11th Circuit Court

PI Lawyer Plea: $1.3 M, Up to 15 Years, in $13 M Fraud Case

A federal judge has approved a plea deal that calls for a once-prominent Miami personal injury lawyer to serve up to 15 years in prison. Louis Robles, who has been disbarred, must also repay former clients $1.3 million of the more than $13 million he defrauded them of in asbestos…

Sep 18, 2007 4:34 PM CDT

Trial of Miami PI Lawyer Gets Under Way

Attorneys for a Miami mass-torts lawyer going on trial for stealing client money want to question potential jurors about their views on personal injury lawyers. Jury selection in the trial of asbestos lawyer Louis Robles gets under way tomorrow, the Daily Business Review reports. Robles was willing to accept a…

Sep 17, 2007 1:00 PM CDT

NASCAR Logo Settlement Reached

An out-of-court settlement allows NASCAR driver Jeff Burton to display the AT&T logo on his car for the next 18 months, but he must find a new corporate sponsor for the 2009 season. NASCAR announced the settlement Friday, according to the Fulton County Daily Report. Burton’s car used to sport…

Sep 11, 2007 12:26 PM CDT

Claim of Midnight Trip Delays Noriega Extradition

A federal judge has delayed the extradition of former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega to France following a defense claim that the government planned to sneak him out of the country to avoid further litigation. Noriega has served a U.S. sentence for narcotics trafficking and was awaiting extradition to France for…

Sep 6, 2007 12:44 PM CDT

Counsel Waiver Before En Banc Court

A federal appeals court has granted en banc review in the case of a man who fired his lawyer and represented himself at trial, resulting in a conviction for making bomb threats. The full Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will consider what constitutes a valid waiver of a…

Sep 4, 2007 2:12 PM CDT

Rehearing in Freelancer Copyright Case

A federal appeals court has agreed to rehear a case that considers whether freelance writers have rights to stories published in a magazine’s exact reproduction in digital CD-ROM format. The decision by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to rehear the case en banc could reinstitute a conflict with…

Sep 4, 2007 11:04 AM CDT

Vick Pleads Guilty

Updated: Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick pleaded guilty today to a federal conspiracy charge in connection with a dogfighting operation known as Bad Newz Kennels. Sentencing was set for Dec. 10, Reuters reports. At a press conference after entering the plea, Vick apologized, saying he accepted responsibility for his actions…

Aug 27, 2007 3:37 PM CDT

11th Circuit: Return Katrina Docs!

In a blunt opinion filed today, a federal appeals court says two sisters portrayed as whistle-blowers in ongoing litigation over Hurricane Katrina insurance claims must return some 15,000 internal documents concerning State Farm Insurance Co. The unpublished ruling by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is potentially important not…

Aug 24, 2007 9:38 PM CDT

New Backdating Allegations

Lawsuits filed by shareholders of Citrix Systems in a Florida federal court contend the software company granted backdated stock options that gave windfalls to company executives. The company has notified the Securities and Exchange Commission it is investigating its practices regarding grants of stock options, the Daily Business Review reports.…

Aug 24, 2007 12:11 PM CDT

Scruggs, Firm in Criminal Contempt Case

A well-known Mississippi plaintiffs attorney and his law firm have been charged with criminal contempt by special federal prosecutors after they defied a federal judge’s order to return internal claims documents to an insurance company. Appointed by U.S. District Judge William M. Acker Jr. after the local U.S. attorney in…

Aug 22, 2007 4:44 PM CDT

Padilla a ‘Small Pawn,’ Juror Says

One of the jurors who voted to convict Jose Padilla on terrorism charges says the former gang member was “just a small pawn.” “He was guilty–believe me,” the juror told the Miami Herald. “But there were much bigger people involved.” Padilla and two co-defendants were convicted of all charges yesterday…

Aug 17, 2007 1:20 PM CDT

Verdict: Padilla is Guilty, Faces Life in Prison

Updated: In a verdict today in a controversial American anti-terrorism trial, Jose Padilla and two co-defendants have been found guilty on all charges. Following a three-month trial and not quite two days of deliberation, a seven-man, five-woman federal court jury in Miami found the three guilty today, reports CNN. The…

Aug 16, 2007 5:10 PM CDT

Padilla Called ‘Star Recruit’

In closing arguments in a Miami courtroom yesterday, a federal prosecutor called Jose Padilla the “star recruit” of a terrorism support cell that included his two co-defendants. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Frazier focused on a form that Padilla filled out to attend a terrorism training camp sponsored by al-Qaida, the…

Aug 14, 2007 12:31 PM CDT

Judge Accused of Religious Bias

Southern Florida lawyers are supporting a federal judge in Fort Lauderdale who was accused of bias stemming from his religious beliefs. U.S. District Judge William Zloch last month denied a motion for his recusal that cited ties to Ave Maria Law School and his attendance at judicial junkets sponsored by…

Aug 13, 2007 2:18 PM CDT

Real Suit Over Animated Sex Character

We’ve written about the virtual online world of Second Life—how lawyers take on second identities there, find business and create legal guidelines to rule their make-believe towns. Now the Associated Press reports on a real lawsuit brought by the creator of a virtual Second Life sex machine that seeks the…

Aug 10, 2007 6:09 PM CDT