Verdicts & Settlements

One-Time Lieff Cabraser Partner Says Dispute over Litigation Strategy Led to His Ouster

Was a dispute over litigation strategy the beginning of the end for an equity partner at Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein? As former partner Barry Himmelstein tells the story to the Recorder, his troubles began when he wanted to seek punitive damages in a debit-fee lawsuit against Wells Fargo that…

Mar 7, 2011 1:40 PM CST

9th Circuit Says Law Firm Must Pay $311K to Man From Whom It Sought to Collect Less Than $10K

Corrected: An attorney representing a Montana consumer was jubilant today over news that a $311,000 verdict for his client, who was initially pro se in a collection case brought by a law firm over an old credit card debt of less than $5,000, had been upheld by a federal appeals…

Mar 5, 2011 12:42 AM CST

Lawyer’s Only Case Results in Suspension ... and No Fee

In the more than 15 years that he has been admitted to the Pennsylvania bar, Gary Alan Frank has had only one case. But that one case was enough to get him into hot water with the state’s attorney disciplinary authorities. Earlier this week, Frank was suspended for a year…

Mar 4, 2011 11:30 PM CST

Judge Partially Convicted in Kids-for-Cash Case Seeks Acquittal or New Trial

Convicted by a federal jury in Scranton of 12 of the 39 counts that he faced in a bribery case, a former president judge of Luzerne County is now trying for zero. Mark Ciavarella is seeking to negate the remaining convictions, asking for a judgment notwithstanding the verdict or, in…

Mar 4, 2011 8:33 PM CST

Courtney Love Will Reportedly Pay $430K to Settle Twitter Defamation Suit

Courtney Love has agreed to settle a suit claiming her Twitter rant defamed a Texas fashion designer, but the rocker’s lawyer says the amount is so low that it amounts to little more than “bragging rights” for the defendant. Sources told Hollywood, Esq. that Love will make a series of…

Mar 4, 2011 2:15 PM CST

Republican Senators in Wis. Vote to Authorize Arrest of AWOL Democratic Colleagues

In a move that the Wisconsin State Journal says is of questionable legality, the Republican state senators of Wisconsin voted today to authorize the arrest of 14 absent Democratic colleagues to force them to return to the state capital. The missing group of lawmakers fled two weeks ago, to avoid…

Mar 4, 2011 1:44 AM CST

Ex-CIA Station Chief in Algeria Gets 5.5 Years for Sex Abuse of Unconscious Woman

Adding nearly two years to the sentence recommended by prosecutors, a federal judge in Washington, D.C., today sentenced a former Central Intelligence Agency station chief in Algeria to 5 and a half years in prison for sexually abusing an unconscious woman, among other conduct at issue in the case. Andrew…

Mar 3, 2011 11:32 PM CST

Retired Detroit-Area Drug Prosecutor Takes Plea in Trial-Testimony Case, Will Get 6 Months

A retired chief drug prosecutor in the Detroit area has taken a plea in a controversial perjury case, along with two police officers, leaving only a former Wayne County judge awaiting trial. Karen Plants pleaded guilty yesterday to misconduct in office, for which she will get a six-month jail sentence…

Mar 3, 2011 6:50 PM CST

Defense Lawyer’s Effort to Discredit Informant by Arranging Drug Buy Gets Attorney Convicted

It may have seemed like a good idea at the time. But Indiana attorney David Schalk’s attempt to discredit an informant in a methamphetamine case against his client by proving that the informant was still dealing drugs apparently did not turn out as anticipated. The Indiana Court of Appeals has…

Mar 3, 2011 1:20 AM CST

Students Have Right to Wear ‘Be Happy, Not Gay’ T-Shirt, 7th Circuit Appeals Court Rules

A suburban Chicago school district that promotes tolerance must also allow students to express opposing views, so long as they are not unduly disruptive, a federal appeals court ruled as it upheld the right of high schoolers to wear a “Be Happy, Not Gay” T-shirt. “A school that permits advocacy…

Mar 3, 2011 12:24 AM CST

Charlie Sheen in New Legal Battle: Judge OKs TRO and His Sons Are Taken From His Home

Charlie Sheen was back in the news today after his ex-wife claimed he had threatened her and obtained a temporary restraining order and his two young sons were removed from his California home last night. “I do not know where my children are, but I am not panicking. This is…

Mar 2, 2011 7:19 PM CST

Recruiter Got Zip, Sued for $100M, Is Awarded $365K re 12-Lawyer Leap to Lewis Brisbois

After being paid nothing for a 10-lawyer leap to Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith, a legal recruiter sued the Los Angeles law firm for $100 million. A federal magistrate judge in Houston has now awarded $365,150 to Houston-based CB Legal Search, reports the Houston Business Journal. The recruiter contended its…

Mar 1, 2011 9:59 PM CST

Law Firm Worker Blew Through Most of the $2.7M She Stole, So Restitution Is Only $389K

In addition to being a thief who stole some $2.7 million in seven years from the United Kingdom law firm at which she was a longtime, trusted employee, Louise Martini also was apparently not a good manager of money. Having reportedly spent most of the moolah on living large (her…

Mar 1, 2011 5:55 PM CST

At Least 3 Moms Arrested in Alleged Scheme to Trick Them Into Providing Child Porn ‘Therapy’

At least three mothers have been arrested and criminally charged in connection with a Michigan man’s alleged scheme to trick them into providing him with pornographic images of their children under the guise of providing therapy. Meanwhile, Steven Demink, 41, pleaded guilty in federal court in Detroit today to six…

Mar 1, 2011 1:46 AM CST

Former Sonnenschein Partner Expects $2.1M Payday After Jury Says He Deserved More for Lockerbie Work

For a second time, a Superior Court jury in Washington, D.C., has ruled that a former partner of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal was undercompensated for his origination work concerning a case over the bombing of a Pan Am flight above Lockerbie, Scotland. And this time Douglas Rosenthal (no relation to…

Feb 28, 2011 10:15 PM CST