Verdicts & Settlements

Harper Lee’s estate settles litigation over Broadway adaptation of ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’

The estate of Harper Lee has reached a settlement in litigation over its objections to a Broadway adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird. The estate and the production company Rudinplay announced the settlement Thursday, but provided few details. The New York Times and Law360 have coverage. The estate had claimed…

May 11, 2018 11:47 AM CDT

Judge cuts $50M punitive damages award to neighbors of smelly hog farm

A federal judge in North Carolina has slashed a $50 million punitive damages award in a nuisance suit against a hog farm that stored the animal waste in open-air lagoons and sprayed it on nearby fields.

May 11, 2018 7:30 AM CDT

Lawyer is acquitted in alleged scheme to inflate stock price; actress’s ex-husband is convicted

A Las Vegas lawyer has been acquitted of all charges in an alleged scheme to manipulate the stock price of a technology company. Federal jurors in Brooklyn, New York, acquitted Kyleen Cane on charges of conspiracy and securities fraud, Law360 reports. Her co-defendant, Abraxas J. “A.J.” Discala, was convicted of…

May 7, 2018 4:09 PM CDT

Louisiana man convicted of attempted manslaughter for shooting at fleeing home invader

A Louisiana man has been convicted of attempted manslaughter for shooting into the car of a fleeing home invader who allegedly held three people at rifle-point before being disarmed. Jurors on Thursday convicted 27-year-old Aaron Neames of Walker, the Advocate reports. The defense had argued Neames was protected by the…

May 4, 2018 12:26 PM CDT

Black men arrested at Starbucks settle with Philadelphia for $1 each and $200K donation

Two black men arrested last month at a Starbucks in Philadelphia while waiting for a business associate have agreed to release the city from any legal claims in exchange for the payment of $1 each and a promise to donate $200,000 to a program for aspiring entrepreneurs. The agreement between…

May 2, 2018 1:09 PM CDT

Lawyer who helped an exoneree blow through $750K faces ethics complaints

The North Carolina State Bar is investigating a Florida lawyer for his treatment of two mentally disabled clients who spent 31 years in prison before being declared innocent. Henry McCollum and his half-brother, Leon Brown, were exonerated in 2014 after serving decades in prison for the notorious rape and murder…

May 1, 2018 2:00 PM CDT

Supreme Court to consider cy pres awards that give no money to class-action plaintiffs

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to decide whether a class-action settlement in a suit against Google met requirements of federal law when $5.3 million of the $8.5 million settlement fund was given to outside groups and $2.125 million went to attorney fees. The cy pres award was directed…

Apr 30, 2018 11:26 AM CDT

5th Circuit blasts lawyer who sent thank-you checks to experts, yet told jurors they were unpaid

A federal appeals court has overturned a $151 million award against a hip implant manufacturer because of “serious evidentiary errors” by the judge and “deceptions” by Mark Lanier, a high-profile Houston lawyer for the plaintiffs.

Apr 30, 2018 7:00 AM CDT

Bill Cosby is found guilty of sexual assault in retrial with additional witnesses

Bill Cosby has been found guilty of sexually assaulting a Temple University employee at his home in 2004. Jurors in Norristown, Pennsylvania, found Cosby guilty of three counts of aggravated indecent assault on Thursday, report the New York Times and the Washington Post. It was the second trial for the…

Apr 26, 2018 1:19 PM CDT

Lawyer for 2 ex-NFL cheerleaders offers to settle bias claims for $1 each and ‘good faith’ meeting

A lawyer representing two former cheerleaders for National Football League teams has offered to settle their bias complaints for $1 each and a “good faith” meeting with Commissioner Roger Goodell and league lawyers. Lawyer Sara Blackwell is seeking the meeting with the aim of developing rules that apply to all…

Apr 25, 2018 2:31 PM CDT

Former New York prosecutor is convicted of bribing ex-cop over gun-license issues

A former Brooklyn, New York, prosecutor has been convicted for bribing an ex-police sergeant in matters involving gun licenses for his clients. Manhattan federal jurors convicted John Chambers, 63, on Tuesday, report the New York Law Journal, Reuters, the Associated Press and Courthouse News Service. Chambers was convicted of bribery,…

Apr 25, 2018 10:02 AM CDT

Former Fisher & Phillips partner is convicted of felony murder in wife’s death

Former Fisher & Phillips partner Claud “Tex” McIver was found guilty of felony murder on Monday in the fatal shooting of his wife, Diane McIver, while they were riding in an SUV in 2016. Jurors in Atlanta also found the 75-year-old lawyer guilty of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon,…

Apr 23, 2018 4:16 PM CDT

Wells Fargo to pay $1B penalty for consumer law violations

Wells Fargo has agreed to pay a $1 billion penalty for alleged violations of the Consumer Financial Protection Act. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency announced the penalty Friday, report the Wall Street Journal, the National Law Journal and Bloomberg News. The…

Apr 20, 2018 9:56 AM CDT

Lance Armstrong to pay $5M to settle suit claiming he defrauded US Postal Service-sponsored team

Lance Armstrong has agreed to pay $5 million settle a whistleblower suit joined by the federal government that alleged he violated a cycling sponsorship agreement with the U.S. Postal Service by taking performance-enhancing drugs. The U.S. Justice Department announced the settlement Thursday, report the Washington Post, the New York Times…

Apr 20, 2018 9:04 AM CDT

Ex-Playboy model settles suit claiming faulty lawyering nixed her deal to remain silent on Trump

A former Playboy model reached a settlement with the publisher of the National Enquirer on Wednesday allowing her to go public with allegations of an affair in 2006 with President Donald Trump. Karen McDougal won’t have to return the $150,000 she was paid by American Media Inc., the New York…

Apr 19, 2018 1:09 PM CDT