Does California Rules of Professional Conduct, Rule 1.15, entitled “Safekeeping Funds and Property of Clients and Other Persons,” govern government agencies that are holding funds for third parties in a civil forfeiture proceeding? More specifically, should cash received or held in civil forfeiture proceedings by the Office of the District Attorney be deposited in one or more identifiable bank accounts labeled “Trust Account?”Read More
8 Tidbits of Advice from an International Student Turned U.S. Lawyer
By Varun Sabharwal, Esq. Deputy Public Defender at the San Diego County Public Defender’s Office
In August 2018, I hopped on a plane from my hometown in Bangalore, India, and came to the United States to study law for a second time. I had just spent the last five years of my undergraduate life learning antiquated common law norms that govern the Indian legal system. I can’t for the life of me recall why I decided, “Oh yes—let’s go halfway across the world and jump into another cesspool of trauma”—but I did—and now my life is decidedly better because I took that plunge. I began my studies at California Western School of Law, not knowing a single person and having no family in the surrounding area to lean on.Read More
High Profile Motion to Disqualify in Georgia v. Trump Prosecution Serves As Important Reminder Regarding Attorney Obligations Related to Extrajudicial Statements
By Andrew A. Servais
Media coverage of efforts by the defendants to disqualify the Fulton County District Attorney in the Georgia case against former President Donald Trump provides a stark reminder of the ethical obligations of both criminal and civil practitioners when making extrajudicial statements about ongoing litigation.Read More
By Martha J.S. Nelson, Esq. Judicial Law Clerk at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California
While working for her father one summer as a teenager, U.S. Magistrate Judge Jill L. Burkhardt began to feel like she could never learn all there was to know about the job. When she shared this concern with her father, she was surprised by his response. “He told me, ‘That is the best thing you can say about any job. If you ever have a job where you can learn everything there is to learn, you will be unhappy because you will be bored.’” Having worked as a civil litigator for Baker & McKenzie, a criminal prosecutor for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and now approaching ten years on the bench as a federal magistrate judge, Judge Burkhardt has found the legal profession to pass her father’s test. “Whenever I feel daunted by what I don’t know, I remind myself that that’s what makes this such a wonderful, fascinating career—you can be in it for decades and never stop learning.” In that spirit, Judge Burkhardt sat down to share with SDCBA’s New Lawyer Division some of the lessons she has learned throughout her illustrious career.Read More
In this series of tips, we will explore how Microsoft 365 can help law firms be more efficient, secure, and effective. To start, you need to know what kind of account you and/or your firm have. Your firm’s software and service subscriptions are a valuable business resource that you should understand well, just like your operating and trust accounts.Read More
