Considerations For CPAs Dealing With Unpaid Fees
4/15/20
By: Nancy Reimer, Nicole Graham, Elizabeth Lowery, Zinnia Khan, and Caroline Wu Many Certified Public Accountants and accounting firms will likely be increasingly confronted with collecting fees as the COVID-19 health crisis continues. In dealing with unpaid fees, a CPA must pay close attention to their professional duties and obligations with respect to the release…
Ready Camera One: Remote Litigation in the Era of Social Distancing
4/7/20
By: Jennifer Adair, Jennifer Markowski and Andy Treese Evaluating claims to move them towards resolution or trial is the lifeblood of a defense practice. This typically requires direct interaction with a plaintiff and key witnesses, either at deposition (to hear their testimony, to form impressions of how they will be received by a jury), at mediation…
4/2/20
By: Kathleen Cusack As stay-at-home orders increase in number, duration, and severity across the country, many businesses have moved to remote functions to avoid business interruption and limit in-person contact. Most states, though, require that notaries public acknowledge the signing of a document in person. Attorneys in many practice areas are routinely called upon to…
3/24/20
By: Renata Hoddinott Millions around the world have had their daily routines disrupted and a wide variety of companies are participating in the largest “work from home” mobilization in history. While the ability for professionals to work remotely is key to business continuity in the midst of this pandemic, in doing so, firms and professionals…
3/13/20
By: Jake Loken The Supreme Court of Georgia recently decided in Hill, Kertscher & Wharton, LLC v. Moody, No. S18G1436, that the implied waiver of attorney-client privilege that occurs when an individual sues his former attorney also extends to other attorneys who represented that individual, so long as those other attorneys were representing the individual…
CAUTION! Disciplinary Action Ahead
2/27/20
By: Anastasia Osbrink It has now been over a year since California Evidence Code, section 1129 went into effect, and as such, it is a good time to be reminded that compliance is mandatory and attorneys who fail to comply face possible disciplinary action. Evidence Code, section 1129 requires attorneys to provide the client with…
The “Two Hats” Rule for California Lawyer-Mediators
2/27/20
By: Greg Fayard For decades now, many practicing attorneys also mediate or arbitrate cases. Gone are the days where only retired judges mediate or arbitrate. California’s Rules of Professional Conduct for lawyers recognize that some neutrals also practice law. That is, these are lawyers who wear “two hats”—the mediator hat and the lawyer hat. Under…
2/14/20
By: Adrianna Michalska In the event that an attorney has mistakenly produced a privileged document in discovery, Massachusetts Rule of Civil Procedure 26(b)(5)(B) requires that he give prompt notice to the party receiving the document and takes reasonable steps to rectify the error. The same Rule also prescribes conduct for the party receiving the mistakenly…
Consent-To-Settle Clauses Upheld by Massachusetts’ Highest Court
2/13/20
By: Zinnia Khan The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts (“SJC”) recently issued its highly anticipated decision in Rawan v. Continental Casualty Co. regarding the enforceability of consent-to-settle clauses. The SJC held that consent-to-settle clauses do not violate G.L. c. 176D, § 3(9)(f), the Massachusetts statute which regulates the insurance business and defines unfair claim settlement…
What Should a California Lawyer Do With An Inadvertently Produced Privileged Document?
2/6/20
By: Greg Fayard Sometimes privileged documents are accidentally produced to opposing counsel. Usually, this occurs in a document production in a lawsuit where, buried in the documents, is a communication between a lawyer and client that is clearly privileged and confidential. What should the lawyer do? In California, a new Rule of Professional Conduct 4.4…
2/5/20
By: Zachary Price California Code of Civil Procedure section 473, subdivision (b) provides two avenues for relief when attorneys make mistakes. Subdivision (b) provides discretionary relief for certain mistakes and mandatory relief for defaults, default judgments, and dismissals caused by an attorney’s mistake, inadvertence, surprise or neglect. Although older case law provides some support for…
U.S. Supreme Court Finds General Discovery Rule Inapplicable to the SOL for FDCPA Violations
1/16/20
By: Nicole L. Graham In Klemm v. Rotkiske, No. 18-328, 589 U.S. ____ (2019), the United State Supreme Court unanimously agreed there is no blanket discovery rule that, as a matter of statutory interpretation, applies to all cases arising under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”). The majority held that the plain text of…