Government

City’s Plan to Waive Attorney-Client Privilege Aggravates Insurer

Municipal officials in a small town in Washington state apparently thought they were doing the right thing by embracing an open records policy that potentially allowed residents to take a look at privileged documents and those relating to legal negotiations. Their insurer, however, had a different view. News that members…

Jan 23, 2008 7:46 PM CST

Anger Over $500M ‘Big Dig’ Settlement

News of an apparent $400 million settlement that concludes a potential criminal case against the project manager of a controversial Boston tunnel project has sparked anger among Massachusetts residents. The approximately $400 million to be paid by Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff is part of a $500 million civil settlement with the state…

Jan 23, 2008 7:06 PM CST

Judge to Review CIA Interrogation Documents, Hear ACLU Contempt Motion

A federal judge in New York has agreed to privately review secret documents about the CIA’s interrogation program in a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union. Judge Alvin Hellerstein said he would review the material to determine whether it should be released under the Freedom of Information Act,…

Jan 17, 2008 12:19 PM CST

San Diego OKs $750K Attorney Payment to Settle Cross Case

The city council of San Diego has agreed to pay a plaintiff’s lawyer $750,000 to settle his legal bill for representing an atheist in a lengthy lawsuit over the placement of a large cross on city land. The 6-2 vote doesn’t completely settle the 1989 constitutional case, however, according to…

Jan 17, 2008 12:57 AM CST

US Pays Hit Man $20K, But Fights Compensation for Victims

Advocates for victims targeted during the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s by organized crime figures in Northeast who were aided by ties to the local FBI are expressing outrage about a $20,000 payment reportedly made by the government to a newly released convicted hit man. And those representing fellow criminals…

Jan 17, 2008 12:05 AM CST

White House Admits Erasing Pre-2003 E-Mail Backups

Last week, a federal magistrate gave White House officials a five-day deadline to answer a question at the center of two consolidated lawsuits: Had they, or had they not, retained backup copies of some 5 million missing official e-mails transmitted between 2003 and 2005? The answer to that question, it…

Jan 16, 2008 11:20 PM CST

Two Senators Target Judges’ Junkets, Tie Pay Raise to Stricter Rules

Two senators are trying to rein in federal judges’ controversial participation in all-expenses-paid educational junkets sponsored by big corporations, tying a hefty proposed judicial pay increase to stricter rules limiting freebies that the jurists can accept. Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., and Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., are circulating a draft amendment…

Jan 16, 2008 9:01 PM CST

Acquitted Terror Prosecutor Seeks Legal Bill Reimbursement

A former federal prosecutor who was acquitted last fall on criminal charges that he withheld evidence favorable to four North African suspects in a high-profile 2003 Detroit terrorism trial is now seeking reimbursement of his personal defense costs. Richard Convertino contends that the Justice Department to pursue him in criminal…

Jan 15, 2008 7:39 PM CST

Miami Court Worker Charged in Quickie Divorce Scam

A 16-year employee of the Miami-Dade clerk of courts office has been charged with using her now-former job to scam couples seeking quickie divorces. Olga Avila allegedly charged couples she met through the courts’ Self Help program $670, of which $364 represented filing fees she paid. Authorities say she filled…

Jan 15, 2008 5:11 PM CST

LGBT Legal Clinic to Open in Md.?

Lawyers in Baltimore are organizing a fledgling legal clinic for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered clients. If it gets off the ground, it reportedly will be the first LGBT clinic in the state of Maryland and one of the few in the country. Individuals working with the FreeState Law Project…

Jan 15, 2008 1:33 AM CST

Big Brother is Watching ... in the Barnyard

Seeking to help prevent widespread outbreaks of animal illness that can affect humans, such as avian flu and mad cow disease, federal officials are in the fledgling stages of implementing a national identification program. Eventually, it will require many farmers to register and microchip individual animals among their livestock, and…

Jan 14, 2008 5:33 PM CST

Local Officials Suggest New Ideas for Saving on Legal Fees

Local officials have advanced several cutting-edge concepts lately about how to save money on legal fees. However, the lawyers concerned may not be jumping for joy over the innovative ideas. In Milford, Ohio, a newly elected school board member suggested that the group could save money by eliminating their general…

Jan 10, 2008 12:05 AM CST

Illinois Lawyer Charged in Client Referral Fee Scheme

An Illinois attorney and three former state tax auditors have been federally indicted concerning an alleged client referral scheme. Attorney Dean Roupas, 36, who practices in the Chicago suburb of Burbank, has been charged along with the auditors with participating in an arrangement in which Roupas paid $25,500 to have…

Jan 9, 2008 11:42 PM CST

Release of Racist and Racy DA E-Mail Leads to Call for Resignation

The controversy over the e-mails of District Attorney Charles Rosenthal of Houston heated up yesterday with the disclosure of additional messages sent on government computers that contained racial slurs and off-color jokes and dealt with the DA’s re-election campaign. A federal judge ordered the e-mails released Monday in a lawsuit…

Jan 9, 2008 2:50 PM CST

Baltimore Sues Bank for Lost Tax Revenue Due to Foreclosures

A lawsuit contends Wells Fargo Bank has cost the city of Baltimore needed tax revenues through subprime lending practices that led to increased foreclosures. The New York Times reports that other city lawsuits have tried to hold banks responsible for properties abandoned as the result of foreclosures, but this suit…

Jan 8, 2008 4:45 PM CST