Verdicts & Settlements

Wells Fargo Must Pay $203M, Judge Rules, Due to ‘Draconian’ Debit-Card Overdraft Policy

A federal judge in California has ruled that Wells Fargo must repay $203 million in excessive debit-card overdraft fees to customers who were charged, without adequate disclosure, in a manner that maximized the number of $35 fees they were hit with for exceeding the available balance in their accounts. “The…

Aug 11, 2010 8:15 PM CDT

Yale Secret Society Skull and Bones Wins Lawsuit Over Geronimo’s Remains

A student secret society at Yale University has won a court battle, at least for now, over remains of the Apache warrior Geronimo that a member or members of Skull and Bones allegedly stole from his grave at a prisoner-of-war cemetery at Fort Sill, Okla., around 1918, and brought to…

Aug 11, 2010 5:49 PM CDT

BP Oil Spill Litigation to Be Heard by Federal Judge in New Orleans

A federal panel of judges has decided that litigation concerning the massive undersea BP PLC oil spill that began in April will be heard by a federal judge in New Orleans. The decision to direct civil cases concerning the spill to U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier is likely to please…

Aug 10, 2010 9:57 PM CDT

DA Fights Potential Reprimand re Claimed Concealment of Plea Deal with Witness

A Wisconsin prosecutor is vowing to fight a disciplinary case in which she faces a potential public reprimand after being accused of concealing a plea deal with a witness in a robbery trial. The ethics case against Outagamie County District Attorney Carrie Schneider resulted from a campaign by a former…

Aug 10, 2010 5:31 PM CDT

Retired Wachtell Partner’s Prenup Precludes Share in 7-Figure Income for ‘Playmate’ Ex-Wife

A retired litigation partner at Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz can keep the lion’s share of his income and assets after a brief marriage to a former Brazilian model he met at a “European Playmates” agency, a Connecticut appeals court has ruled. A prenuptial agreement between attorney Peter McKenna, 72,…

Aug 6, 2010 7:46 PM CDT

Sypher Convicted in Rick Pitino Extortion After Her Divorce Lawyer Testifies Against Her

Charged with attempting to extort money from Rick Pitino by falsely accusing the University of Louisville basketball coach of raping her, Karen Sypher has been convicted on all of the six counts she faced. She never testified and her defense counsel presented no witnesses on her behalf. But he said…

Aug 6, 2010 7:17 PM CDT

Lawyer Who Took Obstruction Plea in Med Mal Kickbacks Case Is Suspended

A Las Vegas lawyer who pleaded guilty to obstruction earlier this year concerning an alleged medical malpractice case kickbacks scheme has been temporarily suspended by the Nevada Supreme Court. Further attorney discipline proceedings will determine an appropriate sanction for Noel Gage, 72, who had been accused of participating in an…

Aug 5, 2010 9:01 PM CDT

Plaintiffs Object to Deal in Anorexia Suit Claiming School Didn’t Prevent Fat Taunts

A former middle school student who claims teasing by classmates led to her anorexia is due to receive a legal settlement in what may be a first-of-its-kind lawsuit, even though she and her mother now say it’s not enough. U.S. District Judge Donetta Ambrose ruled that the $55,000 settlement agreement…

Aug 5, 2010 11:00 AM CDT

Federal Judge Says Fellow Jurist’s Ethics Testimony Can Be Used in US Senate Impeachment Trial

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has refused a fellow jurist’s plea to block his testimony in a judicial ethics proceeding from being used in an upcoming U.S. Senate impeachment trial. U.S. District Judge Thomas Porteous contended that a grant of immunity for testimony he gave to investigators for a…

Aug 4, 2010 7:38 PM CDT

Lawyer Accused of Robbing Bank to Pay Utility Bills, Other Living Expenses

For a decade or so, beginning in the late 1990s, attorney Peter Elliott allegedly siphoned some $2.5 million out of his client trust account to pay personal expenses. The Wisconsin lawyer pleaded guilty to one count of federal bank fraud, and is scheduled to be sentenced later this month. But…

Aug 4, 2010 6:25 PM CDT

Video Game CEO Balks at $1M Legal Bill, But Appeals Court Says He Has to Pay

When dealing with a sexual harassment suit, an executive of a video game giant allegedly said he wanted to spend to defend rather than settle with the plaintiff for $200,000 to $400,000. But when it came time to pay his attorney’s nearly seven-figure legal bill, Bobby Kotick of Activision Blizzard…

Aug 4, 2010 4:22 PM CDT

Lawyer Sued for Sexual Harassment Wins $1.55M for Defamation Counterclaim

A jury is weighing punitive damages after awarding a California lawyer $1.55 million in a defamation counterclaim against the paralegal who sued him for sexual harassment. Jurors rejected the sexual harassment claim by paralegal Allison Moreno, who had alleged she had sex with Oakland lawyer Thomas Ostly to protect her…

Aug 4, 2010 2:59 PM CDT

$215M Suit Says Grant & Eisenhofer Hid Agreement and Took Excessive Fee from Clients

An investor in Tyco International Ltd. has turned the tables on Grant & Eisenhofer, contending in a malpractice lawsuit seeking class action status that the plaintiffs securities law firm concealed a fee agreement with the lead plaintiff in an earlier case and took an excessive payout from its own clients.…

Aug 3, 2010 11:11 PM CDT

Newspaper: Judge’s 3-Month Suspension Is a Paid Vacation

A three-month suspension meted out by an ethics panel to a Tennessee judge isn’t exactly a draconian punishment. Since Cocke County General Sessions Judge John Bell will still draw his pay, the sanction is “essentially a three-month paid vacation,” writes the Knoxville News Sentinel in an editorial. Meanwhile, taxpayers will…

Aug 3, 2010 6:17 PM CDT

Federal Prosecutor Who Worked 5 Years Sans Law License Is Now Suspended

A former federal prosecutor who apparently had difficulty on several fronts has now lost not only his job but his law license, which has been suspended until at least 2012, WRAL reports. David Folmar’s law license lapsed in late 2003 because he didn’t comply with continuing legal education requirements. But…

Aug 2, 2010 11:49 PM CDT