2nd Circuit Court

Federal Judge Sides with NJ Solo, Strikes NY Law Requiring In-State Office for Out-of-State Lawyers

A federal judge in Albany has agreed with a New Jersey solo practitioner that a New York law is unconstitutional. It requires out-of-state attorneys licensed to practice in New York to maintain an in-state office if they want to represent clients there. The state argued that the New York office…

Sep 9, 2011 10:09 PM CDT

Heirs of Miles Davis Sue Miles’ Cafe Owner, Who Is Also a Trumpet Player Known as Miles

A New York restaurateur who allegedly claims Miles Davis appeared to him in a dream, leading him to take the legendary jazz musician’s first name and open a cafe using that moniker, is now a defendant in a lawsuit. Brought by relatives who inherited from Davis’ estate, the Manhattan federal…

Aug 31, 2011 9:28 PM CDT

Inmate’s ‘Cop Out’ Jail Phone Message to Lawyer Wasn’t Privileged, 2nd Circuit Rules

A Spanish-speaking New York prison inmate found out the hard way that sending a message to his lawyer via his sister, on a recorded jailhouse phone, wasn’t a good idea. Joel Rodriguez had no reasonable expectation of confidentiality when he told her to tell his attorney that he wanted to…

Aug 25, 2011 8:17 PM CDT

Exonerated Marsh & McLennan Execs Sue Spitzer and Slate for Libel Over Ex-AG’s Column Comments

About a month after the felony antitrust convictions of two former Marsh & McLennan executives were thrown out last year, former New York attorney general and governor Eliot Spitzer wrote a column in Slate. It defended his work on a 2004 case that resulted in an $850 million settlement by…

Aug 22, 2011 11:40 PM CDT

Lawyer Paid $32K for M&A Tips Gets 3 Years for Conduit Role in High-Profile Insider-Trading Scheme

A New York personal injury lawyer was sentenced today to a three-year federal prison term for serving as a conduit for at least two attorney tipsters then working at Ropes & Gray in a high-profile insider-trading scheme. Jason Goldfarb was paid $32,500 for his work in the illegal stock-trading scheme,…

Aug 19, 2011 6:23 PM CDT

2nd Cir. Backs Madoff Trustee: Victims of $20B Swindle May Get Principal Back, But Not Fake Profit

Many victims of the massive Ponzi scheme that Bernard Madoff operated under the guise of a profitable hedge fund got statements showing handsome investment returns via the basket of stocks supposedly being purchased on their behalf. But “Madoff never invested those customer funds. Instead, Madoff generated fictitious paper account statements…

Aug 16, 2011 8:07 PM CDT

2nd Cir. Upholds 10 of 12 Convictions for NY Criminal Defense Lawyer in Attempted Obstruction Case

A New York criminal defense lawyer is facing a 14-year federal prison sentence, after a federal appeals court on Friday affirmed (PDF) 10 of his 12 convictions in an attempted obstruction of justice case concerning a former client. Robert Simels also was convicted of conspiracy and bribery in 2009 after…

Aug 16, 2011 12:30 AM CDT

2nd Cir. OKs Minority New Haven Firefighter’s Disparate-Impact Suit, Despite Supremes’ Ricci Ruling

In an unusual 2009 decision, a divided U.S. Supreme Court not only vacated a lower court’s ruling that the city of New Haven, Conn., had a right to discard the results of a promotional test, out of concern that it was racially biased, but ordered the the city to certify…

Aug 15, 2011 11:48 PM CDT

Red is Not Solely Louboutin’s Domain, Federal Judge Rules, Denying Injunction in Designer Shoe Case

A federal district court judge in Manhattan has ruled against Christian Louboutin SA in a hard-fought case over high-end red-soled women’s shoes. Judge Victor Marrero today denied the Paris-based fashion company’s motion for a preliminary injunction that would have barred top competitor Yves Saint Laurent from selling similar shoes while…

Aug 10, 2011 5:00 PM CDT

4 Attorneys and 1 Disbarred Lawyer Among 14 Charged in $58M Alleged Mortgage Fraud

Four real estate attorneys and a disbarred lawyer are among 14 defendants charged yesterday in a federal mortgage fraud indictment in Manhattan. Attorneys Kevin Hymowitz, 38, Michael Raphan, 63, Neal Sultzer, 61, and Jacquelyn Todaro, 41; as well as disbarred lawyer Michael Schlussel, 50, face charges of conspiracy to commit…

Aug 5, 2011 11:43 AM CDT

Wachovia Bank Can Keep $9M Collateral It Snagged from Marc Dreier’s Failed Law Firm, Judge Rules

A bankruptcy judge in the Southern District of New York has blocked a trustee’s effort to claw back some $9 million obtained by Wachovia Bank from a money-market account for the new-defunct Dreier law firm. The trustee had argued that the bank should have known, when it extended another $9…

Aug 5, 2011 11:16 AM CDT

Former Sullivan & Cromwell Partner Allegedly Failed to File Returns and Pay Tax on $10.8M in Income

A former mergers and acquisitions partner at Sullivan & Cromwell has been criminally charged for allegedly failing to file returns and pay federal tax on almost $10.8 million in income he earned at the firm between 2001 and 2008. John O’Brien is accused of spending money he should have used…

Aug 4, 2011 6:00 PM CDT

Marvel, Not Comic Artist’s Heirs, Owns Incredible Hulk, Fantastic Four and More

Heirs of a comic-book artist who claimed a legal right to Spider-Man, the Incredible Hulk, the Fantastic Four and other superheroes today lost a round before a federal judge in New York. The Walt Disney Co., which paid $4 billion in 2009 to acquire Marvel Worldwide Inc., owns the rights…

Jul 28, 2011 10:29 PM CDT

Lawyer for YSL Points to Oz’s Dorothy in Red-Soled Shoe Case; Louboutin Injunction Unresolved

Can designer Christian Louboutin trademark a color? That essentially is the question in a hard-fought federal case over competing red-soled women’s shoes made by Louboutin and Yves St. Laurent. Argued Friday in the Southern District of New York, it hasn’t yet resulted in a ruling on the preliminary injunction sought…

Jul 25, 2011 10:44 PM CDT

Former Kirkland & Ellis Partner Indicted, Accused of Cheating on Personal Income Tax

A former bankruptcy partner at Kirkland & Ellis has been indicted on four counts of income tax fraud. Theodore Freedman, 63, is accused of underreporting by over $2 million his nearly $5.4 million in total income between 2001 and 2004. He is also accused of claiming over $500,000 in expenses…

Jul 14, 2011 6:38 PM CDT