http://www.abajournal.com/news/ en Copyright 2013 2013-06-19T13:04:34-06:00 http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/scotus_accepts_fair_housing_case_but_it_could_be_resolved_in_settlement_tal/ The U.S. Supreme Court has once again agreed to decide whether Fair Housing Act cases may be based on disparate impact analysis, and once again an agreement could derail the case. The court granted cert on Monday in a suit filed by residents of a predominantly minority neighborhood in Mount… Civil Rights, Government Law, Real Estate & Property Law, U.S. Supreme Court Tue, 18 Jun 2013 07:30:55 -0500 44677.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/controversial_eminent_domain_approach_to_underwater_mortgages_gathers_some_/ A venture capital firm's bid to help some struggling homeowners avert foreclosure by using the government's eminent domain power to purchase their property at actual value is gathering steam. Several cities in California have agreed to pursue the idea, and others, including North Las Vegas, Nev., are pondering the plan,… Banking Law, Consumer Law, Government Law, Real Estate & Property Law, States, California, Nevada Mon, 17 Jun 2013 16:45:07 -0500 44673.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/federal_monitor_asks_judge_to_move_thousands_of_inmates_due_to_valley_fever/ A naturally occurring soil fungus in arid areas of Arizona and California is no problem for a number of people. But in others the fungus, which becomes airborne when soil is disturbed, causes "valley fever" symptoms that can range from aches and fever to death. The fungus, which has had… Criminal Justice, Government Law, Health Law, Real Estate & Property Law, Trials & Litigation, 9th Circuit Court, States, California Mon, 17 Jun 2013 11:30:40 -0500 44664.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/lawyer_takes_plea_in_4.7m_real_estate_fraud_case/ A New York City lawyer has admitted he participated in a conspiracy with a retired city police sergeant to entice investors to put $4.7 million into a plan to develop a condominium project in the Dominican Republic–a project that doesn't exist. Authorities said attorney Edward Adams and James Monahan almost… Criminal Justice, White Collar Crime, Real Estate & Property Law, 2nd Circuit Court, States, New York Thu, 13 Jun 2013 10:30:14 -0500 44620.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/11th_circuit_says_money_in_rothstein_law_firm_accounts_cant_be_forfeited_to/ In a decision that may benefit ordinary creditors of a defunct Florida law firm and cost those swindled by its imprisoned former managing partner, Scott Rothstein, a federal appeals court has ruled that funds in Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler bank accounts are not subject to forfeiture by the feds. That means… Bankruptcy Law, Corporate Law, Criminal Justice, Sentencing/Post Conviction, White Collar Crime, Law Firms, Midsize Firm, Partners, Real Estate & Property Law, Trials & Litigation, Verdicts & Settlements, 11th Circuit Court, States, Florida Wed, 12 Jun 2013 16:25:43 -0500 44623.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/lawyer_gets_3_years_for_shooting_at_u.s._census_worker/ After nearly five hours of deliberation, a jury sentenced a Texas lawyer on Tuesday to three years in prison for firing five shots in 2010 at a U.S. census worker as the woman was trying to get the house number at the lawyer's residence in the Leander area. Attorney Carolyn… Criminal Justice, Sentencing/Post Conviction, Real Estate & Property Law, States, Texas Wed, 12 Jun 2013 12:55:28 -0500 44616.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/law_firm_suffers_7th_traffic_crash_in_10_years_but_4-way_stop_is_not_forthc/ For the seventh time in a decade, a small Iowa City law firm has been the victim of a traffic accident. In this latest incident, its front porch was damaged when a car involved in a collision skidded into its stone foundation. A limestone pillar will have to be replaced.… Business of Law, Government Law, Law Firms, Solos/Small Firms, Real Estate & Property Law, States, Iowa Wed, 12 Jun 2013 12:10:51 -0500 44609.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/kobe_bryants_mom_apologizes_gets_ok_to_auction_some_boyhood_sports_items/ Litigation between basketball star Kobe Bryant and an auction house that reportedly gave his parents a $450,000 upfront payment to auction sports memorabilia from his youth has been settled. His parents, Joe and Pamela Bryant, have apologized and will be allowed to sell a small fraction of the items that… Celebrities, Contracts, Entertainment & Sports Law, Real Estate & Property Law, Trials & Litigation, Verdicts & Settlements, 3rd Circuit Court, 9th Circuit Court, States, California, New Jersey Tue, 11 Jun 2013 11:28:44 -0500 44593.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/2nd_lawyer_is_federally_indicted_in_claimed/ A third lawyer was federally indicted last week for allegedly aiding Arkansas real estate developer Brandon Barber in a claimed series of schemes in which Barber is accused of obtaining $200 million in loans, diverting some of the money to participants at closing and then hiding his assets in a… Criminal Justice, White Collar Crime, Real Estate & Property Law, 8th Circuit Court, States, Arkansas Mon, 10 Jun 2013 18:00:36 -0500 44585.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/crane_operator_is_held_without_bail_in_deadly_phila._building_collapse/ Following the fatal collapse last week of a building under demolition in Philadelphia, the crane operator is being held without bail on criminal charges. Sean Benschop, 42, faces six counts of involuntary manslaughter, 13 counts of recklessly endangering another person and one count of risking a catastrophe, reports Criminal Justice, Government Law, Real Estate & Property Law, Tort Law, Trials & Litigation, States, Pennsylvania Mon, 10 Jun 2013 11:30:48 -0500 44525.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/chat_with_neighbor_leads_to_constitutional_case_over_600_city_weed_fine/ A retired Chicago teacher had wanted to appeal the $600 fine she got last year for growing "weeds" in her prize-winning Chicago garden. (The prize, which was presented personally by former Mayor Richard Daley, includes a photo of Kathy Cummings' yard.) But it wasn't until Cummings chatted with a neighbor… Civil Rights, Constitutional Law, Government Law, Real Estate & Property Law, Trials & Litigation, Evidence, States, Illinois Tue, 04 Jun 2013 11:20:01 -0500 44464.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/lawyer_gets_30_months_in_mortgage_scheme_that_involved_diverted_iolta_inter/ A Connecticut real estate lawyer and others with whom he schemed reportedly intended to sell upscale homes at a profit when they submitted fraudulent mortgage applications to get standard financing to pay off "hard money" purchase loans that carried high interest. But the real estate scheme in the state's burgeoning… Criminal Justice, Sentencing/Post Conviction, White Collar Crime, Real Estate & Property Law, Trials & Litigation, Evidence, Verdicts & Settlements, 2nd Circuit Court, States, Connecticut Mon, 03 Jun 2013 18:05:27 -0500 44458.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/tenants_take_exception_to_tough_tactics_from_low-rent_landlords/ Criminal Justice, Real Estate & Property Law, Obiter Dicta Sat, 01 Jun 2013 01:10:10 -0500 44257.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/will_pedestrian_scramble_make_it_safer_to_cross_downtown_chicago_intersecti/ As anyone who walks or drives in downtown Chicago knows, crossing the street, even in a crosswalk on a walk signal, can be a hazardous activity, as motorists—particularly when making a turn—frequently don't yield the right or way. Meanwhile, a frustration for drivers is the many pedestrians who don't hesitate… Administrative Law, Government Law, Real Estate & Property Law, States, Illinois Fri, 31 May 2013 12:15:07 -0500 44429.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/lawyer_cites_beautification_exception_in_trespass_law_to_justify_takeovers_/ Lawyer Edward Voci acknowledges that his theory has not been tested in an Illinois appeals court. But he believes squatters are meeting statutory requirements when they take over an abandoned property and make it better, the New York Times reports. Voci, who works with a group… Banking Law, Criminal Justice, Real Estate & Property Law Thu, 30 May 2013 08:08:08 -0500 44407.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/former_state_supreme_court_justice_gets_12_months_in_bank_fraud_case/ A now-retired Michigan supreme court justice was sentenced Tuesday to a year and a day in federal prison after pleading guilty to a felony bank fraud charge earlier this year. Prosecutors in the Ann Arbor case had sought a year to 18 months for Diane Marie Hathaway, 59, who reportedly… Banking Law, Criminal Justice, Sentencing/Post Conviction, White Collar Crime, Judiciary, Real Estate & Property Law, Trials & Litigation, Verdicts & Settlements, 6th Circuit Court, States, Michigan Tue, 28 May 2013 14:40:00 -0500 44382.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/mentally_disabled_married_couple_gets_housing_but_landmark_civil_rights_law/ Like any ordinary couple, Paul Forziano, 30, and Hava Samuels, 36, were looking forward to sharing a home of their own after they got married in April. But that was almost an impossible dream for the two, who are considered mildly to moderately mentally disabled and reside in separate nonprofit… Civil Rights, Constitutional Law, Disability Law, Government Law, Real Estate & Property Law, Trials & Litigation, States, New York Fri, 24 May 2013 08:50:51 -0500 44348.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/8_arrested_in_lobby_of_covingtons_dc_office_during_mortgage_foreclosure_pro/ Eight individuals were arrested Wednesday as they protested the U.S. government's lack of prosecution of bank mortgage foreclosure activities in the lobby of Covington & Burling's office building in Washington, D.C. Seven were charged with unlawful entry and one was charged with assaulting a police officer, reports Banking Law, Criminal Justice, Executive Branch, Law Firms, Large Firm, Real Estate & Property Law, States, District of Columbia Thu, 23 May 2013 09:47:11 -0500 44330.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/successful_tyrannosaurus_suit_by_texas_lawyer_earns_him_mongolias_top_civil/ A victory in civil and criminal litigation over the New York City auction of a smuggled Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton last year hasn't just earned legal fees for Texas attorney Robert Painter. It's taken him to Mongolia, where evidence was collected in the Gobi desert, and from his Houston law office… Civil Procedure, Corporate Law, Criminal Justice, Criminal Procedure, International Law, Real Estate & Property Law, Trials & Litigation, Verdicts & Settlements, 2nd Circuit Court, States, Texas Wed, 22 May 2013 09:05:29 -0500 44276.abajournal.com http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/using_website_to_arrange_short-term_apartment_stays_violates_law_says_ny_al/ A New York man who rented his apartment for a three-day stay ran afoul of the city’s hotel law, an administrative law judge ruled Monday. Hearings for a similar law are pending in San Francisco, CNET News reports. Both matters involve the website Airbnb,… Administrative Law, Real Estate & Property Law Tue, 21 May 2013 11:55:45 -0500 44288.abajournal.com