Pennsylvania

3rd Circuit Nixes 55-Month Term for Former Pa. Lawmaker Fumo, Tells Sentencing Judge to Try Again

Nixing a 55-month fraud sentence for a powerful former Pennsylvania senator and attorney that sparked public outrage, an appeals court today found a federal district judge had abused his discretion and told him to resentence Vincent Fumo. However, Judge Ronald Buckwalter isn’t required by the decision of the Philadelphia-based 3rd…

Aug 23, 2011 8:15 PM CDT

Baby Sitter Is Charged in Child’s 1992 Death After Informant Tells of Confession

Five-month-old Ryan Baurley’s death in 1992 was originally attributed to sudden infant death syndrome, despite alcohol in the child’s blood and bruising to his brain and larynx. Now authorities in Montgomery County, Pa., have reclassified the cause of death and have charged the child’s onetime babysitter, Melissa Haskell, report the…

Aug 23, 2011 2:16 PM CDT

Judge Detains 2 Teens, Puts Ankle Monitor on Boy, 11, for Flash Mob Attack on Law Student and Others

An angry juvenile court judge yesterday told two teenagers and an 11-year-old boy that their “actions, behavior, and attitude” concerning a July 29 flash mob attack by a large group on pedestrians were “appalling and disgusting for civilized society,” before pronouncing sentence. The Center City Philadelphia attack left four victims,…

Aug 19, 2011 3:32 PM CDT

No Ethics Rap for Judge Who Handed Out Condom-Filled Acorns

Updated: A Pennsylvania magisterial judge who handed out condom-stuffed acorns to two women he encountered near the site of a continuing education class he was attending will not be disciplined for doing so. Although the Court of Judicial Discipline said it strongly disapproved of the conduct by District Judge Isaac…

Aug 19, 2011 10:20 AM CDT

‘Addiction’ to Video Games Results in 3-Year Suspension for Pa. Lawyer

Otherwise a competent and respected lawyer, Matthew Eshelman had one major Achilles heel, according to a disciplinary panel report: He loved to play video games. When his work or family life became stressful, he spent time at his computer playing games instead of focusing on his law practice. Admitted in…

Aug 18, 2011 4:51 PM CDT

Thorp Reed Opens New Office, Its 5th, in Wilmington, Del., With Bankruptcy Focus

A venerable Pennsylvania-based business law firm has opened a new office in Wilmington, Del. It is expected to have a bankruptcy focus, a law firm press release announces. It will be the fifth office for the 100-attorney Thorp Reed & Armstrong, which was established in Pittsburgh in 1895. Thorp Reed…

Aug 15, 2011 6:53 PM CDT

Duane Morris Partner Criticized in Postal Service Report

A Duane Morris partner who served on the board of governors for the U.S. Postal Service is defending his conduct after being accused of improperly pushing postal officials to consider settling a real estate dispute involving a political friend. A report by the Postal Service inspector general accuses Philadelphia lawyer…

Aug 12, 2011 1:27 PM CDT

Former Pa. Judge Sentenced to 28 Years in Prison in Kids-for-Cash Scandal

A former Pennsylvania judge accused of taking $1 million in bribes for sending juveniles to private detention centers has been sentenced to 28 years in prison. Former Luzerne County Judge Mark Ciavarella Jr. was sentenced today, according to the Associated Press and the Times-Tribune. Before the sentence was imposed, he…

Aug 11, 2011 3:02 PM CDT

Charleston and Drexel Celebrate News of Full ABA Accreditation

Charleston School of Law and Drexel University’s Earle Mack School of Law are celebrating the news that they have earned full accreditation from the American Bar Association. “In 2003, we began with a dream to create a second law school in South Carolina, a student-centered law school focused on service…

Aug 8, 2011 12:16 PM CDT

New Law Makes Buffy-the-Wormslayer Legal, Lets Attorney Show Off $1,200 Coop with Auto Door-Opener

Only a year ago, Attila-the-Hen, Buffy-the-Wormslayer and Motherclucker could have been roosting on the wrong side of the law in a palatial $1,200 coop in the back yard of Jody Noble-Choder, a Pittsburgh corporate attorney. But, in response to growing interest among residents in urban farming, city officials earlier this…

Aug 2, 2011 10:04 PM CDT

Lesbian Spouse of Deceased Cozen Partner Sues Firm and Spouse’s Parents Over Benefits

Married in Canada to a Cozen O’Connor partner, the lesbian spouse of Sarah Ellyn Farley filed a counterclaim in federal court in Philadelphia yesterday staking a claim to benefits following Farley’s death. Naming the firm and Farley’s parents as defendants, Jennifer Tobits says she is entitled to her spouse’s profit-sharing…

Aug 2, 2011 8:27 PM CDT

Railroad Claims Asbestos Law Firm Engaged in Racketeering

CSX Transportation has expanded its claims against a Pittsburgh law firm that represented thousands of railroad workers filing asbestos suits through a fast-track system in West Virginia. In a July 14 legal filing in West Virginia federal court, CSX alleges Robert Peirce & Associates used unreliable mass lung screenings and…

Aug 1, 2011 3:35 PM CDT

Cozen O’Connor Sues Landlord, Alleges Leaky Atrium, Eyesores, Odors and Elevator Entrapments

When Cozen O’Connor renewed its lease for five years at its Philadelphia headquarters last July, it expected to be occupying a Class A building. But the law firm says it has had to cope with a litany of aggravating problems ranging from a leaky atrium with buckets and trash cans…

Jul 27, 2011 8:12 PM CDT

Ally Financial Suit Says Employee Moonlighted as Foreclosure Defense Lawyer, Stole Confidential Info

One of the nation’s largest mortgage lenders and servicers has filed a federal lawsuit against a former employee. It contneds that Tanya Blackwell moonlighted as a foreclosure defense attorney in private practice while using her day job as a foreclosure specialist at Ally Financial’s GMAC unit to obtain confidential information…

Jul 27, 2011 6:18 PM CDT

John Doe Prisoner Is Identified, and He’s Not a Missing DA

A John Doe prisoner in Utah is not a missing Pennsylvania district attorney declared dead on Monday. Tipsters had alerted Utah police that the John Doe prisoner resembled missing Centre County District Attorney Ray Gricar, who disappeared six years ago. But the mystery prisoner has since been identified as a…

Jul 27, 2011 1:44 PM CDT