Government

Lawyer Told Now-Convicted Former Lawmaker Joseph Bruno to Avoid Fraud Charges by Avoiding Mail

A former longtime senior lawmaker in New York was convicted in a government corruption case today, after a state ethics lawyer on whom he relied for advice reportedly testified that he told Joseph Bruno to hand-deliver his financial disclosure forms to avoid potential mail-fraud charges. Former state Senate majority leader,…

Dec 7, 2009 10:12 PM CST

Juror Facebook Contact, $324 Food Prize Could Cause Mistrial in Baltimore Mayor’s Case

After a high-profile conviction last week on a misdemeanor charge concerning $600 worth of Best Buy and Target gift cards embezzled for her personal use, Baltimore’s first female mayor is down but not out. Nearly half of the jury members friended each other on Facebook, despite the judge’s instructions not…

Dec 7, 2009 7:22 PM CST

Practice Pitfalls

When it comes to potential ethics or malpractice hazards, watch where you’re going, or look out below

Dec 2, 2009 5:39 AM CST

1st Ban on Drop-Side Cribs Follows Nationwide Recall of Millions

Following news this week of a Consumer Product Safety Commission recall of 2.1 million so-called drop-side cribs, a suburban New York county has banned their sale. In a new law that is believed to impose the first such prohibition in the country but is already being considered for emulation elsewhere,…

Nov 24, 2009 9:46 PM CST

Fighting for Marquee Law Firm Tenant, Landlord Sues Officials Over Incentives

A Chicago landlord is suing St. Louis and Missouri officials over a major law firm tenant that is allegedly being lured to another building with illegal taxpayer-funded incentives. Among the benefits that Lewis Rice & Fingersh expects to get from the move to One City Centre is $300,000 forgivable loan,…

Nov 23, 2009 11:31 PM CST

After AWOL Argentine Affair, Gov. Sanford Now Faces Ethics Charges Over Expenses

The governor of South Carolina is accused of taking illicit upgrades from coach to business or first class, as well as misusing government planes for personal purposes including a haircut, in 37 charges filed today by the state ethics commission. Gov. Mark Sanford has been scrutinized on multiple fronts after…

Nov 23, 2009 11:02 PM CST

Lawyer-Pilot Dies in Plane Crash

An instrument-rated California lawyer and pilot died Friday when his four-passenger Cessna 182 crashed and burned shortly after takeoff in Susanville, near the Nevada border. Harold Gartner III was alone in the plane and it was snowing heavily at the time, according to the Lassen County Times. Steve Datema, who…

Nov 23, 2009 7:02 PM CST

NY AG Took Money from Law Firms Representing Targets of His Office

Law firms representing clients targeted by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo donated tens of thousands of dollars to his campaign fund, a published report says. Contributors included Boies Schiller & Flexner, which gave $35,000 to Cuomo’s campaign this year, Bloomberg reports. The firm represents Hank Greenberg, the former CEO…

Nov 23, 2009 4:26 PM CST

Katrina Ruling Could Open Floodgates to Suits, But Will It Survive?

A ruling blaming the federal government for flooding in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina could lead to a flood of lawsuits and affect funding for a coastal restoration project. Last week a federal judge ruled the Army Corps of Engineers was negligent in maintaining a navigation channel, leading to the…

Nov 23, 2009 2:51 PM CST

ABA Leader & Land Use Expert Loved Baseball and Hawaiian Shirts

Renowned for his Florida land-use expertise and love of baseball, David Cardwell was seemingly more comfortable in a Hawaiian shirt than a business suit. “But once he opened his mouth, you knew this guy was the smartest man in the room. And you had to listen,” John Jacobsen of the…

Nov 21, 2009 12:29 AM CST

Ohio AG: Major Credit Agencies ‘Sold Out’ in Toxic Mortgage Mess

As federal elected officials and administrators mull potential regulatory reform to rein in lenders accused of causing a mortgage meltdown nationwide, the attorney general of Ohio has stepped into the breach and filed a federal lawsuit against the three largest credit rating agencies, Reuters reports. They created a financial crisis,…

Nov 20, 2009 9:35 PM CST

Nasty Attitude to Co-Worker, Naughty Word in Web Comment Cost 2 Their Jobs

A hearing officer had discretion to terminate an 11-year government civil service employee over her obnoxious treatment of a co-worker, a New York appeals court has ruled. The fired woman, Penny Sindoni, was an organizer of the “I Hate Teena” club directed at a disliked fellow Tioga County Health Department…

Nov 20, 2009 12:54 AM CST

Family of Living Man Declared Dead Seeks to Sue Medical Examiner

Declared dead by a paramedic after an auto accident almost five years ago, Larry Green was zipped into a body bag and refrigerated before a medical examiner for Franklin County, N.C., noticed signs of life. Although he survived, the 34-year-old Green is bedridden and needs 24-hour care in a nursing…

Nov 19, 2009 6:43 PM CST

Criminal Judges Hire DA’s Wife as Consultant With State Agency’s OK

Although some see a problem with a decision by at least seven Texas judges to hire the wife of the local district attorney as a political consultant, the State Commission on Judicial Conduct has OK’d the arrangement. As long as there’s no quid pro quo, says commission director Seana Willing,…

Nov 18, 2009 6:14 PM CST

Like Corporate Cousins, City of Chicago Seeks Lower Outside Legal Fees

It isn’t just in-house counsel at large corporations who are leaning on private law firms to lower their hourly legal fees. The city of Chicago has also done so, and now pays its outside counsel a top billable rate of $250 an hour, down from $295, reports the Chicago Tribune.…

Nov 16, 2009 10:33 PM CST