Tort Law

Judge Sues Lawyer and 2 Clients Who Complained About Him

An Ohio judge has sued a lawyer and two of the attorney’s clients for defamation, contending also that one of the clients and the attorney violated the terms of a confidential settlement agreement. Both of the clients had previously accused Franklin County Environmental Court Judge Harland H. Hale of inappropriate…

Nov 2, 2011 7:48 PM CDT

Can Citizens Use Cellphones to Record Cops? Joining 1st Circuit, Oregon Appeals Court Says Yes

Arrests of individuals who record police as they are being questioned have been much in the news lately. Among the latest to be criminally charged is a Florida man is being held in the Palm Beach County Jail in lieu of $4,500 bail for allegedly recording officers on his iPhone…

Nov 2, 2011 1:24 AM CDT

Okla. Courthouses Report a Last-Minute Rush to File Lawsuits in Advance of Damage Caps

Oklahoma lawyers were rushing to file lawsuits on Monday in advance of a new cap on damages. More than 400 lawsuits were filed at the Oklahoma County District Courthouse, compared to 50 to 70 personal injury lawsuits on a typical day, NewsOK reports. Deputy clerk Megan McWilliams said the day…

Nov 1, 2011 1:52 PM CDT

Suit by Ex-Watkins Ludlam Partners Claims Colleagues Treated Them Unfairly for Merger Profit

Two former shareholders in the Mississippi law firm Watkins Ludlam Winter & Stennis claim in a lawsuit that seven of their one-time colleagues treated them unfairly in an effort to gain financially in an upcoming merger with Jones, Walker, Waechter, Poitevent, Carrere & Denegre. The Oct. 14 suit filed by…

Nov 1, 2011 1:21 PM CDT

Heller Suit Claims Error by Greenberg Traurig Led to ‘Chaotic’ Wind Down

The bankruptcy estate of Heller Ehrman claims in a multimillion-dollar malpractice suit that an oversight by Greenberg Traurig led to a more “chaotic” wind down. The suit claims Greenberg failed to discover that Bank of America, Heller’s biggest lender, had terminated its security interest in Heller before the law firm…

Nov 1, 2011 11:37 AM CDT

Thrown for a Loss: Retired Players Sue, Claim NFL Hid Brain Damage Info

Legendary Baltimore Colts tight end John Mackey left a mark on football as few players have. Before Mackey came to the National Football League in 1963, tight ends generally were big oafs who blocked and caught short passes over the middle. But the Colts had something else in the 6-foot-2-inch,…

Nov 1, 2011 8:40 AM CDT

Grave Concerns: Mortuarial Mismanagement Makes Mourners Mad

With Halloween now just a dearly departed memory, let’s keep the cemetery vibe alive just a bit longer to examine some recently unearthed lawsuits that indicate how our own dearly departed might be kept from truly resting in peace. For places that are supposed to be all about eternal tranquility,…

Nov 1, 2011 5:50 AM CDT

Fired Ex-Prosecutor Andrew Shirvell Sues Lawyer Who Sued Him

After a Michigan prosecutor allegedly targeted a gay student at the University of Michigan for homophobic harassment, he was fired from his job as assistant attorney general and sued in federal district court by the man he’d targeted. Andrew Shirvell, the fired ex-prosecutor, counterclaimed. And Friday he filed a federal…

Nov 1, 2011 2:44 AM CDT

Former Staff Attorney Sues Quinn Emanuel, Alleges Race Discrimination in Assignments, Retaliation

A former staff attorney at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan has sued the law firm for race discrimination and retaliation. Kisshia Simmons-Grant says in her federal district court suit that the law firm gave work to less qualified white staff attorneys while she went without assignments and hence was not…

Oct 31, 2011 6:37 PM CDT

Puzzle Cube Reveals Trial Lawyer’s Christmas Party Entertainment: Rascal Flatts

Houston trial lawyer Mark Lanier has once again lined up some big-name musical talent for his annual Christmas party. Rascal Flatts will be performing at the Dec. 4 event at Lanier’s home. Invitations came in the mail this weekend with a puzzle made up of individual cubes that reveal the…

Oct 31, 2011 12:00 PM CDT

Former Gen’l Counsel David Boden is Target of $37.8M Rothstein Law Firm Clawback Suit

An attorney licensed in New York who served as general counsel for the Florida law firm formerly run by now-convicted Ponzi schemer Scott Rothstein is facing a $37.8 million clawback suit. The suit, which was filed today in bankruptcy court in Ft. Lauderdale, seeks $1 million that David Boden allegedly…

Oct 27, 2011 11:36 PM CDT

With Same Lead Plaintiff at Helm, Lawyers Launch New Class Action ‘Armada’ Against Wal-Mart

Earlier this year, a 5-4 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court sank a massive would-be class action against Wal-Mart Stores Inc., finding that the suit by some 1.5 million current and former women employees was simply too big, with too many different claims, to be pursued as a single case.…

Oct 27, 2011 9:12 PM CDT

Del. AG Alleges Deceptive Practices in Latest MERS Suit, Seeks Temporary Court-Ordered Shutdown

In an apparent new wrinkle among a growing wave of government litigation over a national electronic registry that circumvented the traditional system of recording mortgage assignments in county offices, the Delaware attorney general has filed suit against Merscorp Inc. alleging deceptive practices by its Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, according to…

Oct 27, 2011 8:29 PM CDT

Set to Move Ahead on Possible MERS Suit, Texas County Instead Looks to State AG to Take Lead Role

Seemingly on the verge of retaining counsel to follow the lead of another Texas county and file suit against a national electronic mortgage recording entity, officials in Harris County, which includes Houston, instead decided to look to the state attorney general to take a potential leading role. “If this is…

Oct 26, 2011 1:07 AM CDT

Once a Jet-Setter, Disbarred Ill. Trial Lawyer Serving Time in Coke Case Takes Plea in Teen Sex Case

Formerly a jet-setting trial attorney who founded a successful law firm in downstate Illinois near St. Louis, Thomas Lakin is now in his 70s, disbarred and serving federal time on, as one newspaper described it, “drug charges stemming from the cocaine-fueled sex parties he held.” In a federal court hearing…

Oct 25, 2011 11:33 PM CDT