A former chief financial officer of Broadcom Corp. says he expected his 2006 conversations with Irell & Manella about stock options grants to be confidential, because the law firm was representing his employer as outside counsel in an internal probe. And a federal district court judge found that Irell & Manella also represented former CFO William Ruehle--who was then a named defendant in civil litigation over alleged options backdating--on an individual basis. But the 2006 talks weren't protected by attorney-client privilege, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals says in a written opinion (PDF) today, because Ruehle knew the information…

In a settlement that may encourage other academics to push for their right to make fair use of excerpts of published material in their scholarly writing, the estate of famed author James Joyce has agreed to pay a $240,000 legal bill racked up by an English professor at Stanford University during a decade-long battle over her book on James' daughter. However, Greg Castanias, a Jones Day partner who represented the estate in an appeal of a $326,000 federal district court attorney fee award, characterized the settlement as something of a victory for the estate. It is, he points out, for…

As Congress prepares to update a 33-year-old law that governs the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's regulation of toxic chemicals, the executive branch is seeking more authority over what officials describe as a risky situation. "The American people are looking to government for assurance that chemicals have been assessed using the best available science and that unacceptable risks haven't been ignored—and unfortunately the current law doesn't allow us to grant them that assurance," said Lisa Jackson, who serves as EPA administrator, in a briefing for reporters that sparked coverage in the Miami Herald and USA Today, among other media. Two key…

A payroll worker at a small Washington, D.C., law firm has been accused of stealing $1.2 million by transferring the money from her employer to her own bank accounts. A criminal information alleges Tamika Beasley stole the money from James E. Brown & Associates, according to The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times. She listed the transfers as loans that were later repaid, according to prosecutors. James Brown gave The BLT a statement he had provided to the Secret Service. It said Beasley’s alleged wrongdoing had jeopardized the law firm, forcing him to fire 10 employees, including Beasley’s uncle. Brown’s…

A Florida lawyer has accused the local sheriff's office of an unethical and potentially criminal practice of secretly recording—and forwarding to its own legal counsel for review—jailhouse phone calls made to him by his clients. A spokesman for the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office calls the accusations by attorney John Trevena "just ridiculous." However, Larry McKinnon also says that all jail phone calls are automatically recorded, except for those placed to the public defender's office—as signs near the phones and a recorded message warn inmates, reports the St. Petersburg Times. Trevena says he received in routine discovery from the state a…

President Obama’s home and office—the White House—are one and the same. Of course, the president has plenty of staffers and a place big enough to accommodate them, law firm partner Patricia Gillette writes for the Am Law Daily. Those differences aside, his ability to take a break for family time is a model that should be emulated, she says. Traditionally, lawyers who opted to do part of their work at home to make time for family were considered part-timers or workers on an alternative schedule. Both situations can carry the stigma of not being committed, and, in most law firms,…

President Obama’s home and office—the White House—are one and the same. Of course, the president has plenty of staffers and a place big enough to accommodate them, law firm partner Patricia Gillette writes for the Am Law Daily. Those differences aside, his ability to take a break for family time is a model that should be emulated, she says. Traditionally, lawyers who opted to do part of their work at home to make time for family were considered part-timers or workers on an alternative schedule. Both situations can carry the stigma of not being committed, and, in most law firms,…

A new report by the Legal Services Corp. finds that half the people who seek legal aid from LSC-funded programs are turned away, primarily because of a lack of resources. In raw numbers, nearly 1 million cases are turned away each year, according to a New York Times preview of the findings. “A continuing, major justice gap exists in our nation,” LSC president Helaine Barnett writes in the introduction to the report (PDF). Studies in seven states indicate that fewer than one in five low-income persons get the legal assistance they need. “To fund this need, the federal share must…

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a Chicago case that asks whether the Second Amendment applies to state and local governments. The name plaintiff in the Chicago case is Otis McDonald, an elderly man who keeps a shotgun at home to protect himself from gangs, the Chicago Tribune reports. The Supreme Court ruled last year in District of Columbia v. Heller that the Second Amendment protected an individual right to bear arms in Washington, D.C., a federal enclave. The decision did not determine whether the amendment restricts state and local laws under the incorporation doctrine. The new case,…

Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz is the law firm with the highest profits per partner, while Linklaters is the law firm with the highest gross revenues. The firms topped two American Lawyer charts examining the finances of Global 100 law firms. Profits per partner were about $4 million at Wachtell, while gross revenue at Linklaters was $2.4 billion. The results represent a fall for Clifford Chance, which had the top spot for gross revenue for eight years and is now in third place, the Am Law Daily reported in August. Overall, Global 100 law firms were able to increase gross…