Wake Up Call: Dentons Accused of Investigation Obstruction

Welcome to Bloomberg Law’s Wake Up Call, a daily rundown of the top news for lawyers, law firms, and in-house counsel.

• Dentons, the former law firm representing collapsed crypto company Terraform Labs, is accused of obstructing a bankruptcy investigation by refusing to turn over key documents until a court rules on its $25 million fee request. Plan administrator Todd Snyder alleges Dentons played a central role in the fraud that led to Terraform’s 2022 downfall, including advising the company to use encrypted, auto-deleting messages during investigations. (The Wall Street Journal)
• Baker Donelson was hired by Vanderbilt University to lead an independent investigation into claims that the school concealed diversity, equity, and inclusion programs under different names to evade a Trump-era executive order banning such initiatives. The review follows accusations by Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), citing covert video recordings that allegedly show staff discussing how DEI efforts were rebranded to avoid detection. (Law.com)
• Pennsylvania lawyer Michael Brandon Cohen pleaded guilty to forging the signature of a US district judge on two fake court orders in a civil case he falsely claimed to file. While representing a client in a lawsuit against a health-care company, Cohen created and sent fabricated orders bearing the forged electronic signature of Chief Judge Matthew W. Brann, falsely indicating favorable rulings for the client. (CBS News)

Laterals, Moves, In-House

• Nicola Pisano, Scott Penner and Jose Patiño joined Cozen O’Connor as partners in its intellectual property department in San Diego.
• Gabriel Berg and Lauren Coppola joined Haynes Boone as litigation partners in New York.
• TuongVy Le was appointed general counsel of Veda.