California

Judge Summons Qualcomm Lawyers

A federal magistrate has ordered former lawyers for Qualcomm Inc. to appear in court later this month to face possible misconduct sanctions stemming from their roles in a cell phone patent case. The LA Times reports that U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Major has ordered more than a dozen lawyers from…

Aug 15, 2007 4:09 PM CDT

Did Pedophile Violate Unusual Order?

A self-proclaimed pedophile who was the subject of an unusual injunction earlier this month was arrested twice yesterday. Initially, Jack McClellan, 45, was arrested yesterday afternoon on suspicion of violating a temporary restraining order imposed Aug. 3 that prohibits him from coming within 10 yards of any child in California,…

Aug 14, 2007 5:15 PM CDT

OJ Simpson Book to be Published

A book by O.J. Simpson that reportedly contains a hypothetical account of how he might have murdered his former wife, Nicole, if he had actually done so, will soon be in bookstores nationwide after all. Withdrawn from publication last year, following a firestorm of criticism, it has been accepted anew…

Aug 13, 2007 8:18 PM CDT

Foreclosure: One California Home’s Story

A single foreclosed home in Southern California is part of a much bigger story. It’s emblematic of what went wrong in the U.S. subprime mortgage industry, leading to turmoil in world financial markets and a downward spiral of decreasing real estate values that isn’t expected to end anytime soon. As…

Aug 13, 2007 4:20 PM CDT

Marine Lawyer Cleared in Haditha Case

All charges have been dropped against a U.S. Marine lawyer who was accused of dereliction of duty for not conducting a more aggressive investigation of the deaths of 24 civilians at Haditha, Iraq in 2005. Capt. Randy Stone, who served as battalion lawyer, will not be charged, based on a…

Aug 9, 2007 6:58 PM CDT

San Diego Sues Willkie Farr

San Diego’s city attorney has filed a malpractice suit against Willkie Farr & Gallagher. It claims that the high-powered New York City-based law firm overbilled and exceeded the scope of its agreed representation to help a consultant and municipal audit committee prepare a report on the city’s financial failures. After…

Aug 9, 2007 5:16 PM CDT

Anna Nicole Breast Surgery Video Banned

A Southern California judge has issued a temporary restraining order preventing a Texas plastic surgeon from selling, distributing or disseminating a 1994 videotape of breast augmentation surgery he performed on Anna Nicole Smith. The former stripper and Playboy playmate of the Year, perhaps best-known for her marriage to a Houston…

Aug 9, 2007 4:24 PM CDT

Paris Hilton Sets Celebrity Precedent

It isn’t the kind of precedent that attorneys learn about in law school. But the media circus surrounding Paris Hilton’s brief stint in the slammer earlier this summer shows that the legal rules for celebrity attorneys are different than those that take priority in less-scrutinized practice areas. “The Hilton mess…

Aug 8, 2007 11:28 PM CDT

3 CA Women: We Saw Rape, Want Trial

In a case seen by some as representing the flip side of the disastrous prosecution of former members of the Duke University lacrosse team for a rape they didn’t commit, a California attorney in private practice has agreed to represent women who say they were eyewitnesses to a rape of…

Aug 7, 2007 6:12 PM CDT

CA Law Skins Peter to Pay Python

Snakeskin is the hot material for designer handbags this fall. But a California law banning the sale of products made from pythons means that the some of the hottest accessories will be made of anaconda, which is also banned for commercial use in Brazil. Neither species is listed as endangered,…

Aug 6, 2007 5:54 PM CDT

Bloomberg: Insurers Aren’t Paying Claims

Despite having had to cover Hurricane Katrina, the worst U.S. disaster in the history of insurance, carriers are earning record profits. One reason why is that many don’t pay claims to the extent promised in insurance policies, a news agency says. “Insurers often pay 30-60 percent of the cost of…

Aug 3, 2007 8:47 PM CDT

Judge OKs, Adds to Pedophile Injunction

Two Santa Clarita lawyers who sought an injunction to protect their daughters and other local children from associating with a self-admitted pedophile got everything they sought from a California judge today—and more. They had asked for a temporary restraining order to prevent Jack McClellan, a 45-year-old who admittedly is sexually…

Aug 3, 2007 7:15 PM CDT

Teen Smoking Suit Extinguished

Joe Camel has made it through the eye of a needle. The California Supreme Court has dismissed a lawsuit against four tobacco companies targeting ads that appeal to youths, the Recorder reports. The suit claimed the companies encouraged youths to start smoking through ads that featured icons such as Joe…

Aug 3, 2007 11:42 AM CDT

Injunction Sought for Admitted Pedophile

Jack McClellan has never even been arrested for a child sex offense, let alone convicted. But the 45-year-old California man, who appears to live largely in his car in the Santa Monica area, publicly proclaims his attraction to children, saying that he might act on it if it were legal…

Aug 2, 2007 3:37 PM CDT

CA Museum Returns Allegedly Stolen Art

Ending a long-standing dispute over the ownership of some of the most prized art works in its collection, the J.P. Getty Museum has agreed to return to the Italian government 40 antiquities illegally excavated and exported from that country. The draft agreement is still being finalized, but will return to…

Aug 1, 2007 5:42 PM CDT