Appellate Practice

Supreme Court to Ponder Juvenile Lifers, Government Cross and Dogfight Videos

The U.S. Supreme Court begins its new term Monday with a docket that includes two kinds of videos (one opposing Hillary Clinton and another featuring dogfights), a cross in the Mojave National Preserve, and life sentences for juveniles. More than half of the 45 cases already accepted for argument this…

Sep 29, 2009 8:02 PM CDT

CBS Proclaims ‘Total Victory’ as Court Dismisses Dan Rather Lawsuit

In a ruling that a CBS spokesman called “a total victory,” a New York appeals court today reversed a trial judge and said former network anchorman Dan Rather’s breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty claims against the network should have been dismissed. The $70 million case isn’t entirely…

Sep 29, 2009 7:57 PM CDT

Roman Polanski’s Lawyers Reportedly Provoked His Arrest

Court filings by lawyers representing Roman Polanski apparently gave piqued prosecutors the incentive to seek his arrest, according to a published report. In two documents filed with a California appeals court, the lawyers alleged that the District Attorney’s office had not sought to have Polanski extradited in the 30 years…

Sep 29, 2009 2:04 PM CDT

Appellate Practice Head at Baker Botts is Leaving to Form Boutique

The head of the U.S. Supreme Court and appellate practice group in the Washington, D.C., office of Baker Botts has announced that he is leaving the firm to form a new boutique with another litigator. Joining Jeffrey Lamken in the venture will be Steven Molo, a white collar and appellate…

Sep 28, 2009 10:50 PM CDT

Judge: Lawyer Has No Constitutional Right to Wear Jeans and Hat in Court

A lawyer representing himself in a dispute with his landlord has no First Amendment right to wear jeans and a baseball cap in court, a federal judge has ruled. The lawyer, Queens solo Todd Bank, told the New York Law Journal that he wore an Operation Desert Storm baseball cap…

Sep 25, 2009 3:44 PM CDT

4th Circuit Nixes Award Against Anti-Gay Funeral Protesters

A federal appeals court has cited the First Amendment in a decision that overturns a $5 million judgment against members of an anti-gay church who protested at a soldier’s Maryland funeral. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals based in Richmond, Va., said the protesters’ signs carried ”imaginative and hyperbolic…

Sep 25, 2009 11:55 AM CDT

No Quick Freedom for Ex-Lawyer Whose Phone Calls Revealed Missing Money

Massachusetts’ highest court is keeping a former lawyer behind bars for at least another 30 days so a lawyer who listened to his recorded jailhouse conversations to find missing money can persuade a judge that more cash is hidden overseas. The Supreme Judicial Court said Richard Birchall can be released…

Sep 24, 2009 3:07 PM CDT

Lawyer Can Sue Over Criticism of His Probe of City Attorney’s Rumored Affair

A California lawyer was within his rights as a citizen when he hired a private investigator to look into rumors of a possible affair between Morgan Hill’s then-city attorney and the municipality’s city manager, a state appeals court held yesterday. The decision by the California Court of Appeal’s Sixth District…

Sep 22, 2009 10:25 PM CDT

2nd Circuit Reinstates Global Warming Suits Against Power Companies

A federal appeals court has reinstated lawsuits by eight states and others claiming power companies’ carbon-dioxide emissions are contributing to global warming. The public nuisance suits seek caps on emissions, the New York Times reports. A two-judge panel decided the case after the third judge, Sonia Sotomayor, was confirmed to…

Sep 22, 2009 4:54 PM CDT

Detroit Ex-Mayor: $2,700 Rent, $900 Car Note + $6K Restitution Too Costly

After covering his $2,700 monthly rent on a Texas mansion and another $900 bill for his Cadillac lease, says Detroit’s ex-mayor, he can’t afford to pay another big bill. To be specific, that is the court-ordered $6,000-per-month payment on the $1 million he agreed to give the city in restitution…

Sep 21, 2009 6:49 PM CDT

D.C. Circuit Overturns Restriction on Nonprofit Campaign Spending

A federal appeals court has struck down campaign finance restrictions on nonprofit groups. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled that nonprofits have a First Amendment right to spend money to advocate policy positions as long as they don’t coordinate with a candidate or party, the New…

Sep 21, 2009 4:20 PM CDT

Verdict Stands, Despite Yankees Talk Between Juror and Witness

A conversation about the Yankees between a juror and a witness didn’t require reversal of an employment discrimination verdict, according to a federal appeals court. The New York City-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the retaliation verdict against the Nassau County Sheriff’s Department, according to the Connecticut Employment…

Sep 17, 2009 2:45 PM CDT

Revised Autopsy Spurs Baby Sitter’s Appeal in Shaken Baby Case

A Texas baby sitter who has served nearly seven years in prison after her conviction for shaking a baby to death has filed an appeal citing a medical examiner’s revision of the original autopsy. The medical examiner in Harris County, Texas, “has quietly rewritten” the results of the 1998 autopsy,…

Sep 17, 2009 11:56 AM CDT

7th Circuit Affirms Conviction Despite Lawyer’s ‘Vinny’-Like Jailing

A federal appeals court has affirmed the attempted murder conviction of a man whose lawyer was jailed during trial for “obstinate behavior” in an opinion that compared the case to the movie My Cousin Vinny. The Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals noted similarities and differences between the jailing…

Sep 16, 2009 6:38 PM CDT

Judge’s Affair With Prosecutor Raised Too Late; Appeals Court Denies New Trial

Despite a now-admitted affair between the prosecutor and the judge in his capital murder trial, Charles Dean Hood’s conviction won’t be overturned. Because he waited too long to challenge his murder conviction, Hood should not be retried, a divided Texas Court of Criminal Appeals panel has ruled. However, the issue…

Sep 16, 2009 5:49 PM CDT