Bad Ideas
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Bad Ideas, Education / Schools, Nude Dancing, Perverts, Peter Barta, Politics, Pornography, Weirdness
Reading the Bartameter (Part 3): What Is Up With Those Policy Debaters?
We continue to follow the story of Peter Barta, the Legal Aid lawyer who allegedly made secret videotapes of his female colleagues getting dressed. Tales like this — along with associate pay raises, of course — are the raison d’etre of ATL. After we quoted a tipster stressing that Peter Barta did policy or cross-examination […] -
Bad Ideas, Crime, Nude Dancing, Perverts, Peter Barta, Pornography, Sex, Videos
Reading the Bartameter (Part 2): Fluent Hungarian Is the Ultimate Aphrodisiac
The reader tips about Peter Barta, the Legal Aid Lawyer who allegedly made surreptitious videos of his female co-workers getting changed, are starting to flow into our inbox. From a former colleague: I used to work at the Criminal Defense Division (CDD) in Manhattan with Peter Barta. He would sidle up to female co-workers, bragging […] - Sponsored
Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
The rise of remote work has dramatically reshaped the relationship between Lawyers and Law Firms, see how Scale LLP has taken the steps to get… -
Bad Ideas, Crime, Nude Dancing, Perverts, Peter Barta, Pornography, Sex, Videos
Reading the Bartameter: More About Peter Barta (Part 1)
Yesterday we named Peter Barta our Lawyer of the Weekend. Here’s what he allegedly did to earn this distinction, according to the NYDN: A nerdy legal aid lawyer used a spy camera to videotape female colleagues changing their clothes — until the women turned the tables and caught him red-handed, officials said. Peter Barta, 32, […]
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Bad Ideas, Crime, Lawyer of the Day, Nude Dancing, Perverts, Peter Barta, Pornography, Sex, Videos
Lawyer of the Weekend: Peter Barta
Do you know this man? His name is Peter Barta, and he’s ATL’s Lawyer of the Day Weekend. If you did what he allegedly did — see here and here (plus more links collected below) — you deserve to be honored on more than one day. We’re preparing a more detailed post on Peter Barta […] -
Al Gore, Bad Ideas, Cars, Drugs, Environment / Environmental Law, Isn't It Ironic, Kids, Marijuana, Politics
Does It Still Count As Speeding If You're in a Hybrid Car?
If you’re driving 100 miles per hour, but in a hybrid vehicle, can you still get pulled over? Unfortunately for Al Gore III, yes. From Reuters: The 24-year-old son of former Vice President Al Gore was arrested for drug possession on Wednesday after he was stopped for speeding in his hybrid Toyota Prius, a sheriff’s […] -
Alison Maynard, Attorney Misconduct, Bad Ideas, Lawyer of the Day, Legal Ethics
Lawyer of the Day: Alison Maynard (again)
It’s not easy to be a two-time winner of our Lawyer of the Day award. But after reading this post, we think that you’ll find Colorado lawyer Alison Maynard more than worthy of this honor. Longtime readers of ATL will surely recall Alison “Sunny” Maynard from our prior coverage. But in case you don’t, here’s […] -
Advertising, Animal Law, Bad Ideas, Biglaw, Weirdness
Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My -- Is It a Law Firm Ad Campaign?
An interesting and odd observation about law firm ad campaigns, from Copyranter: What The F**k is up with all the law firms using goofy animal symbolism? Dykema thinks it’s a giraffe amongst zebras. Zuckerman Spaeder says I’m a canary threatened by a lion. And Bingham McCutchen (above) was, first, a lion-chasing zebra (where does the […] -
Bad Ideas, Biglaw, Fashion
Skadden DC: Slumming It in the Nation's Capital?
What the heck is going on in the Washington office of Skadden Arps? First we read about the firm’s food stamp recipes, in the hallowed pages of the Washington Post. And now we read about the firm’s in-house fashion show, also in a Post piece: Legal secretaries, receptionists and an accounting supervisor strutted their stuff […] - Sponsored
Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
In this CLE-eligible webinar, we’ll explore the most common accounting pitfalls and how to avoid them for your firm. -
Bad Ideas, Eavesdropping / Wiretapping, Lawsuit of the Day, Perverts
Lawsuit of the Day: Belk Cosmetics Contractors Win Damages for Being Watched Undressing
Four women who worked for a private cosmetics contractor, Makeup Art Cosmetics, in a Belk department store in our hometown of Athens, Georgia have each won six-figure verdicts this week after being watched undressing by security guards using a hidden camera in the stockroom of the store. Store managers installed a hidden camera in a […] -
Bad Ideas, Bankruptcy, Benchslaps, Fast Food, Practice Pointers, Rudeness
HappyMealGate Wrap-up: You Want Florida CLE With That?
We have a ruling in the HappyMealGate case (prior coverage here, here, and here of Wiliam P. Smith, the McDermott Will & Emery partner who told Judge Laurel Myerson Isicoff that she was “a few French Fries short of a Happy Meal”). And it’s surprisingly lenient. Judge Isicoff basically gave Smith a stern talking to: […] -
Angelina Jolie, Bad Ideas, Celebrities, Lawyer of the Day, Movies, Screw-Ups
Lawyer of the Day: Robert Offer
Why is Robert Offer our Lawyer of the Day? Because he’s taking bullets for his superhottie client, Angelina Jolie. Chivalry is not dead! Even among people who bill by the hour. (Also, any lawyer who is willing to describe himself as “bone-headed” to the New York Times scores points in our book.) A Deal Too […] -
Bad Ideas, Bankruptcy, Benchslaps, Fast Food, Practice Pointers, Rudeness
HappyMealGate: Let's Just Have a Public Flogging, and Get This Over With
Surely you all recall William P. Smith — a partner at McDermott Will & Emery (Chicago), and head of its bankruptcy department — who recently told a Miami bankruptcy judge, in open court, that she was “a few French Fries short of a Happy Meal.” We broke the story here (with follow-up here). The “Happy […] -
Bad Ideas, Biglaw, Cheapness, Deaths, Money, Tax Law, Trusts and Estates
Squire Sanders Wants Its Money... Over His Dead Body
From the Department of Astute Observations: “Some former Steel Hector partners suggested it may have been unwise to make a large loan to a partner allegedly on the brink of bankruptcy.” Ya think? Firm Sues Estate of Dead Lawyer for Loan Repayment [Daily Business Review (Miami / South Florida)]
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Navigating Financial Success by Avoiding Common Pitfalls and Maximizing Firm Performance
In this CLE-eligible webinar, we’ll explore the most common accounting pitfalls and how to avoid them for your firm.
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Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
If 2023 introduced legal professionals to generative AI, then 2024 will be when law firms start adapting to utilize it. Things are moving fast, so…
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The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms.
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Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
The rise of remote work has dramatically reshaped the relationship between Lawyers and Law Firms, see how Scale LLP has taken the steps to get…
Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use.
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Attorney Misconduct, Bad Ideas, Forgery, Lawyer of the Day, Robins Kaplan Miller & Ciresi
Lawyer of the Day: Timothy Block
Initiative. Creativity. Zealous advocacy on behalf of the client. All qualities demonstrated by Robins Kaplan partner Timothy Block, who is ATL’s Lawyer of the Day. Update: The story is getting attention not just in the legal world, but in the tech world, too. Best Buy Attorney Falsified E-Mails [Minneapolis Star-Tribune] Firm’s Mea Culpa Adds Twist […] -
Bad Ideas, Dan Markel, Isn't It Ironic, Law Professors, Law Reviews
Law Professor of the Day: Victoria Dawson
A legal writing teacher who can’t spell? From the St. Petersburg Times (gavel bang: Paul Caron): In 2004, the woman who would become legal writing director at Florida A&M University’s law school posted a working paper online so legal scholars nationwide could see her work. The subject was heady: environmental dispute resolution. But Victoria Dawson’s […] -
Bad Ideas, Biglaw, Drinking, Parties, Summer Associates
Skadden Cristal Boy: An Alternate Account
We’ve received a correction of sorts to our earlier item, about a hard-partying summer associate at Skadden in New York. We have no way of verifying whether the original version or the new version of the story is correct, since neither came directly from the summer associate in question. But the latest version does come […] -
Bad Ideas, Biglaw, Drinking, Parties, Summer Associates
Summer Associate of the Day: 'Skadden Cristal Boy'
If you’re a summer associate at a large law firm, wondering how to conduct yourself over the next few weeks, you can consult various “survival guides” (assuming you need instruction on how to “survive” lunches at four-star restaurants). See, e.g., here and here. But at the end of the day, being a good summer associate […] -
Bad Ideas, Law Schools, Shopping
Worst Graduation Gifts: Submissions, Please
May and June are the peak months for law school graduations. And you know what that means: dreadful graduation gifts. So we’ve decided to embark upon a quest to find America’s most egregious graduation gift. If you have a nominee, please send it to us by email (subject line: “Worst Graduation Gift”). Please include a […] -
Bad Ideas, Bankruptcy, Benchslaps, Biglaw, Fast Food, Practice Pointers, Rudeness
HappyMealGate: An Update on the Fry Guy
Earlier this month, we wrote about how William P. Smith — a partner at McDermott Will & Emery (Chicago), and head of its bankruptcy department — landed himself in the deep-fat fryer. Smith unwisely told a bankruptcy judge, in open court, that she was “a few French Fries short of a Happy Meal.” Well, Judge […] -
Bad Ideas, Bankruptcy, Benchslaps, Biglaw, Practice Pointers, Rudeness
ATL Practice Pointers: Don't Insult the Judge in Open Court
Or even in chambers, for that matter. But open court is worse. From a tipster: In a bankruptcy case here in the Southern District of Florida, William P. Smith — a partner at McDermott Will & Emery (Chicago), and the head of its bankruptcy department — actually told a judge she was “a few French […]