Portland, OR, USA - Sep 1, 2024: ChatGPT, Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, Claude, and Perplexity app icons are seen on a Google Pixel smartphone. AI competition concepts.

AI Conversations Feel Private. Could They Be Privileged?

AI Conversations Feel Private. Could They Be Privileged?

June 11, 2025

AI Conversations Feel Private. Could They Be Privileged?

By: Robert Ward

The New York Times’ lawsuit against OpenAI continues to spark debate, and not just about copyright. Most recently, a federal magistrate judge ordered OpenAI to preserve chats that the company might otherwise have deleted at a user’s request. In response, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman suggested that it may be time for a version of the attorney-client or physician-patient privilege, but for AI. While any attempt to define such an  “AI privilege” would involve tackling difficult questions about our relationships with AI systems, the more likely barrier will be the general reluctance to recognize new evidentiary privileges, particularly in federal courts. The expansive AI privilege Altman appears to envision is therefore unlikely to materialize any time soon. The premise of Altman’s…

Read More about AI Conversations Feel Private. Could They Be Privileged?

It is Time for a “Second Look” at Legislative Efforts to Combat Mass Incarceration & Recidivism

May 19, 2025

It is Time for a “Second Look” at Legislative Efforts to Combat Mass Incarceration & Recidivism

By: Sara Dalsheim

Government efficiency and spending is a hot topic of controversy in the United States. But even in the context of heated “DOGE” fights, there are proven examples of government efficiency and reduced spending that are clearly working—the passing of measures like the Second Chance and First Step Acts in an effort for mass incarceration and recidivism reduction. The U.S. government spends a total of $80.7…

Read More about It is Time for a “Second Look” at Legislative Efforts to Combat Mass Incarceration & Recidivism

A Luigi Mangione Death Penalty Trial

April 15, 2025

A Luigi Mangione Death Penalty Trial

By: James Trusty

The Attorney General’s recent announcement that DOJ will seek the death penalty against Luigi Mangione raises a host of interesting legal and philosophical issues, and it almost certainly reflects a dramatic about-face from the Biden administration’s approach towards federal prosecutions for death-eligible offenses. Aside from having personally prosecuted three death penalty trials while I was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Maryland and when I was…

Read More about A Luigi Mangione Death Penalty Trial

Brady Violation Leads to Reversal of Conviction in D.C.

March 14, 2011

Brady Violation Leads to Reversal of Conviction in D.C.

By: Ifrah Law

Editor’s note: This is a guest blog post by David Deitch, a Washington, D.C.-based litigator and the author of the White Collar Criminal Defense Blog. He can be reached at dbdeitch@nulldeitchlawdc.com. According to the D.C. Court of Appeals, when it comes to Brady disclosures, late is not necessarily better than never. In Miller v. United States, decided on March 3, 2011, the court overturned a conviction…

Read More about Brady Violation Leads to Reversal of Conviction in D.C.

The Recession’s Effect on Federal Prison Sentences

March 7, 2011

The Recession’s Effect on Federal Prison Sentences

By: Ifrah Law

On March 2, 2011, Jeff Ifrah, founder of Ifrah Law, and Jeffrey Hamlin, an associate in the firm, published the following article in the Los Angeles Daily Journal. Prison inmates in the United States may have reason to thank Wall Street for the 2008 recession. The bloated federal deficit is forcing agencies to tighten their budgets, including the U.S. Department of Justice. According to its budget for…

Read More about The Recession’s Effect on Federal Prison Sentences

Big Boeing Award, New Rules Won’t End DOD Conflicts of Interest

February 25, 2011

Big Boeing Award, New Rules Won’t End DOD Conflicts of Interest

By: Ifrah Law

After a decade of delays and embarrassing missteps, on February 24 the Air Force awarded one of the largest contracts in military history, a $35 billion deal to build nearly 200 giant airborne refueling tankers, to the Chicago-based Boeing Company. At one point, the Air Force had awarded the contract to a team composed of Northrop Grumman and EADS North America, a unit of European…

Read More about Big Boeing Award, New Rules Won’t End DOD Conflicts of Interest

Will the Internet Taint a Loughner Verdict?

February 22, 2011

Will the Internet Taint a Loughner Verdict?

By: Ifrah Law

As Arizona plans a trial for accused Tucson shooter Jared Lee Loughner, a new set of questions has arisen: How will a jury be able to sit in impartial judgment, untainted by nonstop online coverage of the crime and its aftermath? What safeguards should a judge impose to keep the jury from following the case on the Internet and reaching a verdict based on facts…

Read More about Will the Internet Taint a Loughner Verdict?

Facebook Friends and Judicial Ethics

February 15, 2011

Facebook Friends and Judicial Ethics

By: Ifrah Law

Last December, another legal ethics commission addressed the question of whether a judge may become a “friend” on a social networking site with attorneys who appear as counsel in the judge’s courtroom. The Ohio Supreme Court Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline opined that a judge may “friend” attorneys as long as the judge takes care to protect the integrity and impartiality of the…

Read More about Facebook Friends and Judicial Ethics

Articles and Presentations by Our Firm Attorneys

AI Conversations Feel Private. Could They Be Privileged?

AI Conversations Feel Private. Could They Be Privileged?
By: Robert Ward

It is Time for a “Second Look” at Legislative Efforts to Combat Mass Incarceration & Recidivism

It is Time for a “Second Look” at Legislative Efforts to Combat Mass Incarceration & Recidivism
By: Sara Dalsheim

A Luigi Mangione Death Penalty Trial

A Luigi Mangione Death Penalty Trial
By: James Trusty

Subscribe to Ifrah Law’s Insights