Did the U.S. Supreme Court signal its views on broader issues when it barred broadcast of a trial challenging a ban on gay marriage? Some court watchers suspect the high court opinion signals sympathy for gay marriage opponents, the Washington Post reports. Others didn’t go quite so far, instead noting…
A lawyer seeking to uphold California’s ban on gay marriage asserted Wednesday that gays are gaining acceptance, pointing to the movie Brokeback Mountain as evidence of a new societal attitude. Lawyer David Thompson referred to the movie and the television show Will & Grace in his cross-examination of Yale history…
The Army has charged a single mother who says she didn’t show up for her Army deployment to Afghanistan because no one was available to care for her 10-month-old son. Spc. Alexis Hutchinson says her mother had agreed to take care of the child, but changed her mind after two…
Seeking to up the ante in a high-profile years-ago divorce case, the ex-wife of one of Wall Street’s wealthiest hedge fund managers filed a federal civil racketeering suit against him and his companies last month, contending that she had been defrauded through a scheme to conceal assets. She had gotten…
Breaking up can be more difficult than ever in the age of social networking. Just ask Above the Law blogger Kashmir Hill. She told the New York Times about the time she logged into a former boyfriend’s e-mail account, using a password he had shared with her. She read an…
Those interested in the trial challenging California’s ban on gay marriage beginning Monday can catch a delayed broadcast of the proceedings on YouTube. U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker allowed the broadcast under an experimental program adopted by the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, according to stories in…
A surrogate who is not biologically the mother of the twin girls she bore for her brother and his male partner is nonetheless their legal parent, a New Jersey judge has ruled. In a custody dispute reminiscent of the so-called “Baby M” suit that dominated the headlines two decades ago…
In June 2006, Reno, Nev., judge Chuck Weller was shot in the chest by a disgruntled litigant in a divorce case assigned to him. Earlier that same day, it was discovered, the judge’s assailant had murdered his ex-wife.
The chief judge of Brazil’s Supreme Court has ruled a 9-year-old boy in an international custody battle should be returned to his father in the United States. The ruling by Judge Gilmar Mendes appears to bring the case of the boy in accord with the Hague Convention, the Associated Press…
Praised for her calm attitude and the resourcefulness that helped her escape in July from a Connecticut home in which, authorities say, she was held hostage by her ex-husband in a 13-hour ordeal, attorney Nancy Tyler says she is still jumpy in the aftermath of the situation. But the Connecticut…
Obviously, a mother who cannot walk, feels nothing from the chest down and has only limited use of her arms faces certain challenges when caring for an infant. But are they sufficient reason for a judge to take away custody of her child? That is a central question in a…
Despite Tiger Woods’ reported desire to save their marriage after a widely publicized series of alleged extra-marital affairs on his part, his wife apparently has decided to file for divorce from the world-renowned professional golfer and may have moved from their Florida home. And, in a signal that she may…
An experimental program adopted Thursday by the judicial council for the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will allow televised civil bench trials, on a case-by-case basis. The chief judges of each of the circuit’s 15 districts will decide which cases may be recorded or broadcast, in consultation…
Looking for the perfect gift for squabbling neighbors or friends who are on a bumpy stretch of road in their marriage? A London law firm has a suggestion that is both practical and affordable. In honor of the holiday season, when spouses tend to be especially stressed, Lloyd Platt &…
Police believe a Howrey associate and her two daughters may have died at the hands of the lawyer’s mother, who then turned the gun on herself. Police theorize the associate, 38-year-old Elizabeth Fontaine, was a willing participant in the apparent murder-suicide that happened minutes after a sheriff’s deputy arrived at…
