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Who Represents America's Biggest Companies ... and How

Corporate Counsel

For years, corporate counsel have been saying that they want to tear up the old model of doing business with their law firms. This year, they may finally start to make good on their threats. The recession is forcing corporate legal departments to rethink the concept of legal services in general. Although most of the same marquee names predominate the top of this year's Who Represents America's Biggest Companies survey, what is changing is the "how," rather than the "who."

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Federal Circuit Limits Overseas Patent Liability

The National Law Journal

An en banc Federal Circuit ruling has narrowed the reach of U.S. patent laws covering companies' overseas sales and production. The decision in the closely watched case determined that patents for methods or processes are not subject to patent infringement liability if the products are assembled and sold overseas. Patents for products are not exempt, however.

3rd Circuit Appeal Challenges Judge's Outside Research in Bench Trial

New Jersey Law Journal

A federal appeals court has been asked to limit the right of judges to do their own research in bench trials, lest they be swayed by facts not before them. A federal magistrate no-caused a medical malpractice claim after consulting cases not cited by the parties that involved the type of injury at issue. The plaintiff, seeking en banc review of a 3rd Circuit ruling affirming the verdict, asks: Was the judge's inquiry akin to jurors visiting an accident scene or doing Internet research in the middle of a trial?

Brown Rudnick Ends Deferred Start Dates for 11 First-Years

The National Law Journal

Saying it needs to tackle a surge in bankruptcy and litigation work, Brown Rudnick is shelving deferred start dates for 11 first-year associates. Under the plan, first reported by the Boston Business Journal, the firm will have the associates start on Sept. 14 instead of Nov. 30. "The good news is since we made that decision [to defer] we've become very busy and it certainly looks like that's going to be sustained," the firm's CEO said. Last November, the firm laid off 20 lawyers, three paralegals and 20 staffers.

Harriet Miers Takes Another Crack at the U.S. Supreme Court

The National Law Journal

Former White House counsel Harriet Miers once aspired to serve on the Supreme Court, a bid that failed in 2005. Now, back in private practice, she's angling to argue a case before the high court. Miers filed a certiorari petition in a dispute about whether state and local governments have authority to tax natural gas that is held temporarily in storage in an interstate pipeline system. The Court hasn't ruled on the petition, but has shown interest in it by calling for a response from opposing counsel.

Ethics Panel Says Former D.C. Prosecutor Broke Federal Law

The National Law Journal

A former federal prosecutor in Washington was dishonest, interfered with the administration of justice and committed a crime when he doled out thousands of dollars in federal witness money to jailed informants and to individuals who were not in fact witnesses, according to a professional responsibility hearing committee in the District of Columbia. However, the committee split on its recommended sanction against former Assistant U.S. Attorney G. Paul Howes, who now works in Coughlin Stoia's San Diego office.

In Photo ID Case, Security Concerns Win Out Over Religious Beliefs

The Legal Intelligencer

In a case that pitted religious beliefs about photographs against the ramped up security concerns following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, a federal judge has ruled that an oil refinery had no duty to accommodate a worker who refused on religious grounds to pose for a photo ID. Judge Cynthia M. Rufe of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania found that a 2002 federal law specifically mandated that all workers in port facilities carry photo ID, and that the refinery had no power to waive that requirement.

Early Parole Given to Former N.Y. Justice Convicted of Bribery

New York Law Journal

Former Justice Gerald P. Garson of Brooklyn, N.Y., was granted parole on Tuesday, 25 months after he began serving three to 10 years for bribery and two related counts. The New York Parole Board set Dec. 23, 2009, as Garson's release date and stipulated that after his release he is barred from being affiliated with a law firm. He is also required as a condition of parole to participate in an alcohol abuse treatment program and to submit to substance abuse testing.

Advocacy Groups Shut Out of Federal Challenge to Calif. Ban on Gay Marriages

The Recorder

Lawyers mounted their arguments Wednesday to intervene in a federal challenge to California's gay marriage ban, but Chief Judge Vaughn Walker clearly knew how he would rule before any of them uttered a word. Walker, whose facial expressions alternated between somber and smiles throughout the hearing, read from a prepared text after the lawyers had their turn. The judge denied gay rights groups' attempt to direct the plaintiffs' case alongside legal heavyweights Theodore Olson and David Boies.

Finger-Pointing Abounds at Hearing Into Misconduct Claims Against Texas Judge

Texas Lawyer

The hearing on whether Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Presiding Judge Sharon Keller committed misconduct has involved a lot of finger-pointing and not all of it at Keller. According to a special counsel with the State Commission on Judicial Conduct, the judge willfully circumvented the CCA's execution-day procedures the day the state executed convicted killer Michael Richard. But Keller's lead attorney has sought to lay the blame on the Texas Defender Service lawyers who represented Richard in his final pleadings.

Rare Pharmaceutical Fraud Trial Under Way in San Francisco

The Recorder

In one of the rare pharmaceutical fraud cases to hit a jury, an up-and-coming federal prosecutor squared off Tuesday against a hardened defense veteran. The government says former Intermune CEO W. Scott Harkonen made false statements about the company's star drug, but his defense lawyer sees jealous bureaucrats at work. Harkonen was indicted last year on two counts: wire fraud and felony misbranding of a drug.

Broadcom Co-Founder Fights to Keep Appeal Secret

The National Law Journal

Broadcom co-founder Henry Samueli is fighting to keep the public out of a pending hearing before the 9th Circuit in which he is seeking to reinstate a plea deal that he reached last year with prosecutors in a criminal backdating case. Briefs filed by Samueli and federal prosecutors appealing a district court judge's rejection of the deal have been sealed, and Samueli argues in a motion that the hearing should be closed to the public as well because much of the same information would be brought up during the hearing.

Lawyers, Journalists Ask U.S. Supreme Court to Review Voir Dire Closing

Fulton County Daily Report

Georgia defense lawyers and a journalists' rights group are backing a convicted drug defendant who has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Georgia high court decision upholding the closure of jury selection to the public. The Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers claims U.S. courts have "chipped away" at the public's right to observe jury selection in criminal trials, despite U.S. Supreme Court rulings affirming that right.

Tips to Drive Traffic to Your Web Site

The Legal Intelligencer

You have poured dollars and time into creating an informative and client-friendly site. Now what? How do you drive traffic to your site? According to consultants Stacy West Clark and Jason P. Lisi, there are definite tricks of the trade, both online and off, that need to be applied.

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SEC Trots Out a New Weapon: Control Person Liability

The National Law Journal

The case against Nature's Sunshine Products was the first action under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in which the SEC charged individuals under the Exchange Act's control liability theory, according to Philip Urofsky, a former federal prosecutor of FCPA claims who now is a Shearman & Sterling partner. Urofsky, who recently issued a client memorandum about the case, talked to The National Law Journal about how the SEC's interpretation broadens the scope of corporate officers' potential liability under the FCPA.

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How Junior Associates Can Avoid Common Problems

The National Law Journal

The Hippocratic oath in medicine begins with the admonition "first, do no harm." This simple directive also fully applies to the practice of law, says Jones Day partner Steven C. Bennett. Junior lawyers, however, often overlook the potential consequences of their behavior, assuming that someone else more senior will help them before or after a problem occurs. Bennett catalogues some of the most common ways that a junior lawyer can mess up a matter, and offers some basic cures for each potential pitfall.

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