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Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan got a boost from potential GOP supporters Thursday, when two Republican senators who will vote on her confirmation both said her lack of experience as a judge is no obstacle to elevating her. Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and George S. LeMieux of Florida made their comments a day after one of the Court's conservative icons, Justice Antonin Scalia, undercut Republican criticism of Kagan's lack of a judicial background.
The defendants' push to stay Gulf of Mexico oil spill cases hit another snag as a second federal judge in Alabama denied requests by BP PLC and Halliburton Energy Services to delay two proposed class actions over economic losses. A lawyer who successfully argued against the stay said the rulings send a message to BP and the other defendants: "You can't put this off indefinitely. And please don't tell us that you don't have the resources to furnish an answer to a complaint. That's nonsensical."
An investment adviser to celebrity clients has been charged with frauds in excess of $30 million. Kenneth I. Starr, a non-practicing attorney, was charged with using his complete control over client accounts to make high-risk investments and steal money to fund a luxury apartment and enrich associates. Among the unnamed "associates" listed in the complaint is a "partner at a prominent national law firm" who maintained a trust account Starr used both to park and funnel money through for his own personal use.
In an unusual filing with the Supreme Court, Acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal said that some of the information the Court used in its recent landmark ruling on juvenile sentencing, supplied to the Court by a federal official without the SG's knowledge, was inaccurate. The letter casts a new light on the federal government's non-involvement in the case, which has been the subject of some controversy, and may relate to Solicitor General Elena Kagan's nomination to the Supreme Court.
As the economic crisis continues to threaten the viability of organizations and jobs across sectors, innovation is essential to ensure survival. Attorney Nicholas Gaffney highlights 21 applications to accomplish tasks faster, cheaper, and better to help you be more effective on the job.
A top BP PLC executive declined to be specific Thursday when pressed at
a congressional hearing to say what kind of claims the company will pay
from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. "We are going to pay all
legitimate claims," Darryl Willis, BP's vice president for resources,
said, repeating a company refrain that has drawn skepticism from
lawmakers and from plaintiffs' advocates, who have brought scores of
class actions and other lawsuits against BP and other companies.
Generic drug manufacturers are not insulated from lawsuits by an FDA approval process that certifies such drugs as the "bioequivalent" of their brand-name predecessors, a federal judge has ruled. The judge refused to dismiss a suit brought by consumers who were taking Wellbutrin, a brand-name antidepressant, and who claim they had side effects upon switching to a generic. The suit alleges that two drug manufacturers failed to warn the public about differences that affected the release of the product's active ingredient.
The American Bar Association and other legal organizations are urging leaders of the Senate Armed Services Committee to resist a provision in a House defense bill that requires the Department of Defense's inspector general to investigate "the conduct and practices" of lawyers representing Guantanamo Bay detainees. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 2011 is pending on the House floor where debate and passage are expected this week.
Leveraging relationships with other lawyers, usually when they send cases to Dwyer & Collora due to conflicts, has helped the historically white-collar litigation boutique add several strong civil practices. "It's hard when you're a boutique with two messages. You've got to gradually bring along the civil [side of the firm]," says founding partner Thomas Dwyer Jr. The 26-lawyer firm now collects more than $10 million in annual revenue. And business was barely off during the recession, says Dwyer.
The year 2013 will mark the first year that authors can take advantage of the Copyright Act's §203 termination provision, likely setting off a flood of termination notices by artists seeking to regain rights previously granted to record labels, book publishers, and advertising agencies.
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