Practice areas

The world's biggest chip maker for cellphones, Qualcomm, looks set to be hit with a record fine in China of over US$1b in a sign which will worry other foreign businesses. | 12yrs

Ethics and compliance issues will keep general counsel awake at night more than any others in the year to come, according to the 2014 Chief Legal Officer Survey. | 12yrs

Chinese lawyers working in human rights or defence against judicial abuse are making mutual assistance agreements in case they are disbarred or arrested and prosecuted. | 12yrs

The California Supreme Court has refused to allow a disgraced journalist to join the state bar because of a 'lack of integrity and forthrightness'. | 12yrs

The Nigerian Police has urged the Bar Association to seek advice on whether public assemblies can be held without police permission under the Public Order Act. | 12yrs

K&L Gates and one of its Pittsburgh lawyers have agreed to pay US$23.7m to settle a malpractice suit - although they did not make any admission of liability. | 12yrs

State-appointed lawyers could be fined or disbarred for poor performance under a bill introduced to the Tennessee Senate this week. | 12yrs

The acquisition of a document review company is a 'serious noise' about the intentions of accountancy firms, according to an industry analyst. | 12yrs

Lawyers do not get protection under the law for secretly recording phone calls when gathering evidence in lawsuits, according to the Washington Appeals Court. | 12yrs

Forthcoming regulation for the charities sector in Ireland could lead to some uncomfortable scrutiny for charities set up by lawyers for their clients. | 12yrs

Securities lawsuits are on the rise with settlements nearly doubling to $6.5 billion last year. | 12yrs

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) in the UK is arguing that Allen & Overy pay part of the costs for a trial which had to be delayed when the firm pulled out from representing the accused a few days before the trial date. | 12yrs

The US's first libel court case involving Twitter has been won by singer Courtney Love when a jury decided her tweet had not been defamatory. | 12yrs

Burberry's issues over its tartan trademark in China are a warning to other companies which could face similar challenges. The full facts about the Burberry situation are not known but other companies need to take note of Chinese trademark laws. | 12yrs

US law firm Proskauer Rose has recruited two partners - from Fried, Frank and Dechert - to push ahead in the UK and Asia. | 12yrs

Claims against oil company BP are one of the factors causing a surge in loans to law firms. | 12yrs

US mining company Newmont is considering legal action over the imposition of a new tax on the export of copper concentrate. | 12yrs

Members of the public have been asked to consider serving on a task force run by the State Bar of California to discuss the provision of civil legal aid to lower and middle-income Californians. | 12yrs

Litigation specialist has expanded its UK and Latin American coverage to open an office in New York. | 12yrs