Tort Law

PI Firm Hopes to Do Well by Doing Good on Facebook & Other Social Network Sites

Lots of law firms advertise directly on social networking sites. But California-based Kershaw Cutter & Ratinoff promotes the personal injury and class action firm’s online reputation indirectly. “Our goal with social media is to listen to what people are saying and respond appropriately,” says partner Bill Kershaw in a press…

Nov 3, 2010 4:34 PM CDT

Ex-New York Associate Sues Clifford Chance, Alleges ‘Blatant’ Discrimination Against Blacks & Women

A former associate at Clifford Chance in New York hesitated to sue the firm. But after being unemployed for several years after she and five other U.S. associates of the London-based international megafirm were laid off, Karen Ramdhanie apparently felt she had no other choice. Now 48, she alleges that…

Nov 2, 2010 5:59 PM CDT

2nd Driver on Trial in DUI Death Case; Did Good Samaritan Cause His Own Death?

There were three drivers involved in one fatal Florida traffic accident in 2007, each of whom allegedly had been driving under the influence. James Braley initially rear-ended a Jeep, which flipped over on Interstate 75 near Tampa, authorities say. He allegedly had a blood-alcohol content of 0.219 percent. Then Amir…

Nov 2, 2010 5:19 PM CDT

Google Sues Feds, Alleges Anti-Competitive Bid Specs for E-Mail Contract Proposal

Google Inc. has turned the tables on the feds, alleging that the U.S. Department of the Interior has illegally restricted competition among potential bidders for an e-mail contract by requiring that the system had to be included in the Microsoft Business Productivity Online Suite The specifications are “unduly restrictive of…

Nov 1, 2010 9:04 PM CDT

Debt Collector Faked Court Hearings to Trick Consumers into Paying Up, Says AG’s Suit

A Pennsylvania debt collector conducted fake court hearings in a mock courtroom in its offices and even sent uniformed officers who appeared to be sheriff’s deputies to serve civil subpoenas demanding that consumers appear for “hearings” and “depositions,” the state attorney general’s office contends in a lawsuit. Intimidated consumers allegedly…

Nov 1, 2010 6:59 PM CDT

Dad Settles Suit Against Crocs Over Daughter’s Escalator Injury

The father of a 4-year-old girl has settled his Tennessee lawsuit against Crocs for an escalator injury that mangled the girl’s foot. The amount of the settlement was not disclosed, the Knoxville News Sentinel reports. The multimillion-dollar suit by Jason Barnes of Virginia claimed his daughter was wearing Crocs as…

Nov 1, 2010 1:22 PM CDT

Smothering Mothering

‘Helicopter parents’ are landing big in child care cases

Nov 1, 2010 9:15 AM CDT

New Ethics Case re Lawyer’s Testimony About $8.4M Detroit Pact & Ex-Mayor’s Racy Texts

New ethics trouble is brewing for a Michigan lawyer who helped two police officers win a controversial $8.4 million settlement from the city of Detroit in a whistle-blower case after they agreed to help keep the lid on racy text messages between the then-mayor and a top aide. As an…

Oct 29, 2010 9:04 PM CDT

Take Down Election-Eve Legal Ethics Censure and Replace It with My Order, Fed’l Judge Tells Agency

A judicial candidate censured this week by a legal ethics agency in Nevada over her criticism of her opponent has won an emergency restraining order from chief federal judge of the local U.S. District Court. It not only requires that the censure be taken down from a public website maintained…

Oct 29, 2010 6:46 PM CDT

Toyota Accused of Secretly Buying Back Cars with Reported Sudden Acceleration

An amended complaint accuses Toyota of buying back cars with sudden acceleration problems and requiring the sellers to sign confidentiality agreements. The documents filed Wednesday also claimed Toyota’s own technicians experienced unintended acceleration problems, according to the Associated Press and Reuters. The amended suit seeks to hold Toyota responsible for…

Oct 29, 2010 2:08 PM CDT

Halliburton Cement Used in BP Well Failed Three Tests, Panel Leader Says

A presidential commission investigating the Gulf oil spill has found that Halliburton provided a concrete mixture to seal the BP oil well that had failed three out of four laboratory tests. Lead investigator Fred Bartlit Jr. said the mixture was used despite the multiple failures, according to the New York…

Oct 29, 2010 1:32 PM CDT

4-Year-Old Girl Can Be Sued for Bicycle Injury, Judge Rules

Corrected: A New York judge is permitting a lawsuit against a 4-year-old girl accused of racing her bicycle equipped with training wheels and striking an elderly woman. Judge Paul Wooten of Manhattan noted that Juliet Breitman was close to 5 years old when she and another 4-year-old friend allegedly raced…

Oct 29, 2010 12:41 PM CDT

‘Spectacular Fall’ for Name Partner Adorno, Now Facing Suspension for Class Action Settlement Role

The Florida Bar had sought a six-month suspension, and then a state-court judge serving as a referee had recommended only a reprimand. But the Florida Supreme Court unanimously agreed that a name partner of the nation’s largest minority-owned law firm should be suspended for his role in negotiating a $7…

Oct 28, 2010 6:27 PM CDT

Sanctuary Founder Sues for Her Old Job and Elephant Visitation Rights

The founder of an elephant sanctuary in Tennessee is seeking visitation rights with an elephant she once taught to roller skate. Carol Buckley was only a young student when she bought Tarra the elephant, then a calf, from a tire shop in California, the New York Times reports. Tarra performed…

Oct 28, 2010 1:07 PM CDT

Federal Judge Shuts Down LimeWire, Says P2P Site Aided ‘Massive’ Infringement

Citing “massive” infringement, a federal judge in New York yesterday ordered LimeWire immediately to shut down its peer-to-peer file-sharing website and gave the company 14 days to report back on the measures it has taken to do so, according to Computerworld and PC World. The ruling came in a permanent…

Oct 27, 2010 11:38 PM CDT