Legal Book » Uncategorized

Firms Face a Sudden Rush of Whistleblower Claims

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 19:23:16 +0000

The new federal whistleblower law is proving a hot item for many plaintiff law firms. The law, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, went into effect in July. It authorizes the SEC to reward those who expose fraud at public companies with from 10 to 30 percent of the amount it recovers over $1 million.

Firms Face a Sudden Rush of Whistleblower Claims

Master — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 19:23:16 +0000

The new federal whistleblower law is proving a hot item for many plaintiff law firms. The law, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, went into effect in July

PTO Director Reflects on His First Year

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 19:23:15 +0000

David Kappos, who the Senate confirmed as director of the U.S.

PTO Director Reflects on His First Year

Master — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 19:23:15 +0000

David Kappos, who the Senate confirmed as director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Aug. 7, 2009, said the agency is chipping away at the huge application backlog

N.Y. Records May Help to Answer the Question: When is Bondage Prostitution?

Master — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 19:23:13 +0000

A Manhattan judge has ordered the New York City Police Department to shine a light on the hazy legal line separating bondage, domination and sadomasochism from prostitution. In a decision last week, New York County Supreme Court Justice Carol R. Edmead directed the NYPD to provide the Urban Justice Center’s Sex Workers Project with documents regarding police investigations of several Manhattan bondage, domination and sadomasochism clubs between 2006 and 2008

N.Y. Records May Help to Answer the Question: When is Bondage Prostitution?

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 19:23:13 +0000

Are You One of the Cool Kids at Big Law?

Master — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:21 +0000

Your lifelong quest for popularity doesn’t stop once you’re an adult working at Big Law. So how popular are you? Take The Snark’s quiz to find out.

Indian Court Upholds $2.6 Billion Tax Bill for Vodafone

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:21 +0000

In a landmark ruling Wednesday, the Bombay High Court said Vodafone Group is liable for an estimated $2.6 billion in taxes for its 2007 acquisition of one of India’s largest mobile phone companies. The decision sets a precedent that could impact hundreds of foreign transactions and have a chilling effect on foreign investment, tax experts say. “We will very seriously consider an appeal,” a Vodafone executive said

As Salmonella Probe Stalls, Former Peanut Industry Exec Returns to Work

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:20 +0000

The peanut industry executive whose filthy processing plants were blamed in a salmonella outbreak two years ago that killed nine people and sickened hundreds more is back in the business. Stewart Parnell, former president of the now-bankrupt Peanut Corp. of America, is working as a consultant to peanut companies as the federal government’s criminal investigation against him has languished for more than 18 months, The Associated Press has learned.

Gun Dealer’s Defamation Suit Against NYC Mayor Hinges on Verification

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:19 +0000

A suit pitting a Georgia gun dealer against New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg got airtime at the Georgia Court of Appeals on Tuesday, when former Georgia congressman Bob Barr and litigator Peter Canfield faced off over a single page that wasn’t filed in the court record. The court’s decision about that sheet of paper will determine whether the gun dealer may proceed with a suit against Bloomberg, whom the dealer claims defamed it in his campaign against illegal sales of weapons used against New Yorkers.

Law Firm’s Role in BDO Tax Fraud Case Presents Conflict, Judge Finds

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:18 +0000

A federal judge has told attorneys with Sonnenschein, Nath & Rosenthal there is no way the firm can represent both an alleged tax fraud conspirator and a cooperating witness for the government. Southern District of New York Judge William Pauley said that a “clear conflict of interest” exists where one Sonnenschein attorney represents former BDO Seidman partner and now cooperator Adrian Dicker and another represents former BDO Seidman CEO Denis Field.

Molestation Conviction Overturned Because of Error by Judge, Prosecutor

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:18 +0000

A Kansas man convicted of child molestation will get a new trial because of misconduct by the judge and the prosecutor. The Kansas Supreme Court ruled last week that they each crossed the line during the trial of Luther Kemble, who was sentenced in 2008 to 25 years to life for fondling an 8-year-old girl

Trustee Seeks to Auction 80 Artworks Owned by Defunct Dreier Law Firm

Master — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:16 +0000

Nearly two years after the arrest of Marc S. Dreier for fraud, the trustee appointed to liquidate Dreier LLP has requested permission to auction off more than 80 artworks formerly owned by the defunct 250-attorney firm

SEC Judge Finds Investment Bank GC Was Not Negligent in Supervising Rogue Broker

Master — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:16 +0000

The former general counsel of investment bank Ferris, Baker Watts appears to be off the hook after a Securities and Exchange Commission administrative law judge ruled Wednesday that he did not fail to reasonably supervise a rogue broker. While praising the SEC’s “regulatory zeal” in going after Theodore Urban, Administrative Law Judge Brenda Murray wrote that it was not in the public interest to impose sanctions against him.

Judge Denies Allen Stanford’s Motion for Contempt in Insurance Coverage Case

Master — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:15 +0000

A judge has denied a motion for contempt that R. Allen Stanford filed against Stanford Financial Group’s insurers on the ground they allegedly failed to meet a court-ordered reimbursement schedule for his criminal defense costs. The underwriters alleged that the most recent fee request by Stanford’s lead criminal defense attorney missed a deadline, and questioned the firm’s rates

BP Report Spills Blame on All Involved in Deepwater Horizon Disaster

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:14 +0000

BP posted the results of its probe into the Deepwater Horizon disaster Wednesday, and it assigned blame to all companies involved — including BP. Transocean, a global offshore drilling company taken to task in the BP report, blasted the findings as “self-serving,” and said the report tried to conceal “the critical factor” of BP’s “fatally flawed well design.” Said Transocean in its statement: “In both its design and construction, BP made a series of cost-saving decisions that increased risk — in some cases, severely.”

Alleged Facts Key to Duty to Defend Spam Suits

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:13 +0000

Relying in part on case law requiring courts to look to the factual background — and not the legal theories — found in an underlying complaint, a Pennsylvania Superior Court panel has ruled an insurance company has no duty to defend an office supply company accused of sending spam faxes.

Nursing Home Company Settles $677 Million Lawsuit for $50 Million

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:13 +0000

California nursing home operator Skilled Healthcare Group will pay $50 million to settle a lawsuit that threatened to bankrupt the company after a jury ordered it to pay $677 million for failing to provide enough nurses and staff. The money will go to the roughly 32,000 patients covered by the class action lawsuit as well as cover attorney fees.

Law Firms ‘Shrinking Toward Profit Growth’ in Midyear Survey

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:12 +0000

The 2010 midyear data reported by 187 U.S.-headquartered firms to the Law Firm Group at Citi Private Bank may best be described as “shrinking toward profit growth.” During the first half of 2010, revenue was virtually flat, and demand was down slightly, compared with the same period in 2009. Inventory grew by less than 1 percent.

Judge Criticizes but Doesn’t Kill Major Lindsey’s Suit Against Former Recruiter

Master — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:11 +0000

Major Lindsey & Africa’s racketeering suit against a former recruiter has survived a motion to dismiss — barely. Federal Judge Colleen McMahon threw out Major Lindsey’s claims against former managing director Sharon Mahn under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and issued some stern words regarding the RICO claims. The judge wrote that she had “ample experience with the assertion of bogus RICO claims” by litigants seeking to obtain federal jurisdiction or extract a “coercive settlement” by calling someone a racketeer.

9th Circuit Backs Government’s State Secrets Claim in Rendition Case

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 06:20:10 +0000

Terror suspects who claim they were tortured abroad at the hands of the U.S. government have lost their latest attempt to sue the private American company they say was involved in their abduction as part of an “extraordinary rendition” program under the Bush administration.

7th Circuit Favors British Firm in Dispute Over French Press Coffee Makers

Master — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 22:46:42 +0000

The 7th Circuit, in ruling in favor of a British manufacturer of French press coffee makers, served up extensive dicta about how U.S. courts should interpret foreign law

3rd Circuit Refuses to Revive NutriSystem Overtime Suit

admin — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 18:09:51 +0000

Former Chadbourne Attorney Claims Partnership Agreement Permits Him to Keep Compensation

admin — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 18:09:51 +0000

Federal Judge Rules Chevron Can Depose Maker of ‘Crude’

admin — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 06:44:34 +0000

Southern District of New York Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled Tuesday that filmmaker Joseph Berlinger and his associates can be questioned about events that occurred when his cameras were not rolling on his documentary about environmental litigation against Chevron in Ecuador. Berlinger had already been compelled by Kaplan to produce outtakes from his movie “Crude” that Chevron claims shows plaintiffs lawyer Steven Donziger engaged in misconduct by influencing Ecuadorean officials and experts in the case.