2011

Brooklyn Daily Eagle, November 10, 2011

Chief Federal Prosecutor Begins New Job in Brooklyn

Prosecutor Marshall L. Miller will begin his first full week as the new chief of the criminal division of the Brooklyn U.S. Attorney’s office Monday…Miller received the 2011 Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Furthering the Interests of U.S. National Security and the New York City Bar Association’s 2010 Henry L. Stimson Medal for outstanding assistant U.S. attorneys in the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York.

Read full article here.

Thomson Reuters, November 8, 2011

U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn Taps New Criminal Chief

The prosecutor who led the case against five men accused of conspiring to blow up New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport was appointed Monday to chief prosecutor in the criminal division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York. Marshall Miller, who has served as deputy chief of the criminal division, will take over as chief of the criminal division effective November 11…Miller has received a number of awards for his work as a federal prosecutor, including the 2011 Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Furthering the Interests of U.S. National Security, and the New York City Bar Association’s Henry L. Stimson Medal for outstanding assistant U.S. attorneys in the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York.

The entire article may be read here.

New York Law Journal, November 7, 2013

Inadvertent Disclosure - Regrettable Confusion

In a more nuanced opinion, the New York City Bar…Committee on Professional and Judicial Ethics issued Formal Opinion 2003-4, in which it concluded that “a lawyer receiving a misdirected communication containing confidences or secrets (1) has obligations to promptly notify the sending attorney, to refrain from review of the communication, and to return or destroy the communication if so requested, but, (2) in limited circumstances, may submit the communication for in camera review by a tribunal, and (3) is not ethically barred from using information gleaned prior to knowing or having reason to know that the communication contains confidences or secrets not intended for the receiving lawyer. However, it is essential as an ethical matter that the receiving attorney promptly notify the sending attorney of the disclosure in order to give the sending attorney a reasonable opportunity to promptly take whatever steps he or she feels are necessary.”

The entire article may be read here.

New York Times, November 4, 2013

A District Attorney Talks about a ‘Not Approved’ Rating

Robert T. Johnson of the Bronx is currently the longest tenured district attorney in New York City. So it might come as a surprise to some that when the New York City Bar Association released its ratings for judicial candidates a couple of weeks ago, it deemed Mr. Johnson “not approved by reason of the candidate’s failure to affirmatively demonstrate that he possesses the requisite qualifications for the office for which he is a candidate.”

The entire article may be read here.

Thomson Reuters, November 3, 2011

NYC Bar Association Recommends Changes to Spousal Support

The New York City Bar Association on Thursday recommended that a recently-enacted formula to calculate temporary spousal maintenance – the amount of money one spouse pays another during a divorce proceeding – be applied more broadly in the New York state courts, a move the association said would benefit low-income residents…The bar association’s report recommends that the new maintenance formula, which currently only applies in Supreme Court, also be used in Family Court, which is authorized to award “spousal support” to estranged spouses who have not divorced. Since litigants in Family Court tend to be low-income and pro se, according to the report, they cannot demonstrate to a judge the need for support. “As a result of this ambiguous statutory guidance, many Family Court litigants do not obtain spousal support since they cannot afford counsel who can demonstrate that spousal support is warranted,” the report says.

The entire article may be read here.

New York Law Journal, October 28, 2011

Court System Taps Recent Law Graduates for Pro Bono

A special four-day training program sponsored by the state court system concluded yesterday for 130 recent law school graduates to prepare them to represent low-income New Yorkers. The sessions, held in Manhattan and Brooklyn, focused on training attorneys to assist clients in housing, consumer credit and uncontested divorce cases…The court sponsors Volunteer Lawyer for the Day programs in various courts. In the Housing Court’s resolution part in Manhattan, volunteers provide representation for landlords or tenants in partnership with the New York City Bar.

The entire article may be read here.

New York Law Journal, October 26, 2011

City Bar Justice Center Presents Pro Bono Awards

The City Bar Justice Center presented its Third Annual Jeremy G. Epstein Awards for pro bono service at a reception on Monday evening at the New York City Bar’s West 44th Street headquarters.

The entire article may be read here.

AM Law Daily, October 24, 2011

In Maples Case, Sullivan & Cromwell Blames the Associates

Sullivan & Cromwell, represented by former U.S. solicitor general and Latham & Watkins appellate partner Gregory Garre, has asked the Court to give [Cory] Maples another opportunity to appeal his death sentence.…In arguing on Maples’s behalf, Garre and Sullivan & Cromwell pin at least equal blame on [Clara] Ingen-Housz and [Jaasi] Munanka, saying that they as individuals – not the firm – handled the case; that their failure to leave forwarding addresses upon taking new jobs while their client’s bid for an appeal was active rises “to the level of abandonment”.…S&C claims that when it comes to pro bono cases, its lawyers take them on as individuals….Garre reiterated that position in an August 1 reply brief (PDF) filed with the Supreme Court. In the filing, Garre argued that Sullivan & Cromwell itself did not represent Maples and that “while it may be more typical for a firm to assume the representation, the firm is not required to do so.” He also cited a New York City Bar pro bono committee tip sheet that says a lawyer can represent pro bono clients in an “individual capacity”; can keep representing them after leaving a specific firm; and should discuss with the client at the start of a pro bono representation whether the work is being done individually or via the employer.

The entire article may be read here.

ProBono.net, October 24, 2011

City Bar Justice Center Legal Hotline Statistics

During the past year (9/1/2010-9/30/2011) the City Bar Justice Center’s Legal Hotline has received over 20,000 calls. The Hotline strives to help low income NYC residents with simple legal advice, information and referrals on civil issues, such as landlord and tenant housing cases, family, matrimonial, consumer and bankruptcy law questions. It is the largest free general civil legal hotline in New York City. When possible, the Hotline provides brief services to callers, such as providing self help materials. During the last year the hotline has assisted approximately 1500 callers with brief services. Since the economic downturn, the Hotline has received an increased number of calls concerning consumer debt issues, specifically from callers being sued on consumer credit debt in civil court and seeking information and help with bankruptcy.

The entire article may be read here.

Law Technology News, October 20, 2011

Discovery of Social Media in New York

Although there is no right to privacy with respect to content located on social networking sites, like Facebook and MySpace, attorneys must tread carefully when attempting to access information designated as “private” on these sites. Both the New York City Bar and the New York State Bar Association have opined that lawyers may not use false or deceptive information to “friend” a party or non-party (or cause someone else to friend a party or non-party) in order to obtain non-public information about that person.

The entire article may be read here.

New York Law Journal, October 20, 2011

OCA Hosts Mediation Settlement Day Kickoff

The Unified Court System, in collaboration with FINRA Dispute Resolution, hosted its annual Mediation Settlement Day Kickoff on Tuesday at the New York City Bar. The program began with an open house of networking and learning opportunities on how to become a mediator, followed by a panel discussion and a keynote address.

The entire article may be read here.

Aljazeera, October 19, 2011

Targeted Killing and the ‘War on Terror’

The United States’ recent killing of Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen has prompted renewed debate over the CIA’s predator drone programme…As thresholds matter, the secrecy surrounding Awlaki’s killing shows a troubling parallel to the type of secrecy on national security matters that existed during the Bush administration. President Obama has yet to disclose the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) memo that, according to press accounts, justified killing Awlaki. As the New York City Bar Association explained in a recent letter, the rule of law requires that the United States provide “a thorough and transparent legal analysis” of its position on targeted killings. While some information contained in the OLC memo might need to be redacted to protect sensitive information, the memo's legal reasoning should be disclosed.

The entire article may be read here.

Thomson Reuters, October 19, 2011

New York High Court Dismisses NYPD Negligence Suit

In a 5-2 decision released Tuesday, the Court of Appeals vacated a $10 million award granted to a Bronx woman who was shot by her ex-boyfriend after allegedly reporting death threats to the police...The case was watched closely by a number of civil rights and victim advocacy groups, who are concerned the ruling will send a message to victims of domestic violence that orders of protection are essentially worthless. “When the laws on the books are not enforced, it creates a huge gap for domestic violence victims,” said Sandra Park, an ACLU lawyer and the chair of the New York City Bar Association’s Domestic Violence Committee. Park, who authored an amicus brief on behalf of Valdez, said attorneys and advocacy organizations will now have to change the way they advise victims of domestic violence.

The entire article may be read here.

Metropolitan Corporate Counsel, October 18, 2011

The Need and the Response

Samuel W. Seymour, President, New York City Bar Association

Like many organizations across the country, our City Bar Justice Center, the pro bono affiliate of the New York City Bar Association, is observing National Pro Bono Week during the last week of October. Here in New York, and across the country, the pro bono need is evident in the numbers, which are alarming. One in five New Yorkers, including one out of three children, are now living below the poverty line. Nationally, the U.S. poverty rate has increased to 14.3 percent, the highest in 15 years. As disturbing as these statistics are, they are not surprising to our staff at the Justice Center, where consumer debt-related matters, including bankruptcy and foreclosure, have for the first time topped its case mix. Among the nearly thousand calls a month fielded by our Legal Hotline, housing issues are a close second, while a great many of the remaining calls relate to long-term unemployment issues, including all forms of government benefits (e.g., veterans benefits and COBRA expirations), and job discrimination. What this means is that there’s never been a more important time to support the Justice Center’s work, by donating or volunteering.

The entire article may be read here.

New York Law Journal, October 14, 2011

Personal Notes on Lawyers

Laura Mathews-Jolly has joined the Immigrant Women and Children Project at the City Bar Justice Center on a two-year Equal Justice Works fellowship, supported by Greenberg Traurig, to provide legal services to immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children and are survivors of labor and sex trafficking.

The entire article may be read here.

Metropolitan Corporate Counsel, October 4, 2011

Fragomen Welcomes Barbara Camacho to Fellowship with City Bar Justice Center

Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy, LLP has announced the appointment of Barbara Camacho as the firm’s latest “Fragomen Fellow” effective August 29, 2011.The Fragomen Fellowship is a two-year rotating position the firm established to enhance the pro bono immigration services provided by the City Bar Justice Center, the pro bono affiliate of the New York City Bar Association. Ms. Camacho will focus on advocacy to enhance the access to and quality of counsel for detained immigrants in New York. To this end, she will be responsible for training and mentoring pro bono lawyers. Further she will continue the critical community education and outreach activities.

The entire article may be read here.

Newsday, October 4, 2011

9/11 Victims Begin Health Claims Process

On Monday, the first day that the new 9/11 victim compensation fund was open for business, 117 people registered online to begin the process of filing their claims, according to the Justice Department…Registration online is the first – and, according to Special Master Sheila Birnbaum, not required – step in the process of qualifying for compensation from the $2.77 billion fund authorized under the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act enacted in January. Under the newly reopened fund, ailing first responders, cleanup workers and residents from Canal Street south can apply for compensation. Birnbaum said thousands might be eligible.…The special master said she had worked hard to make the process “user friendly” and that lawyers from the New York City Bar Association would be offering free help at clinics.

The entire article may be read here.

New York Times, October 3, 2011

Registration Begins for 9/11 Health Compensation Fund

The federal government’s September 11th Victim Compensation Fund began taking registrations Monday from people who believe they were physically harmed by the terrorist attacks and who are seeking financial compensation…The next and perhaps trickiest step will be for people who register to prove that they were actually present in the attack areas during the period covered by the fund – Sept. 11, 2001, to May 30, 2002 – and that they suffered physical harm as a direct result of the attacks.…Ms. [Sheila] Birnbaum said that she was trying to make the process easy enough to be followed without the help of a lawyer. But she said that for those who felt more comfortable using a lawyer, she was trying to recruit lawyers from the New York City Bar Association and elsewhere to serve without charge.

The entire article may be read here.