Google In Battle With Its Own Lawyers

An anonymous reader writes "Google is at daggers end with a law firm it's been using since 2008, after discovering that lawyers in the law firm, named Pepper Hamilton LLP, were representing a patent licensing business that sued Google's Android partners last month. Google has claimed that Pepper Hamilton LLP never provided notice that it was hired by Digitude Innovations LLC, the firm that filed patent infringement complaints against Google's business allies."

So,

[rotorbudd]

We're talking lawyers here.

Re:retards.

[Samantha Wright]

But the conflict occurred while the file was already open!

What conflict of interest?

[Arancaytar]

There's no conflict; the lawyer's interests are perfectly consistent.

Re:retards.

[game kid]

Plus, they were probably using Windows Notepad, which almost never seems to be deterred by that sort of thing when it opens a file. It's like it has...connections...

Re:So,

[Kohenkatz]

The Pogo quote in your sig sums this up better than any other comment on the page.

Re:Concurrent COI

[Anonymous Coward]

A perfect example from Schlock Mercenary [schlockmercenary.com], back when the art was bad, but the writing was amazing. Today the writing is still amazing, and so is the art.

Odd choice of captcha - buttocks.

Re:Lesson of the day:

[Anonymous Coward]

That sounds like lawyer talk. GET A ROPE!

Re:Lesson of the day:

[Bacon Bits]

Well put.

Personally, I've found my opinion of lawyers is concisely stated in this quote from Henry Peter Brougham, a British Lord, statesman, and, yes, lawyer:
"A lawyer is a learned gentleman who rescues your estate from your enemies and keeps it himself."

Or paraphrasing a friend going through a divorce:
Seeing my lawyer has all the all the discomfort of a dental procedure, all the frustration of a visit to the DMV, and all the aggrivation of a cell phone bill. Except I don't get anything as useful as a root canal, a drivers licence, or a cell phone. I just get the promise of another visit in a month.

Re:What kind of Slashdot is this?

[Anonymous Coward]

No - but it should be!

Re:Lesson of the day:

[ilguido]

Exactly, that's what I learned attending the Operating Systems course at the university:

A lawyer does not work for only one client at time. While one case is waiting to go to trial or have papers typed, the lawyer can work on another case. If she has enough clients, the lawyer will never be idle for lack of work. (Idle lawyers tend to become politicians, so there is a certain social value in keeping lawyers busy.)

Silberschatz, Galvin & Gagne, Operating System Concepts

Re:Lesson of the day:

[Richy_T]

Not so much a profession as as a psychological disorder

Re:What kind of Slashdot is this?

[geminidomino]

First, there's no history of violence against lawyers. There's never been (to my knowledge) a lawyer genocide,

When you point things like that out, it really makes me depressed about the nature of humanity and society.

I mean... why the hell not?!