TV’s Judge Judy files first lawsuit, says law firm used her name and photo in ads without her OK

Famed television judge Judith Scheindlin says she has never filed a lawsuit before. But “Judge Judy” said she felt she had no choice but to do so when a Connecticut law firm used her name and photo on television and Internet advertising despite her long-standing decision not to endorse products…

Mar 12, 2014 9:34 PM CDT

Justin Bieber gets snarky with lawyer and court reporter in deposition; see video clip

Justin Bieber scolded a lawyer and showed his irritation when a court reporter couldn’t hear his answers during a video deposition last week in a photographer’s lawsuit. TMZ showed snippets from the video deposition, saying Bieber appeared “insulting, arrogant, snotty, ignorant and disrespectful” in the deposition last week. CNN covered…

Mar 11, 2014 2:25 PM CDT

Gambler blames casino for his $500,000 loss while drunk

A California man who lost $500,000 while gambling drunk says the casino is at fault for plying him with too many drinks. Mark A. Johnston, 52, lost the money playing blackjack and pai gow during a 17-hour binge at the Downtown Grand Las Vegas Hotel and Casino over Super Bowl…

Mar 10, 2014 10:44 PM CDT

Backstreet Boys and bankruptcy trustee head for trial over $3.4 million

Long before they conquered MTV, sold millions of records and perfected dancing while pantomiming hand motions to match their lyrics, the Backstreet Boys were an unknown boy band thrown together by Florida businessman Lou Pearlman. That relationship eventually fell apart as the band alleged Pearlman had cheated them out of…

Mar 10, 2014 10:04 PM CDT

Kerry Kennedy is acquitted in drugged-driving trial

Jurors deliberated less than two hours before acquitting Kerry Kennedy of driving while under the influence of a sleeping pill. The verdict on Friday came after a four-day trial in which Kennedy testified she mistakenly took a sleeping pill instead of her thyroid medication before getting behind the wheel in…

Feb 28, 2014 3:31 PM CST

Jailed former NFL player Aaron Hernandez faces civil suit accusing him in 2 more slayings

Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez—already charged with murder in Massachusetts and facing a Florida civil suit by another man who says Hernandez shot him—has been accused in two other slayings. In a civil wrongful death suit filed Wednesday in Suffolk Superior Court, the survivors of two men…

Feb 27, 2014 6:35 PM CST

Heavy metal frontman charged with manslaughter during concert film, creating ‘searing’ legal drama

The plan was to create a concert film focusing on fans as heavy metal band Lamb of God toured Europe in 2012. But then, when the group reached the Czech Republic, frontman Randy Blythe was arrested, charged with manslaughter and jailed for over a month before his lawyer could obtain…

Feb 26, 2014 10:55 PM CST

National Enquirer funds playwriting prize to settle libel suit over Philip Seymour Hoffman coverage

Three days after Philip Seymour Hoffman died of an apparent heroin overdose earlier this month, the 14-year-old son of his close friend, playwright David Bar Katz, discovered an article on the Internet quoting Katz as saying he had freebased cocaine with the actor the night before he died. There was…

Feb 25, 2014 10:42 PM CST

Michael Jordan congratulatory ad was commercial speech, 7th Circuit rules

Michael Jordan. landmarkmedia / Shutterstock.com A grocery chain’s ad congratulating former Chicago Bulls star Michael Jordan on his induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame is commercial speech subject to reduced First Amendment protection, a federal appeals court has ruled. The decision by the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of…

Feb 21, 2014 1:24 PM CST

Oops. Legal strategy emails were sent by Guardian Angels founder to his ex-wife, her lawyer says

Lawyers for Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa and his girlfriend had accused his ex-wife, Mary Sliwa of intercepting his legal strategy emails last year and sharing them with her lawyer in a hard-fought child-support case. But Sliwa forgot that he had automatically blind-copied his wife on Guardian Angels correspondence for…

Feb 18, 2014 7:14 PM CST

Young small-town lawyers credit thank-you letter for invitation to White House state dinner

When they got an email earlier this month inviting them to a state dinner at the White House in honor of the president of France, two young lawyers practicing at small firms in Huntsville, Ala., thought there must be some mistake. Or perhaps it was a scam? The invitation did…

Feb 14, 2014 11:10 PM CST

Woody Allen made an ‘unprovoked, gratuitous’ attack on my character, ex-prosecutor claims

A former Connecticut prosecutor who decided not to prosecute Woody Allen in 1993 is expressing outrage over the filmmaker’s op-ed in the New York Times. The prosecutor, former Litchfield State’s Attorney Frank Maco, wasn’t mentioned by name in Allen’s article, but he is unhappy all the same. The Danbury News-Times…

Feb 11, 2014 5:16 PM CST

Estate of James Dean sues Twitter and fan over @JamesDean account

Iconic actor James Dean, best-known for his leading role in Rebel Without a Cause, has been dead for decades. So there’s scant likelihood that those following the Twitter account @JamesDean think they’re dealing with the real silver screen legend. However, the actor’s estate has sued the anonymous owner of the…

Feb 11, 2014 4:50 PM CST

Child actor parlays his connections into an entertainment law practice

Feb 1, 2014 10:10 AM CST

Teen gets 3 years in prison for stealing celebrities’ identities

A 19-year-old recently fired from a Florida call center and living at home with his mother stole $71,000 from accounts belonging to Kim Kardashian’s mother, as well as the identities of Kardashian and then-FBI director Robert Mueller. Authorities said Luis Flores Jr. also tried to access bank accounts belonging to…

Jan 31, 2014 11:29 PM CST