Federal Judge accuses law firm of deceitful conduct

The WSJ law blog highlights the case of a federal judge in Salt Lake City accusing a law firm, Snell & Wilmer, of backdating pleadings. To quote the judge, the firm date-stamped "the first page of the document to be filed (or the envelope in which the document is placed), using the court’s time stamp located outside the building near the after-hours drop box. The document however, is not actually placed in the drop box at that time.” For example, a reply memorandum had a date stamp of February 16, 2007, but the memorandum was not actually filed with the court until February 21, 2007. The judge noted that he did not take any action when first notified because he hoped that the "event was an isolated incident. But it has happened again." According to the article, the associate responsible for the deceit resigned from the firm.