Delaware

Jury in Delaware awards $100M to 51-year-old woman in transvaginal mesh case

Delaware is not a state known for big jury verdicts in individual personal injury cases. But on Thursday a jury there awarded a 51-year-old former bank teller $25 million in compensatory damages and $75 million in punitives against Boston Scientific Corp. Deborah Barba said she suffered constant discomfort, urinary tract…

May 29, 2015 12:25 PM CDT

$72M payday for 2 small law firms OK’d by judge

Citing “true contingency risk,” a Delaware Court of Chancery judge on Wednesday OK’d a $72.5 million attorney’s fees payment to two small law firms that represented the plaintiffs in a shareholder suit against a videogame maker. The settlement approved by Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster also included a $275 million…

May 21, 2015 12:15 PM CDT

New BigLaw associates make the most money in NYC, says survey

While $160,000 is widely recognized as the benchmark starting salary paid to first-year associates by the top BigLaw firms, a number outside New York City pay less. Before the recession hit the legal industry hard, 80 percent of the law firms employing 700 attorneys or more said they were paying…

Apr 20, 2015 2:45 PM CDT

Amid battle over bill banning fee-shifting bylaws in Delaware, legal experts point to loophole

Among a number of proposed changes in Delaware corporate law, a bill that would ban companies from enacting fee-shifting bylaws is the most controversial. Authorized by a state supreme court decision last year, such bylaws, if they are widely adopted, potentially could significantly curtail shareholder derivative litigation in the state…

Apr 8, 2015 1:15 PM CDT

Following courthouse prank, Delaware courts are reviewing which security officers should be armed

Court officials in Delaware are reviewing which security officers should carry guns following a reported courthouse prank earlier this month that allegedly involved a firearm. “The Judiciary has been actively working on its policies regarding courthouse security and who should have firearms and has sought advice from the best sources,”…

Feb 25, 2015 10:13 AM CST

Still battling code-theft case, former Goldman Sachs programmer sues bank for legal fees

A former computer programmer for Goldman Sachs Group Inc. ultimately prevailed in a federal prosecution over claims that he stole source code from his employer. But Sergey Aleynikov is still battling Goldman to obtain reimbursement for some $3 million he says he has expended in legal defense fees, reports Reuters.…

Feb 10, 2015 3:50 PM CST

Delaware lifts ban on smiling for camera on driver’s license photos

Effective immediately, Delaware motorists may smile for the camera when they get their driver’s license photos taken. Announced Wednesday, the state motor vehicles division policy change reflects an upgrade in facial recognition technology, reports the News Journal. A prior ban on smiling was intended to prevent identity theft by making…

Jan 29, 2015 10:00 AM CST

Federal judge axes suit against law firm in sunken-treasure hoax, sets sanctions hearing for partner

A well-known Delaware law firm is no longer facing a civil lawsuit over a sunken-treasure hoax. But a sanctions hearing has been scheduled later this week by a federal judge in Florida for partner Bruce Silverstein of Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, Delaware Law Weekly (sub. req.) reports. Silverstein is…

Dec 9, 2014 12:15 PM CST

Racketeering suit says law firm aided sunken-treasure fraud, seeks $10M in damages

An investor group has filed a federal racketeering suit against a well-known Delaware law firm and one of its partners, contending that they aided and abetted a sunken treasure fraud concerning emeralds a client claimed to have discovered undersea off the Florida coast. The alleged participation of Bruce Silverstein and…

Oct 9, 2014 10:50 AM CDT

Wilson Sonsini opens second Delaware office with ex-Chancery chief at helm

A Silicon Valley powerhouse has opened a second Delaware office in Wilmington, with an ex-chief of what many consider the nation’s top business court at the helm. Former chancellor William Chandler III retired from the state’s chancery court in 2011 and has since headed Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati’s corporate…

Oct 8, 2014 4:50 PM CDT

Federal judge on courthouse shooter’s ‘hit list’ asked to step aside in cases against family members

A federal judge who was No. 5 on an alleged 16-name “hit list” found among the belongings of a Delaware courthouse shooter (one of the two women killed was No. 1) has been asked to step aside from hearing criminal cases against the shooter’s family members. Prosecutors joined with defense…

Sep 5, 2014 4:25 PM CDT

Prominent law firm says it knew nothing of claimed sunken treasure fraud, wasn’t counsel of record

A partner at a well-known Delaware law firm says in a court filing that he and Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor knew nothing about an alleged fraud on a federal court in Florida concerning a client’s claimed sunken undersea treasure find. Responding to the court’s show-cause order, Bruce Silverstein says…

Sep 2, 2014 2:55 PM CDT

Delaware is first state to adopt model law that says social media accounts can be inherited

When individuals die their social media accounts often expire along with them. Even if their loved ones have the passwords, terms of use for Facebook and other providers routinely restrict account-sharing. But a uniform law that Delaware reportedly has become the first state to enact changes this expectation, recognizing social…

Aug 20, 2014 4:20 PM CDT

Should drug-lab issues derail hundreds of cases? New chief says lab was ‘like a ‘Hoarding’ episode’

Should hundreds of Delaware drug cases be thrown out because of problems in the testing laboratory overseen by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner? Or should proof of tainted evidence be required before cases are dismissed? That is the issue that faces a state-court judge who began hearing arguments…

Aug 20, 2014 11:15 AM CDT

Chief judge of top Delaware court gets gown makeover; sleeve stripes are reminiscent of Rehnquist

The newly minted chief judge of Delaware’s top court has gotten a gown makeover. Chief Justice Leo Strine of the state’s Supreme Court now has two gold stripes on each sleeve of his black robe, the News Journal reports. It also features light blue and gold accents, representing the state’s…

Aug 6, 2014 5:35 PM CDT