Verdicts & Settlements

Company to Pay $5.2M Settlement in Cell Phone Crash Case

International Paper Co. has agreed to pay $5.2 million to a driver who lost her arm in a crash caused by an employee who had been talking on a cell phone. The injured driver, Debra Ford, had alleged she was rear-ended when the employee was talking on a company-supplied cell…

Feb 13, 2008 2:48 PM CST

Bratz Maker Ordered to Pay $13.2M in Video Licensing Dispute

A video game publisher has won a $13.2 million arbitration award against the owner of Bratz dolls, a development that could signal the potential for high-stakes litigation involving the video game industry. Ubisoft Entertainment obtained the award in a licensing dispute with the owner of the Bratz doll copyright, MGA…

Feb 13, 2008 2:33 PM CST

Lerach Ponders Planned Trip to Club Fed

The day after a federal judge gave William Lerach the maximum two-year prison sentence possible under a plea deal, a front-page Wall Street Journal profile reports that the once-mighty plaintiffs securities lawyer still feels his overall legacy as an attorney is one to be proud of. Despite his conviction and…

Feb 13, 2008 12:43 AM CST

Payday Lenders Flout Law on Seizing Gov’t. Benefits, Newspaper Says

Under federal law, creditors aren’t supposed to be able to seize social security payments, or disability or veterans benefits to pay a debt, and the government won’t send their checks directly to creditors. But at least some payday lenders have found a way around those prohibitions, and are now targeting…

Feb 13, 2008 12:03 AM CST

Court Must Accept, Rule On Transgender Name Change & Fee Waiver Filings

The chief judge of the Will County Circuit Court erred by not accepting petitions by a transgender person seeking a name change and a filing-fees waiver, according to an Illinois Supreme Court ruling. When Dauun Turner, who reportedly is disabled and lives on social security benefits, tried to file the…

Feb 12, 2008 10:11 PM CST

Hedge Fund Sues Over General Counsel’s $10M Bonus

A hedge fund has filed a lawsuit claiming that a $10 million bonus awarded to the general counsel of Transmeta Corp. is “outrageous, illegal and unconscionable.” The stockholder’s derivative suit was filed by Riley Investment Management, which owns about 7 percent of Transmeta and has offered to buy the company,…

Feb 12, 2008 11:45 AM CST

‘Scrivener’ Closing Attorney Ruined By $19M Real Estate Fraud

Atlanta attorney R. Joseph Costanzo Jr. was a little fish in sea of bigtime mortgage fraud, according to his defense lawyer. But after two years of closing fraudulent real estate deals in the Atlanta area as part of a $19 million “flipping” scheme that reportedly involved at least 21 people,…

Feb 12, 2008 1:34 AM CST

Lerach Gets 2 Years in Claimed Milberg Weiss Kickbacks Case

A once-mighty partner at the nation’s biggest and best-known plaintiffs securities firm was given a two-year federal prison sentence today for his role in an alleged law firm scheme to pay $11.3 million in kickbacks to lead plaintiffs in securities class actions. In addition to the prison term, William Lerach,…

Feb 11, 2008 9:44 PM CST

NYT Reporter Says Lawyer’s E-Mail Goof Not a Big Blunder

New York Times reporter Alex Berenson says an e-mail that was sent to him in error by a lawyer from Pepper Hamilton was not a “really big blunder.” The e-mail was intended for Berenson’s second cousin, Bradford Berenson, a lawyer at Sidley Austin. It was sent by a “high-powered” Pepper…

Feb 11, 2008 6:31 PM CST

Client Commits Suicide Before Learning of Mistrial

A 47-year-old Washington state man apparently committed suicide this week while a jury was deliberating in a case over his alleged sexual abuse of a young relative. But, not knowing of this development, the judge declared a mistrial yesterday after a Clark County Superior Court jury deadlocked about whether to…

Feb 8, 2008 10:51 PM CST

Neb.‘s Top Court Bans Electric Chair, Ending Death Penalty ... For Now

In a 6-1 decision today, the Nebraska Supreme Court held that the use of the electric chair is unconstitutional under state law, effectively imposing a death penalty moratorium since this is the only execution method used there. The court ruled that the electric chair is cruel and unusual punishment prohibited…

Feb 8, 2008 10:09 PM CST

9th Circuit Could OK Big Religious Education Tax Break

Judges on a 9th Circuit panel hearing a New York couple’s appeal of an adverse Internal Revenue Service tax ruling this week reportedly appeared sympathetic to the couple’s claim that the federal agency isn’t treating members of all religious groups fairly concerning charitable deductions for educational expenses. That could potentially…

Feb 8, 2008 7:01 PM CST

Merck Agrees to $650M Settlement in Medicaid Health Care Fraud Case

Without admitting liability, Merck & Co. has agreed to pay a total of more than $650 million to plaintiffs including the federal government, 49 states and the District of Columbia, to settle allegations that the pharmaceutical company engaged in health care fraud by violating Medicaid rules. The settlement, according to…

Feb 7, 2008 9:30 PM CST

Ex-Lawyer Takes Deceased Dad’s ID, Gets $1.8M in Mortgages—and 4+Years

A disbarred New York attorney has reportedly pleaded guilty in the middle of a trial to assuming his deceased father’s identity and misrepresenting himself as a lawyer, in order to obtain almost $1.8 million in real estate financing through fraudulent mortgage transactions. Rafael Pantoja, 49, is now facing a potential…

Feb 7, 2008 8:39 PM CST

GC of Troubled Sallie Mae Resigns, Says He Wants to Spend Time With Family

Sallie Mae’s general counsel Robert Lavet resigned at the end of January, in advance of two investor lawsuits against the student lender. Lavet told Corporate Counsel he resigned to spend more time with his family. “Obviously it was a difficult year, but I just decided I needed some time off”…

Feb 7, 2008 3:04 PM CST