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A New York judge has refused to dismiss a suit alleging that Robert J. Ivanhoe, chairman of Greenberg Traurig's New York office and head of its real estate group, disregarded his "legal and fiduciary duties" by taking a personal financial stake in a competitor to a client that had invested in a multibillion-dollar Las Vegas real estate venture. The judge ruled that the principal investor of the client could derivatively sue Ivanhoe and the firm, and that a pending arbitration would not render the suit moot.
In the wake of the ugly breakup of heavyweight plaintiffs firm Cohen Milstein Hausfeld & Toll, a federal judge has effectively ordered the lawyers to do their best to get along as they finalize work on a massive antitrust suit that generated more than $120 million in settlements. On the eve of a fairness hearing for the final settlements, the judge was drawn into the fray of an erupting dispute between Cohen Milstein and former Michael D. Hausfeld, who was ousted from the firm on Nov. 6.
Three Thelen associates and a staff member filed a federal suit against the firm on Monday, seeking damages for lost wages under the WARN Act. The named plaintiffs worked in the firm's New York and Connecticut offices. Attorneys from California are expected to join the suit in January, after waiting period penalties have accrued, said attorneys for the plaintiffs. This is at least the second potential class action filed in the past two weeks against the firm.
When IP lawyer and entrepreneur John Amster launched RPX Corp. as the cure-all for patent trolls in September, the industry was skeptical about how it would work. The new business is catering to the frustration that big tech companies have with what they derogatorily label "patent trolls." Amster says his company will charge members an annual fee and in return RPX will buy dangerous patents off the street and give their members a license. So far RPX has signed up two companies to its program: IBM and Cisco.
For midsize firms, buying the right hardware can be a long, frustrating and expensive process. But with patience, perseverance and a lot of communication, IT leaders can prevail and serve their users efficiently. Consultant Shawna Childress has tips to put the right items in your cart.
In 23 years, Los Angeles firm Richardson & Patel had never let anyone go. Even during the dot-com bust, the firm, which focuses primarily on corporate and securities work, had continued to grow. But in September, the firm laid off five associates and six staff members. "It was the hardest thing I've ever done," says partner Nimish Patel. Back in August 2007, the firm took some steps in response to a perceived slowdown, but things didn't improve. Eventually, Patel realized he'd have to do something drastic.
Global positioning systems can be "very valuable tools" for monitoring the whereabouts of sex offenders and other people on probation, but they should not be a substitute for personal supervision by Connecticut probation officers, according to a state Judicial Branch report.
Law.com's Legal Technology editor Sean Doherty carries a copy of his data on a laptop when traveling, which he synchronizes with home office computers upon return. In this task, a synchronization tool is sine qua non. Toward this end, Doherty tries out Siber Systems' GoodSync.
Proskauer Rose privacy group founder Christopher Wolf knows that sometimes a person's most important capital is his personal information. With the support of his firm and funding from AT&T, Wolf helped launch The Future of Privacy Forum to protect consumers' private data.
The "2008 ABA Legal Technology Survey Report" suggests that an increasing number of attorneys have found a way to bridge the "work/life" gap: They're going mobile. 2008 saw a substantial increases in the availability and use of mobile devices, including both laptops and smartphones.
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