States

Insurer Says It’s Not Responsible for TB Lawyer Tort Claims

The company that provided homeowners’ insurance for Andrew Speaker, the Atlanta lawyer who traveled despite a tuberculosis diagnosis, claims in a lawsuit it is not responsible for tort claims against him. USAA Insurance asserts in a petition for declaratory judgment that it has no responsibility for damages in a Canadian…

Jan 18, 2008 4:30 PM CST

Shunned Worshippers File Suit, With Mixed Results

As more evangelical churches return to the practice of disciplining errant members, some shunned worshippers are taking the disputes to court. More than two dozen lawsuits related to church discipline have been filed in the past decade, the Wall Street Journal reports (sub. req.), relying on information from the Religion…

Jan 18, 2008 3:03 PM CST

Study Finds Administration E-Mail Missing for 473 Days

An administration study shows one or more White House offices failed to archive e-mail messages on 473 separate days, according to a summary released by the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. Committee chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif., said he released the study because of what seemed to…

Jan 18, 2008 2:20 PM CST

Judge May Subpoena CIA for Information on Destroyed Tapes

A federal judge in New York said yesterday that he is inclined against holding the CIA in contempt for failing to produce information about destroyed interrogation videotapes in a freedom of information lawsuit. U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein said a contempt citation would serve no purpose other than to create…

Jan 18, 2008 12:20 PM CST

Texas Justice Indicted, Prosecutor to Seek Dismissal of Charges

The district attorney in Houston says he will ask a court to dismiss charges against Texas Supreme Court Justice David Medina and his wife, indicted yesterday in connection with an arson fire that destroyed their home. Medina was charged with evidence tampering and his wife with arson under the grand…

Jan 18, 2008 11:47 AM CST

Colo. Pedestrians Nabbed for Jury Duty

A number of pedestrians in Greeley, Colo., were stunned yesterday to be handed documents requiring them to report immediately for jury duty as they were out and about, attending to their own affairs. After only 40 of the 200 people summoned for jury duty by mail showed up in court,…

Jan 18, 2008 12:17 AM CST

Scammed Clients Seek Leniency for Convicted Lawyer

Clients of a disbarred Florida lawyer who pleaded no contest today to stealing some $200,000 from them are reportedly likely to seek leniency for the man they thought was representing their interests rather than his own. That’s not because they sympathize with the crimes, however, but because they will see…

Jan 17, 2008 11:57 PM CST

Mass. Judge Sues Over Injury on Courthouse Steps

Judges in Massachusetts don’t qualify for workers’ compensation. So, after Paul Chernoff fell on some jagged steps at the Norfolk Superior Courthouse in Dedham and fractured his knee, the jurist eventually decided he had no choice but to sue to get someone to take responsibility for his injuries. The judge,…

Jan 17, 2008 11:43 PM CST

Big U.K. Firm Breaks With Tradition, Takes Case Against Bank

In a tradition-breaking move that could soon be copied by other renowned “magic circle” law firms in London, Linklaters is helping a longtime client file suit against another financial institution. It is advising Barclays Capital in a major dispute with the U.S.-based Bear Stearns investment bank, with Lawrence Byrne, co-managing…

Jan 17, 2008 11:07 PM CST

Bonuses Bigger for Hardest-Working Patton Boggs Associates

Associates at the busiest Patton Boggs offices reportedly have been working harder than their counterparts where business is a bit slower. So the firm decided to recognize their extra work with supersize bonuses, reports Texas Lawyer in an article reprinted by New York Lawyer (reg. req.). Those in the Washington,…

Jan 17, 2008 10:47 PM CST

Man Collected $470K for Job He Didn’t Accept, Authorities Say

Oops. Somebody apparently got their wires crossed at a business telecommunications firm in an upscale area of northern New Jersey. After offering Anthony Armatys a job in 2002, which he declined, Avaya Inc. nonetheless set up a payroll account for him and reportedly direct-deposited nearly half a million dollars into…

Jan 17, 2008 9:08 PM CST

Nearly Naked Fashion Exec Claims Legitimate Business Purpose

A fashion industry executive who is about to face a sexual harassment trial largely focusing on his workplace attire—or lack thereof—claims there was a legitimate business purpose for appearing at meetings in his underwear, and, on occasion, even skimpier outfits. Because he worked as a fit model, and was designing…

Jan 17, 2008 8:25 PM CST

Lambda Legal Seeks Mandamus in Transgender Court Access Case

Lambda Legal has announced it will ask the Illinois Supreme Court to compel a suburban Chicago court to follow proper court procedure for a transgender woman seeking a name change. The woman, who wants to change her name from Donald Turner to Daunn Turner, sought a waiver of court fees…

Jan 17, 2008 8:00 PM CST

Homeless Man Sues Calif. Hospital Over Patient Dumping

A paraplegic man has filed a tort claim against a Southern California hospital, seeking damages for being dumped, without a wheelchair, on a local skid row in a condition in which he allegedly could not care properly for himself. The February incident, which was recorded on a nearby video camera…

Jan 17, 2008 7:42 PM CST

Jurors Appear Skeptical of ‘Little Houdini’ Defense in Child’s Death

The defense lawyer for a Brooklyn man accused in the death of his 7-year-old stepdaughter told jurors yesterday that the slain child was “a little Houdini” who needed to be corrected. Jurors appeared skeptical yesterday of lawyer Jeffrey Schwartz’s arguments that the child, Nixzmary Brown, terrorized her siblings and resisted…

Jan 17, 2008 6:21 PM CST