Legal History

Legal Road Trip: San Francisco

The legal sites of the City by the Bay

Oct 2, 2009 2:50 AM CDT

October 27, 1859

John Brown’s Trial Begins

Oct 2, 2009 12:00 AM CDT

Sears Roebuck Agrees to Record $6.2M ADA Settlement With EEOC

A federal judge today approved a consent decree in which Sears Roebuck & Co. agrees to a record-breaking $6.2 million settlement of an Americans with Disabilities Act case brought by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. In an e-mail today, the EEOC says the settlement of claims that the giant retailer…

Sep 29, 2009 6:18 PM CDT

Would Brandeis Have Been Nominated to the Supreme Court Today?

When Louis Brandeis was nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1916, some considered him a dangerous radical. Yet he was confirmed and spent more than two decades on the U.S. Supreme Court, where he shaped the law of free speech and privacy. The Supreme Court reporter for the New…

Sep 21, 2009 3:51 PM CDT

NYC Officials Ponder 400-Year-Old Cold Murder Case

Exactly 400 years ago, as of this coming Sunday, the first murder in recorded New York City legal history was committed. Because of the lack of a formal criminal justice system in the municipality-to-be, not to mention modern forensic and investigative methods, little attention was paid to the slaying of…

Sep 4, 2009 10:11 PM CDT

Pfizer to Pay Record $2.3B, Subsidiary to Plead to Felony in Drug Marketing Case

A $2.3 billion global settlement by Pfizer Inc. detailed by federal authorities today reportedly includes a number of record payments to resolve both a federal criminal probe and a pharmaceutical whistle-blower case. The case concerns the company’s alleged illegal off-label marketing of multiple drugs and related claimed Medicare/Medicaid fraud, according…

Sep 2, 2009 5:41 PM CDT

Legal Road Trip: Dallas

The legal sites of the Big D

Sep 2, 2009 3:00 AM CDT

Ex-AGs Weigh Justice and Politics

Six former U.S. attorneys general, who served under four different presidents in the past 30 years, expressed serious concerns about proposed investigations into interrogation techniques employed—but now abandoned—in the war against terrorism.

Sep 2, 2009 1:20 AM CDT

September 1, 1807

Aaron Burr Acquitted of Treason

Sep 2, 2009 12:30 AM CDT

Accused Record ID Theft Mastermind to Plead Guilty in 2 Earlier Cases, Feds Say

A 28-year-old Florida resident accused of masterminding what authorities say is the largest-ever computer hacking and identity theft case is expected to plead guilty in two earlier cyberfraud conspiracy cases, prosecutors say. Paperwork filed in federal court in Boston today states that Albert Gonzalez will plead guilty by Sept. 11…

Aug 28, 2009 8:15 PM CDT

3 Indicted in Biggest Hacking and ID Theft Case Ever Brought by DOJ

Three individuals are charged in a federal indictment handed down in New Jersey today in what the U.S. attorney’s office in Newark describes in a press release as apparently the largest computer hacking and identity theft case ever prosecuted by the Department of Justice. At least 130 million credit and…

Aug 17, 2009 8:00 PM CDT

N.H. Ups Ante for Stone Wall Thieves; New Law Provides for Attorney Fees

Updating a more than 200-year-old law against stealing the material in the historic stone walls that line much of New Hampshire’s farmlands and woods, the state’s governor has just signed a bill that ups the ante for doing so. Thieves can now be fined three times the considerable cost of…

Aug 10, 2009 6:26 PM CDT

Ex-US Rep. Jefferson Convicted; Harvard Law Grad Could Face Long Jail Term

Former U.S. Rep. William Jefferson was convicted today of 11 of the 16 counts he faced in a federal corruption case. The Louisiana Democrat, who served 18 years in Congress until he was defeated in 2008, was accused by prosecutors during a six-week trial of seeking hundreds of thousands of…

Aug 5, 2009 10:26 PM CDT

August 18, 1920

Women Gain the Right to Vote

Aug 1, 2009 11:40 PM CDT

Ex-AGs Weigh in on Possible Interrogation Tactics Probe, US Atty Firings #ABAChicago

When you put six former U.S. attorneys general together on a panel at a convention of lawyers, it’s pretty safe to assume the meeting room won’t be big enough. That was the case Friday morning at the ABA Annual Meeting in Chicago, when a Litigation Section program titled “Lessons from…

Jul 31, 2009 7:42 PM CDT