Federal Med Mal Reform Will Help Reduce Deficit, Orszag Writes

Enacting federal medical malpractice reform can help the county improve its credit rating, former White House Office of Management and Budget director Peter R. Orszag wrote today in a column for Bloomberg View. Now chairman of global banking at Citi Group, Orszag strongly advocates reducing the deficit as a solution…

Aug 8, 2011 8:31 PM CDT

Arizona Cannabis Clubs Sued by State AG

Four cannabis clubs in Arizona, where voters last year passed a law allowing medical marijuana use, were sued today by the state attorney general, who alleges that the groups’ actions run afoul of the new ordinance. The lawsuit was filed in Maricopa County Superior Court. According to the state attorney…

Aug 8, 2011 7:07 PM CDT

Nexgen Defamation Suits Amount to Scare Tactics, Say Targets

Plaintiff lawyers with product liability cases against knee replacement manufacturer Zimmer Holdings Inc. are getting hit with cease-and-desist letters from company, which claims the attorneys’ Internet writings and television advertisements distort the product’s safety record. The company faces 78 product liability actions over its artificial knee product known as NexGen…

Aug 8, 2011 3:35 PM CDT

AIDS Awareness Promoted at ABA Meetings with Free Condoms and HIV Tests

Free condoms were a big hit at the ABA Annual Meeting in Toronto. The ABA AIDS Coordinating Committee offered the condoms along with information about HIV and AIDS in an effort to improve awareness for the cause of prevention. Lawyers on their way to meeting registration “ravaged” the information table…

Aug 7, 2011 7:17 PM CDT

Market Owner, Farmer Arrested on Charges of Selling Raw Milk Products

As demand continues to increase for raw foods, prosecutors looking to crack down on the unlawful production and sale of unpasteurized dairy products have sought the arrests of a Venice, Calif., health food market owner, a farmer and farm employee. Arrested Wednesday were James Cecil Stewart, who operates Rawesome Foods;…

Aug 4, 2011 6:38 PM CDT

Psych Facility Supervisor Charged with Negligent Homicide in Death of Restrained Patient

A supervisor at a New York psychiatric facility has been indicted for criminally negligent homicide in the death of a restrained 27-year-old patient. Erik Stanley, 37, said he used appropriate procedures in attempting to subdue 27-year-old Jawara Henry, an autistic patient who died Dec. 4 at the South Beach Psychiatric…

Aug 3, 2011 8:08 PM CDT

Federal Circuit Rules Isolated Genes Can Be Patented

A federal appeals court has ruled that companies can patent isolated human genes, overturning a lower court ruling that had surprised some observers. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled on Friday for Myriad Genetics Inc. and its patents on genes associated with increased risk of breast…

Aug 1, 2011 1:19 PM CDT

Gene Swipe: Few DNA Labs Know Whether Chromosomes Are Yours or If You Stole Them

Aug 1, 2011 8:40 AM CDT

Love Hurts: Mich. Law Prof Explores Love and Heartache in Japanese Culture

Aug 1, 2011 7:40 AM CDT

Friendlier State Legislatures Lead to a Rise in Anti-Abortion Legislation

Aug 1, 2011 7:20 AM CDT

10th Circuit Nominee Is Derailed; Opposing Senator Cites Position on Health Care Law

The nomination of a former Kansas attorney general to a federal appeals court has been scuttled amid controversy over his stance on Obama’s health care law and an abortion clinic investigation. Neither home-state senator initially opposed the nomination of Steve Six for the Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals,…

Jul 29, 2011 3:54 PM CDT

Supreme Court Asked to Decide Constitutionality of Obama Health Care Law

The first cert petition seeking review of the Obama administration’s health care law has reached the U.S. Supreme Court. The petition (PDF) asks the court to overturn a ruling upholding the law’s insurance mandate, report the New York Times and The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times. The decision last…

Jul 28, 2011 11:25 AM CDT

Canadian Law Society Ordered to Pay $100K for Bias Against Lawyer Who Admitted Depression

The Law Society of British Columbia has been ordered to pay $100,000 to a Canadian lawyer who says the group discriminated against him for admitting he had been treated for depression. Peter Mokua Gichuru of British Columbia received the award in a decision (PDF) by the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal,…

Jul 20, 2011 11:31 AM CDT

2nd Mom Sues Pa. County Claiming Newborn Taken Due to What She Ate: Poppy Seeds in Salad, This Time

A second mom has sued a Pennsylvania county and a local hospital, saying that her newborn was taken from her after she tested positive for opiates due to having eaten poppy seeds in ordinary food. This time, says plaintiff Eileen Ann Bower, it was poppy seeds in salad dressing she…

Jul 18, 2011 6:48 PM CDT

New Secondhand-Smoke Frontier Focuses on Shared Residential Buildings

Smoking has been banned in a number of public places and worksites. But, although individuals also have a right to live smoke-free in their own homes, if they wish, there’s no comparable law prohibiting smoking in residential buildings, the New York Post reported. And that’s creating work for a number…

Jul 14, 2011 6:17 PM CDT