Lawyers USA back issues from April 2007:
What's in a (domain) name? Something worth fighting over
Apr 09, 2007; ... The arbitration of domain name disputes is surging, rising 21percent in 2006. But these cyberspace suits may eventually migratetowards traditional litigation, or end altogether as domain namesbecome less important in an age of sophisticated search engines. The National Arbitration ...
Justices weigh in on global warming
Apr 09, 2007; ... The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that automobile greenhouse gasemissions are air pollutants, and that federal environmentalofficials have the authority to regulate them, is expected to havefar-reaching implications - from Capitol Hill to courtrooms acrossthe country. The 5-4 ...
What litigators can learn from mediators
Apr 09, 2007; ... Litigators and mediators are not exactly birds of a feather. Although both deal with conflict resolution, they have radicallydifferent notions about what constitutes a successful outcome and howto go about achieving it. The litigator defines success as total victory for his ...
FTC urges Florida Bar to reject proposed change
Apr 09, 2007 ... Members of the Federal Trade Commission are raising a red flagover a proposed revision to the Florida Rules of Professional Conductseeking to curb false and misleading information in electroniccommunications. The Florida State Bar sought FTC comment on the proposed newrules, ...
'Caller-ID spoofing' bill advances in Congress
Apr 09, 2007 ... The practice of using Internet services to deceptively concealtelephone information to bypass caller identification devices, atechnique known as "caller-ID spoofing," would be banned underlegislation that is moving forward on Capitol Hill. Moreover, while the bill is primarily ...
House member seeks to end IRS private debt collectors
Apr 09, 2007 ... Amid mounting consumer complaints and increased legislativescrutiny of private debt collection programs used by the InternalRevenue Service, the IRS's chief House appropriator said he will pushto end the program in fiscal 2008. After two days of testimony, including statements from ...
Genetic nondiscrimination bill moves forward
Apr 09, 2007 ... Legislation that would ban employers and health insurers fromdiscriminating on the basis of genetic information has moved to theHouse floor after unanimous approval by the House Energy and CommerceCommittee. The bill would amend existing federal civil rights and employmentlaws to ...
House lawmakers, advocates push immigration reform
Apr 09, 2007 ... As House lawmakers introduced new bipartisan immigration reformlegislation, a group of immigration reform advocacy groups sentCongress and President George W. Bush a list of principles they wouldsupport in a new law. Reps. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., and Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., have ...
ID theft bill introduced in the Senate
Apr 09, 2007 ... A bill introduced in the Senate would require businesses to notifyconsumers if a security breach compromises their personalinformation. The measure, the "Notification of Risk to Personal Data Act,"would also ban the sale or disclosure of a person's Social Securitynumber without ...
Law firm to pay $76 million in IRS tax fraud settlement
Apr 09, 2007 ... The law firm of Jenkens & Gilchrist will shut down and pay a $76million penalty for setting up fraudulent tax shelters, the InternalRevenue Service announced late last month. The settlement allows the 56-year old firm to avoid criminalprosecution by the U.S. Attorney's ...
EPA proposes new hazardous waste rule
Apr 09, 2007 ... The Environmental Protection Agency is proposing a change in itssolid waste definition that it says will help streamline regulationof secondary materials and provide for the recycling of morematerials, including solvents, metals and other chemicals. The proposed change would also ...
U.S. Supreme Court Certiorari Granted: April 9, 2007
Apr 09, 2007 ... CHILD PORNOGRAPHY Is a "pandering" provision in the 2003 PROTECT Act, whichestablished criminal liability for the promotion or advertisement ofchild pornography using the Internet or a mail system, so vague andoverbroad that it violates the First Amendment? U.S. v. Williams, ...
Scales of justice weighted against plus-size clients
Apr 09, 2007; ... More than half of Americans are either overweight or obese, butthat doesn't make jurors sympathetic toward plaintiffs packing extrapounds. Amy Pardieck, a trial consultant with MetaSystems, Ltd. in Canton,Mich., says that jurors have preconceived, negative perceptions ...
Discriminatory hiring policy may be valid, 3rd Circuit rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... Excluding job applicants because of previous criminal activitydoes not necessarily violate Title VII even though it may have adisproportionate impact on minorities, the 3rd Circuit has ruled. The state of Pennsylvania declined to consider the plaintiff for ajob driving physically ...
Attorney filing suit against fantasy sports websites
Apr 09, 2007; ... An estimated 16 million Americans pay to participate in onlinefantasy sports leagues, scouting real players, drafting teams andtrying to win championships and prizes. But are they gambling? Charles E. Humprey Jr. is betting they are. Humphrey, a businesslawyer who specializes in ...
'Noncooperative' employee can't claim discrimination, 11th Circuit rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... An employee who was fired after refusing to cooperate with heremployer's reasonable efforts to resolve her harassment complaintscannot hold the employer liable for discrimination, the 11th Circuithas ruled. A marketing representative claimed that a hostile work environmentexisted ...
9th Circuit says firm can sue competitor for luring away employees
Apr 09, 2007 ... A business could bring interference with contract and unfaircompetition claims against a competitor that allegedly lured awayemployees who had signed employment contracts, the 9th Circuit hasruled in a case decided under California law. The plaintiff is a trucking business. To ...
Settlement offer inadmissible in age discrimination case, 6th Circuit rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... A judge erred in permitting settlement offer letters to beintroduced in an age discrimination case after the defendantspresented evidence that the plaintiff had failed to mitigate hisdamages, the 6th Circuit has ruled. The plaintiff, a 73-year-old dentist, was terminated by a ...
3rd Circuit says OSHA claim not preempted
Apr 09, 2007 ... OSHA rollover protection standards for construction equipment donot preempt state law claims brought by the widow of a worker who waskilled when equipment he was operating flipped over, the 3rd Circuithas ruled in reversing a U.S. District Court. The plaintiff's husband was working ...
Lawyer with sick building syndrome can get disability benefits, 10th Circuit rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... A lawyer with sick building syndrome is entitled to long termdisability because her symptoms prevented her from working in thelarge office building environment required by her practice, the 10thCircuit has ruled. A partner in a large firm specializing in commercial real ...
Missouri Supreme Court says spousal support can't be terminated despite murder allegation
Apr 09, 2007 ... A divorced husband's spousal support obligation can't be modifiedor terminated on the basis that his ex-wife tried to hire someone tomurder him, the Missouri Supreme Court has ruled. When they divorced, the husband and wife executed a non-modifiable separation agreement. It ...
Payments received for marital home aren't alimony, U.S. Tax Court rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... Payments that a divorced woman received from her former spouse forthe maintenance of the marital home until it was sold are part of adivision of marital property, not alimony, the U.S. Tax Court hasruled in reversing a tax deficiency assessment. Section 71(a) of the U.S. Tax Code ...
California Court of Appeals says wife can get share of husband's military disability
Apr 09, 2007 ... A divorced man could be required to pay his former wife a share ofhis veterans' disability benefits if the parties' property settlementagreement granted her a share of his military retirement pay, theCalifornia Court of Appeal has ruled. The husband was a colonel in the U.S. Army ...
New Jersey Appellate Division says suit against vaccine manufacturer must be in vaccine court
Apr 09, 2007 ... A claim that a polio vaccine manufacturer failed adequately totest for and remove a virus from its product must first be brought infederal vaccine court, the New Jersey Appellate Division has ruled. A seven-year-old child died after ingesting an oral polio vaccinethat allegedly ...
Customer can sue grocery store for fall at salad bar, Connecticut Supreme Court rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... A customer could sue a grocery store for negligence after sheslipped on a piece of lettuce while serving herself at a salad bar,even though the store may have lacked knowledge of the hazard, theConnecticut Supreme Court has ruled in reversing judgment. The plaintiff went to a ...
Med-mal law requiring affidavit conflicts with state rules of procedure, Arkansas Supreme Court says
Apr 09, 2007 ... A state law requiring medical malpractice plaintiffs to file anaffidavit of merit within 30 days of their complaint is unenforceablebecause it conflicts with state rules, the Arkansas Supreme Court hasruled in reversing the dismissal of a plaintiff's lawsuit. After supposedly ...
Utah Supreme Court rules clergy sex abuse claims are time-barred
Apr 09, 2007 ... An awareness of sexual abuse by a priest provided sufficient basisfor two plaintiffs to pursue the facts necessary to support theirclaims that a diocese knew of the abuse and failed to prevent it, theUtah Supreme Court has ruled. As a result, their subsequent claims are ...
Oklahoma Supreme Court says med-mal discovery order may be issued under HIPAA
Apr 09, 2007 ... Medical malpractice defendants can obtain a discovery orderallowing them to gather information from health care providers whotreated a woman fatally injured in an automobile accident - such anorder does not necessarily violate federal privacy law, the OklahomaSupreme Court has ruled ....
California Court of Appeals says Good Samaritan may be held liable for injury
Apr 09, 2007 ... A state Good Samaritan law does not bar a negligence claim againstan individual who allegedly injured the plaintiff by removing herfrom her vehicle after an accident, the California Court of Appealhas ruled. The defendant was a friend of the plaintiff's who was driving in ...
Kentucky Supreme Court says plaintiff needn't prove lost earning power to reach trial
Apr 09, 2007 ... A personal injury plaintiff does not have to present specificevidence of how her earning power was permanently damaged in order tofor a claim of permanent impairment to go to the jury, the KentuckySupreme Court has ruled. The plaintiff was injured in an auto accident and, ...
Parents' consortium claim may be tolled, Ohio Supreme Court says
Apr 09, 2007 ... A parent's claim for loss of consortium may be tolled during achild's disability, the Ohio Supreme Court has ruled. The issue arose in a medical malpractice suit brought on behalf ofa minor who suffered permanent injuries as a result of bacterialmeningitis. The minor's parents sued ...
Illinois Appellate Court says woman can sue for abortion caused by accident
Apr 09, 2007 ... A pregnant woman who claimed her decision to undergo an abortionwas the result of medical advice she received after being injured inan automobile accident could sue for the wrongful death of her fetus,the Illinois Appellate Court has ruled in reversing a dismissal. The plaintiff ...
Class action can seek medical monitoring, Missouri Supreme Court rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... A claim for medical monitoring brought by more than 200 childrenexposed to toxic lead is eligible for class certification, theMissouri Supreme Court has ruled in reversing the Court of Appealsand remanding the case. The lead plaintiff filed a petition stating that she was a ...
Insurance may cover sex assault by minor, New Jersey Appellate Division rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... The inferred intent rule, which precludes homeowners' insurancecoverage for damages for a sexual assault committed by an adultpolicyholder against a child, does not necessarily apply if theperpetrator is a minor, the New Jersey Appellate Division has ruled. Instead, a factual ...
9th Circuit finds firms jointly and severally liable for CERCLA cleanup
Apr 09, 2007 ... A railroad and a chemical supplier could be jointly and severallyliable for CERCLA cleanup costs at a defunct agricultural chemicalplant, even though they were directly responsible for only a minorportion of the total cleanup costs, the 9th Circuit has ruled inreversing ...
Georgia Supreme Court rules family can get comp for death of employee returning from errand
Apr 09, 2007 ... The family of an employee who died while coming back from apersonal errand was entitled to workers' comp benefits because theaccident occurred near his workplace, the Georgia Supreme Court hasruled. A construction superintendent was killed in a motor vehicleaccident while driving ...
Maryland Court of Appeals says inheritance tax may be paid from residuary estate
Apr 09, 2007 ... A testator may direct that inheritance taxes be paid from theentire residuary estate prior to apportionment, even where a statestatute exempts some of the residuary legatees from the payment ofsuch taxes, Maryland's highest court has ruled. In his will, the decedent left his ...
U.S. Supreme Court rules in qui tam case
Apr 09, 2007 ... The False Claims Act's "original source" provision requires thatrelators have direct and independent knowledge of the information onwhich their allegations are based at all stages of the litigation,the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled. A lead engineer at a nuclear weapons plant in ...
Insurance agent's statements may expand coverage, Utah Supreme Court finds
Apr 09, 2007 ... An insured may obtain expanded coverage beyond the express termsof his automobile policy based on the representations of hisinsurance agent, the Utah Supreme Court has ruled in reversing asummary judgment. An underinsured motorist struck the plaintiff as he was walkingacross a ...
Vermont Supreme Court says police can't search vehicle after driver is secured
Apr 09, 2007 ... Police officers may not routinely search a vehicle when itsoccupant has been arrested, handcuffed and secured in the back seatof a police cruiser, the Vermont Supreme Court has ruled. A police officer stopped a car that was speeding and weaving.Noticing the driver's watery and ...
Company liable for failing to pay illegal alien, Kansas Supreme Court says
Apr 09, 2007 ... Federal immigration law does not preempt a state law wage claimbrought by an illegal alien, the Kansas Supreme Court has ruled. A company fired an illegal alien allegedly without paying him thewages he had earned, claiming that his employment contract was notvalid because he was ...
Trial court can't order division of son's ashes, Pennsylvania Appellate Court rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... A judge couldn't order the division of cremated remains where thedecedent's father objected, a Pennsylvania appellate court has ruled. A married couple in the process of getting a divorce argued abouthow to dispose of their deceased son's remains. The family courtjudge ordered that ...
Securities class representative can't sue class counsel, 8th Circuit rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act does not create aprivate right of action for claims by a class representative againstclass counsel, the 8th Circuit has ruled. After Bank of America merged with a local bank, numerous state andfederal lawsuits were filed alleging that ...
9th Circuit says party seeking disclosure has burden of proof in applying crime-fraud exception
Apr 09, 2007 ... In a civil case in which disclosure of attorney-clientcommunications is sought under the crime-fraud exception, the partyseeking disclosure must prove by a preponderance of the evidence thatthe exception applies, the 9th Circuit has ruled. Napster, Inc. was an Internet network ...
Tax shelter penalty survives lawyer's death, 9th Circuit rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... The penalty for a tax lawyer's promotion of abusive tax shelterssurvives his death and can be levied against his firm, the 9thCircuit has ruled. In addition, the attorney-client privilege doesn't bar the IRSfrom obtaining client information from the law firm's bank The IRS ...
Social Security Agency can't order law firm to return fee, 2nd Circuit rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... The Social Security Administration could not require a law firm toreturn fees awarded in a dispute over disability benefits, eventhough the client's obligation to pay the fees had allegedly beendischarged in bankruptcy, the 2nd Circuit has ruled in reversing adismissal. The firm ...
Arizona Supreme Court says city liable for attorney fees in infraction proceeding
Apr 09, 2007 ... A property owner who prevails in a civil infraction proceedingbrought by a city may recover attorney fees under a state lawauthorizing such awards to parties that prevail in "civil actions"involving a municipality, the Arizona Supreme Court has ruled. The city of Tucson twice cited ...
U.S. Supreme Court says party can recover attorney fees in bankruptcy
Apr 09, 2007 ... Federal bankruptcy law does not forbid contract-based claims forattorney fees based solely on the fact that the fees were incurredlitigating bankruptcy law issues, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled ina unanimous opinion. Travelers Casualty issued surety bonds for Pacific Gas & ...
Restitution in criminal case is not dischargeable, 10th Circuit rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... A Chapter 7 debtor cannot discharge a restitution obligationimposed in a criminal case even though it is ultimately payable to aprivate party, the 10th Circuit has ruled. A defendant pleaded guilty to arson after setting fire to aMcDonald's. The judge stayed his prison sentence, ...
Maryland Court of Appeals says car buyers can't be forced to arbitrate warranty claim
Apr 09, 2007 ... Car buyers could not be required to arbitrate a breach-of-warranty claim against a dealership because the Magnuson-MossWarranty Act supersedes federal arbitration law, Maryland's highestcourt has ruled. A father and son purchased a Ford Escort from a car dealership.Their contract ...
7th Circuit finds credit agency not liable under Fair Credit Reporting Act
Apr 09, 2007 ... A credit reporting agency is not required by the Fair CreditReporting Act to provide all information it has on a consumer - itmust provide only that information it would send to a third partyrequesting a credit history, the 7th Circuit has ruled. Two consumers requested copies of ...
Commentary: Post-verdict juror interviews: A chance to improve your game
Apr 09, 2007 ... Although the most important work an attorney performs takes placebefore and during the trial, litigators have an important opportunityto learn about their effectiveness after the trial is over. Did thethemes you chose to emphasize resonate with the jury? Did the jurorsfind your witnesses ...
Home buyer must arbitrate design defect claim, California Court of Appeals finds
Apr 09, 2007 ... A home buyer must arbitrate construction and design defect claimsagainst a developer, even though state law expressly provides thatsuch suits can be pursued in court, the California Court of Appealhas ruled in reversing the denial of a motion to compel arbitration. The plaintiff ...
U.S. Supreme Court Decisions: April 9, 2007
Apr 09, 2007 ... GLOBAL WARMING The Environmental Protection Agency has the authority under theClean Air Act to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, and its decisionnot to promulgate regulations must be based on the statute. U.S. Supreme Court. Massachusetts v. EPA, No. 05-1120. April 2,2007 ....
Special Olympics Florida to pay $2.1M for sexual abuse of handicapped athlete
Apr 09, 2007; ... Two mentally handicapped women won a $2.1 million verdict againstthe Special Olympics Florida for not doing enough to protect themfrom a sexual predator who assaulted them and had been accused ofdoing the same to another Olympian. Plaintiffs' attorney Daniel F. Dill of Orlando said ...
Collaborative law hits Colorado snag
Apr 09, 2007; ... Collaborative law has grown steadily in popularity sinceMinneapolis divorce lawyer Stuart Webb first introduced the conceptin the 1990s. But since Feb. 24, practitioners and supporters have been buzzingabout an unwelcome development. On that day, the Colorado BarAssociation ...
Psychological as well as physical injuries spotlighted in Iowa workers' comp case
Apr 09, 2007; ... An Iowa jury sent the insurance industry a $13 million messagethat it doesn't pay to split hairs to avoid paying a workers' compclaim. The jury awarded the massive verdict - which included $3 millionin punitive damages - even though the plaintiff's injuries stemmedfrom a ...
Choosing a class action rep
Apr 09, 2007; ... Paul Kiesel learned a lot from his first experience filing a classaction. It was 1994, and he was primarily doing personal injuryplaintiffs' work when a friend referred a case about a consumer whohad been injured using a hair-straightening product. The product,advertised ...
$50M punitive award sidesteps High Court ruling
Apr 09, 2007; ... In the first major punitive damages award since the U.S. SupremeCourt placed new limits on punitive damages earlier this year, a LosAngeles jury ordered DaimlerChrysler to pay $5.2 million incompensatory damages and $50 million in punitives to a man run overby his own truck. The ...
7th Circuit says plaintiffs can't rescind settlement because they don't like terms
Apr 09, 2007 ... Title VII plaintiffs cannot rescind a settlement just because theybelieve it is more favorable to their lawyers than to themselves, the7th Circuit has ruled. Five African-American police department employees sued thedepartment under Title VII for racial discrimination. Prior to ...
Litigious individual not a 'business', 9th Circuit rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... A paraplegic's record of litigiousness did not render him a"business" rather than an "individual" for purposes of the Americanswith Disabilities Act, the 9th Circuit has ruled. A paraplegic filed a lawsuit under state law and the Americanswith Disabilities Act against a restaurant ...
Admission of lab report violates Constitution, Missouri Supreme Court rules
Apr 09, 2007 ... The admission of a lab report prepared by an analyst who was notin court to testify or be questioned violated the ConfrontationClause, the Missouri Supreme Court has ruled in reversing a second-degree drug trafficking conviction. Acting on a search warrant, police entered the home ...
Kansas Supreme Court finds defendant has privacy interest in trash bag
Apr 09, 2007 ... A property owner has a constitutionally protected privacy interestin the contents of a trash bag left within the curtilage of hisproperty, the Kansas Supreme Court has ruled. After getting a report from a concerned citizen, a police officervisited the defendant's residence. He ...
Violation of local law may not violate Fourth Amendment, 3rd Circuit finds
Apr 09, 2007 ... A violation of state or local law is not a per se violation of theFourth Amendment, the 3rd Circuit has ruled in reversing a U.S.District Court. The defendant was one of 32 individuals on a boat of illegal Cubanaliens that ran aground on a harbor reef at St. Croix, VirginIslands ....
Wisconsin Supreme Court says protective search of car violates Constitution
Apr 09, 2007 ... A driver's furtive motion did not justify a protective search ofhis vehicle, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has ruled. The defendant was the driver of a car stopped by police for asuspected emissions violation. They saw the driver lean forward andappear to reach under the front seat, ...