United States
Courts
US
seeks 145-year sentence for lawyer in fraud case - 8 July
The government has recommended that a federal judge in Manhattan impose
a 145-year sentence on Marc S Dreier, the prominent New York lawyer who
has pleaded guilty to a fraud scheme that bilked hedge funds and other
investors out of at least $400 million. - New
York Times website
Does
lawyer who bares sole have an ace in the hole? - 27 June
The holes in the soles of a lawyer's shoes have become a legal issue
during a civil trial in the Palm Beach County Courthouse. Defense lawyer
Michael Robb has been showing up in Circuit Judge Donald Hafele's
courtroom with a pair of black tasseled Cole Haan loafers that have
visible holes in both soles. "I've had pretty good luck with these
shoes", Robb said. "They're comfortable and I wear them".
But they bothered the opposing lawyer, Bill Bone, who characterized the
shoes in a court motion as part of Robb's trial strategy. - Palm
Beach Post website
Circuit
Court of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, in and for Palm Beach County,
Florida
Case no: 502005 CA 004986 XXXX MB AG
Boyd Lenkersdorf and Mary Lenkersdorf v Michael Sorrentino, Willie
Clarke and Leila Clarke
Plaintiff's Motion to Compel Defense Counsel to Wear Appropriate Shoes
at Trial
Cerabino
: story behind controversial court column - 4 July
I spoke to Robb, who found it all very funny, and supplied me with a
slew of quotable lines about his beloved 12-year-old pair of Cole Haan
loafers. He even offered to spell Cole Haan for me, and at the end of
the conversation asked me if I had enough fodder for my column. I then
called Bone, whose reaction couldn't have been more opposite. He
immediately told me that if I wrote about the case, there would be a
mistrial, and that it is unethical for me to write about an ongoing
case, adding that he wondered how I could go to sleep at night and that
this is why newspapers are in financial trouble. After his blustery
monologue, he ordered me not to use anybody's name in my column, and by
the way he was saying it, I think he really thought he had the power to
do that. When questioned about the column by the judge, the jurors said
that the column didn't have any effect on their deliberations. They just
thought it was funny. So what's the mistrial about? Robb argued that the
column disparaged him, even though the judge ruled he could keep his
shoes. - Palm
Beach Post website
See also
: South Africa. New
GM ready to emerge from bankruptcy protection
Cyberlaw
'MySpace
Mom' acquitted in cyberbullying case - 2 July
The Missouri mom whose Internet hoax prompted a 13-year-old girl to
commit suicide was acquitted Thursday, though the judge said the ruling
would not be final until he put it in writing – hinting he could still
change his mind. The case was being closely watched by legal experts
nationwide. It is one of the first to define how law enforcement might
prosecute crimes related to the growing issue of cyberbullying. The
ruling reveals the limits of the law in cracking down on the growing
problem of bullying online. Prosecutors had asked for the maximum
sentence – 3 years in jail and $300 000 fine, but a Los Angeles jury
decided in November that Drew was guilty only of three misdemeanors for
accessing computers without authorization. At Drew's sentencing
Thursday, US District Judge George Wu tossed out Drew's conviction,
essentially saying it would have set too dangerous a precedent. If she
was found guilty of this, the judge said, any Internet user who did''t
follow the terms of agreement of a website could suddenly face criminal
charges. - Christian
Science Monitor website
See
also :
Woman convicted of 3 misdemeanors in Web suicide case - 26 November
Mercury News website
[InfoUpdate 33 of
2008]
Entertainment
Jackson
leaves estate to family - 2 July
Michael Jackson's will has been filed in a Los Angeles court, giving
his entire estate to a family trust. The document reveals that the
star "intentionally omitted" to provide for his former wife,
Debbie Rowe. Jackson's long-term friend and singer Diana Ross is named
as a guardian for his three children should his mother be unable to
take care of them. The star's five-page will is dated 7 July, 2002. It
estimates his estate to be worth more than $500m (£303m), and gives
it to The Michael Jackson Family Trust. The trust will benefit his
three children, his mother and unnamed charities. - BBC
News website
Jackson's
former wife 'undecided' - 3 July
The late Michael Jackson's ex-wife, Debbie Rowe, is undecided over
whether to fight for custody of their two children, her lawyer has
said. - BBC News website
Despite
a will, Jackson left a tangled estate - 6 July
New York Times
website
Jackson's
mother removed as administrator of his estate - 7 July
Michael Jackson's mother was stripped of control of his estate last
night as she prepared to lay her son to rest at Hollywood's
"cemetery of the stars". Katherine Jackson's lawyers had
opposed the legal effort to appoint lawyer John Branca and music
executive John McClain as co-executors of her son's estate in line
with his 2002 will. "Mrs Jackson has concerns about handing over
the keys of the kingdom just yet. She feels it is too soon", John
Schreiber, her lawyer, said. Judge Mitchell Beckloff, of the Los
Angeles Superior Court, ruled that Mr Branca and Mr McClain should be
put in charge of Jackson's assets until a hearing on August 3. - Times
Online website
Deductibility
of Michael Jackson's funeral expenses - 9 July
TaxProf blog
Jackson
foul play 'not ruled out' - 10 July
The head of Los Angeles police has refused to rule out murder in the
investigation into the death of singer Michael Jackson, two weeks ago.
Police Chief William Bratton told US news broadcaster CNN that police
were awaiting toxicology results. - BBC
News website
Finance
Madoff's
luxury penthouse seized - 2 July
US marshals seized the $7m Manhattan penthouse of imprisoned fraudster
Bernard Madoff, forcing his wife Ruth to move elsewhere. A spokesman
for the US Marshals Service said Mrs Madoff was present when agents
took possession of the apartment. - BBC
News website
Judiciary
Justice
Ginsburg : an affirmative action baby? - 9 July
Liberal and conservative clerks alike generally cite Justice Ruth
Bader Ginsburg as one of the sharpest and most self-sufficient - ie,
least clerk-dependent and clerk-driven - of the current justices. So
some may be surprised by these tidbits, from RBG's fascinating
interview with Emily Bazelon. - Above
the Law website
Labour
Issues
Lawsuit
of the Day : 'Big Boob Friday' is a problem? Who knew? - 8 July
There is an interesting employment discrimination complaint coming
out of Connecticut today. A local news anchor claims that she was
discriminated against due to her age and gender by Fox 61.
The heart of forty-year old Shelly Sindland's complaint isn't just
that Fox 61 created a hostile work environment. She also
alleges younger women were given better assignments and better time
slots although she was the most senior reporter at the local news
channel. "On or about December 28, 2007,1 was informed by news
Director Bob Rockstroh that Laurie Perez, a reporter with no children
and with less experience than me, would go to Iowa to cover the Iowa
Caucus. I had pitched this story several times. I asked Rockstroh why,
as the political reporter, I was not selected to go to Iowa, and I
also expressed my disappointment that Laurie, and not I, was selected
to go. On or about December 31, 2007, Rockstroh replied that he and
Assistant News Director Amy Fabozzi-Mattison had not selected me
because of "childcare issues," including that I had
"stress" about getting to the daycare center on time. I did
not then, and do not now, have my daughter in a daycare center".
- Above the Law website
Miscellaneous
Lawsuit
of the Day : can I take back that one million dollar challenge? -
7 July
In December 2006, Dateline reported on the
execution-style murders of four people at a Florida business. Nelson
Serrano, a wealthy businessman, was convicted of the deaths and is now
on death row. During the course of the report, Dateline
interviewed Serrano's defense attorney, James Cheney Mason. The
murders happened in Central Florida and Mason claimed there was only a
28-minute period during which Serrano could have gotten from the
Atlanta Airport to his hotel. Transcript : "Mason : I challenge
anybody to show me, I'll pay them a million dollars if they can do
it". Law student Dustin Kolodziej accepted the challenge, taped
his journey and sent it to Mason along with a request for the one
million. Mason wrote back to say, uh, no, and that he would
"consider any further communications from [Kolodziej] to be in
the nature of attempted extortion and/or mail fraud, and [would] act
accordingly". So, Kolodziej switched from the postal system to
the courts, filing a one million dollar breach of contract complaint.
- Above the Law website
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