States

Indicted Appeals Judge Seeks Re-Election

A Pennsylvania appellate judge is vowing to run in a November retention election despite federal charges that he filed fraudulent claims with two insurers following a 2001 car crash. Judge Michael T. Joyce gave a statement to the Erie Times-News saying he will ask voters to approve a second 10-year…

Aug 17, 2007 11:30 AM CDT

Pension Suit Turns on Partner Definition

A “partner” who was denied pension benefits from her former law firm because she was not considered a shareholder will get a chance to prove she is entitled to the money. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled (PDF) Wednesday that a magistrate erred in barring Karen Strom from…

Aug 17, 2007 11:05 AM CDT

Mistake Explanation Privileged, Qualcomm Lawyers Say

Lawyers for Qualcomm aren’t saying why they made discovery errors in litigation over cell phone patent rights. Transcripts from a July 26 hearing in San Diego show that Qualcomm is asserting attorney-client privilege in the case, the Recorder reports. A federal magistrate has ordered lawyers from two law firms to…

Aug 17, 2007 10:34 AM CDT

World’s 25 Oddest Laws List Includes US

Think you’ve heard it all? Even seasoned practitioners may not be aware of what a British newspaper lists as the world’s 25 oddest laws. For example, a French pig may not legally be named Napoleon (item 22 on the list), reports the London Times. Nor may an unmarried woman parachute…

Aug 16, 2007 10:59 PM CDT

More Sex Issues for WA Prosecutor

Originally accused of having an affair with the mother of a 17-year-old arson defendant and using the relationship to get confidential defense information a Washington state prosecutor is now facing additional professional issues. Liam Michael Golden’s sexual conduct reportedly may have been intermingled with his office’s handling of as many…

Aug 16, 2007 10:16 PM CDT

Shocking Case: Legal Team Tasers Client

Proceedings have been delayed in a California misdemeanor case in which the defense is claiming that police brutalized their client with a stun gun during his arrest at a shopping mall last year. That’s because the defense team is now being criminally investigated for allegedly violating human experimentation laws by…

Aug 16, 2007 9:01 PM CDT

Mega-Firm’s Mega-Profit: $1 M-Plus PPP

Impressive profits for the 2007 fiscal year have been announced by one of the world’s largest law firms, Chicago-based Baker & McKenzie. Its gross was $1.83 billion, up from $1.52 billion the previous fiscal year. A 22 percent gain for the first time boosted profits per partner into seven figures,…

Aug 16, 2007 8:23 PM CDT

Online Journalists Sue H-P

Internet-based reporters caught up in the Hewlett-Packard pretexting scandal have filed suit against the computer maker claiming invasion of privacy. One Associated Press reporter and three CNet.com reporters, all of whose phone records were scrutinized by HP investigators, filed suit in state court in San Francisco on Wednesday, reports the…

Aug 16, 2007 4:53 PM CDT

New La. Law School: ‘Biblical Worldview’

A new law school with a “biblical worldview” is being established by Louisiana College, a Baptist institution in Pineville founded in 1906. Joe Aguillard, the college president, says the new law school, which is to open in 2009 with perhaps 40 students, will “unashamedly embrace” the nation’s “biblical roots” while…

Aug 16, 2007 4:31 PM CDT

Violent Femmes Bassist Blisters Over Royalties

The ’80s American folk-punk band known widely for its song “Blister in the Sun” is now embroiled in litigation. Violent Femmes bassist Brian Ritchie has filed a federal suit in New York against the band’s lead singer Gordon Gano, accusing him of failing to pay a fair share of royalties,…

Aug 16, 2007 4:28 PM CDT

Paris Hilton & Mel Gibson Protection Act?

A bill being considered in the California legislature attempts to regulate checkbook journalism and private investigators who pay for confidential information. The legislation, AB 920, would make it a misdemeanor for law enforcement personnel and court employees to profit by releasing confidential information or permitting photographs of a person in…

Aug 16, 2007 4:08 PM CDT

Bailiff Tells of Judge’s Shooting Remarks

The ex-bailiff for controversial Las Vegas Judge Elizabeth Halverson testified that she frequently asked him to shoot her husband, according to recently released transcripts. Johnnie Jordan said Halverson often made the remarks in front her husband, an ex-felon she called “evil Ed,” the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports. But her spouse…

Aug 16, 2007 2:54 PM CDT

NY Subpoenas Study-Abroad Agencies

The New York Attorney General’s office is investigating whether study-abroad agencies pay cash or other incentives to universities. Lawyer Benjamin Lawsky told the New York Times that the office has issued five subpoenas to study-abroad providers, the first of several to come. The probe follows disclosures that some study-abroad agencies…

Aug 16, 2007 1:38 PM CDT

Lender’s Bounced Checks Create Lawyer Havoc

A mortgage company that went belly-up has left Atlanta-area lawyers digging into their own pockets to cover escrow losses. HomeBanc Mortgage Corp. may have issued as much as $20 million in bounced checks on July 30 and 31 before it filed for bankruptcy, according to the Fulton County Daily Report.…

Aug 16, 2007 12:31 PM CDT

Client’s Ignorance Tolls Legal Malpractice Deadline

A six-year statute of limitations isn’t stopping a disgruntled divorce client from suing her lawyer for malpractice almost 10 years after the initial alimony settlement. A New Jersey appeals court has ruled that the limitations period didn’t begin to run until the client learned from another lawyer that she might…

Aug 16, 2007 12:09 PM CDT