9th Circuit Court

Three years later, Goodwin Liu not the left-wing extremist he once seemed, California lawyers say

While Republican U.S. senators feared that 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals nominee Goodwin Liu would be a left-wing extremist, court watchers say the law professor, now a California Supreme Court justice, is actually a moderate liberal. The only Democrat on the state supreme court, according to the Sacramento Bee,…

Sep 10, 2013 8:50 PM CDT

Hungry lawyers, health-conscious clients make Bay Area ground zero in Big Food fight

The same lawyers who once took on the tobacco industry are now waging legal war against so-called Big Food makers in half a dozen states. But the San Francisco Bay Area, known for its health-conscious foodie residents, is ground zero for such litigation, which hungry lawyers have pursued in dozens…

Sep 10, 2013 10:24 AM CDT

Wife breaks down in court as lawyer gets over 7 years in $30M mortgage fraud case

A Las Vegas lawyer was sentenced to 87 months in federal prison Thursday in a courtroom filled with his supporters as a judge gave him the time recommended by the prosecution. Gerry Zobrist, 43, pleaded guilty earlier this year to one count of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud,…

Sep 6, 2013 5:05 PM CDT

Detective’s false testimony, relied on in prosecutor’s closing, calls for retrial, 9th Circuit says

Reversing a federal district court judge who had denied habeas corpus relief, the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday held that a man convicted in a California gas station armed robbery must be retried or released. Felix Sablad, a worker at the station, said defendant La…

Sep 6, 2013 3:55 PM CDT

Foie gras ban remains intact in California; 9th Circuit says challenge unlikely to succeed

A federal appeals court has refused to block a California law that bars the force-feeding of ducks or geese to make foie gras. The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said challengers to the law were unlikely to succeed on the merits of their constitutional arguments. How Appealing…

Sep 3, 2013 1:26 PM CDT

9th Circuit upholds California ban on ‘conversion therapy’ for gay youths

A federal appeals court has upheld a California law that bars therapists from providing “conversion therapy”—which seeks to change sexual orientation from gay to heterosexual—for patients under age 18. The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the ban does not violate the free speech or associational rights…

Aug 30, 2013 5:26 PM CDT

Hospital cannot ban all service animals from psych ward, federal judge rules

A California hospital can’t unilaterally ban all service animals from certain areas, such as a psychiatric ward, a federal judge has ruled. Siding with a disabled woman who said she had to choose between getting the treatment she needs for her bipolar disorder and getting the help she needs from…

Aug 8, 2013 8:20 PM CDT

Law firm files racketeering suit over legal consultant’s claimed ‘bogus Internet marketing program’

Updated: A Michigan law firm has filed a federal civil racketeering lawsuit against a legal consultant that allegedly sold a “bogus Internet marketing program” to multiple small practitioners, sparking Web comment and criticism of all parties involved in the case. The plaintiff firm, Seikaly & Stewart, says that The Rainmaker…

Aug 6, 2013 5:55 PM CDT

Refusal to pay San Diego mayor’s sex-harass case legal bills ‘not a rational decision,’ lawyer says

A unanimous decision by the San Diego City Council not to pay for the defense of the city’s mayor in a sexual harassment case is “a political, not a rational decision,” his lawyer contends. Refusing to cover Mayor Bob Filner’s defense costs could hurt the city, which is a co-defendant…

Aug 1, 2013 5:10 PM CDT

First Amendment doesn’t protect video game maker for using athlete avatar, 9th Circuit says

A federal appeals court is allowing a former college athlete to pursue a right-of-publicity lawsuit against a video game maker that used an avatar with his jersey number and looks. The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that the company, Electronic Arts Inc., was not protected by…

Aug 1, 2013 1:17 PM CDT

College student forgotten in DEA cell for nearly 5 days gets $4M settlement

A college student who spent nearly five days forgotten in a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration cell after being swept up in a drug raid at a friend’s home in the San Diego area last year has settled with the feds. Daniel Chong, now 25, has agreed to accept $4.1 million…

Jul 31, 2013 7:55 PM CDT

9th Circuit to decide if gay man can be excluded from jury in peremptory challenge

A federal appeals court is considering whether a lawyer may use a peremptory challenge to block a potential juror because he is gay. The issue arose in an antitrust trial involving pricing for an HIV medication made by Abbott Laboratories, the New York Times reports. A lawyer for Abbott Labs…

Jul 31, 2013 11:05 AM CDT

Jury awards woman $18.6M over Equifax credit report errors

After trying without success for two years to get Equifax to correct claimed errors in her credit report, starting in 2010, an Oregon woman sued. On Friday, a federal court jury awarded $18.6 million to Julie MIler, according to ABC News and the Oregonian. The verdict, which is expected to…

Jul 30, 2013 3:25 PM CDT

Judge OKs $1.6B pact in Toyota class action as trial begins in first wrongful death case

A record $1.6 billion settlement approved last week by a federal judge in Orange County, Calif., is only part of the potential liability that Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A. Inc. is facing as the first trial begins in more than 80 state court suits filed over alleged sudden-acceleration defects in the…

Jul 22, 2013 7:57 PM CDT

Businessman charged in sex-tourism case files $10M malpractice suit against elite civil lawyers

A former client jailed in Mexico as he awaits extradition to the U.S. in a sex-tourism and child-pornography case has sued two elite San Francisco lawyers who previously represented him in civil litigation for claimed malpractice. Businessman Thomas White contends that his then-lawyers, Nanci Clarence and Kate Dyer, did not…

Jul 22, 2013 7:35 PM CDT