* An entrepreneur who created the world’s first “robot lawyer” has secured $12 million in funding. Hope this guy doesn’t make a robot Morning Docket writer… [Forbes]
* A Pennsylvania lawyer has been disbarred for defrauding his firm by referring people who came to the firm to other lawyers in exchange for a percentage of the fees. [ABA Journal]
* An appeals court has ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $2.1 billion for damages allegedly sustained from baby powder that was purportedly laced with asbestos. And this amount is lower than the original verdict of $4.69 billion. [Hill]
* A Florida lawyer is in hot water for filing allegedly frivolous lawsuits under the Americans with Disabilities Act. [Daily Business Review]
* The unexpected deaths of two attorneys and a series of tornadoes was no excuse for a late filing according to a federal judge. This ruling seems kind of harsh. [ABA Journal]
* Two Virginia lawyers have pleaded guilty to extortion for trying to persuade Monsanto to pay them $200 million for a “consulting agreement” to settle Roundup litigation. Sounds like these attorneys could have learned a lesson from Michael Avenatti… [ABC News]
Jordan Rothman is a partner of The Rothman Law Firm, a full-service New York and New Jersey law firm. He is also the founder of Student Debt Diaries, a website discussing how he paid off his student loans. You can reach Jordan through email at jordan@rothmanlawyer.com.