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Lawyer is disbarred after trying to run his law practice from jail
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Lawyer is disbarred after trying to run his law practice from jail

By Debra Cassens Weiss

old jail cells

Image from Shutterstock.

The Oklahoma Supreme Court has disbarred a lawyer who continued practicing law from jail after his conviction for shooting and injuring a man outside an Oklahoma City nightclub.

The state supreme court disbarred lawyer Jay Silvernail after rejecting a recommendation for a suspension of two years and one day.

The silvernail-shot-ryan-dejesus-outsi.html”Legal Profession Blog has highlights from the June 28 opinion.

Silvernail had tried to continue his law practice while he was in the county jail awaiting sentencing for the May 2016 shooting of Ryan Dejesus, who lost most of his right leg as a result of the gunshot wound.

Silvernail “was more interested in cash flow than client care,” the state supreme court said. And his decision to bring a loaded gun into a verbal dispute with Dejesus “gives us grave concerns about his fitness to practice law,” the Oklahoma Supreme Court added.

Silvernail was convicted of assault and battery with a deadly weapon in October 2019 for shooting Dejesus,

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July 13, 2022 by LAW

Tamara F. Lawson named dean of the School of Law

News releases

July 5, 2022

Tamara F. Lawson has been named to the next Toni Rembe Endowed Deanship of the University of Washington’s School of Law, Provost Mark A. Richards announced today. Her appointment, set to begin Aug. 16, is subject to approval by the UW Board of Regents.

Lawson will replace UW Professor Elizabeth Porter, who has served as interim dean since the beginning of the calendar year.

Lawson comes to the UW from her position as dean and professor at St. Thomas University College of Law in Miami. Prior to becoming dean, she was the associate dean for academic affairs and associate dean for faculty development. She is the chair of the Law Professors Division of the National Bar Association and a board member of the Law School Admission Council. In addition, she is a member of the Board of Governors for the Society of American Law Teachers.

“Dean Lawson brings a wealth of experience and expertise in enrollment and student success, financial management, fundraising, and diversity and inclusion in the field of law, as well as impressive scholarship in criminal law,” Richards said. “We expect that, under Dean Lawson’s leadership, the UW School of Law will

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July 12, 2022 by LAW

Summer 2022 Law Firm Expansions, Legal Industry Awards, Diversity and Justice

Happy July from the whole team at the National Law Review! We hope you are enjoying the warm weather. Please read on for our coverage of the latest in legal industry news, including firm hiring and expansion, industry awards and recognition, and notable diversity and justice initiatives.

Law Firm Hiring and Expansion

Frost Brown Todd has added Member Sohan Dasgupta, Ph.D to its Business Litigation Practice Group. An experienced litigator, Mr. Dasgupta has represented clients before U.S. courts of appeals, trial courts, and the U.S. Supreme Court. His practice focuses on regulatory and compliance issues, investigations, and international law; previously, he served as Deputy General Counsel to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and as Special Counsel to the U.S. Department of Education. In his new role, Mr. Dasgupta will continue advising on matters related to compliance, investigations, and regulation.

Hill Ward Henderson has added four new attorneys to its Tampa, Florida office:

  • David Keel, who joins the firm as Senior Counsel. Mr. Keel is an experienced construction attorney. He represents clients across the industry, including owners, developers, contractors, subcontractors and design professionals, in matters such as litigation, transactions, and the preparation and design of contracts.

  • Steven Cline

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July 10, 2022 by LAW

Despite rebukes, Trump’s legal brigade is thriving

Haller’s trajectory — from rebuked purveyor of baseless claims to a go-to attorney for MAGA extremists — infuriates many liberal activists, including some groups who are targeting the lawyers for discipline, and alarms some nonpartisan specialists in legal ethics. They say those who helped legitimize the former president’s lies should not be allowed to use it as a foundation to build their legal practices, lest it serve as an incentive to profit from ever more outlandish claims that shake the confidence of Americans in the integrity of U.S. elections and endanger democracy.

In total, at least 16 lawyers who represented plaintiffs in five federal lawsuits promoting Trump’s baseless election fraud claims in the key battlegrounds of Michigan, Georgia, Wisconsin and Arizona remain in good standing or have no record of disciplinary action with their respective bar associations or licensing authorities, according to a POLITICO review.

Fourteen of them have since engaged in additional work in support of the election fraud conspiracies or conspiracists behind Trump’s attempt to remain in power despite losing the election to President Joe Biden. These include defending accused Jan. 6 rioters, consulting for partisan election “audits” or partaking in advocacy or legal cases sowing doubts about

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July 9, 2022 by LAW

Judge ponders blocking law that bans abortions in Mississippi

Mississippi is just hours from banning abortion in most instances, but an eleventh-hour lawsuit before a special state judge could at least temporarily delay the “trigger law” from going into effect.

The Mississippi Supreme Court ruled in 1998 that abortion is a protected right under the state Constitution and that right cannot be taken away unless the state’s high court reverses itself, attorneys representing the state’s only abortion clinic told a chancery judge on Tuesday.

Based on that 1998 ruling, Jackson attorney Rob McDuff asked Chancery Judge Debbra Halford of Franklin County to issue an injunction preventing laws that would ban most abortions in Mississippi from taking effect. McDuff and Hillary Schneller, senior staff attorney for the Center for Reproductive Rights, represented Jackson Women’s Health Organization in the lawsuit.

“The primary issue before you is whether the decision of the Mississippi Supreme Court is binding and we clearly believe it is,” McDuff said Tuesday morning during a hearing in the Hinds County Chancery Court Building that lasted about 45 minutes.

READ MORE: Hearing set in Mississippi lawsuit trying to prevent abortion ban

Mississippi Solicitor General Scott Stewart, arguing on behalf of Attorney General Lynn Fitch, told Halford that the 1998

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July 8, 2022 by LAW
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