By: Kristi Tousignant
Asked: Our weekly question to the In-House community
Last week, The Washington Post wrote about White House Counsel Kathryn Ruemmler’s stylish designer shoes, something other news organizations have written about previously.
The Post story received criticism in the legal community and Debbie Hines, founder of LegalSpeaks.com, called for the newspaper to apologize to Ruemmler. In her column, Hines contended Ruemmler should be known for her career accomplishments and not for the style of her footwear.
So here’s our question for you:
What did you think about the article on the White House counsel’s shoes?
Leave a comment below or email me.
Need to Know:
- A former official in the Department of Treasury was named co-general counsel at JPMorgan Chase.
- President Barack Obama plans to nominate a former Lockheed Martin general counsel as head of the FBI.
- The former general counsel of the Motion Picture Association of America will become the leader of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.
- Marriott’s general counsel will join a law firm in Atlanta.
- A former executive director and general counsel of the Major League Baseball umpires union passed away.
Follow us on Twitter for In-House news and discussion: @TDRInHouse
By: Kristi Tousignant
Asked: Our weekly question to the In-House community
The pro bono work of general counsels is under debate in Arizona.
The state’s supreme court is considering a law that limits the pro bono work in-house counsel can do in the state. General counsels can perform legal work in Arizona even if they are not licensed in the state, but state laws restrict corporate attorneys from representing third parties in pro bono cases. In order to do so, they have to go through another certification process.
The Association of Corporate Counsel is urging the court to change the rules and the petition by the state’s bar association is pending in court.
So here’s our question for you:
Do you think general counsels registered but not licensed in a state should be able to do pro bono work in that state without restrictions?
Leave a comment below or email me.
Need to Know:
Follow us on Twitter for In-House news and discussion: @TDRInHouse
By: Kristi Tousignant
Asked: Our weekly question to the In-House community
It’s all about the money and, this week, in-house counsels have advice on how to save those dollar bills in class action lawsuits.
According to Inside Counsel, legal executives recommended alternative fee arrangements to cut costs in class-action lawsuits. They also advised in-house departments to spend more time on these matters rather than giving the work to outside counsel. Finally, general counsels said to conduct early case assessments in order to have more time to map out a strategy.
So here’s our question for you:
What are ways you think would cut costs in class-action lawsuits?
Leave a comment below or email me.
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By: Kristi Tousignant
Asked: Our weekly question to the In-House community
The former general counsel of USAir is speaking out against corporate crime.
Lawrence Stentzel, who now works at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP in Washington, D.C., has written a paper, “Federal Regulation is Not an Effective Deterrent to Corporate Malfeasance.”
Stentzel says in the paper that regulators have failed to be stringent enough and properly punish corporate wrongdoing. He says sanctions are rarely imposed and when they are, they are so minimal it does not discourage future corporate crime.
He recommends the government create a database of corporate wrongdoing.
When Corporate Crime Reporter asked if he knew more corporate lawyers speaking out, Stentzel responded: “I do know them. But they are pessimistic about the future and believe that greed has overtaken everything else.”
So here’s our question for you:
Do you agree with Stentzel that more corporate lawyers should speak out? As a GC, do you share his bleak view of the future of corporate crime?
Leave a comment below or email me.
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By: Kristi Tousignant
Asked: Our weekly question to the In-House community
The state of Washington is pondering new rules for in-house counsel.
The proposal would require in-house counsel to register with the state bar, even if they are already bar members in other states.
The Association of Corporate Counsel is taking issue with the proposal, arguing it is just a way to collect more money in extra registration fees and there is no evidence of in-house counsel ethics problems in the state.
The organization also argues that if a company hires general counsels from out of state without state supervision and if the attorney does not perform, the company simply can fire that person.
The proposed rule permits lawyers from other states to waive into Washington state’s bar but would require in-house lawyers to pass the part of the bar exam devoted to Washington law.
So here’s our question for you:
Should in-house counsel who are bar members in other states have to register with another state bar when they move to a new company?
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By: Kristi Tousignant
Asked: Our weekly question to the In-House community
In-house counsel need to be more involved in reviewing executive compensation, according to a new study by Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom.
The reason, according to the study, is a spike in lawsuits against management and directors alleging that executives breached fiduciary duties when making compensation decisions.
The study recommends that general counsels review these compensation decisions beforehand in order to avoid new waves of litigation.
So here’s our question for you:
Should in-house counsel review executive compensation?
Leave a comment below or email me.
Need to Know:
- Syracuse University named a new general counsel.
- The general counsel of Georgetown College in Kentucky is one of the finalists to be the university’s next president.
- Microsoft’s general counsel joined Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s political action group.
- President Barack Obama’s nomination for the new transportation chief, Anthony R. Foxx, was once deputy general counsel of DesignLine USA LLC.
- Catholic Charities USA named a new general counsel.
- A general counsel of an Arizona school system was fired by the school board.
- The U.S. Department of Treasury’s new general counsel was confirmed.
Follow us on Twitter for In-House news and discussion: @TDRInHouse
By: Kristi Tousignant
Asked: Our weekly question to the In-House community
In-House counsel are social media spies.
Or they are at least according to a new survey by Greentarget, Zeughauser Group and Inside Counsel. Social media use among in-house counsels is up, with 67 percent of those surveyed saying they’d used social media in the last 24 hours or past week as part of their jobs.
But 74 percent of those general counsels are in stealth mode, only watching and reading social media and not participating in online dialogue.
So here’s our question for you:
How do you use social media? Are you in “listen-only” mode while online?
Leave a comment below or email me.
Need to Know:
- Mining company BHP Billiton Ltd. has named a new general counsel.
- Data provider Infogroup has also appointed a new GC.
- A Massachusetts corporate attorney was suspended for six months for practicing with a suspended license.
- Sidley Austin brought in Man Group’s outgoing general counsel to help run its London investment funds group.
- The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission hired White House attorney Anne Small.
Follow us on Twitter for In-House news and discussion: @TDRInHouse
By: Kristi Tousignant
Asked: Our weekly question to the In-House community
The scandal over Rutgers University’s former basketball coach has reached its legal department.
Rutgers’ general counsel resigned last week in the wake of the growing scandal over former basketball coach Mike Rice’s mistreatment of players.
The university fired Rice in early April after a video was released showing Rice pushing players, throwing basketballs at them and yelling homophobic slurs.
Rice had previously been suspended for three games and fined $50,000 in December after an investigation in which former GC John Wolf participated. Wolf has been criticized for advice he gave the school’s athletic director that led to a decision not to fire Rice.
Wolf remains on the Rutgers payroll, however, as a university lawyer. The Star-Ledger also reported that Wolf received a $420,000 payout and free football tickets to resign his post.
John Farmer Jr., a former New Jersey attorney general and current dean of the Rutgers Law School, will take over as interim general counsel.
So here’s our question for you:
Do you think the university handled the situation with its general counsel properly?
Leave a comment below or email me.
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By: Kristi Tousignant
Asked: Our weekly question to the In-House community
IBM’s general counsel Robert Weber is saying he has a list of 10 law firms and 10 attorneys he refuses to hire as outside counsel. He calls it “The List.”
Weber’s turn-offs include: attorneys who ask executives at the company for legal work; firms that violate professional ethics; and firms who send cold pitch letters when a corporation is sued.
So here’s our question for you:
What are deal-breakers for your legal department when seeking outside counsel?
Leave a comment below or email me.
Read the rest of this entry »
By: Kristi Tousignant
Asked: Our weekly question to the In-House community
The legal world has been abuzz about the public release of emails between DLA Piper attorneys encouraging each other to jack up clients’ bills.
The emails came to light in court last week as part of a fee dispute between the global law firm and a former client. The email revealed attorneys saying things like “churn that bill, baby!” and “That bill shall know no limits,” according to the New York Times.
While many feel the emails prove most clients’ fears that law firms are needlessly inflating their bills, in-house counsels are saying the release of the emails will not strongly affect relationships between clients and firms because clients are already asking for more transparency from lawyers. If anything, the DLA Piper emails will simply serve as a warning for lawyers to be more careful when writing emails, in-house counsels say.
So here’s our question for you:
As an in-house counsel, what do you think the lasting effect of the DLA Piper emails will be on the legal world?
Leave a comment below or email me.
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