Verdicts & Settlements

Judge: FDA Overstepped Bounds in Restricting ‘Plan B’ Contraceptive

A federal regulatory agency overstepped its bounds in limiting access to the so-called “Plan B” emergency contraceptive, a federal judge has ruled. In setting special requirements for the controversial contraceptive, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration “departed in significant ways from the agency’s normal procedures regarding similar applications to switch…

Mar 23, 2009 8:13 PM CDT

Female Fla. Prison Workers Sue Over Alleged Inmate Sexual Harassment

More than 100 female prison workers have filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the Florida Department of Corrections contending that they were routinely sexually harassed by inmates. The employees, mostly nurses, allege that male inmates used graphic language and masturbated towards them, reports the Miami Herald. “The conduct is…

Mar 23, 2009 3:13 PM CDT

Jailed in Wedding Gown, Texas Bride Complains About Web Photo

A Texas bride arrested on her wedding night after her new husband was pulled over in March 14 drunk driving sweep, dubbed “March Madness,” in Harris County had to spend the night in jail. But that wasn’t the worst of it. A photo taken by an unknown man of Jade…

Mar 20, 2009 4:37 PM CDT

25 Years After Fla. Courthouse Shooting, Last Victim Dies

It was a time when courthouse metal detectors and bag searches were not yet commonplace. So when Thomas Provenzano walked into the Orange County Courthouse on Jan. 10, 1984, no one knew that the Florida man, who had a history of mental illness, was carrying three guns. Intending to shoot…

Mar 20, 2009 1:03 AM CDT

Detainees Can Sue U.S. Contractor Over Alleged War Crimes at Abu Ghraib Prison

Four individuals who say they were tortured while held prisoner at the Abu Ghraib detention facility in Iraq can sue a U.S. defense contractor whose employees allegedly participated in the claimed war crimes, a federal judge has ruled. In an opinion released today, U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee rejected…

Mar 19, 2009 9:19 PM CDT

China Closes Yitong Law Firm Known for Legal Activism

A Beijing law firm known for its activist approach to human rights issues and official corruption was closed down by the Chinese government this week. Although the asserted reason for shutting down the Yitong Law Firm for six months was that it had allowed a lawyer to practice without a…

Mar 19, 2009 5:58 PM CDT

Law Prof’s Article on His Jury Experience Leads to Overturned Verdict

Updated: A law professor’s article on his experiences as a juror in a slip-and-fall case has resulted in a new trial for a grocery store found liable for $876,000. A New Jersey appeals court ruled today that the defendant deserved a new trial, in part because the professor’s explanation of…

Mar 19, 2009 3:52 PM CDT

Mayer Brown Escapes a Refco Case; No Private Right of Action, Judge Rules

Plaintiffs in a securities fraud case filed over the collapse of Refco Inc. can’t hold an international law firm defendant liable for alleged aiding and abetting, a federal judge in New York City has ruled. Because there is no private right of action under the applicable federal statutory law, Mayer…

Mar 18, 2009 8:35 PM CDT

Discovery Denied in N.Y. Lawyer’s Fraud Claim Concerning Claimed Affair

Seeking to reduce his divorce settlement in a state that still attributes fault between spouses in divorces, a New York lawyer tried to get “liberal discovery” concerning his claim that DNA evidence proves his youngest child was the product of an affair between his wife and a building contractor. But…

Mar 18, 2009 5:52 PM CDT

Panel Says La. Should Pay Katrina Doc’s $450K Defense Costs

As one member called a Louisiana doctor who at one point was accused of criminally euthanizing patients in her care a hero, a panel today recommended that the state should pay some $450,000 in legal defense costs for Dr. Anna Pou. After working at Memorial Medical Center in New Orleans,…

Mar 17, 2009 9:06 PM CDT

A Shock for Judge Zloch: 9 Jurors in 1 Trial Doing Web Research

When U.S. District Judge William Zloch recently learned last week that a juror in a big federal drug trial in Florida had been doing Internet research, in violation of the court’s instructions, he was shocked. But the judge was even more amazed to find out, when he then questioned other…

Mar 17, 2009 8:20 PM CDT

Husson Univ. to Revive Plan for New Maine Law School

Husson University is reportedly about to launch another attempt to create a new law school in Maine. An earlier effort to do so was blocked by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, but the university plans to detail its latest plans at a press conference tomorrow, reports Mainebiz. Earlier coverage: ABAJournal.com:…

Mar 17, 2009 6:22 PM CDT

New Win for Dismissed Dental Student: $321K Legal Fee Caps $1.7M Award

In another federal court victory for an unfairly dismissed University of Michigan dental student, Alissa Zwick has been awarded not quite $321,000 in attorney fees and costs. The university argued that the attorney fee sought was excessive, but U.S. District Judge Marianne Battani awarded all but $2,300 of the amount…

Mar 17, 2009 5:25 PM CDT

Jailed Madoff Seeks Bail; He and Wife Held $823M in Assets in 2008

Jailed immediately as a flight risk after he pleaded guilty yesterday in a record-breaking $65 billion Ponzi scheme, Bernard Madoff already wants out. His lawyers filed a federal court appeal today in New York seeking his release on bond prior to his scheduled June 16 sentencing, and a three-judge panel…

Mar 13, 2009 11:07 PM CDT

3rd Pa. Judge on Hot Seat; Will Juvenile Convictions Be Reversed?

In the latest developments in an expanding scandal over corruption in the Luzerne County, Pa., court system, a third judge there is now on the hot seat. Relying on unnamed sources, the Legal Intelligencer reports that the judge is being investigated over an allegation that he may have received a…

Mar 13, 2009 9:02 PM CDT