Government

Work-Life Balance Concerns Placed on Hold in Recession, Career Consultant Says

A legal career consultant says many lawyers are putting work-life balance concerns on hold because of the bad economy. Kate Neville, a Harvard law grad and founder of Neville Career Consulting in Washington, D.C., told the Washington Post about changes she’s seeing because of the recession. She says many lawyers…

Nov 8, 2010 1:05 PM CST

US Law Doesn’t Bar ‘Rendition Operations,’ CIA Lawyer Says in Law Review Article

U.S. laws don’t prevent the government from forcibly transferring terrorism suspects to third countries, even when they could be subjected to torture there, a CIA lawyer says. CIA assistant general counsel Daniel Pines defends the legality of “rendition operations” in an article that will be published in the Loyola University…

Nov 5, 2010 10:30 AM CDT

Ohio Jail Wrongfully Uses Stun Gun on Naked, Disabled and Pregnant Inmates, DOJ Says in Filing

The U.S. Department of Justice has weighed in on an ongoing federal civil rights suit in Ohio, asking to join in a complaint brought by a state agency over stun gun use by jail personnel in Franklin County. Guards unconstitutionally are shocking inmates to “soften up” those who pose no…

Nov 4, 2010 11:24 PM CDT

Estate of Slain Gun-Rights Advocate Loses $1M Suit Over Brief Loss of Concealed-Carry Permit

Saying that concealed-carry regulations have traditionally been recognized as valid under the Second Amendment, a federal district court in central Pennsylvania has dismissed a federal lawsuit against a local sheriff in the Harrisburg area. The suit was brought by a woman whose concealed-carry permit was temporarily lifted after she took…

Nov 3, 2010 9:04 PM CDT

Former Law Firm MP and Ex-NJ State Sen. Arraigned in ‘Retainer’ Legislative Bribe Case

A former New Jersey state senator was arraigned today in prison garb along with the business-suited former managing partner of a law firm who is reportedly battling cancer and was barely able to walk into the federal court in Newark with the help of his attorney. Both pleaded not guilty…

Nov 3, 2010 5:07 PM CDT

Election Roundup: 3 Top Iowa Judges Defeated for Retention After Gay Marriage OK

In a first-time-ever rejection of sitting Iowa Supreme Court judges for retention, state voters have nixed three justices at the polls following their approval last year of same-sex marriage. With more than 90 percent of the state’s precincts reporting results from yesterday’s election, the three had gotten only about 45…

Nov 3, 2010 12:00 PM CDT

Human Rights Group to Sue in UK in Effort to Prevent Export of Drug for Use in US Inmate’s Execution

In an effort to prevent, or at least postpone, the execution of a U.S. prison inmate on death row, a London-based human rights group says it has filed or will file suit in the United Kingdom to try to force a ban on the export from Britain of a scarce…

Nov 2, 2010 6:40 PM CDT

Election Roundup: Expected Close Contest May Keep Lawyers Busy

As Republicans appear to be positioned to make significant gains in today’s election, which is expected to draw a large turnout, some Tea Party voters may have a decision to make: If they wear gear such as party T-shirts or the group’s “Please ID Me” buttons to the polling place,…

Nov 2, 2010 12:45 PM CDT

New Question About MERS Mortgage System: Does It Owe Money for Unpaid Fees?

In the latest challenge to a controversial nationwide method of registering mortgage ownership, a Virginia lawmaker is requesting an opinion from the state attorney general on whether Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems is required to pay a fee every time a home loan is transferred. MERS is the glue that holds…

Nov 1, 2010 11:15 PM CDT

Debt Collector Faked Court Hearings to Trick Consumers into Paying Up, Says AG’s Suit

A Pennsylvania debt collector conducted fake court hearings in a mock courtroom in its offices and even sent uniformed officers who appeared to be sheriff’s deputies to serve civil subpoenas demanding that consumers appear for “hearings” and “depositions,” the state attorney general’s office contends in a lawsuit. Intimidated consumers allegedly…

Nov 1, 2010 6:59 PM CDT

US Amicus Brief Reverses Course on Gene Patenting, Conflicts with PTO

In an amicus brief filed late Friday, the U.S. government takes the position that genes should not be eligible for patents. The assertion reverses policy and is contrary to the long-standing practice of the Patent and Trademark Office, the New York Times reports. “The new position could have a huge…

Nov 1, 2010 2:04 PM CDT

New Ethics Case re Lawyer’s Testimony About $8.4M Detroit Pact & Ex-Mayor’s Racy Texts

New ethics trouble is brewing for a Michigan lawyer who helped two police officers win a controversial $8.4 million settlement from the city of Detroit in a whistle-blower case after they agreed to help keep the lid on racy text messages between the then-mayor and a top aide. As an…

Oct 29, 2010 9:04 PM CDT

Prosecutors Blast Ex-DA in ‘Nightmare’ Case of Innocent Man Jailed 18 Years

Freed yesterday after spending 18 years in prison for a capital crime he did not commit, Anthony Graves was initially convicted because of a “nightmare” of prosecutorial misconduct that included withholding evidence and threatening witnesses, Texas prosecutors said in a press conference today. DA Bill Parham of Washington and Burleson…

Oct 28, 2010 9:07 PM CDT

NYC Tree House Prevails in Legal Battle, Winning Permit in Historic District

Score another win for a tree house. A neighbor in her historic New York City neighborhood objected. But artist Melinda Hackett, 49, has won a permit from the Landmarks Preservation Commission for the circular, roofed structure with a spiral staircase wrapped around a tree trunk after months of legal battling,…

Oct 27, 2010 5:46 PM CDT

1,000s of NYC Stop-&-Frisks Unjustified, Law Prof Finds; City Argues He Was Paid $375/Hour to Say So

Tens of thousands of New Yorkers have been stopped and frisked without adequate, documented legal justification over the past six years, a Columbia University law professor says in a study conducted for an ongoing civil rights case. In a report written for the Center for Constitutional Rights, professor Jeffrey Fagan…

Oct 26, 2010 11:55 PM CDT