A Philadelphia law firm’s alleged misconduct may lead to dismissal of a defamation suit by Toys for Tots volunteers against news media that reported they were caught stealing donated toys from a Walgreens collection bin.

A federal judge in Camden, N.J., has called Richman Berenbaum & Associates on the carpet to explain why the complaint it filed last December bears the signature of a New Jersey-admitted associate who had left the firm months earlier.