Wake Up Call: Meta Removes Law Firm Ads for Social Media Suits

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

• Meta is removing ads from Facebook and Instagram that trial lawyers and marketing companies place to recruit clients to join lawsuits against the social media sites. “We’re actively defending ourselves against these lawsuits and are removing ads that attempt to recruit plaintiffs for them,” the company said. “We will not allow trial lawyers to profit from our platforms while simultaneously claiming they are harmful.” (Wall Street Journal)
• Perkins Coie launched a representative office in China’s Shenzhen province to bolster its offerings to Asia-based companies. The expansion is intended to help the firm better assist with legal demand related to US and cross-border transactions. Bing Ai will spearhead the office as managing partner alongside litigation partner Wei Yuan. (Perkins Coie)
• Brooklyn-based personal injury attorney Zorik Ikhilov allegedly ran a scheme that used staged car accidents to drive up insurance payouts, according to a lawsuit. FedEx Corp. filed the suit accusing Ikhilov of running a sophisticated ring also involving doctors and medical providers that aimed to bilk the delivery giant through bogus liability claims. (New York Post)

Laterals, Moves, In-House

• Marcus Wu joined Morgan Lewis as a partner in its employee benefits and executive compensation practice in San Francisco. He joins from Pillsbury.
• Andrea Merediz Basham and Jennifer Cheng joined White & Case as partners in its global mergers and acquisitions practice in New York. Basham joins from Freshfields. Cheng joins from Reed Smith.