Judiciary

Pants Judge Files Appeal

The administrative law judge who lost his $54 million lost-pants lawsuit against a dry cleaners has filed an appeal. Roy Pearson Jr. decided to appeal despite the dry cleaners’ decision to drop a request for $82,000 in attorney fees, Legal Times reports. The cleaners’ owners have raised more than $100,000…

Aug 15, 2007 12:29 PM CDT

Clerk Pleads Guilty to Secret Payments

A county courthouse clerk in Georgia has pleaded guilty to felony mail fraud for paying county employees with improper fees collected from criminal defendants. The clerk, Daniel V. Leccese Sr., faces up to two years in prison and a fine as high as $250,000, according to the Fulton County Daily…

Aug 15, 2007 12:14 PM CDT

Pleadings: How Judges Really Behave

Crossed arms, files slammed on desks, and language that a court reporter hesitates to enter into the record. This isn’t recommended judicial demeanor, obviously, but such behavior is alleged among the claims and counterclaims being made in a finger-pointing fest that involves several New York City jurists—and even led to…

Aug 14, 2007 10:28 PM CDT

Temp Judge Fired Over MySpace Post

A temporary “pro tem” judge in North Las Vegas has lost his job over a post on his personal MySpace page that was reportedly hostile to prosecutors and used graphic language. Criminal defense attorney Jonathan MacArthur, 34, was substituting for another judge in North Las Vegas Justice Court, until his…

Aug 14, 2007 4:39 PM CDT

Judge: No Jail for Law Office Bat-Wielder

A middle-aged businessman who smashed a baseball bat through an inner window of an Australian attorney’s office after the lawyer locked himself inside will not be sentenced to jail. Instead, a judge imposed a $4,200 fine and a three-year good-behavior bond on Jim Byrnes, 47, who earlier pleaded guilty to…

Aug 13, 2007 7:16 PM CDT

Chicago Parking Ticket a Tough Case

Chicago has a reputation for being overly aggressive about ticketing unwary motorists for dubious parking infractions, especially downtown. Plus, for the relative few who contest parking tickets, either by mail or in person, there is “a widespread perception that the system is tilted to maximize the haul,” writes the Chicago…

Aug 13, 2007 3:28 PM CDT

Judge Accused of Religious Bias

Southern Florida lawyers are supporting a federal judge in Fort Lauderdale who was accused of bias stemming from his religious beliefs. U.S. District Judge William Zloch last month denied a motion for his recusal that cited ties to Ave Maria Law School and his attendance at judicial junkets sponsored by…

Aug 13, 2007 2:18 PM CDT

Nat’l Security Panel: Constitution is Key

Paying attention to the U.S. Constitution and involving Congress in setting American policy on anti-terrorism measures isn’t just the right thing to do, legally. It’s also the best way to ensure an effective national security program, according to a panel discussion today at the ABA Annual Meeting. From conducting warrantless…

Aug 10, 2007 8:52 PM CDT

Influential Judges Keep Weight Down

Those who miss the blawg Underneath Their Robes and its Superhotties of the Federal Judiciary, take heart. Judge Richard Posner of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has some observations about judicial weight—and we don’t mean weight as in intelligent opinions. Writing on the Becker-Posner blog, the thin Posner…

Aug 10, 2007 5:47 PM CDT

Judge Decries Interpreter Shortage

A New York state judge is trying to shine a light on what he calls a “disturbing lack” of courtroom sign-language interpreters for the deaf. Judge Charles Markey of Queens said employment opportunities are exploding for sign language interpreters, and courts paying $250 a day are not matching rates in…

Aug 10, 2007 3:35 PM CDT

Pakistan Court Acts in Election Case

The Pakistan Supreme Court has issued an order requiring registration of all eligible voters. The court gave the election commission 30 days to complete the task, Reuters reports. A complaint filed by exiled former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto had claimed millions of people had been excluded form a draft list…

Aug 10, 2007 1:48 PM CDT

Judge Perry to Win ABA Marshall Award

A revered South Carolina civil rights lawyer whose career included numerous “firsts” is to be presented by the American Bar Association later this month with its prestigious Thurgood Marshall Award. To be honored by the ABA at its annual meeting for his “substantial and long-term contributions to the furtherance of…

Aug 6, 2007 5:40 PM CDT

Final Likely Loss for ‘Pants’ Judge: His Job

An administrative law judge who became a target of international disapprobation after suing his neighborhood dry cleaners for $54 million over an allegedly botched dry-cleaning job that resulted in the loss of his suit trousers, is now poised to lose more than his pants and the case. It is becoming…

Aug 2, 2007 10:49 PM CDT

Judge in $2 M Libel Case Seeks to Retire

A judge who won a $2 million libel verdict against the Boston Herald is now on sick leave and seeking to retire on a disability pension. Superior Court Judge Ernest B. Murphy says he is suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome as a result of the paper’s coverage criticizing his judicial…

Aug 2, 2007 8:41 PM CDT

Pakistan Prez, Top Judge Reconciling?

Four months after he sought to remove Pakistan’s top judge from the bench, the country’s president is now trying to get back on his good side. After a July 20 decision by the Pakistan Supreme Court that Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry had been improperly suspended in March and must…

Aug 1, 2007 6:31 PM CDT