Keep your finger on the legal world's pulse

Brandon Monk, a lawyer from Beaumont, Texas, faces sanctions for submitting a AI assisted brief that cited two nonexistent cases and included unverifiable quotations, as noted by Judge Marcia A. Crone of the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. Crone stated, “At the very least, attorneys must read, and thereby confirm the existence and validity of, the legal authorities on which they rely.” Monk was ordered to pay a $2,000 penalty and complete a continuing legal education course on generative AI. His errors were compounded when Goodyear identified the fictitious legal authorities, yet he failed to verify his research. This incident highlights the growing concern over the misuse of generative AI in legal proceedings, with over 200 court orders and rule changes issued since May 2023 to address these issues.

 

Bloomberg Law

President-elect Donald Trump’s choice of Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer to lead the Labor Department could signal a break from the Republican party’s traditionally adversarial stance toward unions, the Wall Street Journal reports. Chavez-DeRemer is one of just three Republican co-sponsors of the 2023 Protecting the Right to Organize Act, a bill backed by 215 congressional Democrats that would expand workers’ collective-bargaining rights and supersede state right-to-work laws. Her nomination was praised by the Teamsters, which broke from other labor unions by not endorsing the Democratic presidential candidate, Vice President Kamala Harris. But the AFL-CIO, while acknowledging the “pro-labor record” of Chavez-DeRemer, cautioned: “Donald Trump is the President-elect of the United States—not Rep. Chavez-DeRemer—and it remains to be seen what she will be permitted to do as Secretary of Labor in an administration with a dramatically anti-worker agenda.”

 

The Baltimore Sun

Chase Strangio, a prominent ACLU attorney, will become the first openly transgender lawyer to argue before the U.S. Supreme Court. On December 4, 2024, Strangio will challenge Tennessee's ban on puberty blockers and hormone therapy for transgender minors, arguing it constitutes sex discrimination. This case highlights the intensifying national debate on transgender rights, fueled by recent policy proposals targeting healthcare and sports access

 

USA Today

Texas-founded law firms Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, Baker Botts, and Vinson & Elkins are to pay Milbank-level year-end and special bonuses ranging up to $140,000. Parvin Moyne, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld hiring and attorney development partner wrote in a memo "We thank each of you for your hard work, dedication, and commitment to our firm, our clients, our communities and each other." Akin and Baker Botts have also detailed 2025 base salaries ranging from $225,000 for new hires up to $435,000 for the class of 2017 and beyond.

 

Law.com

Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher is being sued by Bitcoin financial services company Swan Bitcoin for legal malpractice. The law firm had hired a lawyer representing rival crypto company Tether. 

 

MSN

A profile of London-based legal services startup Avantia notes that it is aiming to become a service-as-a-software provider, with a business model representing both a traditional corporate-focused law firm and the latest legal technology software. James Sutton, the company's chief executive, commented: “There’s a very significant opportunity to combine [legal] services with a very tech-enabled offering. So not be a SaaS business by itself, not be a services business by itself - be the thing that sits in the middle of that.” Legal Dive features an interview with Sutton in which he expands on the company's plans.

 

Legal Dive

Walmart is rolling back some of its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives as the world’s biggest retailer joins a growing list of businesses retreating on DEI programs that have been targeted by conservative activists. The company has said it will no longer consider race and gender to boost diversity when granting supplier contracts and that eligibility for financing will not be assessed based on suppliers providing certain demographic data. It will also scale back racial equity training, stop participating in rankings by an LGBTQ advocacy group and review its support for Pride and other events.  "We are willing to change alongside our associates and customers who represent all of America," a Walmart spokesperson said, adding that decisions come from “a place of wanting to foster a sense of belonging, to open doors to opportunities for all our associates, customers and suppliers.” David Larcker, a professor at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, says the decision could reverberate across corporate America. “Walmart is a key part of the economy and when you see them do something, you’re doing to see a lot of other companies follow along,” he said.

 

Bloomberg

Reuters

US department store company Macy's has postponed its quarterly results following the revelation that an employee concealed between $132m and $154m in delivery expenses over three years. The employee, who was responsible for small package delivery expense accounting, made "erroneous accounting accrual entries" to hide these costs. The concealed amount is a small fraction of the $4.36bn in delivery expenses recognised during the same period. The implicated employee has since left the company. “While Macy’s cannot control the actions of every employee, it is worrying that these are intentional accounting errors that go back to 2021,” Neil Saunders, managing director at GlobalData, wrote in a LinkedIn post.

 

CFO Dive

Financial Times

Daily Mail

Michael J. Kline, a former equity partner at Fox Rothschild, has concluded his age-bias lawsuit against the firm. The dismissal was agreed upon without any fees or costs for either party, although it remains unclear if a settlement was reached. Kline alleged that upon turning 73 in 2018, he was demoted to an income partner role with a reduced salary of $200,000, later becoming an assistant general counsel earning $150,000. In response to his complaints about pay, the firm proposed a $500,000 retirement benefit, disbursed at $100,000 annually over five years. Kline claimed he faced pressure to sign a contract ending in March 2024, and was told it was time to “hang up [his] spurs.”

 

ABA Journal

Pregnant law school student Brittany Lovely, who asked if she could take exams early at Georgetown University as she is expecting her first child, has seen a petition to support her reach over 7,000 students, faculty, alumni and community members. A university spokesperson stated: “Georgetown is committed to providing a caring, supportive environment for pregnant and parenting students. We have reached a mutually agreeable solution with the student who raised concerns."

 

CNN