Making good on threats made more than two months ago, Google began shifting its Chinese-based search functions to Hong Kong, a Chinese territory where companies are not legally required to censor Internet search results.

TOM Online, a mainland Chinese Internet firm controlled by Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing, said Tuesday it was stopping use of Google's search services after "the expiry of agreement."

"TOM reiterated that as a Chinese company, we adhere to rules and regulations in China where we operate our businesses," the company's parent, Hong Kong-based TOM Group, said in a statement Tuesday.

TOM Online, which runs online and mobile Internet services in mainland China, did not say when it stopped using Google or provide any details of its agreement with the company.

TOM likely used Google's search box feature, allowing visitors to its Web site to search the Internet with the U.S. company's technology.

It's still unclear whether other Chinese companies that partner with Google will follow suit. Representatives for heavyweight Internet portal operator Sina Corp. did not answer calls seeking comment Tuesday.

A new report warns law firms that they need to modernise or lose out as a major power shift is taking place in favour of the in-house client.  The report, which canvassed the opinions of 130 General Counsel and 80 law firm partners around the world, reveals that 78% believe that the recession will have a lasting impact on the profession, and that value and efficiency are now the non-negotiable attributes a client looks for in a legal partner.

The report – ‘Law firm of the 21st century – The clients’ revolution’ - commissioned by international law firm Eversheds, also reveals that the recession has had a major impact on how ‘magic circle’ law firms are viewed, with just over half (51%) of clients and 46% of partners citing the term as defunct.  When asked if this revision, to the traditional law firm hierarchy would be a welcome development for the market, an overwhelming 94% of clients and 81% of partners agreed. 

While the recession has proved to be a key catalyst for this change, the report also highlights several other factors that have contributed.  The primary factor identified by over a third (37%) of all respondents was globalisation, particularly the move to the East, with many international law firm leaders, as with other business sectors, considering moving their headquarters from the West to the East.

An additional driver for change is the increasing status and professionalism of the in-house lawyer (35%).  Three-quarters (74%) of General Counsel said they now occupied a far more senior commercial advisory role in their companies compared to before the recession, with 55% assuming more responsibility for corporate governance. 

The McLane Law Firm — with offices in Manchester, Portsmouth and Concord as well as Woburn, Mass. — announced the firm has absorbed the Colucci Norman Law Firm, of Beverly, Mass.

John Colucci, William Norman, Larry Plavnik, all corporate lawyers and Andrew Botti, a litigator, join McLane's business-focused firm of more than 90 attorneys, 44 of whom actively serve Massachusetts businesses in some capacity.

"Bringing the Colucci Norman team onboard delivers an opportunity for McLane to establish an immediate and trusted presence within the North Shore business community, a strategic goal we have been working towards for years," said Steven Burke, managing director of the firm's Woburn office.

The addition of these attorneys and associate support staff to McLane's Woburn, Massachusetts office necessitates the second office space expansion within a year at the TradeCenter.

"In a time when most Massachusetts firms are retracting, we're happy to be bucking the trend. McLane has seen a revenue increase of more than 40 percent over the past five years," Burke said. "It goes to show that the breadth and depth of McLane's legal expertise and the fee structure we offer is really taking hold."

A federal appeals court says Philadelphia's two major daily newspapers can deny creditors the right to use about $300 million owed them to bid at an upcoming bankruptcy auction.

Monday's split 2-1 decision upholds a lower court ruling in a bitter dispute for control of The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News.

The panel says the bankruptcy code "unambiguously permits" a debtor to craft any plan that gives lenders a clear equivalent of their secured interest. The opinion says lenders have no statutory right to bid with the company's IOUs.

An auction is set for next month.

A local ownership group — comprised of two current and one new investor — hopes to win the auction with a bid of $67 million in cash and real estate.

In January, 24-year-old Christina Coronado admitted she had stolen more than $30,000 from her former employer, Zimmerman Law Firm in Waco. She claimed the money was spent on her children and bills payments.

In April 2008, Coronado embezzled the money while handling the payments and deposits of the law firm. Police say when she was caught, she quit her job and claimed to be moving away.

Coronado is now on probation for the next 10 years and will be forced to pay back about $31,000.

Connecticut's Supreme Court has ruled in favor of a lawsuit that could lead to major changes in the state's education system and how it is funded.

The decision released Monday says the state constitution promises an education that prepares students for a job or higher education.

The Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education Funding had sued, saying achievement gaps between rich and poor towns showed some students are not receiving an adequate education to prepare them for jobs and adult life.

The decision could force a review of the state's 22-year-old formula for funding schools, which the group says has drastically hurt some towns and their students.