International Courts/Tribunals

Exxon Mobil’s Dispute with Venezuela Has Global Implications

Exxon Mobil Corp. has been involved in some pretty big lawsuits. The oil giant has been regularly painted as the bad guy in connection with events like the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill off the Alaskan coast and states’ claims that it has stolen billions of dollars in mineral rights…

Apr 1, 2011 7:40 AM CDT

Tesla Sues BBC for Libel re ‘Top Gear’ Segment in Which Electric Supercar Seems to Run Out of Juice

The manufacturer of the electric Tesla Roadster is suing the BBC for libel over a three-year-old segment on its Top Gear program. A humorous review of the vehicle by Jeremy Clarkson made it seem as though the Tesla had run out of juice during a race with another high-performance car…

Mar 30, 2011 3:55 PM CDT

2 Ex-Partners Battle Former Law Firm Over 300 Allegedly Swiped Case Files

Two former senior partners are battling their well-known former law firm in Scotland over more than 300 lucrative Legal Aid case files that they are accused of swiping when they exited to form a competing entity directly across the street from their old offices. So far, the Ross Harper firm…

Mar 29, 2011 12:39 AM CDT

Lawyer Apologizes to His Wife, a Prominent Judge, for Pressuring Ex-Client to Have Sex with Her

A Canadian lawyer says he can never apologize enough to his wife, Queen’s Bench Justice Lori Douglas, for pressuring a then-client to have sex with her eight years ago when she was still in practice. Jack King says his wife, who is being investigated by the Canadian Judicial Council over…

Mar 28, 2011 7:45 PM CDT

Live Tweets of Biker Murder Trial and Others Raise Issues of Balance and Fairness

Especially when cameras aren’t allowed in the courtroom, live tweets are the next best thing to being at a trial for those with an interest in the case. But the stream-of-consciousness reportage of the ongoing courtroom drama can raise issues of exploitation and fairness, as was demonstrated on a daily…

Mar 22, 2011 8:04 PM CDT

Blame Yourself, Not Law School, for Failing NY Bar Exam, Judge Tells Plaintiff Paralegal

By suing her United Kingdom law school, Maria Abramova had apparently hoped to recoup some of the $162,000 or so that she says she wasted on a failed education. However, the would-be attorney, who at last report was working as a paralegal after failing both the New York state bar…

Mar 21, 2011 6:25 PM CDT

Law Firm Worker Blew Through Most of the $2.7M She Stole, So Restitution Is Only $389K

In addition to being a thief who stole some $2.7 million in seven years from the United Kingdom law firm at which she was a longtime, trusted employee, Louise Martini also was apparently not a good manager of money. Having reportedly spent most of the moolah on living large (her…

Mar 1, 2011 5:55 PM CST

Thomson Reuters Rolls Out ‘Mexican Legal Dictionary’ App

Whether NAFTA has helped stimulate trade between the US, Mexico and Canada is a continuing source of debate, but the agreement did lead to one thing: an iPhone app. In response to the growing demand for information on Mexican law, Thomson Reuters recently developed a Mexican legal dictionary app. The…

Mar 1, 2011 10:40 AM CST

Judge’s Comments About Rape Victim and Lack of Jail Time for Offender Spark Courthouse Protest

Despite the cold weather, dozens of picketers have been protesting outside the law courts in Manitoba, Canada, over a judge’s decision not to sentence a convicted rapist to jail and the judge’s comments about the conduct of the victim prior to the crime. After Queen’s Bench Justice Robert Dewar called…

Feb 25, 2011 9:24 PM CST

Chevron Fined $8.6B By Ecuador Court in Environmental Case

Chevron Corp. says that there has been an adverse ruling against the oil company today in an environmental case in Ecuador, and a lawyer there who represents the plaintiffs tells Reuters that the amount was $8 billion. That is only a fraction of the $113 billion the plaintiffs reportedly had…

Feb 14, 2011 7:52 PM CST

Russian Hacker Apologizes, Gets Probation in $10M Raid on Scottish Bank

A 27-year-old Russian man who participated in a hack attack on a Scottish bank that eventually netted some $10 million from 2,000 ATMs has been sentenced to probation by a Siberian court. Yevgeny Anikin, who apologized for his role in the crime, also was given a five-year suspended sentence and…

Feb 11, 2011 8:45 PM CST

With ABA Help, Mobile Court Tries Gender Crimes in Country Known as World’s Rape Capital

An unusual court that travels to remote communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo is trying 11 government soldiers accused of raping more than 60 women in attacks on New Year’s Day. The so-called mobile gender court conducts about 10 trials a month and has so far gained 94 rape…

Feb 11, 2011 5:06 PM CST

US Citizen, 14, Charged in Mexico as Alleged Drug Cartel Assassin, Could Get 3 Years in Prison

A 14-year-old United States citizen has been charged with homicide by Mexican prosecutors for allegedly serving as an assassin for a drug cartel. The teen, who is identified only as Edgar, was born in San Diego but was reared in Mexico by his grandmother. He is accused of calmly telling…

Feb 10, 2011 9:03 PM CST

US Judge Grants TRO to Block Enforcement of Potential Ecuador Verdict Against Chevron

In the latest twist in a hard-fought international environmental case that reportedly could win a megabillions verdict for the plaintiffs, a federal judge in New York has granted a temporary restraining order banning enforcement of any judgment that might be awarded in the future by a court in Ecuador. The…

Feb 9, 2011 8:20 PM CST

Patton Firm Seeks to Sue Chevron, Gibson Dunn, Claims Tortious Interference with Client Relationship

Last week, Chevron Corp. filed a federal civil racketeering lawsuit in New York against the plaintiffs in a hard-fought multi-billion-dollar Ecuador environmental case, alleging that they conspired to manufacture and withhold evidence. Among the defendants is one of the lawyers representing the plaintiffs, Steven Donziger. This week, another plaintiffs law…

Feb 8, 2011 4:34 PM CST