Legal Book » tuesday

DOJ Considers Abandoning Its FCPA Sting Prosecution

admin — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 07:42:09 +0000

At a hearing Tuesday, a Justice Department attorney asked a D.C. federal judge to hit the “pause button” on the prosecution in a high-profile foreign bribery case, as top DOJ officials examine the case’s continued viability following two unsuccessful trials that included three acquittals.

Challenge to State Ban on Equity Investors Faces Uphill Battle

admin — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 07:42:07 +0000

New York federal Judge Lewis A. Kaplan said Tuesday he would either dismiss for lack of standing Jacoby & Meyers’ challenge to a New York state ban on law firms accepting equity investors, or he would abstain from hearing the matter.

9th Circuit Sides With Gay Couples in 2-1 Ruling on Prop 8

Master — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 01:29:59 +0000

Taking a narrow approach in deciding the blockbuster challenge to California’s ban on gay marriage, a split 9th Circuit panel on Tuesday found Proposition 8 unconstitutional. Plaintiffs lawyers acknowledged that the scope of the holding may make the opinion somewhat less likely to be reviewed by the Supreme Court.

Prop 8 Merits Ruling Will Be Issued Tuesday

Master — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 06:16:16 +0000

The 9th U.S.

Motorola and Lemko Settle Suits over Theft of Trade Secrets Sparked by Employee Defections

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 07:49:47 +0000

A feud that dated back to 2002, when a team of executives and engineers left Motorola to start Lemko, ended Tuesday with the companies’ announcement that they have settled all pending litigation. Before its resolution, the IP dispute had grown to include allegations of racial profiling and corporate espionage.

Financial Crimes, Trade Enforcement Targeted in State of the Union

admin — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 07:22:42 +0000

In his State of the Union address Tuesday night, President Obama announced the creation of two new law enforcement units, one targeting financial crimes, the other unfair trade practices. Both announcements drew applause, though it’s not entirely clear how the initiatives will differ from existing efforts.

At hearing, consumer financial protection chief Cordray tries to reassure House skeptics

admin — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 07:59:49 +0000

The new head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau sought to reassure House members Tuesday that his agency has no intention of “going off in some wild new unexpected direction.” The subcommittee pressed Richard Cordray on whether the CFPB will accept existing case law that defines “unfair and deceptive” practices.

Requiem for a Patent War: Alcatel-Lucent and Microsoft Settle Decade-Plus Litigation

Master — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 06:02:23 +0000

A bitter battle between Alcatel-Lucent and Microsoft that lasted more than a decade came to an end Tuesday with a one-paragraph order by a San Diego federal district court judge.

Ex-Thompson Hine Partner Gets One Year For Tax Fraud

admin — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 05:33:49 +0000

Leslie “Les” Jacobs, a former senior antitrust partner in Thompson Hine’s Cleveland office, was sentenced Tuesday to serve a year and a day in prison in connection with his guilty plea on a federal tax fraud charge, according to a press release issued by the Justice Department.

Investors seek $172 million in first Rothstein trial

admin — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 07:07:12 +0000

A Texas-based investment group, claiming it was scammed by Scott Rothstein, asked Tuesday for $172 million in damages from TD Bank for helping to prolong Florida’s largest Ponzi scheme by allegedly aiding the imprisoned former lawyer in his $1.2 billion settlement financing fraud.

Justices take a pass on First Amendment cases

Master — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 07:07:08 +0000

The Supreme Court on Tuesday decided to stay out of two hot First Amendment debates, one testing the limits of student speech on the Internet, and the other on prayer at public government meetings.

Shareholder Resolutions Urge BoA, 3M, Target to Forgo Political Spending

admin — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 07:07:04 +0000

Two investment firms announced Tuesday that they have filed shareholder resolutions at Bank of America, 3M and Target, urging the three companies to refrain from making political donations, marking the first time institutional shareholders have asked corporations to refrain from political spending.

Quinn Emanuel, Debevoise Win Key Ruling for Insurers in Countrywide Mortgage-Backed Securities Suits

Master — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 12:39:02 +0000

In a highly anticipated pair of rulings Tuesday, a judge vastly simplified MBIA and Syncora Guarantee’s multibillion-dollar fraud suits against Countrywide, ruling that the monolines must only show that alleged misrepresentations about the quality of loans duped them into insuring securities backed by those loans.

Egyptian Court Bans Military ‘Virginity Tests’

admin — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 10:03:16 +0000

An Egyptian court on Tuesday ordered the country’s military rulers to stop the use of “virginity tests” on female detainees, in a rare condemnation by a civilian tribunal of a military practice that has caused an uproar among activists and rights groups.Visit International News

Heller Suits Belong in Bankruptcy Court, Judge Rules

Master — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 00:05:20 +0000

In an order filed Tuesday, a San Francisco federal judge said litigation between the Heller estate and law firms that took on defecting partners belongs in bankruptcy court, finding that the firms didn’t establish cause for moving the cases to federal district court — at least not at this time.

Transgender woman’s sex bias claim upheld

Master — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 07:38:18 +0000

In the first decision by the 11th Circuit extending a 1989 U.S. Supreme Court ruling on sex discrimination claims to protect transgender persons in the workplace, a panel ruled Tuesday that a transgender woman should be allowed to return to her job at the Georgia General Assembly.

Cleary Helps Alpha Reach Nonprosecution Agreement for West Virginia Coal Mine Explosion

admin — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 04:04:23 +0000

In a nonprosecution agreement announced by the Justice Department on Tuesday, Alpha Natural Resources agreed to pay $209 million to settle a criminal investigation into a 2010 explosion at a West Virginia coal mine owned by Massey Energy, which Alpha acquired for $7.1 billion earlier this year.

Another skirmish in the confrontation clause revolution

Master — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 04:04:20 +0000

In 2004, the U.S. Supreme Court began a series of decisions reinvigorating criminal defendants’ right to confront their accusers.

Howard Rice Merges With Arnold & Porter

admin — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 04:04:18 +0000

Washington, D.C.-based Arnold & Porter and midsize firm Howard Rice Nemerovski Canady Falk & Rabkin confirmed Tuesday that the two firms will be completing a merger by Jan.

A Deal Too Soon? Judge Dismisses Madoff Fund Investor Claims One Day After HSBC Agrees to Settle for $62.5 Million

Master — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 07:37:13 +0000

On Tuesday, a day after HSBC announced it had entered into a partial settlement with investors in Thema International Fund, a Manhattan federal district court judge dismissed all the claims against the bank and other defendants, largely on the grounds that the cases should be filed in Ireland and Luxembourg.

Biting Ruling Slams Lawyer for Misleading Appeal Court

Master — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 19:59:48 +0000

In a scathing opinion Tuesday, a California court of appeal slapped a lawyer with $10,000 in sanctions to punish him for recycling a brief and otherwise misleading the court, while cautioning trial courts to scrutinize the evidence instead of rubber-stamping default judgments.

In Credit Suisse case, Court may be headed for the middle

admin — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 08:06:38 +0000

Based on oral arguments in a securities fraud case Tuesday, the Supreme Court seemed headed toward the middle of the pro- or anti-business spectrum, giving both shareholder plaintiffs and the corporate and investment bank defendants something to like.

Former MoFo Partner Draws 12-Month Sentence in Fraud Case

Master — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 20:57:38 +0000

Former Morrison & Foerster partner Jonathan Dickstein was sentenced Tuesday to one year in county jail for misappropriating $400,000 from health insurance companies and a San Francisco school district that had been earmarked for the care of his autistic son.

Judge Backs Ban on Tents in Zuccotti Park

admin — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 04:21:59 +0000

A New York judge declined on Tuesday to extend a temporary restraining order requiring that Occupy Wall Street protesters immediately be allowed back into lower Manhattan’s Zuccotti Park with their tents, tarps and sleeping bags, though the protesters’ petition challenging their eviction will continue.

On Capitol Hill, AG Holder Faces Tough Criticism

Master — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 05:42:29 +0000

Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. on Tuesday denied misleading Congress about when he first learned of a controversial gun trafficking investigation. Holder’s testimony isn’t likely to quiet critics of the DOJ’s oversight of the sale of weapons that ended up in the hands of criminals in Mexico.