In full-page ads in The New York Times, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan in 2017 boasted, “Call us—and strike fear in the hearts of your opponents,” and “In litigation, you get to choose who your opponents have to face in the courtroom. Why not choose the firm they fear most?”

To New York City solo practitioner Sidney Weiss, who is battling Quinn Emanuel partner Luke Nikas in a high-stakes fight over a work of art by Pablo Picasso, the ads show that firm lawyers lure clients by promising to “terrorize and intimidate their opponents,” Weiss wrote in court papers. “No other factor, including legal knowledge and skill was mentioned.”