Verdicts & Settlements

Former Dewey partner settles $200K capital loan dispute with Citibank

A federal judge in New York issued a brief order Thursday dismissing without explanation all claims and counterclaims in a lawsuit concerning a capital loan for a little over $200,000 made by Citibank to a former partner of Dewey & LeBoeuf, reports Reuters. After Citibank sued ex-partner Steven Otillar for…

May 10, 2013 4:29 PM CDT

New NLRB rulings back bus driver fired over Web comments, limit hospital’s social media policy

In a new ruling in a hot area of employment law, the National Labor Relations Board has backed a tour bus driver fired for making comments critical of his employer in Facebook and email comments that also suggested fellow workers should unionize. The NLRB agreed with an administrative judge that…

May 8, 2013 5:15 PM CDT

Pro se homeowner wins rare federal stay of sale in foreclosure case

Representing herself in federal court without the help of a lawyer, a Colorado homeowner has won a rare ruling staying the auction sale of her home after she lost a state-court mortgage foreclosure case. U.S. District Judge William Martinez on Monday issued an order temporarily staying the sale of Lisa…

May 7, 2013 4:08 PM CDT

Judge jails lawyer and client over tardy arrival for jury selection

When a Philadelphia lawyer and his client arrived 50 minutes late for jury selection in a drug case on Monday, a Pennsylvania judge jailed them both. Holding lawyer B. David Marcial in contempt and upping the bond for his client, Jesus O. Ortiz, from $120,000 to $3 million, Judge Stephen…

May 7, 2013 3:40 PM CDT

Can remote texter be liable if driver is distracted by message? Appeals court mulls novel theory

It’s common knowledge that texting and driving is a bad idea and, in a number of jurisdictions, illegal. New Jersey is one of them. But what about sending a text to someone you know is behind the wheel? In addition to moral responsibility, could there be any civil liability for…

May 6, 2013 10:32 PM CDT

With $1B fee unpaid, plaintiff lawyer who won $18B enviro case is now pro se against Chevron

Attorney Steven Donziger could earn $1 billion, his opposing counsel says, if an $18 billion foreign judgment against Chevron Corp. concerning environmental damage in Ecuador is upheld. Meanwhile, Donziger is unable to afford to pay his own counsel as Chevron continues with a bruising U.S. district court counterattack against the…

May 6, 2013 8:15 PM CDT

Guilty plea ends record $38M fraud case that doubled assessments for British Columbia lawyers

After nearly five years of legal battle, a former real estate developer pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud in a Vancouver, B.C., court Friday, putting an end to a record $38.4 million Canadian lawyer-fraud case that doubled the client-compensation assessment payments for attorneys in the Law Society of British…

May 6, 2013 6:35 PM CDT

Judge faces discipline case for dismissing lawyer’s speeding ticket

Disciplinary counsel for the Ohio Supreme Court is seeking to sanction a Franklin County Municipal Court judge for dismissing a lawyer’s speeding ticket. Attorney Patrick M. Quinn had been ticketed in November 2011 for doing 81 mph in a 65-mph zone. Judge Harland H. Hale, who was being represented by…

May 3, 2013 6:39 PM CDT

Cheap bus ticket included a trip to small-claims court for unwary students

A 50-cent bus fare purchased by a University of Illinois student for a November 2011 trip to visit a friend at Illinois State University got a lot more expensive when, more than a year later, the bus company sent him a demand letter by Federal Express. It said Ryan Tompkins…

May 3, 2013 4:15 PM CDT

In ‘truly bizarre’ situation, FDA, DOJ and federal judge differ on ‘Plan B’ pill sale to teens

In the latest round of a hard-fought political battle over the issue of whether the so-called morning-after birth control pill should be available without a prescription to 15- and 16-year-olds, a federal regulatory agency has told pharmacies they are free to sell one brand, Plan B One-Step, over the counter,…

May 2, 2013 4:15 PM CDT

2 lawyers who say their bookkeeper fled to Argentina with $4.8M in client funds are disbarred

Two Florida lawyers who say their bookkeeper embezzled $4.8 million and fled to Argentina have been disbarred. A referee hearing the Florida Bar legal ethics case had recommended that Mark E. Rousso and Leonardo A. Roth merely be temporarily suspended from practice, for 12 and 15 months, respectively. But the…

May 2, 2013 3:15 PM CDT

Stop-and-frisk project reaches ‘appalling’ conclusion: No right to misdemeanor trial in Bronx, NY

A special Bronx Defenders project—in which a Wall Street law firm was lined up to help those accused of misdemeanors after arrests resulting from questionable stop-and-frisk tactics by police—has reached a grim conclusion. Contrary to what the U.S. Constitution and New York state law requires, there is effectively no right…

May 1, 2013 7:21 PM CDT

Former Dewey chairman may not have to pay entire $511K settlement; it depends on his income

Former Dewey & LeBoeuf chairman Steven Davis is getting some leeway in a proposed $511,000 settlement related to the law firm’s collapse. The proposed agreement to settle a mismanagement claim gives Davis six years to pay the money, and it’s contingent on his earnings, the Am Law Daily reports. Davis…

May 1, 2013 1:43 PM CDT

Judge puts the brakes on law firm’s suit over similar domain name, says bad faith not yet shown

A New York legal boutique known for its expertise in counterfeiting and cybersquatting cases is experiencing a frustrating delay in obtaining a relief against a Canadian computer programmer who they allege set up a website with a name almost identical to the law firm’s. Although GIOCONDOLAW.com is easily confused with…

Apr 30, 2013 9:03 PM CDT

Sex-assault defendant is convicted of capital murder in mid-trial shooting spree

A Texas jury deliberated for less than two hours Tuesday before convicting Bartholomew Granger, 42, of capital murder in the slaying of a 79-year-old woman outside the Jefferson County courthouse last year. The defendant showed no emotion as the verdict was announced, but the victim’s daughter smiled, the Beaumont Enterprise…

Apr 30, 2013 8:45 PM CDT