Screw-Ups
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Associate Advice, Screw-Ups, Small Law Firms
Size Matters: To err is human, but you are a lawyer.
Okay, you've made a mistake. Everyone does. What's the best way of handling the situation? -
Crime, Drinking, Guns / Firearms, Lawyer of the Day, Screw-Ups, Violence
Lawyer of the Day: Georgetown Law Grad Pulls Trigger, May Have Shot Career In The Foot
A prosecutor in Miami recently resigned from his job, amid controversy. What did he do to get himself in hot water? - Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use. -
Biglaw, Choate Hall & Stewart, Fabulosity, Lawyerly Lairs, Money, Partner Issues, Real Estate, Screw-Ups
Think A Lawyer Can Afford a $13 Million Condo? Think Again.
Some readers have issues with the often irreverent commenters here at Above the Law. While ATL commenters sometimes say hurtful or offensive things, like anonymous commenters all over the internet, they also provide significant value. They serve as copy editors, highlighting our typographical mistakes; they work as tipsters, pointing us in the direction of news […]
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Biglaw, In-House Counsel, Old People, Practice Pointers, Screw-Ups
Inside Straight: The Ghosts Of Incompetents Past
There’s a reason why people get crotchety when they get old. People forget about things that went right in their professional lives; that’s like water off a duck. But people remember things that got screwed up; that’s what sticks in their craws. You personally are not necessarily incompetent. But you’re tarred by the ghosts of […] -
Google / Search Engines, Lexis-Nexis, LexisNexis / Lexis-Nexis, Old People, Rank Stupidity, Screw-Ups, Summer Associates, Technology, Westlaw
All This Techno-Ignorance Will Make Your Head Explode
Over the last few weeks, I’ve written about some über expensive and embarrassing examples of lawyers making technological mistakes. Those stories involved sexily scandalous blunders, but they were relatively extreme scenarios. (If turning over thousands of privileged documents happens regularly at your firm, may God help you.) More frequently, firm employees deal with little technological […] -
Document Review, Malpractice, Screw-Ups, Technology
McDermott Will & Emery Wins E-discovery Blunder of the Week
A wise man once said: “There, but for the grace of God, go I.” I think of this whenever there are claims of attorneys royally screwing up e-discovery. It’s easy to indulge in some schadenfreude and say, “What suckers!” But truthfully, many firms — even the big, prestigious ones — are more vulnerable than they’d […] -
4th Circuit, Benchslaps, Screw-Ups, Technology
How to Lose a Case With Simple Computer Cluelessness
For attorneys, missing deadlines is a big no-no. BIG no-no. A Goodyear blimp-sized no-no. People have literally died because of blown deadlines. Cases worth millions of dollars get tossed out because of missed deadlines, even if someone has a decent excuse. That being so, I do not envy the lawyer who had to tell his […] -
Blog Wars, Drugs, Elizabeth Wurtzel, Money, Screw-Ups, Student Loans
Kids, Get High Off Drugs, Not Debt. It's More Fun And People Are Nicer To You When It's Time To Recover.
Let’s say that instead of taking on huge debts while I was in law school, I had taken up a wicked cocaine habit. Let’s say I had done loads and loads of blow from 2000 to 2007 and then went into a 12-step program. If I had been lucky enough to avoid an overdose or […] - Sponsored
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… -
Associate Advice, Screw-Ups, Small Law Firms
Small Firms, Big Lawyers: Sorry About This Post
Have you ever messed something up for a client? Ever make a mistake that was yours and yours alone, that caused your client a problem and you and your firm some embarrassment? If you haven’t, then you haven’t been practicing very long. Because you can’t practice for a long time without making some mistakes. It’s […] -
China, Cyberlaw, Email Scandals, Google / Search Engines, Privacy, Screw-Ups, Technology
Chinese Hackers Hijack Hundreds of Gmail Accounts
This news is more than a little scary. Google announced yesterday that hackers in China had gotten access to hundreds of Gmail accounts. And it wasn’t just anyone’s email. The attack targeted senior government officials in the United States, Chinese political activists, officials in several Asian countries, military personnel, and journalists. I have a feeling […] -
Commencement, Law School Deans, Law Schools, Legal Ethics, Screw-Ups
Commencement Speechmaking 101
Is it really that hard to make a commencement speech? I wrote one in high school. It was basically about seizing the day. My friend made one in college. Same theme, only in Latin. You can also make commencement speeches about giving back to your community, the importance of education, or how your generation is […] -
Job Searches, Screw-Ups, United Kingdom / Great Britain
About That Job You Applied For Two Years Ago
Say this for lawyers: they get around to things. Sure, the process might take a while, much longer than one would reasonably expect. But at the end of the day, lawyers do their paperwork. Apparently, somebody at Squire Sanders in the U.K. has been catching up on old emails. Really old emails. Like, job application […] -
Bad Ideas, Benchslaps, Document Review, Federal Judges, Screw-Ups, Technology
D.C. Lawyers Screw Up E-discovery So Badly, It’s 'Literally Unheard Of'
If you read a lot of e-discovery articles — and I know y’all do — you know that judges are quickly losing any patience for attorneys who don’t have their act together during e-discovery (or even regular old discovery). I know that nothing about the process is simple or easy. I know e-discovery is expensive […]
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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…
Sponsored
Early Adopters Of Legal AI Gaining Competitive Edge In Marketplace
How to best leverage generative AI as an early adopter with ethical use.
Sponsored
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms.
Sponsored
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…
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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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Bad Ideas, Facebook, Health Care / Medicine, Privacy, Screw-Ups, Social Networking Websites, Technology
ER Doc Forgets Patient Info is Private, Gets Fired for Facebook Overshare
I’m done whining about Facebook privacy issues. Everyone should know by now that Facebook and privacy are basically mutually exclusive. But every once in a while, someone does something stupid relating to Facebook privacy in a new, exciting way — like stealing a computer and posting photos of yourself on the owner’s page, or uploading […] -
Cyberlaw, Privacy, Screw-Ups, Technology
Hackers Probably Stole Your Email Address Last Weekend
Raise your hand if you are a JPMorgan Chase customer. Now raise your hand if you’ve shopped at Best Buy. How about Citibank, Target or Walgreens? Has everybody in the world raised their hands yet? Congratulations — your email address may have been stolen. There was a data breach at Epsilon, a Texas-based marketing firm, […] -
Grade Reform, Law Professors, Law Schools, Screw-Ups
Professor Discovers 2010 Grading Errors; Mistake Is Fixed in April 2011
You know, given the fact that most law school professors act like they are doing you a favor by grading your exams, it’s a wonder this kind of thing doesn’t happen more often. Of course, since it doesn’t happen more often, this is a noteworthy occurrence. A criminal law professor out in California figured out […] -
Biglaw, Email Scandals, listserv, Partner Issues, Rudeness, Screw-Ups
More Proof That Lawyers Will Fight Over Anything
Sometimes you just have to whip it out and wait for somebody to bring over a ruler. That’s just a part of life. But some lawyers seem to sit around all day just waiting for an opportunity to drop drawers and call for the chains. Don’t believe me? Take a look at this guy from […] -
Divorce Train Wrecks, Family Law, Screw-Ups, Sports
Law Firm Screw-Up Reveals Allegations About Gilbert Arenas
Full disclosure: Gilbert Arenas is one of my favorite basketball players. Sure, he’s a selfish, me-first player. And he seems to be one of the gun-nut whackos I would never want as a neighbor. But the man is the author of one of the best quotes of all time. Check out Deadspin for Gilbert’s full […] -
Law Professors, Law Schools, Screw-Ups
Penn Law Professor Too Lazy To Come Up With New Multiple Choice Questions Causes Exam SNAFU
As David Lat said earlier this week, “Here at Above the Law, we’re trying to help you.” Honestly, think of Above the Law as the MPRE, but for situations people in the legal community are actually likely to face. Don’t conduct sensitive firm business on a crowded train. Don’t offer hand-jobs in school-wide emails. And […] -
9/11, Crime, Drinking, Screw-Ups, Sentencing Law
Harvard Law Grad Turned 9/11 Chapel Arsonist Pleads Guilty
This year Sidley Austin gave out very good, but not ridiculously good, associate bonuses. Alas, Brian Schroeder was not there to enjoy them. As you may recall, Schroeder is the 27-year-old Harvard Law School graduate who set fire to a memorial housing the remains of unidentified 9/11 victims, on Halloween 2009. Schroeder then did the […]