Blind Law School Applicant’s Suit Contends ABA Violates ADA by Promoting LSAT

A federal lawsuit filed in Michigan yesterday by a legally blind law school applicant contends that the American Bar Association is discriminating against the blind and visually impaired in the manner in which it accredits law schools. By pushing law schools to use the Law School Admission Test administered by…

May 25, 2011 6:00 PM CDT

Is the 6th Circuit the Nation’s Most Dysfunctional Appeals Court?

A federal ethics panel’s split ruling on a judge’s country club membership is shining a spotlight on the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals based in Cincinnati. A New York Times article on the controversy asserts that the court is “surely the most dysfunctional federal appeals court in the nation.”…

May 17, 2011 11:47 AM CDT

Federal Judge’s Membership in All-White Country Club Not an Ethics Violation, Panel Says

A federal bankruptcy judge who tried without success to sponsor an African American as a member of his country club did not violate judicial ethics rules by refusing to resign, an appeals court’s judicial council has found. There are no blacks and no women as full-fledged members in the Belle…

May 12, 2011 12:25 PM CDT

Lawyer in ‘Invidious Personal Vendetta’ Ordered to Pay Prosecutors’ Defense Costs

A federal judge has ordered a Kentucky lawyer to pay the defense costs of two Kenton County prosecutors after suing them for false arrest and malicious prosecution in what U.S. District Judge William Bertelsman called “an invidious personal vendetta” that allowed attorney Eric Deters to make “libelous” statements in court…

Apr 14, 2011 2:58 PM CDT

Federal Jury Convicts Ex-Ohio Judge of 10 Counts of Lying to FBI Agents About Case-Related Confabs

A former Ohio judge was convicted by a federal jury today of 10 counts of lying to agents of the FBI about conversations she had with people concerning their pending cases in her court. Onetime Cuyahoga County Judge Bridget McCafferty did not testify. Her lawyer, however, contended that she had…

Mar 25, 2011 11:01 PM CDT

Bomb Detonated, Man Arrested After Abandoned Tool Bag Sat for Weeks at Detroit Federal Building

When an FBI agent found an abandoned tool bag containing a metal cash box outside the McNamara Federal building in Detroit on Feb. 26, he turned it over to a security guard. It wasn’t X-rayed or scanned until March 18, after which the Detroit Bomb Squad was called in to…

Mar 24, 2011 10:27 PM CDT

Upset About Bankruptcy Case, Amish Seek Unsuccessfully to Settle $33M Matter Outside Court

When Monroe Beachy filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection, members of the Amish community weren’t happy. Not so much because they might have been fleeced by the alleged Ponzi schemer with whom they had invested as a trusted member of their religious group but because they were being forced into…

Mar 21, 2011 10:00 PM CDT

Mich. Attorney General Backs Student Who Refused to Counsel Gay Patients

A graduate student kicked out of Eastern Michigan University after refusing to work with gay patients in its counseling program has won the backing of the Michigan attorney general. Former student Julea Ward contends she could not counsel a gay client because of her religious beliefs that homosexuality is immoral,…

Mar 15, 2011 1:04 PM CDT

Ex-Judge Gets 26 Years as Mastermind in Racketeering Conspiracy Vote-Purchase Case

A former Kentucky judge has been sentenced to over 26 years in federal prison for his role in a conspiracy among public officials to gain power and control by corrupting Clay County elections in 2002, 2004 and 2006. U.S. District Judge Danny Reeves called former Clay County Circuit Judge R.…

Mar 10, 2011 9:51 PM CST

Foley & Lardner Partner Sues Firm, Attaches Partnership Agreement to His Complaint

A 57-year-old partner in Foley & Lardner’s Detroit office has sued the firm for discrimination and breach of contract, contending, among other claims, that he would have been treated more favorably had he been younger, female and/or nonwhite. Labor and employment practitioner Raymond Carey also says in his 63-page federal…

Mar 2, 2011 11:45 PM CST

Lawyer’s Attempt to Keep His Head Above Water Landed a Client on Death Row

Mar 1, 2011 11:49 AM CST

At Least 3 Moms Arrested in Alleged Scheme to Trick Them Into Providing Child Porn ‘Therapy’

At least three mothers have been arrested and criminally charged in connection with a Michigan man’s alleged scheme to trick them into providing him with pornographic images of their children under the guise of providing therapy. Meanwhile, Steven Demink, 41, pleaded guilty in federal court in Detroit today to six…

Mar 1, 2011 1:46 AM CST

Two New Mug Shots of Accused Arizona Shooter Released Over Objections of His Lawyer, Government

Two new mug shots of Jared Lee Loughner, the man accused of the Arizona shootings that left six dead and injured 13 others in January, were released Tuesday. In a hearing on Friday, U.S. District Court Judge Larry Burns refused to seal Loughner’s photographs, prompting the U.S. Marshals Service to…

Feb 25, 2011 10:46 PM CST

6th Circuit ‘Bow Wow Wow’ Opinion Cited by Lawyer Eyeing Suit Against Britney Spears

A federal appeals court decision involving copyright protection for dog-related words is emboldening a lawyer for the Bellamy Brothers. A statement by lawyer Christopher Schmidt sees similarities between the Britney Spears pop song “Hold It Against Me” and the Bellamy Brothers country music song “If I Said You Had a…

Feb 22, 2011 6:49 PM CST

6th Circuit Rejects Sentence Delay for Woman Convicted in Rick Pitino Extortion Attempt

The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has rejected an effort to force the recusal of a federal judge who presided over the attempted extortion trial of a woman who sought to obtain millions from University of Louisville coach Rick Pitino in exchange for her silence about what she called…

Feb 14, 2011 7:01 PM CST