Verdicts & Settlements

Convicted of Manslaughter in Stabbing Death, Lawyer Is MIA at Verdict, Now Sought on Bench Warrant

After attending every day of his manslaughter trial in the 2009 stabbing death of an Arizona State University student, a Tempe lawyer was missing in action when he was found guilty last week. Daniel Gukeisen, 39, is being sought on a bench warrant, reports the Arizona Republic. Although Gukeisen could…

Apr 11, 2011 10:00 AM CDT

Judge OKs Prosecution Letters Saying Criminal Lawyers Can’t Use Madoff Money for Workers’ Defense

In a ruling that puts criminal defense lawyers for former employees of Bernard L. Madoff between a rock and a hard place, a federal judge has upheld the right of government prosecutors to warn counsel not to use money that might be associated with Madoff’s record-breaking Ponzi scheme as legal…

Apr 7, 2011 12:39 AM CDT

5th Circuit Nixes Sanctions Imposed by Federal Judge re Litigant’s Complaints About His Remarks

Saying that a federal judge was disqualified from issuing sanctions in a case that centered on his own alleged remarks showing a lack of impartiality, a federal appeals court has vacated a January order by U.S. District Judge John McBryde imposing penalties on a patent litigant and his lawyers. The…

Apr 7, 2011 12:10 AM CDT

Former Prosecutor and Chief City Judge Admits Arranging for Innocent Man to Make False Confession

A former New Jersey prosecutor and chief municipal judge in the state’s biggest city has pleaded guilty to accepting a $3,500 payment in exchange for arranging for an innocent man to make a false confession in a gun-possession case. In addition, Clifford Minor, 68, who runs a Newark criminal defense…

Apr 6, 2011 8:57 PM CDT

Lender Forecloses on NBA Player’s Home; Despite $10M Contract, He Likely Won’t Owe for Deficiency

When he was playing for the Sacramento Kings, it must have seemed like a good idea to Kevin Martin to purchase a California home for more than $1 million. But, like those with lower incomes and less expensive houses, the Houston Rockets basketball star has just lost his to foreclosure,…

Apr 6, 2011 7:26 PM CDT

Lawyer Who Sued Over 109 Missing Square Feet Wins $150K Settlement

A New York lawyer has won a $150,000 settlement in his suit against a Brooklyn developer that claimed the living space in the condo he wanted to buy was 109 square feet smaller than advertised. Rishi Bhandari and his wife, Heather, gave up an additional $20,000 offered in the settlement…

Apr 6, 2011 1:35 PM CDT

Federal Judge Axes $625.5M Patent Award Against Apple, Says Mirror Worlds Didn’t Prove Case

A federal judge in Tyler, Texas, has axed a $625.5 million jury award against Apple Inc., saying that plaintiff Mirror Worlds didn’t prove its case. One of the largest patent infringement awards ever made, the verdict concerned software for Apple mobile devices that allegedly made illegal use of patented technologies,…

Apr 5, 2011 9:20 PM CDT

For 2nd Time in a Week, Supremes Stay Execution; Inmate Claims Innocence, Argues Lethal Drug Choice

For the second time in a week, the U.S. Supreme Court has stayed an imminent execution to give the defendant’s counsel more time to pursue an appeal. Today it was Cleve Foster who won a reprieve approximately eight hours before he was to be given a lethal injection in Texas,…

Apr 5, 2011 5:41 PM CDT

Mass. Lawyer Is Suspended for 6 Months Due to Multiple Misrepresentations on Resume

Contrary to what his resumé said, Wade Jensen never earned an LLM degree in taxation from Boston University, although he was enrolled and attended classes there. Nor did the 1997 Purdue University graduate earn a bachelor of science degree from Tufts University in 1997, let alone letter there in hockey…

Apr 4, 2011 11:09 PM CDT

Fed’l Judge Says Chase Must Post $4M Surety Bond to Get Its Foreclosure Files Back From Law Firm

A federal judge in Florida has ruled that Chase Home Finance must post a $4 million surety bond before the Ben-Ezra & Katz law firm is required to return to the bank foreclosure files for some $400 million worth of mortgages. The law firm contends that it is owed $6.2…

Apr 1, 2011 10:39 PM CDT

Okla. Judge Denies DA’s Blanket Recusal Motion, Filed Under Seal

An Oklahoma judge swiftly denied yesterday a motion by a prosecutor seeking his recusal in all criminal cases in which the Cleveland County district attorney’s office is involved. Cleveland County District Judge Tom Lucas took less than a minute to make the ruling yesterday, in a courtroom packed with attorneys…

Apr 1, 2011 5:47 PM CDT

Miss. Judge Suspended 30 Days, Without Pay, for Meeting Parties, Lawyers Outside Court

A Mississippi judge has been suspended for 30 days without pay, and will also be reprimanded and fined, for talking with litigants and lawyers outside court. Hinds County Justice Court Judge Houston Patton also allegedly held hearings and made rulings without notifying parties in cases, reports the Clarion Ledger. The…

Mar 31, 2011 8:25 PM CDT

Federal Court Fines Lawyer $1K for ‘Extensive Use of Improper Confidentiality Markings’

There’s no Federal Rule of Civil Procedure that explicitly governs the use of the “confidential” stamp. But, finding that FRCP 26 and 28(d) implicitly require disclosure unless documents are designated confidential by statute or judicial order, a federal appeals court has imposed a $1,000 fine on attorney Daniel Shapiro of…

Mar 31, 2011 7:07 PM CDT

Calif. Judge Axes Drug-Dealing Case After Surveillance Footage Contradicts Police

A San Francisco judge has dismissed a marijuana-dealing case at the preliminary hearing stage after surveillance video showed multiple discrepancies in an account by police of what happened when they entered the defendant’s apartment. The footage supported a claim by defendant McLaren Wenzell, 23, that he never gave plainclothes officers…

Mar 31, 2011 5:17 PM CDT

Judge Orders Newspaper to ID Commenter re Manslaughter Case Against Former ‘Melrose Place’ Actress

A judge in New Jersey yesterday ordered the Newark Star-Ledger to identify an anonymous commenter who said he witnessed a fatal car crash that resulted in an aggravated manslaughter charge against actress Amy Locane-Bovenizer, 39, who starred in the original Melrose Place television series. The comment by the claimed witness…

Mar 30, 2011 8:38 PM CDT