Alabama

Maynard Cooper & Gale opens New York office

Alabama-based firm Maynard Cooper & Gale has opened a new office in the Big Apple. On Monday, the firm announced the hiring of three veteran intellectual property lawyers to help establish the firm’s new office in New York City. Ex-Goodwin Procter partners Kevin Culligan and John Hanish have joined as…

Oct 5, 2016 1:45 PM CDT

Alabama Supreme Court upholds judicial override in capital cases

The Alabama Supreme Court has upheld the state’s capital sentencing scheme in which judges can impose the death penalty even if jurors recommend a prison sentence. The state supreme court ruled last Friday that the sentencing scheme does not violate the Sixth Amendment, report the Montgomery Advertiser, the Washington Post…

Oct 5, 2016 8:00 AM CDT

Alabama chief justice is blocked from office for a second time

Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore has once again been blocked from his post for ethics violations stemming from his refusal to comply with court rulings on social issues. In a judgment (PDF) on Friday, the Alabama Court of the Judiciary suspended Moore without pay for the rest of his term…

Sep 30, 2016 11:38 AM CDT

States can’t require proof of citizenship for federal elections, DC Circuit rules

State laws that require voters to show proof of citizenship for federal elections were blocked Friday by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Georgia, Alabama and Kansas had the laws, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. The lawsuit was filed after Brian Newby, executive director of the…

Sep 13, 2016 9:42 AM CDT

Suit claims Alabama’s at-large method of electing judges violates Voting Rights Act

A lawsuit filed on Wednesday alleges Alabama’s at-large method of electing appellate judges violates the Voting Rights Act because it deprives black voters of the opportunity to elect judges of their choice. Alabama has 19 judges on the state supreme court and two intermediate appeals courts, and all of them…

Sep 7, 2016 12:11 PM CDT

Law firm says it got nearly 26,000 calls after multimillion-dollar talcum powder verdicts

An Alabama law firm that won $127 million in two talcum powder lawsuits says it has gotten nearly 26,000 calls since the verdicts earlier this year. Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles says it has 867 cases pending against Johnson & Johnson over its talcum powder products, Alabama Media…

Sep 2, 2016 8:00 AM CDT

Federal judge tosses suit by Alabama’s suspended chief judge against judicial ethics commission

A federal judge in Alabama has dismissed a lawsuit (PDF) by suspended Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore that sought reinstatement to his judicial office. U.S. District Court Judge W. Harold Albritton dismissed the suit Thursday, Al.com and the Montgomery Advertiser report. Moore was automatically suspended when Alabama’s Judicial Inquiry Commission…

Aug 5, 2016 8:30 AM CDT

How a 1980s lynching case helped bring down the Klan (podcast)

On the morning of March 21, 1981, the body of 19-year-old Michael Donald was found hanging from a tree in Mobile, Alabama. The years that followed saw the conviction of his two killers, and a civil case brought by Donald's mother which bankrupted the largest Klan organization in the United States. In this episode of the Modern Law Library, we speak with Laurence Leamer about his new book on the case, The Lynching: The Epic Courtroom Battle that Brought Down the Klan.

Jul 13, 2016 8:45 AM CDT

In 4-4 split, Supreme Court refuses to overturn execution stay based on inmate’s dementia

A split U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday refused to overturn a stay of execution for an Alabama inmate whose lawyers claim vascular dementia from strokes makes him incompetent for execution. Four justices would have overturned the stay (PDF) granted to 65-year-old inmate Vernon Madison, report the Associated Press, the Washington…

May 13, 2016 7:58 AM CDT

Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore could be removed again, this time over gay-marriage order

Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore’s defiance of court decisions could lead to his removal from his post for a second time. Moore was suspended on Friday as a result of pending ethics charges (PDF) by Alabama’s Judicial Inquiry Commission, report Al.com, the Washington Post and the New York Times. The…

May 9, 2016 7:02 AM CDT

Hearing canceled for lawyer charged in ‘bizarre’ attempted-murder case due to judge’s recusal

It still isn’t clear from news reports exactly what an Alabama lawyer is accused of doing in an attempted murder case described by at least one local publication as “bizarre.” And on Thursday a preliminary hearing that might have provided details about the Birmingham case was canceled after Jefferson County…

Mar 17, 2016 1:25 PM CDT

Alabama Supreme Court tosses petitions opposing gay marriage; justices argue impact

The Alabama Supreme Court on Friday dismissed petitions by conservative groups opposed to same-sex marriage, leading to a debate between two concurring justices on the impact of their action. The court dismissed the petitions in an 11-word order, report the Associated Press and AL.com. Chief Justice Roy Moore asserted in…

Mar 4, 2016 3:38 PM CST

Alabama judge sees ‘life-to-death override epidemic,’ bars death sentences; Florida bill changes law

The issue of judicial override in capital cases is emerging as an issue after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Florida’s death-penalty sentencing scheme in Florida. Lawmakers in Florida sent a revised death-penalty law to the governor this week that no longer allows judges to impose the death penalty when…

Mar 4, 2016 9:19 AM CST

Alabama lawyer files suit against 5 SCOTUS justices who OK’d same-sex marriage

An Alabama lawyer filed a federal lawsuit last week against five U.S. Supreme Court justices who OK’d the majority opinion in a 2015 decision finding that same-sex marriage is a constitutionally protected right. Austin Burdick, who says his practice focuses on protecting constitutional rights of U.S. citizens, seeks a declaratory…

Mar 1, 2016 1:30 PM CST

Law firm worker slain; sheriff calls for more mental health funding

In the aftermath of a Wednesday shooting spree that left a Hamilton, Alabama, law firm worker and an accounting firm worker dead “for no reason,” the local sheriff is calling for increased mental health funding. Jimmy Cooper, 57, who had no criminal background, is now charged with two counts of…

Feb 12, 2016 10:35 AM CST