Lawyer - News

The New Jersey Supreme Court has refused, for the third time, to hear two former hockey players' claims for $200 million from National Hockey League insurers for injuries suffered in a limousine accident. And the players' lawyers say the court flouted its own voting rules for certification, making the case a window on the seldom-seen workings of the state's highest tribunal. No comments

Chief U.S. District Judge A. Joe Fish, who presided over , says he believes in the maxim "justice delayed is justice denied." But after the foreperson sent a note saying the jury had reached some unanimous decisions in the case, Fish made a choice to wait four days before reading a verdict. The plan, particularly in light of some jurors' change of heart about their decisions, and the mistrial that resulted last week, has prompted some criticism. No comments

Family law attorneys are urging couples to steer clear of Internet-ordained ministers when seeking an officiate to perform their nuptials following a recent Pennsylvania decision in which a judge declared a marriage invalid because the couple had been married by an Internet-ordained minister who the court ruled was unauthorized under state law. Divorce attorneys say the ruling sets a dangerous precedent in encouraging other unhappy partners to seek similar paths to avoid alimony and property division. No comments

Friday's ruling by the Supreme Court of Georgia that Genarlow Wilson's 10-year sentence for aggravated child molestation was unconstitutionally cruel and unusual offered a sense of deja vu to those who followed the 2004 case of Marcus D. Dixon. Each case concerned a young man serving a 10-year prison term for what each said was consensual sexual contact that occurred when he and the alleged victim were teenagers. One critical difference, though, was the stance taken by Justice Hugh P. Thompson. No comments

Allen & Overy has recruited to its New York office the former chief of the securities fraud unit for the Southern District U.S. Attorney's Office. David C. Esseks will join the British legal giant as a partner specializing in white-collar and securities litigation. From 2003 until June 2007, Esseks served as head of the nation's premier white-collar prosecution unit, supervising a staff of 20 Assistant U.S. Attorneys. No comments

Twenty-one years later, the authorized biography of the late Supreme Court Justice William Brennan Jr. now has a publisher and a projected publication date. It also has a working title, drawn from a remark by Brennan's successor, Justice David Souter, at his confirmation hearing -- a comment that might have marked the point at which conservatives knew Souter was not their man. No comments

A settlement worth in the $70 million to $90 million range in the complex lawsuit was approved by Delaware's Court of Chancery last week. In the action, a group of shareholders in the exchange claimed that members of its board of governors had breached their fiduciary duties when they negotiated "strategic alliances" with six Wall Street investment firms that left the firms owning about 90 percent of the exchange, according to the amended complaint. No comments

Sooner or later, writes litigator Howard J. Bashman, every case that has been appealed from a trial court to an intermediate appellate court results in a decision -- one that will disappoint at least one of the parties in the case. Commentator Bashman examines the process and the pitfalls. No comments

Companies investigated by the DOJ and SEC under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act must address EDD issues in an international arena. Howrey partner William Purcell and KPMG principal Bernard Boit examine the global nature of EDD and recommend ways to preserve global, digital media. No comments

U.S. law firms in London are on heightened alert this month ahead of a British government consultation that is expected to address whether U.S. limited liability partnerships operating in the city should be required to disclose their financial results. The Department for Business Enterprise & Regulatory Reform is set to release a consultation on the issue in the coming weeks. The controversial idea provoked fierce complaints from U.S. law firms the last time it was suggested in 2001. No comments