States

Phil Spector Hires New Lawyer, No Retrial for Months

It’s official: Music producer Phil Spector announced today that he has hired another lead lawyer. And, as a result, his retrial for allegedly murdering a former movie actress at his home will be delayed at least five months. Doron Weinberg of San Francisco, who will now represent Spector, told Los…

Dec 8, 2007 1:41 AM CST

25th Birthday for Lethal Injections

Exactly 25 years ago today, strapped to a gurney in a Texas death chamber, 40-year-old Charlie Brooks Jr. became the first person in the U.S. to be executed by lethal injection. Since then, the method has been adopted by many states throughout the country, which considered it a humane alternative…

Dec 7, 2007 11:20 PM CST

Court Bans Age Discrimination in Worker’s Comp Award

Siding with a 76-year-old worker who injured her back bending over to pick up some dropped brochures, the California Court of Appeals has reversed a reduction in disability benefits it said was because of her age. Although a medical expert concluded that Lois Vaira’s injury was in part attributable to…

Dec 7, 2007 7:12 PM CST

D.C. Lawyers Group Holds Holiday Clothing Drive for Homeless

Updated: A Washington, D.C., group of lawyers and legal staffers is helping the homeless with an annual holiday clothing drive and a summer fundraiser. In recent years, Gifts for the Homeless has collected thousands of bags of used clothing for the homeless and has raised $100,000 in annual donations. Most…

Dec 7, 2007 5:18 PM CST

Questions About Mall Security, But No New Answers

As experts and ordinary Americans pondered the shooting massacre of eight people at an Omaha, Neb., shopping mall this week, most seemed to agree that there is little that can be done, at least as a practical matter, to prevent such isolated acts of violence. The crime has not ignited…

Dec 7, 2007 4:34 PM CST

Kerik Lawyer Loses Bid for Disqualification Documents

A judge has refused to give the defense lawyer for former New York City police commissioner Bernard Kerik access to evidence that prosecutors are using to try to toss him off the case. Prosecutors claim lawyer Kenneth Breen is a potential witness to obstruction of justice by Kerik in a…

Dec 7, 2007 3:51 PM CST

‘Obsessive’ Client Accused of Hiring Hit Man to Kill Lawyer’s Wife

A New Hampshire woman has been arrested on charges she hired a hit man to kill the wife of a prominent lawyer she had hired. Katherine Mandola is accused of offering to pay an undercover state trooper $4,000 to kill the wife of lawyer B.J. Branch, the Union Leader reports.…

Dec 7, 2007 3:06 PM CST

‘Forgotten’ Sarbanes Clawback Clause Used Against UnitedHealth Ex-CEO

Two former executives of UnitedHealth Group Inc.—the CEO and general counsel—have agreed to give back stock options gains, unexercised options and retirement pay to resolve stock-options backdating claims by the company. Under an agreement announced by the company yesterday, givebacks by ex-CEO William McGuire are valued at more than $600…

Dec 7, 2007 2:17 PM CST

Cop Charged After MP3 Recording Revealed in Perry Mason-Type Moment

A New York detective has been charged with perjury after a dramatic cross-examination in which he was confronted with an interrogation secretly recorded on a suspect’s MP3 player. Detective Christopher Perino pleaded not guilty at his arraignment yesterday, the New York Times reports. Defense lawyer Mark DeMarco said he kept…

Dec 7, 2007 12:50 PM CST

Lawyer Refiles Suit Against DontDateHimGirl.com

A Pittsburgh lawyer has refiled his defamation lawsuit against DontDateHimGirl.com in Miami federal court. Todd Hollis is acting as his own lawyer in the suit filed last week, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. Hollis alleges the website defamed him with posts that falsely claimed he has multiple girlfriends, is gay or…

Dec 7, 2007 12:32 PM CST

Former High-Flying PI Lawyer Sentenced to 15 Years

A once-prominent Miami lawyer has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for bilking elderly asbestos clients out of more than $13 million. The sentence for Louis Robles was the longest possible under federal sentencing guidelines, the Daily Business Review reports. U.S. District Judge Alan Gold also ordered Robles to…

Dec 7, 2007 11:51 AM CST

Judge OKs $3.1M Attorney Fee in Holocaust Case

A federal judge has approved fees of $3.1 million for a lawyer who represented Holocaust victims who received a $1.25 billion settlement with Swiss banks. Lawyer Burt Neuborne, who had originally requested $4.1 million, will receive the fees for work done after the settlement, the New York Law Journal reports.…

Dec 7, 2007 11:32 AM CST

‘Confrontational’ Lawyer Loses DLA Piper Bias Suit

A lawyer who claimed DLA Piper fired her for complaining about discriminatory treatment has lost her lawsuit against the firm. U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan dismissed the suit by Charlene Morisseau after she failed to file court papers opposing the law firm’s summary judgment by the court’s extended deadline, the…

Dec 7, 2007 11:04 AM CST

Lawyers Probed in ‘Pretext’ ID Theft

Updated: Lawyers throughout the country reportedly may be investigated as part of a Washington state-based probe of an alleged scheme in which a local firm, BNT Investigations, was hired by private detectives all over the U.S. to obtain confidential personal information by pretext. A federal grand jury in Seattle has…

Dec 7, 2007 12:06 AM CST

Police Informant Sues Over Job Loss

A confidential police informant in Atlanta who lost his job after his identity was revealed because of a furor of publicity over a botched drug raid has sued the city for damages. Alex White contends in his federal lawsuit that he made about $25,000 annually from this work and seeks…

Dec 6, 2007 10:47 PM CST