15, 2025 9:05 AM CST

Lawyer faces civil, criminal charges for allegedly filming minors, adults at rental property

A South Carolina lawyer allegedly hid cameras in his beach rental unit and filmed minors while they were undressing, according to a lawsuit filed in Aiken County, South Carolina, last week.

Jan 14, 2025 12:13 PM CST

Judge reassigned, may face further discipline after allegedly texting racist meme

A Cook County, Illinois, judge has been reassigned and faces a state disciplinary investigation after allegedly sharing a racist meme in a text message.

Jan 14, 2025 9:54 AM CST

Arizona attorney general launches new unit to investigate unsolved murders

Last week, the Arizona attorney general’s office announced the creation of a Cold Case Homicide Unit, which will partner with local law enforcement agencies to reexamine unsolved cases dating back to 1992.

Jan 13, 2025 9:55 AM CST

Prosecutor ‘poisoned the morale’ of DA’s office with fake harassment texts, disbarment order says

A former prosecutor in Colorado should be disbarred for faking four texts that she attributed to a co-worker, including one referring to her as a “sex doll,” according to a Dec. 31 hearing board opinion.

Jan 10, 2025 9:32 AM CST

New York will adopt NextGen bar exam, considers surprising shifts in state-law tests

New York, the jurisdiction with the largest number of bar candidates, will adopt the NextGen bar exam as it considers rejiggering the state-specific part of the exam, too, according to the New York Court of Appeals.

Jan 9, 2025 10:46 AM CST

KPMG asks Arizona to OK alternative business license for subsidiary law firm

A subsidiary of accounting company KPMG US is applying to operate as an alternative business structure in Arizona under state ethics rules that permit nonlawyers to own or invest in law firms.

Jan 9, 2025 8:51 AM CST

Latest try at rewriting ABA diversity standard for law schools gets pushback from GOP attorneys general

The ABA section that accredits law schools is once again facing pushback by attorneys general in Republican-controlled states over a diversity standard governing legal education.

Jan 8, 2025 2:32 PM CST

State chief justice with ‘millions of reasons’ to fire court employees can’t do so unilaterally, top Arkansas court says

The Arkansas Supreme Court stepped in Friday, when the state’s new chief justice tried to fire nearly a dozen employees, including the director of the Arkansas Administrative Office of the Courts.

Jan 7, 2025 3:37 PM CST

Law grads with past substance-use disorders suffered disability bias in quest for license, DOJ says

Would-be Tennessee lawyers encountered unlawful disability discrimination when they were required to submit to “burdensome examinations” and conditions triggered by their past diagnosis or treatment for a substance-use disorder or a mental health disorder, the U.S. Department of Justice has concluded.

Jan 6, 2025 3:15 PM CST

Houston judge should not have received public reprimand, special review court says

A Houston judge who was issued a public reprimand for failing to timely rule on motions has been exonerated.

Jan 2, 2025 11:41 AM CST

Kansas nears ‘constitutional crisis’ because of attorney shortage, justice says

A shortage of lawyers in rural Kansas is straining the court system and requiring judges to look outside the community to find lawyers to represent parties entitled to a court-appointed lawyer, according to Kansas Supreme Court Justice Keynen "K.J." Wall Jr., who chaired a committee examining the problem.

Dec 23, 2024 3:50 PM CST

In ‘monumental moment,’ Montana Supreme Court rules for youths claiming right to clean environment

The Montana Supreme Court on Wednesday struck down a state law banning consideration of greenhouse gas emissions in fossil-fuel-permitting decisions, citing a state constitutional provision that guarantees a “clean and healthful environment.”

Dec 19, 2024 9:01 AM CST

Texas AG sues out-of-state doctor over mail-order abortion pills

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) sued a New York doctor this week for allegedly prescribing abortion pills to a suburban Dallas woman in violation of Texas law—setting up the first major legal challenge to “shield laws” enacted by some Democratic-led states to protect doctors providing abortion access after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022.

Dec 16, 2024 10:30 AM CST