Law.com Quotes David Senter and Hunter Bruton on Fallout from Cyberattacks Affecting U.S. Courts

Law.com recently featured Smith Anderson partners David Senter and Hunter Bruton in the article “Cyberattacks on US Courts System Affect High-Stakes Litigators, White-Collar Criminal Clients,” covering the widespread cyberattacks on the U.S. federal courts’ electronic case management system (CM/ECF). The large-scale breach has disrupted operations across multiple jurisdictions and raised significant concerns about the confidentiality of sealed filings, including trade secrets, intellectual property and sensitive personal information.

Smith Anderson’s Data Privacy & Security practice Chair David Senter underscored the breadth of the breach, noting that the attackers may have “gained access to everything, both publicly available information as well as the confidential materials.”

Attorney Hunter Bruton explained that Smith Anderson has been working directly with clients to assess their risks, adding that firms should be proactive: “It is disturbing for any client to know that incredibly sensitive information, such as medical or psychological history, has been, or could be, accessed by a bad actor.”

The Law.com article emphasized that the cyberattacks have heightened risks for litigators handling sensitive trade secrets, white-collar defense matters and sealed filings, raising concerns about everything from corporate intellectual property to the identities of cooperating witnesses. While some courts have moved to require in-person filing of sealed documents as a short-term safeguard, experts noted that such measures are not a sustainable long-term solution. The breach serves as a reminder that organizations must proactively assess their exposure and strengthen cybersecurity protocols to protect confidential client data in litigation.

This media coverage follows an analysis published in a recent Smith Anderson legal alert, “U.S. Court System Hack Raises Risk for Sensitive Federal Court Filings,” authored by David Senter, Hunter Bruton and Braden Rose. The alert provides an overview of the attack, discusses implications for companies with sealed filings in federal courts and outlines practical steps organizations can take to assess their exposure and strengthen preparedness.

Law.com subscribers can read the full article here.

Law.com is the industry-leading media platform powering over 18 online U.S. national and regional award-winning legal publications. They deliver news, rankings, reports and strategy — all designed to give you the competitive intelligence to prepare for today and seize future opportunities.