I went home with the waitress, the way I always do
How was I to know she was with Renraku too?"

So, as I mentioned in the "List of things I'm no longer allowed to do in Shadowrun" thread, I'm considering running a game in which the runners are Partners at a law office catering to runners and to the running world. Trouble is, I'm not terribly familiar with the legal system(s) in the sixth world. I know there's the Corporate Court, but I was thinking that these would be the sort of attorneys who try and keep things from getting to the court room - when someone gets busted stealing illegal research, neither party is going to want that case reaching court, that sort of thing. Would such a thing be possible, given the setting?

Even if I can't get the game featuring these guys off the ground, it'd be good info to have - maybe a contact for future runners, that sort of thing.

So, chummers, where should I be looking for information on the legal systems of the sixth world?

This is touched upon a few times in Vice and Attitude.

Vice has some amusing ideas considering the implications of UCAS tax law, which says that legal AND illegal income is taxed, which makes everything a headache for everyone. It also has a LOT of information on how various legal and illegal entities do business - insight you will want to. If anything, I see the 'independent tax law compliance firm' as a great way to get places and investigate things - if you're a company the irs outsources to, for example, it's pretty easy to use that reputation/threat in other lines of work and cases the company takes.

Attitude has some amusing ideas in the area of working for the law: They put forth a run idea(page 35: renewable resources) in which runners are hired to deliver important paperwork like Court Summons and Subpeonas.... to people hiding out on other corporate territory throwing everything away and living in denial.
So runners get to break into high security, extraterritorial locations, and shove legal mumbo-jumbo at a target and confirm they actually got it.
Its like an extraction in reverse.

Anyway: Vice and Attitude.

Ha! I've actually served process, and yeah, sometimes it is like an extraction in reverse. Sitting in my car with the radio on, waiting for someone to get home from work, then getting them the papers as they're going inside. Tossing the papers under the closing garage door. Good times.

Thanks for the suggestions, I'll check 'em out.

Just do what the sheriffs do - block the driveway and then serve them.

That one can get a civilian in trouble - but so long as you identify that the person in question is present and alert them that they're being served, they've been served. Even if they slam the door in your face, you can drop them on the doorstep and inform them that "You've been served." Though it doesn't quite have the panache of sliding it beneath the garage door as it shuts - Indiana Jones' hat in reverse, if you have sufficient panache.

Legal systems of the sixth world: Advice.
1) Don't get caught.
2) Don't let them realize you're SINless.
3) Under no circumstances allow the cops to work out exactly how many crimes you've actually committed.
4) Hide.

For cops:
1) Shadowrunners will destroy you if you take them on in a fight. Hunker down and send for backup.
2) Everyone's guilty of something.
3) Once you have someone in custody, it's amazing what kind of crimes you can connect them to.
4) They're not bribes, they're donations from concerned citizens.
5) Taking the bribe doesn't mean you can't extort them for more later.
6) What your superiors don't know about won't hurt them.
7) You don't break the law, you are the law.
It's only a protection racket if criminals do it.
9) You can prove it in court. That's why they have forensic labs, after all!
10) Jazz is not addictive, and it is entirely responsible to pop some before every call. After all, there may be shadowrunners on the other end!
11) Priority 1 is getting back home to the wife and kids after a day at work. don't screw that up by taking unnecessary risks.

Ok, but what about "For Legal Counsel:" or suchlike?

Oops, sorry.
For legal council:
1) Guilt and innocence fade away, history shall judge you... insanely rich!
2) Winning the case isn't the objective. Your only task is to keep the case going for as long as possible.
3) Always remember that your opponent is paid by the hour, just like you.
4) Bribery is only cost effective when you're trying to clear repeat customers.
5) Everyone hates lawyers. Don't waste time trying to be liked.
6) Never take on hopeless cases.
7) Charity work is wasting your valuable time.
The higher your success rate, the more high profile clients you'll attract. This is the exception to rule 4.
9) Make friends with a good money launderer. you can't get taxed for money no-one knows you made, after all.
10) Digital evidence is hacker bait. Either keep your evidence in hard copy, or get a hacker friend to take advantage of this fact.
11) Witnesses are golden. Blackmail, bribery, memory alteration and intimidation work well on them.
12) Nothing sways a jury like tears. Make sure your witnesses give them to you.
13) The jury is only metahuman. Use this to your advantage.

What happens when they finally do zap Sirrug into submission and bring him up before a jury consisting of mixed dragons and metahumans?

Find a lower profile case to be on

Didn't you see rule number 6?
If you can't avoid it, see rules 2 & 3.

Jury tampering wouldn't be a particularly safe prospect, in that case.

Legal + Illegal Income = Net Income. Modern day United States income tax (and likely most countries) is based off your net income and thus already includes illegal incomes. There's no real headache about it since illegal incomes are inherently unrecorded. You just keep your books straight and make sure to launder the illegal money before spending it. The fact that illegal income is taxed is not to actually tax the income but rather to setup the income tax evasion crime to nab criminals Al Capone style.