California

Lending to Lawyers—At 18 Percent-Plus

Once upon a time, plaintiffs lawyers had to front their own litigation costs. Today, companies lend them the money—at a price. A retired New York judge, for instance, runs Counsel Financial Services, reports the Buffalo News. It loans lawyers money to fund litigation at annual interest rates ranging from 18…

Oct 1, 2007 5:30 PM CDT

Lawyers May Reveal Work Product in Document Dustup

Qualcomm’s outside lawyers can reveal work-product information to help explain why the company failed to turn over hundreds of thousands of discovery documents. U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Major of San Diego ruled Friday that the lawyers may reveal work product but not information protected by the attorney-client privilege, the Recorder…

Oct 1, 2007 11:24 AM CDT

Sutherland Latest Celeb Behaving Badly?

Kiefer Sutherland is potentially facing jail time, if he is convicted of having violated his probation on a 2004 drunken-driving charge by driving under the influence this week. The 40-year-old actor, who won an Emmy for his work as counterterrorism agent Jack Bauer on 24, a popular Fox TV show,…

Sep 28, 2007 9:58 PM CDT

A High-Tech GC Revolving Door

Donald Rosenberg appears to have a habit of replacing high-tech general counsel who leave their posts under a cloud. He is leaving his job at Apple Inc. and being replaced by another Silicon Valley general counsel in what the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) calls “a game of musical chairs.”…

Sep 28, 2007 7:09 PM CDT

OJ Simpson Book, ‘If I Did It,’ a Best-Seller

It couldn’t have been O.J. Simpson’s plan, since he doesn’t get any of the profits. But the former superstar’s arrest earlier this month has helped launch his new book, If I Did It, to the top of the New York Times nonfiction bestseller list. It is now No. 2, according…

Sep 28, 2007 4:13 PM CDT

Ex-Managing Partner Joins Girl Scouts

The former managing partner of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman is leaving the law firm to join the Girl Scouts. Marina Park will become CEO of the Northern California Girl Scouts, the Recorder reports in a story republished by New York Lawyer (reg. req.). Park says she will take lessons learned…

Sep 28, 2007 12:31 PM CDT

CA Legal Malpractice Window Narrows

California law firms got some help from the state supreme court yesterday in a ruling that narrows the window for filing suits for legal malpractice. The court ruled that the statute of limitations begins to run when a client leaves a law firm, even if the client is represented by…

Sep 28, 2007 10:48 AM CDT

Small Firm, Big Litigation

In more than 30 years of mass torts practice, Mark Robinson has helped his small Calfornia law firm make a big mark. Founded in 1978 after Robinson won a $128 verdict for a 13-year-old plaintiff with burn injuries in a Ford Pinto gas-tank case, Robinson, Calcagnie & Robinson had evolved…

Sep 27, 2007 7:48 PM CDT

Money Mattered in Spector Trial

Money can buy a lot of things, including a top-notch defense that helped produce a deadlocked jury in the murder trial of music producer Phil Spector. “Whether you are buying a car, a boat or a defense, the bigger the budget, the better the ride,” Houston jury consultant Robert Hirschhorn…

Sep 27, 2007 11:47 AM CDT

Mistrial as Phil Spector Jury Deadlocks

Updated: A mistrial has been declared in the second-degree murder trial of Phil Spector, after the judge polled the jury, who all agreed they were deadlocked. The foreman said the panel was split 10-2, in a live broadcast of the trial. But, at the judge’s request, he did not say…

Sep 26, 2007 8:46 PM CDT

If Getty Returns Art, Italy Drops Suit

As the J. Paul Getty Museum reconfirmed an earlier pledge to return allegedly stolen works of art, the Italian government promised to drop civil claims against a former museum antiquities curator. However, an Italian criminal case continues against Marion True, who is now on trial in Rome on charges that…

Sep 26, 2007 12:37 AM CDT

Phil Spector Jury Still Deliberating

The jury in the Phil Spector case is still deliberating, more than two weeks after it began considering a second-degree murder charge against the famed music producer. The nine-man, three-woman panel asked for a VCR yesterday, but it isn’t clear why, reports the Associated Press. In an unusual move after…

Sep 25, 2007 6:51 PM CDT

Alleged Backdating Profit: $5 M for Ex-CEO

Prosecutors contend backdating of stock options by Brocade Communications ex-CEO Gregory Reyes cost investors $12 million and put an extra $5 million in his own pocket. The government set out alleged losses in a sentencing brief filed on Friday, the Recorder reports. The tally: $7 million in government fines, $3…

Sep 24, 2007 1:20 PM CDT

CA Judge Dismisses Overbooked Attorney

On his own motion, a California judge has dismissed one of the lawyers representing a defendant in a death penalty case, after the attorney said he isn’t ready for trial. Characterizing Norman Kallen, who reportedly is also representing defendants in two other death penalty cases, as overcommitted, Los Angeles County…

Sep 21, 2007 10:08 PM CDT

Apple CEO, Law Firm May Play Role in GC Case

A well-known law firm and the CEO of Apple Inc. may provide evidence in the civil fraud case against the company’s former general counsel, Nancy Heinen. CEO Steve Jobs has been subpoenaed for a deposition in the Securities and Exchange Commission case against Heinen, who is accused of participating in…

Sep 21, 2007 12:56 PM CDT