Corporate Law

Feds Arrest 30, Including Doctors, in 3-State Medicare Fraud Sweep

Federal authorities have reportedly begun rounding up 30 suspects, including doctors and nurses, in a three-state Medicare fraud sweep. Arrests are expected Brooklyn, N.Y., Detroit and the Miami-Dade area in Florida, reports the Miami Herald. South Florida is the epicenter of the problem nationally, which generally involves bribes paid for…

Dec 15, 2009 8:48 PM CST

Federal Judge Axes Broadcom Case over Prosecutorial Misconduct

Citing prosecutorial misconduct, a federal judge in Southern California has axed a stock options backdating case against two Broadcom Corp. executives. U.S. District Judge Cormac Carney found that the government leaked grand jury information to the media, improperly contacted attorneys for defense witnesses and tried to prevent three key witnesses…

Dec 15, 2009 6:04 PM CST

The North Face Sues The South Butt for Trademark Infringement

The North Face Apparel Co. has filed a trademark infringement suit against a teen who started a company called The South Butt to help pay for college. The North Face’s tag line is “Never Stop Exploring” while The South Butt sells products with the tag line “Never Stop Relaxing,” according…

Dec 15, 2009 12:46 PM CST

Lawyer Who Was in Line to Be State Bar President Is Jailed in Teen Sex Case

A prominent Minnesota lawyer slated to become president of the state bar association in another two years was jailed over the weekend in a teen sex case and is reportedly now on leave from Gray Plant Mooty. Aaron Biber, 46, was co-chair of the firm’s antitrust and trade regulation practice…

Dec 15, 2009 12:13 AM CST

Slain L.A. Lawyer Got Restraining Order Against Another Attorney in 2005

A California lawyer who was apparently murdered last week outside his upscale Los Angeles home had gotten a restraining order in 2005 against a litigant who made comments that he reportedly considered threatening. The litigant, Christopher Gruys, who was then a Los Angeles tax lawyer, was being sued by a…

Dec 14, 2009 8:26 PM CST

L.A. Lawyer Pleads in Quellos Case, Admits He Didn’t Pay Tax on $35M Offshore Account

A Los Angeles lawyer has pleaded guilty and agreed to accept up to a five-year prison term in a tax shelter scheme that involved a $35 million offshore account. Matthew Krane, 55, pleaded guilty in federal court in Seattle yesterday to tax evasion and passport fraud concerning an alleged Quellos…

Dec 12, 2009 12:10 AM CST

Kremlin Fires Prison Head, 19 Staff, After Death of Jailed Lawyer

After an investigation into the sudden death last month of a 37-year-old Russian lawyer jailed on tax evasion charges after pointing the finger at claimed government corruption, the Kremlin has fired the head of the Moscow prison system. In a Dec. 4 decree reported by Russian media today, President Dmitry…

Dec 11, 2009 7:15 PM CST

Judge Mulls Acquittal in Broadcom Case

Amid allegations of prosecutorial misconduct, a federal judge in California is considering whether to acquit Broadcom’s former chief financial officer. The decision by U.S. District Judge Cormac Carney to consider acquittal for William Ruehle comes on the heels of his decision to set aside a guilty plea and dismiss a…

Dec 11, 2009 3:29 PM CST

Over Body-Freezing Co.‘s Objection, Judge OKs Autopsy of Client’s Corpse

Concerning that a client’s corpse is “decomposing by the minute,” a cryogenics company today asked a Florida judge to stop a planned autopsy to determine why a 48-year-old Navy veteran died last week. But Hillsborough Circuit Judge Martha Cook denied the emergency petition by Alcor Life Extension Foundation, saying that…

Dec 10, 2009 9:29 PM CST

Prominent L.A. Lawyer Shot in Head Outside His Home Was Murdered

A partner at a Los Angeles law firm who was shot in the head outside his upscale home earlier this week was murdered, police now say, ruling out the possibility of suicide. However, little appears to be known about what might have led to the slaying of Jeffrey Tidus, who…

Dec 10, 2009 9:03 PM CST

Another Former Ropes & Gray Associate Is Charged in Galleon Case

A second attorney who formerly worked at Ropes & Gray has been criminally charged in a federal case related to the alleged Galleon Group insider-trading scheme. And immediately after the announcement of fraud and conspiracy charges against Brien Santarlas, he pleaded guilty in federal court in Manhattan, Bloomberg reported. Santarlas,…

Dec 10, 2009 6:41 PM CST

Judge Axes Guilty Plea, Says Broadcom Exec Didn’t Lie to SEC, Dismisses Case

Nearly 18 months ago, Broadcom Corp. co-founder Henry Samueli pleaded guilty to a felony charge of lying to securities regulators about his role in an alleged company stock options backdating scheme. But in fact Samueli didn’t make any material misstatement to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, a federal judge…

Dec 10, 2009 6:15 PM CST

Debevoise Sues to Collect $6M Bill; Client Cites 50 Lawyers, ‘Subpar’ Work

Engaged by a timber company in 2005 to follow up on another law firm’s work and prepare a corporate litigation matter for trial, Debevoise & Plimpton promised in a representation letter to work “as cost-effectively as possible.” But then the firm went ahead with a great deal of duplicative and…

Dec 9, 2009 8:43 PM CST

Billionaire Gets Discovery in Bid to Force SEC to Pay His Legal Fees

A federal judge has agreed that billionaire Mark Cuban, who owns the Dallas Mavericks basketball team, can proceed with discovery in his effort to force the feds to pay his defense fees in a failed insider-trading prosecution. A spokesman for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission declined to comment on…

Dec 7, 2009 11:25 PM CST

The Empty (In-)House

SEC commissioner warns against corporate-law cutbacks

Dec 2, 2009 2:19 AM CST