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A Failed Attempt to Avoid Legal Fees
Matrimonial attorneys often have trouble collecting their fees from clients. This can be especially true when the case has been resolved and the client is dissatisfied with the outcome. Clients may get very creative in their efforts to avoid making payment. Case in point: A suit brought by a law firm against a nonpaying client was recently decided in the firm's favor, in spite of the defendant client's unusual attempt to be excused from his obligation. The case, Paul, Weiss Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison v. Koons, 2004 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 667 (Sup. Ct., N.Y. Cty. 5/14/04) (Acosta, J.) presented the novel issue of whether a party could defeat a properly pleaded account-stated cause of action in an attorney-client relationship by claiming that the legal fees were excessive pursuant to DR 2-106, therefore rendering the agreement to pay the outstanding fees illegal and unenforceable.
An account stated is an agreement between the parties to an account based on prior transactions between them acknowledging the correctness of the separate items and agreeing that a balance is due by one party to the other. An implicit agreement to pay arises when the party that owes money to the other fails to object to the bill within a reasonable time or makes partial payments on it. Evidence warranting summary judgment in the creditors favor “will arise from either the absence of any objection to a bill within a reasonable time or a partial payment of the outstanding bills.” Chisholm-Ryder Co. Inc. v. Sommer & Sommer, 70 A.D.2d 429, 431, 421 N.Y.S.2d 455 (4th Dept. 1979). In addition, an affirmance by the debtor that the money is owed will make it difficult for a court later to hold that the debt is not legitimate.
The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later
The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.
Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar Investigations
This article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.
How AI Has Affected PR
When we consider how the use of AI affects legal PR and communications, we have to look at it as an industrywide global phenomenon. A recent online conference provided an overview of the latest AI trends in public relations, and specifically, the impact of AI on communications. Here are some of the key points and takeaways from several of the speakers, who provided current best practices, tips, concerns and case studies.
The DOJ's New Parameters for Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs
The parameters set forth in the DOJ's memorandum have implications not only for the government's evaluation of compliance programs in the context of criminal charging decisions, but also for how defense counsel structure their conference-room advocacy seeking declinations or lesser sanctions in both criminal and civil investigations.