Reviewing Jeanette "Janet" Braun's ARDC (Bar) Complaint

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All comments for information only. Do not take anything as legal advice--if you have a legal issue, contact a lawyer directly so that you can received advice tailored to your situation. All views expressed are solely those of the creator.

[@Gwentheferret]

So, a summary - Janet uses shady slapshod fee agreements, then pads the bill with her chumminess with the clients. Yeah, she's the kind of lawyer that gives lawyers a bad reputation.

[@ThatRedhedd]

That is the shadiest BS I've ever heard! I recommend nobody hire Jannette Braun under any circumstances!

[@minkg8178]

Janet encouraged someone to take on Ulta, Beauty Blender, Too faced and do it all at once?! Their lawyers are guaranteed to outspend you unless you have deep pockets and really want to empty them.

[@theeternalcowboy]

agreed - while sahi wanted to pursue them and made the accusations before janet came on board, its evident to me that janet definitely should have warned her that bringing suit would be frivolous. why janet would enter a contingency agreement for a likely losing case is beyond me though and her behavior is abhorrent

[@sugiz2067]

I kept raising my eyebrows everytime. Sue BB? TF? SUE ULTA? Shelly was a tiny creator, not someone who can fight these giant international brands. Kept remining me how she threatened to sue youtube for her other clients. This looks more and more like an MO.

[@Choquella]

Because of copyright laws, from the way I understand it - if she didn’t go after every company that violated her rights as the original person to bring that specific product to market, she would have lost those rights.

[@minkg8178]

@@Choquella from a little hunt around the internet, it looks like at least some of those things are not original to her but possibly she genuinely believed them to be.

[@5h4d0w5l1f3]

​@@ChoquellaThat doesn't seem to require that they're all on the docket concurrently...

[@CJKhaos]

“I make nothing if we lose your cases”. Isn’t that the point of contingency, your only paid if you win 🤔

[@ILostCountAgain]

Sir, if you went 3 hours on a JB update, I'd be here.

[@Whip-It_2014]

Same! It's the trainwreck I watch with glee.

[@serenetiv]

so... the client can't say anything about any case Janet works on with them. But Janet can talk about anything she wants, attorney-client-privilege be damned? yeah right...

[@deriamis]

Soooo… she admits to commonly doing a thing - teaching her clients - as how she runs her practice, but then she says it’s something that lawyers don’t generally do. And the teaching fees aren’t taken into account on her fee sheet? Very suspicious.

[@squid3946]

It's fantastic to see someone correctly identify red flags and take a stand! And she did it so eloquently. Thanks for bringing this to us Runkle!

[@malcolmdarke5299]

I'm a qualified bookkeeper in the UK, and back-dating the new agreement is *bad* financial behaviour. It screws up all kinds of things related to proper record-keeping. Braun was trying to pull a fast one, and I'd suggest reporting her to the local equivalent of HMRC for financial malfeasance.

[@mhfuzzball]

That the ARDC decided to simplify this down to, "This is a fee issue; not our problem," gives me little hope that they will do anything meaningful regarding Janet. Then again, it *is* Illinois...

[@Gwentheferret]

I wonder if there's money changing hands under the table to dismiss complaints... I mean, Illinois, specifically Chicago...

[@atticusmatlock4305]

I think the dismissal was reasonable and this is all kind of a nothing burger. Or not.

[@Lazrael32]

i takes a LOT for anyone to get disbarred. i recommend looking into richard liebowitz. he destroyed lives for years while judges dragged their feet on correcting the issue.

[@user-mv5zt8qd9l]

​@atticusmatlock4305 There are allegations about confidentiality breaches and nefarious contract negotiations (or lack thereof, more specifically). Whether or not it's behaviour that the ARDC can penalise, I don't know, but I'd hardly call a situation where a woman is being given surprise invoices for $160,000 and left without legal counsel midway through a big lawsuit a "nothing burger."

[@KaiHenningsen]

@@user-mv5zt8qd9l I expect it simply comes down to "first, these issues need to be settled in court, _then_ we can decide if there's anything we want to do". Oh, and also, don't I remember another case where someone heard a rumor about several investigations into her behavior? Hmmm ...

[@dani5165]

Ive been waiting for Runkle to cover this because i genuinely can’t believe how insane it is

[@meganexelby1062]

I dont understand how this was passed off as a 'fee dispute'.... that seems nuts to me (as an outside observer). JB has clearly gone well outside some very problematic ethical boundaries, she isnt just dipping her toe over the line... HOW IS THIS ONLY A FEE DISPUTE?!?!??!!

[@IvanovaDowns]

How can Janet afford this many lawsuits

[@existential-axolotl]

I don’t think her lawyers charge her tbh, her filings read like she writes them herself.

[@existential-axolotl]

@@B__MerNo lawyer has 1000 clients, I work for an attorney with the highest caseload I’ve ever seen and we have 700ish…and we’re in criminal, so cases just come to us. The most prolific civil lawyer I know has, last I heard, around 65-70, which is ridiculously high for civil and is way higher than the rest of the firm. I’d be SHOCKED if Janet has 50 active clients.

[@EmeraldCityVideo]

@@B__Merwho could have guessed a lawyer would be literal and pedantic? Seems out of character.

[@auntbee6993]

I can't decide if I think she's spectacularly incompetent or purposefully predatory

[@heatherfrank7433]

I think both somehow😅

[@KaiHenningsen]

@@heatherfrank7433 No conflict there. Actually, that's rather common. Thinking of a certain politician, but really, we see this again and again. It's how a certain percentage of humans behave.

[@traciegrover7181]

Janet doing Janet never seems to work out well for her.

[@maryjanegibson7743]

I cannot imagine ever wanting to work with an attorney who cannot maintain confidentiality -- Braun would have hurt herself by her own actions and words if these allegations are true.

[@dragons_flight]

I've made it close to the end of the video now and I'm horrified. What an appallingly horrendous position that client has been put in !!! 🤢😱😡☠👹👿

[@anniealexander9911]

There have been a few cases on youtube recently of clients complaining to the Bar about their attorney's behaviour - in writing - and the Bar phoning the attorney, having a nice chat, and the Bar dismissing the complaint. If clients have to complain in writing then contact between the Bar and the attorney should be in writing too

[@Choquella]

I agree.

[@andreap9412]

Pay close attention, Lauren the Mortician. Janet intertwining herself in your business interests and then chucking you under the bus…

[@I_HaVe_QuEsTiOnS4u]

1:06:17 Shes been an ATTORNEY FOR 30 YEARS! How has she been an attorney for 30 years! How can she be so bad at this after 30 YEARS!

[@texaskatydid1081]

I've seen Sahi's videos on this. To boil it down, Janet took the cases on contingency then tried to charge hourly rates when she messed up.

[@kib7406]

So if this complaint was dismissed, is there a more valid route the client can take to hold her accountable for these breaches?

[@irradiated_woman8016]

Janet from another planet! (where ethics are very different. Apparently.)

[@vernonharden]

She's also in a very different universe, at least in my opinion.

[@2u2a]

Janet comes off really, really shady. Even taken with the whole barrel of salt... this does not look good. I do not get why the bar dismissed it. I get that they might not want to get involved into fee disputes, but I see several other issues. Solicitation, breaching privilege, misrepresenting the terms of engagement, strongarming. Even if Sahi would agree that somehow her billing was correct, there is plenty of issues that bar should look into. And I get that they might not to want to get involved, and she might have been not clear enough, not stated what issues in particular were breached. But... she wrote it herself, bar should not require from people to pay for more attorneys if they were already wronged by other atty. I think Janet might wanna change the branch, as social media lawyer she is burned. As any social media person (I hope) would do the quick research on her. Especially that she has herself become present on social media (not like other lawyers that rather do they work for social media people without having their own presence on sm). She would be better of if she would not insisted on correct spelling of her name, because then she could pretend that there is some other Janet. I wonder how many other clients she did dirty. Her engagement with Jen Gerard also bit Jen in her ass, as Petty Paige has exposed how awful Janet was.

[@sanmer85]

So J was working as an ambulance chaser, but instead of ambulances, she chases influencers/small businesses.

[@MeganSpruce90]

Such a good analogy! Was thinking the same thing in just the beginning of this video... it seems that is her general M.O, finding "issues" with influencers and (falsly) claiming or bringing lawsuits for them. I understand caring about others' legal issues, wanting to inform them if they apparently are being screwed...but to essentially pray on these people? Ew.

[@steinwaymodelb]

One observation - Ms. Sahi (as a relatively novice entrepreneur and pretty elementary introduction to legal processes) is much better at drafting correspondence and even structuring her bar complaint with points and evidence than we've seen from the 'lawyer with 30 years of experience'.

[@e-legalcanadian]

I hired a lawyer once, who always tried to engage me in idle chit chat about her cats, horses, etc... and made several mistakes on legal forms, which I spotted while proof reading... all of which she tried to Bill me for in hours and document costs. When they presented Me with their padded bill, I presented them with the ACTUAL hours and work done (and added an additional debit for MY proof reading). I advised her that I would not be paying her bill, but instead, would pay her for the work I had listed. I cut her a cheque and NEVER dealt with her again. To the best of my knowledge, she has since closed her firm. Not sure if she is still working as a lawyer.

[@Beanbrainz6855]

Runkle is truly a class act for editing out the personal deets. Even though neither of these characters deserve his consideration he is, as always, the GOAT.

[@embee7434]

Popped* into the comments* to say exactly this.

[@traciemac9533]

Woohoo a Janet update. Love these.

[@fredsharp6957]

So many red flags here. There are definitely some ethical lapses by Janet that I'm surprised the bar passed on, starting with an apparent improper solicitation.

[@jax576s]

I don't understand why this was dismissed, as it contains a number of ethical violations alleged, regardless of the invoices?

[@helenr4300]

Dual relationships in any professional connection is Big Red Flags🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩

[@Krissyg2277]

Oh my I got a little giddy when I saw the title lol then it was dismissed gosh

[@karibose]

I know how you feel about Janet and I love that you are still respectful to her by redacting her personal business. 👍🏻👍🏻

[@JerryEricsson]

I have known people like Janet over my 73 years on this big blue marble. What I have learned about them is the fact that they can never see it coming when the bullet is on it's way. They are so in love with themselves that they cannot see any way that they could ever be held responsible for wrong doing because they are always right despite what the courts or other agencies show them. The only way the realize things have gone very wrong is when they hear that jail door slam. I am in hopes that eventually Janet will hear that slam and not hear the keys open that door again for 10 to 12 years. But then what do I know I am just an old retired cop who served his city for 24 years, the last 12 wearing the Chief's badge.

[@coffee8599]

Shows how Girardi slips through the cracks for so long.

[@andreap9412]

Yes! I was saying this to someone recently. Look how many bar complaints happened before he was finally disbarred

[@THEDubbleHelixx]

I 100% don't believe she's working 100 hours a week.

[@gbear1005]

Well.. sometimes it takes work to fake work

[@Gwentheferret]

She is if she charges for merely thinking about the case and/or client and/or how to pad the bill, or so she thinks.

[@anniealexander9911]

When she charges her client for filing bar complaints about other lawyers, and wanting to review and edit all their client's social media posts......

[@KaiHenningsen]

@@anniealexander9911 Maybe she doesn't sleep enough, so she makes mistakes and has to work longer to fix them, so she doesn't get enough sleep ... There's a reason time management is ultra-important for lawyers. I could 100% see her drama as someone who's constantly too tired to do good work.

[@john-paulsilke893]

@@KaiHenningsenI think your statement is more accurate to her situation. I’ve met people like her and they work insane hours but are massively inefficient. I honestly believe she is being very accurate with her billing hours, although I definitely don’t agree with her valuation.

[@vawlkus]

and that moral character is why we come to you Ian.

[@melimsah]

Not even halfway through but have to pause for an adjoined. Just, holy crap, this is unbelievable. Janet, Christ in heaven, stop

[@jimc9516]

How to make money as a scummy lawyer: Step 1: spend hours on the phone with a client engaging in chitchat Step 2: ???? Step 3: profit

[@Jenneo7435]

Yikes. Gotta pay attention to those unethical lawyers. That's so wrong. 😢

[@thehutch7728]

Yay! I love Janet updates! 😊

[@Conicee]

Sad to miss the lawstream tonight (feel better soon) but I am always happy to listen to tea on Janet!

[@greendancingpudding]

If she works so hard and works so many hours then how does she have time to go onto social media? Like going on lives and such.

[@minkg8178]

I wonder if she counts that as work?

[@vernonharden]

@@minkg8178, I think i my opinion, that she's grooming for potential clients/victims. So yes she could call it working.

[@KaiHenningsen]

@@minkg8178 Probably.

[@playboicatie]

Shelly says that Janet considers looking at social media as part of her work. She claims that she has to monitor what her client is saying. Complete bs

[@vernonharden]

@@playboicatie, which could have her brought up on charges of stalking, if she publicly stated that.

[@creeksidecasual]

Are we at all surprised that Janet flaps her lips like a hummingbird in spring? If you can’t keep your trap shut, be a tour guide not a lawyer! Question: so if Janet revealed personal information that was talked about in one of those hours long phone calls then charged the client for the calls, isn’t that illegal - like just about the biggest bad a lawyer can do?

[@vawlkus]

not quite the biggest bad. That'd be mishandling client funds. That's the big bad IMHO, and thus far, it does not appear to be in this event........

[@MichieHoward]

If there is a larger billboard stating DON'T HIRE ME, I haven't seen it.

[@BearlyAwake13]

I appreciate you cutting out things that are very personal tbh. It might be perfectly valid to bring up in the complaint, but that doesn't mean it needs to be up for public consumption. Very respectable of you Rumble. Great video!

[@mamabear162]

Your lawyer is not your therapist. Therapy is cheaper.

[@Drummerchef13]

Or more importantly, your client is not your therapist!

[@paigeupchurch7306]

I honestly have to wonder. Does Lauren the “mortician” deeply regret her decision to hire Janet and go through with everything they have thus far. Because man I would be red with embarrassment 😅

[@atticusmatlock4305]

My sneaking suspicion is the yes.

[@user-mv5zt8qd9l]

I can only hope and pray, for CaffinatedKitti and friends' sake, that Janet also decides to rugpull _that_ lawsuit

[@Marlenefrompoland]

I can't believe this Karen of a lawyer is holding her OWN CLIENT hostage like that. She needs psychological help.

[@coyoteartist]

My grandfather practiced in what was then a fairly small town surrounded by countryside and farms, although it was the county seat. He didn't often do defense cases, unless they were people he believed in who had no one else. Mother recalled that he once took a basket of peaches in payment.

[@JimLambier]

Ten years ago, my brother-in-law died in another province. My wife had to get something notarised to send to his lawyer. She found an old lawyer, who looked to be 80. in our small town and asked him to do it. He agreed to do it if we drove down to the local coffee shop and get a coffee for him and his secretary.

[@coyoteartist]

@@JimLambier Woot for the good people in the world.

[@wcookiv]

I just finished the playlist this weekend, great timing!

[@rsh793]

Lol the LoE suggests that she gets way too chummy with people - I'm horrendous at doing the money thing and would never have written anything so cringey! She really is not a good lawyer in that direction and would also be, btw, a terrible therapist! Also as the trademarks weren't in place is that even a good place to go to Court from - let alone have anyone reach out to do anything more than flagging it up with a person and suggesting they put them in place. It's almost a case of lesson learnt the hard way not a viable law suit

[@marikotrue3488]

I agree with other comments. Never hire the attorney that "cold calls" you to offer their services at a "reasonable cost". The first personal conversation initiated by the attorney was the final red flag for this client. While the makeup business is a somewhat crowded and highly competitive marketplace, being inexperienced regarding attorney/client contracts should not ruin the life of a small makeup company owner. The lawsuit, in discovery, will make information public that I am assuming no one wishes to be made public. Arbitration can be problematic (ask Disney), but in this case perhaps it can end the financial drain and PR nightmare for all involved parties.

[@jeffcarey3045]

Hopefully today's tea is served scalding hot.

[@emilyjones6083]

Sahi Cosmetics also has Anti Janet Social club merch, which I think is kind of hilarious.

[@Tkkmakeupdesign]

I just ordered. Hehehehehe I think it's amazing!

[@ros8986]

FYI - a "beauty blender" is a specialized small sponge used to blend makeup after application.

[@TaraTheFox]

I never thought an attorney would be the one who would need that one clip LTWM uses: "Stop talking about your case, please!" omg

[@HolldollMcG]

Sounds like Jeanette needs to go out and make actual friends outside of work.

[@anniealexander9911]

Prey tell, what exactly is Janet's "30+ years of experience" actually in? Breathing?

[@user-mv5zt8qd9l]

The alleged conduct is as shocking as it is baffling. Like, I struggle to understand the mindset that gets someone to enter a highly regulated profession and then treat it with so little care while behaving in ways that (in my opinion) clearly seek to deceive people out of their money. It sounds to me like she realised that her lawsuit here might be fruitless and is now trying to weasel her way into a payday. For the sake of CaffinatedKitti and friends, I hope Janet rugpulls Lauren like she appears to have done here.

[@anniealexander9911]

I wonder how many clients Janet has at one time given her crazy billing. Clients shouldn't have to pay for their lawyer filing bar complaints about other lawyers or for their lawyer trying to take a slice of their client's social media career. Janet, you will never be a famous social media influencer, but you are on course for being an infamous one. As the meme goes: stop it, get some help

[@RaelNikolaidis]

The utter Janet-ness of it all. All that’s missing is a bogus Well Check.😅

[@CuriousMouseExploration]

The is shady - Braun should not continue in her profession because she doesn't understand it.

[@Winnie_Bago]

JB is the worst IMO. She herself says renegotiating after the fact is “concerning”, yet she tries to do the same thing with her client 🤦‍♀️ very shady business

[@Epic-so3ek]

Should be janet "unethical and insane" Braun.

[@patriciaschiro2659]

So hoping she will be stopped by at least one of these lawsuits. The three hour video about the Sahi lawsuit is definitely worth the watch.

[@katego370]

Good for her, standing up to that bully lawyer! Many people would just comply and sign or pay whatever legal mumbo jumbo their lawyer sends them because telling your lawyer about how they're violating the ethics code is kinda like telling your dentist how to do their job. I'm impressed by her thoroughness in going through all those bills, calls, and emails in detail. That takes so much work, time, effort, and emotional energy!

[@Ellie-rx3jt]

If Janet had asked for a smaller amount (say, $16k) I suspect she might have gotten away with it. Sahi quite simply *cannot* pay the $161k, so has no other choice than to fight it.

[@gwc656g]

I got sucked into this channel because of Braun so she is not a total waste, but sure wouldn't hire her as a lawyer. Far as that goes, from most of the evidence I don't think I would hire her for most anything.

[@AmberDanae98]

Dammit, Janet!

[@michellecannata7255]

The cosmetics brands she's going after just makes her sound sue happy

[@rickdubs131]

Sounds like she needs a new business card… Works on contingency? No, money down!

[@wensday21]

I rolled my eyes so many times during this video

[@shytowngrl]

I noticed Stephanie doesn't list her experience at Braun IP. Probably a smart move 😂.

[@StevenLockey]

I would of thought the bar would deal with the ethical issues of the fees, even if not the fees themselves.

[@Shellys465]

Thanks for the updates on everything 🎉

[@bookwormdoodles2207]

If fees wouldn't be good for the bar, would misguided advice be a better complaint?

[@ericatucker2683]

52:36 as a beauty girl, Janet could NEVER do makeup and beauty tips. We want girl's girl and she's not a girl's girl.

[@victorman7777]

Excited for the Tea!

[@benjaminshropshire2900]

Contingency fees seem to me to be both a great and horrible thing. They allow people without resources to get their day in court, but they also encourage "predatory" lawyers to focus on "deep pocket" defendants that could be subject to punitive damages. I don't know to construct it, but I really wish the ethics rules and laws resulted in lawyers being indifferent (in the game theory sense) to both the client and the defendants financials. They should have zero financial intensive in the long run to take either "cash up front" case or contingency fees cases over the other. The expected payout should be the same. I expect this would likely require some sort of "loosing defendant pays costs" and the lawyer can multiply there normal rate to cover the risk and time value of money, but how to make that work? (Clearly that doesn't work when both parties are broke, and things like the lawyer needing to make mortgage payments could change things as well, but: long term.) I'd also kinda like to see the plaintiff not be considered a party to the question of punitive damages. For all I care, the defendant could be ordered to deliver those in cash and burn it.

[@DylanYoung]

Janet's going to end up winning her a case after all ;)

[@SBVixen]

Wow, just when you think someone can't be any more slimy, Janet holds her own beer.

[@antoinechasse65]

"interesting"...that's a word I learned here that I don't want to hear from my lawyer!

[@KristinLove82]

Love your videos about Janet!

[@Brentwood_chic]

More Janet drama?! No. 😂

[@AdalizMColon]

Yeah, if I follow Sahi's video correctly, the companies copy her tradedress, at least when it comes to Ulta. I can't recall the case she was pursuing with Beauty Blender, I think it was similar. The problem is Janet soliciting her via Tik Tok and then just tanking these case, that's the argument in a nutshell from Sahi to Janet (along with a lot more shady crap). Sahi has about 3 videos so far. I would love for you to cover the fraud case she (Sahi) has against Janet (if not covered here , still watching 😅).

[@anniealexander9911]

It is a good job you can't trademark smells coz Janet is cooking up some ripe BS that's a wafftin' in me nostrils right now

[@cuttlepods]

What expenses do lawyers have? I'm genuinely curious 🤔

[@RuthlessMindset68]

Office, advertising, office staff, internet, bar fees, insurances.

[@Karools_Scribs]

Insurance for lawyers and access to legal sources is crazy expensive. Law firms also need a lot of different support staff. In my country, law firms are expected to pay for their training lawyers to take the bar and even bar classes.

[@kiraina25]

Continuing education, paying paralegals, Pacer access...

[@lucindaegonzales]

Please please please go through all the filings you can with this case. I want to see a lawyer's perspective on how this is playing out.

[@SerinBlackmoon]

The BBC has the Patone blue for the Tardis under a trademark, but thats kind of an iconic blue lol

[@kiraina25]

That blue isn't really functional, is the thing. If the Doctor decided he (or she now) wanted a maroon TARDIS, it would still function the same way. Trade dress is for things like the shape of a Coca Cola bottle - non-functional aspects that easily identify the product.

[@CptJistuce]

The BBC has pushed very hard to stretch trademark around every aspect of Doc Who. They'd make Disney proud. They actually wound up in a legal dispute with Scotland Yard over their trademark on the police call box. (I think they won it on grounds that the police haven't had call boxes for quite some time.)

[@CharlieZeltzer]

I literally stopped showering the second i saw this pop up. Omfg i cant wwwaaaaiiiiitttt 🎉🎉🎉

[@whirledpeas5717]

Hopefully you weren't mid shampoo!

[@LynzeGenX]

I've never heard of some of the things Janet says are part of her law practices. She seems to get right in the middle of all these cases personally. Seems highly unethical. I can't imagine suing someone you know can't pay. Guess there's more. The gift that keeps on giving.😅

[@SunnyStefanie]

Love that a US presidential candidate is the sponsor of the Canadian lawyer’s KZbin channel 😂

[@dphenix4933]

It's not "If you work 100+ hrs & 7 days a week why are you working out of a UPS store?" Instead it's that she works 100+ hrs per week SO she can afford to to work out of a UPS store.

[@valoriel4464]

Thx Sir Runkle. ✌🏻

[@Choquella]

I’m so glad you finally covered this!!!

[@GilraenTook]

Not that she has the money for it, but if she could find a pro-bono attorney, would she be able to get the liens dismissed and/or get any sort of money from the threats/doxxing/harm to any other cases from this? (edit again: Guess I should have waited until the end for this, since there are lawsuits and countersuits. Sheesh. Even if Sahi is a bad actor to some degree, no one deserves what Janet did to her.) Edit: Also, she's REALLY saying she works 15 hours every single day? Lol, I totally call BS.

[@MissingmyBabbu]

My dad is a stay at home caretaker (as I have severe disabilities and cannot do many things) and I don't even think *he* works that many hours a day, despite my high care needs. I cannot see Janet here working as much as she claims. Unless, of course, she claims (or believes) that making social media posts and whining online or to friends about legal issues is 'working'. Social media CAN be a job, but I wouldn't call Janet an influencer. Hell, I wouldn't even call her a lawyer, degree and licenses be damned.

[@rainieday91]

If this was so littered w poor lawyer practices why in the name of all that makes sense did the DISMISS THIS?????

[@thewanderingxs5422]

"Now comes" 0:12

[@robynshurmantine6846]

Monday (fun) Law Day tonight??

[@Julia-543]

Per twitter he’s not feeling well, so not very likely