Appellate Practice

Fed’l Judge in Sen. Stevens Case Puts Spotlight on Prosecution

Six days into a high-profile corruption trial of then-Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), federal prosecutors in Washington, D.C., knew they’d made a major mistake. A February 2007 document in the FBI file concerning the government’s chief witness could well be helpful to the defense. But the prosecution hadn’t turned it over…

Apr 6, 2009 5:42 PM CDT

Stevens Debacle Shows More Oversight of Prosecutors is Needed, Experts Say

In the aftermath of a stunning reversal of fortune for once-victorious federal prosecutors in the political corruption case against former Sen. Ted Stevens, experts—and, it appears, the U.S. attorney general—are calling for increased attention to the issue of government misconduct in other cases. The Alaska Republican’s initial conviction, based on…

Apr 4, 2009 12:44 AM CDT

In ‘Kafkaesque’ Case, Pro Se Client Foils Former Counsel’s $145K Fee Collection

Apparently unhappy about his lawyer’s handling of a federal national-origin discrimination case in which he won an $80,000 jury verdict on a retaliation count, a tenured assistant professor of economics at Seton Hall University’s Stillman School of Business fought back. After dismissing his counsel, Antonia Kousoulas, and successfully defending the…

Apr 2, 2009 10:07 PM CDT

NY Judge Slams Mom Who Tried to Seduce Juror After Son’s Murder Trial

The mother of a convicted murderer made Vanity Fair last year by reportedly bleaching her hair, buffing up and going undercover in an effort to discredit—and seduce—a juror in her son’s 2005 trial in Brooklyn, N.Y. But Doreen Giuliano, 46, also incurred the ire of New York Supreme Court Justice…

Apr 2, 2009 7:08 PM CDT

Republicans Protest Speedy Hearing for 7th Circuit Nominee

Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans boycotted Wednesday’s confirmation hearing of David Hamilton of Indiana to serve on the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Hamilton is President Obama’s first nominee to an appellate court. While previously seen as a pick that would draw bipartisan support, Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter, the…

Apr 2, 2009 3:30 PM CDT

Tongue Ties

National origin discrimination suits are making waves—and law

Apr 2, 2009 1:30 AM CDT

On My Honor

Also see “Catch Me If You Can.” How did Howard Kieffer pull off his alleged legal impersonation act? Many say he may have taken advantage of well-known loophole in federal court admissions: Few federal courts verify information out-of-state counsel provides in pro hac vice motions or circuit bar applications. Each…

Apr 1, 2009 4:57 PM CDT

High Court Says Gov’t Must Pay for Clemency Counsel

In a 7-2 opinion Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the government should pay federally appointed lawyers for working on state clemency requests for death row inmates. The underlying case involved a clemency petition by Edward Jerome Harbison, who wanted the government to pay for his petition to the…

Apr 1, 2009 3:30 PM CDT

Human Rights Victims Want $5M Accounting From Judge Real

Lawyers battling over funds seized for human rights victims of the late Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos have asked an appeals court to force a controversial federal judge to account for $5 million disbursed from an account controlled by the court while its ownership was being contested. The appeal, filed March…

Mar 31, 2009 6:42 PM CDT

Tough Job for Problem-Solver Pa. Judge: Up to 1,200 Invalid Youth Convictions

Fixing the result of massive corruption in the Luzerne County, Pa., juvenile justice system won’t be easy. As many as 1,200 cases reportedly may be involved in a Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling yesterday concerning cases decided between between 2003 and 2008 by Mark Ciavarella Jr., the former president judge of…

Mar 27, 2009 9:59 PM CDT

Top Pa. Court Reverses Perhaps 1,200 Juvenile Convictions

In the latest chapter in an ongoing state-court corruption saga in Pennsylvania, a state supreme court ruling today is expected to reverse perhaps as many as 1,200 juvenile court convictions entered by a now-convicted judge. The ruling affects juvenile convictions between 2003 and 2008 in cases heard by the former…

Mar 26, 2009 8:52 PM CDT

Posner Dresses Down Prosecutor in Salad Dressing Dispute

Judge Richard Posner has blasted a federal prosecutor in an appellate opinion tossing the conviction of a businessman who relabeled and sold bottles of salad dressing. Posner, a judge on the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, identified the prosecutor by name and called for sanctions, the Chicago Tribune…

Mar 17, 2009 3:52 PM CDT

Lawyers Fume Over Juror Twitter Posts; Blogger Wonders What Would OJ Tweet

Updated: Lawyers in two separate cases sought court intervention after discovering that jurors apparently posted Twitter messages while considering the fate of their clients. In one case, the Associated Press reports, a juror is accused of posting this message via cell phone: “I just gave away TWELVE MILLION DOLLARS of…

Mar 16, 2009 2:37 PM CDT

Jailed Madoff Seeks Bail; He and Wife Held $823M in Assets in 2008

Jailed immediately as a flight risk after he pleaded guilty yesterday in a record-breaking $65 billion Ponzi scheme, Bernard Madoff already wants out. His lawyers filed a federal court appeal today in New York seeking his release on bond prior to his scheduled June 16 sentencing, and a three-judge panel…

Mar 13, 2009 11:07 PM CDT

5th Circuit Strikes Attorney Fee Award in Katrina Bad-Faith Case

An award of punitive damages and attorney fees in a bad-faith case against an insurance company has been overturned by the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. was mistaken when it denied coverage for wind-based damage from Hurricane Katrina, wrongly attributing the…

Mar 13, 2009 12:18 AM CDT