Verdicts & Settlements

Client Turns Tables on Firm in Fee Dispute

A Texas plaintiffs firm that sued to collect an attorney fee from a former client in a medical malpractice case won exactly nothing after a three-day jury trial. But a Tarrant County jury awarded the client $1.4 million last month on his counterclaim against the firm for intentional infliction of…

Sep 5, 2007 11:47 PM CDT

Sex With Client’s Mom Requires Waiver

It may be OK for a lawyer to have sex with a client’s mother—if the client approves the relationship in a written waiver of the conflict. But you can’t ethically have sex with the client, unless the relationship got started prior to the representation. That is the gist of a…

Sep 5, 2007 9:50 PM CDT

Microsoft Trial Win a Legislative Loss?

A stunning $1.52 billion verdict against Microsoft Corp. in a patent case earlier this month was the impetus for planned changes in U.S. patent law. But now that the computer megalith has succeeded in getting the federal jury verdict overturned, its courtroom win is likely to mean a legislative loss.…

Sep 5, 2007 3:58 PM CDT

Hotel Pays $1.2 M for Toilet Injury

The Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City has agreed to pay $1.2 million to settle a lawsuit by a woman injured when her hotel room toilet broke away from the wall while she was sitting on it. The 74-year-old Philadelphia woman had originally demanded a $2 million settlement, the Legal…

Sep 4, 2007 1:02 PM CDT

Accounting for Lives

The 9/11 victim compensation fund worked. But what about the next time?

Sep 1, 2007 5:30 AM CDT

$75 Million Attorney Fee an Iowa Record?

A judge’s approval today of a $180 million antitrust settlement by Microsoft Corp. includes $75 million in attorney fees and costs, which apparently sets an Iowa record. Lead counsel Roxanne Conlin of Des Moines, who brought the case with Richard Hagstrom of Minneapolis, says one reason why the legal bill…

Aug 31, 2007 10:22 PM CDT

Former KY Bar Ass’n Prez Disbarred

Four years ago, Stephen B. Catron was president of the Kentucky Bar Association. Today he’s no longer a lawyer, having been disbarred last week by the Kentucky Supreme Court. Catron, who is accused of having mishandled $500,000 in public funds, says the allegation is unfounded. However, he apparently didn’t fight…

Aug 28, 2007 7:47 PM CDT

Promise to Pay for Law School is Enforceable

A Minnesota man who promised to pay for a neighbor to attend law school must ante up, a state appeals court has ruled. Walter Fields is required to honor his admitted promise and pay for Marjorie Conrad’s legal education, ruled the Minnesota Court of Appeals, upholding an $87,000 trial court…

Aug 23, 2007 10:36 PM CDT

Clifford Chance Settles Sexual Pref Case

In a precedent-setting case in the United Kingdom, a London-based megafirm has reportedly reached a settlement with a former partner who claimed he was discriminated against because of his sexual preference. The agreement, between famed “magic circle” firm Clifford Chance and former partner Michael Bryceland, is for an undisclosed amount.…

Aug 20, 2007 7:30 PM CDT

Ex-CFO’s SEC Deal Fails

Internal infighting at the Securities and Exchange Commission has scuttled a proposed settlement in an options backdating case against former Brocade Communications CFO Michael Byrd. The SEC’s accounting division objected to the million-dollar deal because it didn’t bar Byrd from employment as an accountant at other public companies, the Recorder…

Aug 20, 2007 12:28 PM CDT

Stutter Study Settlement is $925,000

Six plaintiffs who say they were badgered and belittled as children in a now-infamous stuttering study in the 1930s, leading to lifelong emotional problems, have agreed to settle their lawsuit. They had originally sought $13.5 million, but have now agreed to accept $925,000 from the state of Iowa, according to…

Aug 17, 2007 10:19 PM CDT

Verdict: Padilla is Guilty, Faces Life in Prison

Updated: In a verdict today in a controversial American anti-terrorism trial, Jose Padilla and two co-defendants have been found guilty on all charges. Following a three-month trial and not quite two days of deliberation, a seven-man, five-woman federal court jury in Miami found the three guilty today, reports CNN. The…

Aug 16, 2007 5:10 PM CDT

Top Va. Tech Payment: $180k Per Death

Settlement amounts were announced today in a plan to compensate victims of the April massacre at Virginia Tech and their estates. Families of the 32 students and faculty shot to death by a troubled student will each be offered $180,000 under the plan, which is funded by donations, according to…

Aug 15, 2007 9:53 PM CDT

Tale of 2 Cities: Tampa Porn Dorm Legal, But Miami’s Isn’t

A so-called porn dorm in Tampa, in which women live and participate in sexual activities that are videotaped and publicized over the Internet, is apparently legal. But that doesn’t mean that a comparable business—featuring buffed-up young men who are paid $1,200 plus room and board to live in a house…

Aug 15, 2007 4:34 PM CDT

BDO Socked With $351 M in Punitives

Updated: A Miami jury has ordered BDO Seidman to pay $351 million in punitive damages for failing to uncover fraud at a financial services firm. With punitives, the total damages award now comes to $521 million, the Associated Press reports. (See this ABAJournal.com post for more information on the $170…

Aug 15, 2007 2:15 PM CDT