Missouri Lawyers Weekly articles from April 2008

Missouri Lawyers Weekly archives from April 2008

Commentary: Technology continues to take over the world of law.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Karl M. Kindt III I recently was asked to develop a legal technologies and software course for students in the legal studies program at Webster University. The fact that a course in legal-related media and computer technologies is...

Todd McFarlane may not recoup defense spending.(Brief article)
April 7, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole Todd McFarlane's comic book business may have to say goodbye to the chances of recouping some of the millions of dollars spent defending a right-of-publicity lawsuit filed by former Blues hockey player Tony Twist. ...

Mo. law firm of Lathrop & Gage gets leeway to spend money on golf tournament.(Missouri)(Brief article)
April 7, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole Lathrop & Gage attorneys just got more leeway to spend money on golf tournament and dinner sponsorships. The law firm increased the money dedicated to attorneys' discretionary business development allowances by 22...

More Missori IP attorneys move.(Missouri intellectual property attorneys)(Brief article)
April 7, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole Former managing partner Ed Hejlek and new partner Richard Schuth have left Senniger Powers. After more than 24 years at Senniger, Hejlek left April 1 for Bryan Cave. Schuth, who became partner Jan. 1, followed...

St. Louis area man declares National Be Kind to Lawyers Day.(Steve Hughes)(Brief article)
April 7, 2008... Byline: Kelly Weise Nearly every group or cause has a special holiday, all but lawyers, it seems. Steve Hughes decided that needs to change. So the St. Louis area man, who is not a lawyer, has declared April 8 as National Be Kind to...

Missouri Lawyers in the News: April 7, 2008.(Missouri Asian-American Bar Association)(Brief article)
April 7, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Gov. Matt Blunt appointed St. Louis attorney Bryan Hettenbach to replace Judge Joan Burger on the St. Louis Circuit Court. Hettenbach, 53, is in private practice at Nations, Hettenbach & Diehl in Town...

Circuit splitsville in Missouri courts.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Stephanie Maniscalco A man seeking life insurance had a duty to inform his insurance company that the assessment of his health changed between his application and the issuance of his policy, according to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court...

Federal Study: Those million-dollar payouts are rare indeed.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Will Connaghan Taking a medical malpractice lawsuit to trial can take a lot of time and effort for both sides, and not always with the desired result. According to a seven-state study released last year by the Department of...

Consumer laws in Missouri a boon to class action plaintiffs.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Allison Retka For Missouri consumers who encounter faulty tire rims, mislabeled milk cartons or an exterminator whose termite-fighting abilities leave much to be desired, a personal injury suit has always been an option. But...

Governor hopefuls.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Allison Retka Editor's note Missouri Lawyers Weekly tried to reach all Democratic and Republican candidates for the governor's race. We were either unable to contact the candidates or they did not immediately return calls for...

Former Missouri judge loses bid for more benefits.(Robert H. Sihnhold)
April 7, 2008... Byline: Donna Walter A former workers' compensation judge will have to wait another few months before he can start collecting retirement benefits. Last week, the Missouri Supreme Court said awarding Robert H. Sihnhold, 64, pension...

Both sides seek new trial in legal malpractice case in Illinois.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese Thompson Coburn has been found guilty by an Illinois jury of legal malpractice and ordered to pay millions to a bank client, but that's not the last word on the subject. Regions Bank, previously known as Magna Bank,...

Missouri Supreme Court ends suit over clergy abuse.(William Mueller)
April 7, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese The state Supreme Court has ended a man's lawsuit claiming sexual abuse by a member of the clergy, saying the time in which to file suit had expired. Robert Visnaw sued in 2006, claiming former Marianist Brother...

Missouri Court of Appeals Eastern District Case Summaries: April 7, 2008.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Disqualification Registry - Care Provider - Physical Abuse Finding Where a care provider who worked at an independent living facility assisting developmentally disabled people...

Missouri Court of Appeals Southern District Case Summaries: April 7, 2008.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Rule 29.15 - Effectiveness Of Counsel - Waiver of Jury Trial Where the record showed that a criminal defendant waived a jury trial knowingly and intelligently and that counsel's...

Missouri Court of Appeals Western District Case Summaries: April 7, 2008.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Appellate Practice Summary Judgment - Appeal From Denial Where the sole point raised in an appellant's brief was that the trial court erred in not granting him summary judgment, a denial of...

Missouri Supreme Court Case Summaries: April 7, 2008.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Attorneys Disqualification - Prosecutor - Appearance Of Impropriety Where a criminal defendant was represented by a defense attorney on charges involving illegal possession of prescription...

U.S. Bankruptcy Court - App. Panel Case Summaries: April 7, 2008.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Bankruptcy Retirement Plan Loan - Repayment - Calculation Where a Chapter 13 debtor may repay loans from a qualified retirement plan during the course of Chapter 13 proceedings, the debtor may...

U.S. Court of Appeals Eighth Circuit Case Summaries: April 7, 2008.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Child Sexual Abuse - Sufficiency Of Evidence - Leading Questions (1) Even though a child victim of sexual abuse admitted that she could not remember some incidents of abuse, the...

Back surgery leads to $2.5M jury verdict in St. Louis County Circuit Court.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese A man who sued his surgeon after unsuccessful, and he claims unnecessary back surgery, has won more than $2.3 million from a St. Louis County jury. The jury awarded his wife an additional $175,000. Keith Haley, 40,...

St. Louis Circuit Court awards $783K to patient, amount later reduced.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Anne C. Vitale A St. Louis jury returned a $783,000 verdict in favor of a dialysis patient who required hand and forearm amputation allegedly because of a misdiagnosed vascular condition. Audrey Walker, 52, suffered from...

Buchanan County jury clears obstetrician of malpractice during delivery.(Maureen Boyle)
April 7, 2008... Byline: Anne C. Vitale A Buchanan County jury decided an obstetrician did not commit medical malpractice during a delivery that resulted in a baby's permanent brachial plexus injury. Plaintiffs asked the jury for $3.6 million in damages,...

Family settles wrongful death case in Jasper County Circuit Court for $280K.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Anne C. Vitale A family claiming that a woman died from a misdiagnosed heart attack has reached a $280,000 settlement in a Jasper County suit against an emergency room doctor and nurse. The woman died five days after being...

Rear-end collision settles for $675K in St. Louis Circuit Court.
April 7, 2008... Byline: Anne C. Vitale A government employee reached a $675,000 settlement in her St. Louis personal injury case against an attorney who rear-ended her vehicle. According to a Verdict Reporter search, this is the largest settlement on...

Shell station operator wins California lawsuit.(Pacific Fuel Company)(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole Lawyers suing Shell Oil Co. on behalf of a gas station operator scored a $2.1 million verdict in California more than a year after U.S. District Court Judge Dean Whipple tossed a similar Missouri case. Pacific Fuel...

Missouri attorney was just doing his job.(Eugene Portman)(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole Even if Clayton attorney Eugene Portman knew his real estate client yanked $250,000 in earnest money, he can't be sued for it. That's the gist of a motion to dismiss Portman from a lawsuit filed over a failed deal...

Former partner Charles Polk Jr.'s tenure at the Mo. law firm in fed court.(Lathrop and Gage, Missouri)(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole As promised, a lawsuit against Lathrop & Gage over former partner Charles Polk Jr.'s tenure at the firm is in federal court. James Helenthal filed the lawsuit March 31 after making the rounds of state circuit and...

Mo. Supreme Court orders Lake St. Louis attorney's license to be suspended until March.(Missouri, David Dalton II)(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole After signing an agreement with the U.S. Attorney's office last year, Lake St. Louis lawyer David Dalton II would have been able to practice law again June 25. Under a Missouri Supreme Court order, however,...

Kansas City lawyer faces reprimand.(Larry Delano Coleman)(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... Byline: Charles Emerick A Kansas City lawyer facing a public reprimand argued before the Supreme Court last week that there is no evidence that he ever violated any ethics rules. In fact, Larry Delano Coleman said he acted properly,...

Missouri Lawyers in the News: April 14, 2008.(Greg Linhares appointed as court administrator, Michael J. Schmid nominated to serve on the Missouri Ethics Commission, Tom Schweich resigning from the Department of State)
April 14, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Greg Linhares returned from active duty with the Army Reserves and started as state court administrator on April 9. The Missouri Supreme Court announced in November it had selected former commission...

Letter to the Editor: Mediation creates greater satisfaction than arbitration.
April 14, 2008... Byline: Bruce Feldacke Dear Editor: As president of the Association of Missouri Mediators, I want to congratulate Missouri Lawyers Weekly on the informative (and provocative) article on alternative dispute resolution appearing in your...

Commentary: You shoulda seen the verdict I landed the other day.
April 14, 2008... Byline: Will Connaghan When spring arrives, I start thinking about one of my favorite pastimes fishing. It occurs to me that pretrial demands and pretrial offers are a lot like fishing. Depending on the bait and the conditions, you...

Political point man: Mo. Rep. Bryan Pratt.(Missouri)
April 14, 2008... Byline: Allison Retka Bryan Pratt cracks open a Sprite, takes a swig, then bends down to hike up his black dress socks. He is standing at a lectern in the House chambers of the Missouri Capitol. The room is gilded and high-ceilinged,...

Mutual mistake defense upheld in insurance dispute in Missouri.
April 14, 2008... Byline: Allison Retka A house fire on a remote property near Springfield may lead to a new determination on a rare but useful contract defense theory: mutual mistake. The case may offer guidance to insurance defense attorneys in...

Missouri Court of Appeals Western District rules unsubstantiated police reports can still show bias.
April 14, 2008... Byline: Allison Retka The sexual assault conviction of a Missouri man was reversed by a state appeals court because the trial court excluded police reports that could have indicated bias in the testifying victim. Prosecutors had argued...

Court plan opponents in Missouri move focus to Legislature.
April 14, 2008... Byline: Kelly Wiese With less than a month to go before voter signatures must be submitted, backers of an effort to change how Missouri selects its judges are pinning their hopes instead on the Legislature to place the issue before voters....

Mo. Court of Appeals Western District faults DCS for lack of follow up in termination case.(Missouri, Division of Children's Services)
April 14, 2008... Byline: Stephanie Maniscalco A couple whose parental rights were terminated won a reversal in the Western District of the Missouri Court of Appeals because the trial court's findings of abuse and neglect were based on outdated information...

Missouri Court of Appeals Eastern District Case Summaries: April 14, 2008.
April 14, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Appellate Practice Brief - Inadequate Where the brief of a pro se appellant in an unemployment compensation case included a deficient jurisdictional statement, statement of facts and failed to...

Missouri Court of Appeals Southern District Case Summaries: April 14, 2008.
April 14, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Appellate Practice Leave To Amend - Attorney's Fees - Inaccurate Reference Where an employee of a car dealer sued the employer and co-owners claiming the co-owner's actions in hitting him with...

Missouri Court of Appeals Western District Case Summaries: April 14, 2008.
April 14, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Sentencing - Correction Of Sentence - Presence Of Defendant Where a criminal defendant was not present when the trial court convened to correct his sentence and a docket entry...

U.S. Court of Appeals Eighth Circuit Case Summaries: April 14, 2008.
April 14, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Jurisdiction - Tribal Court - Auto Accident Where a member of the Chippewa Indians sued a non-Indian after an automobile accident on a state highway within the reservation, the...

Verdicts & Settlements April 14, 2008: Jury awards $74K for neck injuries following auto collision.
April 14, 2008... Byline: Kyle Lewis A Greene County jury awarded a woman $74,097 for injuries she suffered in a rear-end collision in 2003. Tiffany Neely, the plaintiff along with her husband, James Neely, was a passenger in a Ford Expedition when it...

Verdicts & Settlements April 14, 2008: Jury rejects negligence claims against hospital.(Brief article)
April 14, 2008... Byline: Anne C. Vitale A St. Louis hospital has prevailed in a personal injury suit brought by a woman claiming she was punctured by a used syringe. The plaintiff asked the jury for $500,000 in damages for the puncture wound, pain and...

Verdicts & Settlements April 14, 2008: Retailer awarded $1.1M for breach of contract.
April 14, 2008... Byline: Anne C. Vitale A national thrift-store retailer has won $1.1 million in its breach of contract claims against a Missouri-based software developer. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, alleged...

Verdicts & Settlements April 14, 2008: Widow awarded $3.5M after death of husband, son.
April 14, 2008... Byline: Kyle Lewis An arbitration panel awarded a Pennsylvania widow $3.5 million after her husband and son were killed in a single-car accident on Interstate 70 in Columbia. The plaintiff, Doris Brandt, was traveling westbound on...

Commentary: State court missed its chance.
April 14, 2008... Byline: Nicholas A. Loyal For decades, the property rights of Missouri residents have been disregarded as municipalities throughout the state plowed through personal history in the disastrous pursuit of progress. The state's highest...

U.S. Trustee in the Solutia Inc. bankruptcy case says never let them see you sweat.
April 28, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole The U.S. Trustee in the Solutia Inc. bankruptcy case said car services cost more than taxis and are unnecessarily expensive. The New York judge overseeing the case said lawyers need to take car services to avoid...

Phoenix law office of Bryan Cave: Finding a City of Gold.(Brief article)
April 28, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole The housing market locally may have gone south, but there's still high-end real estate work to be had for Bryan Cave attorneys based in the firm's Phoenix office. Two lawyers have gone to Mexico to find it. ...

Springfield lawyer seeks to have her disbarment set aside.(Brief article)
April 28, 2008... Byline: Heather Cole Springfield lawyer Brandy McShane is seeking to have her disbarment set aside. A motion to that effect is pending in Missouri Supreme Court, said McShane, who was disbarred in February after she failed to respond to a...

Missouri Lawyers in the News: April 28, 2008.
April 28, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Gov. Matt Blunt announced he nominated Doug Copeland to serve on the commission that oversees the state public defender system. If confirmed by the Senate, his term would run until April 2014. Copeland,...

Letter to the Editor: Eminent domain ruling was no place for activism.(Letter to the editor)
April 28, 2008... Byline: Dale Whitman Dear Editor: In a recent commentary, "State court missed its chance," April 14, Nicholas Loyal took the Missouri Supreme Court to task for its decision in City of Arnold v. Tourkakis. In that case, the court...

Commentary: Attorneys should get prepared since medical system isn't.(Column)
April 28, 2008... Byline: Will Connaghan I don't know if you've noticed, but the baby boomer generation is getting a little long in the tooth. The generation that has impacted everything from education to popular culture is already moving toward its next...

Do organic consumers get milked in court?
April 28, 2008... Byline: Bridget Heos When a person needs medical help at work, co-workers are required to exercise reasonable care in helping him. But what if the co-worker's remedy is so out of bounds that it causes major injuries? Plaintiff's...

Help on horizon for troubled attorneys in Missouri.
April 28, 2008... Byline: Allison Retka Some lawyers screw up. They drink. They lose track of clients and filing dates. Their tempers flare. The state bar and the Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel have these troubled attorneys in mind as they...

Essay winners in Missouri agree: Laws can help and hurt.(Essay)
April 28, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Each year, The Missouri Bar and the Missouri National Education Association cosponsor a Law Day essay contest for children in grades 4 through 12. The topic this year was "How do laws help or hurt a...

Commentary: Making your case: Hiring well.
April 28, 2008... Byline: Nina Rao When Bishop and Hayes needs a new paralegal or legal assistant, it's up to Brad Bishop or Tim Hayes to find one. Because the firm has exactly two paralegals, two legal assistants and two locations, the task of placing...

Missouri Court of Appeals Southern District rules smirk did not violate order of protection.(Brief article)
April 28, 2008... Byline: Stephanie Maniscalco A man who was charged with violating a full order of protection won a reversal of the misdemeanor conviction this week in the Missouri Court of Appeals Southern District. Immediately after Fred Bush was...

Missouri Court of Appeals Eastern District Case Summaries: April 28, 2008.(Brief article)
April 28, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Sex Offender - Residency Restriction - Violation Where a convicted sex offender challenged the constitutionality of a statute restricting offenders from living within 1,000 feet of...

Missouri Court of Appeals Southern District Case Summaries: April 28, 2008.
April 28, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Sodomy Conviction - Plain Error Review - Witness Statement Where a detective in a sodomy trial commented on his perception of statements made by the defendant, the detective was...

Missouri Court of Appeals Western District Case Summaries: April 28, 2008.
April 28, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Child Support Modification - Administrative Initiation - Jurisdiction Where the Family Support Division initiated an administrative order to modify a judicial child support...

United States Court of Appeals Eighth Circuit Case Summaries: April 28, 2008.
April 28, 2008... Byline: Missouri Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Instructions - Gun Possession - Drug Crimes Where a defendant received a gun in a trade for drugs, the district court's instruction although correct when given was inconsistent...

Verdicts & Settlements April 28, 2008: Fatal collision case settles for $350K.
April 28, 2008... Byline: Anne C. Vitale The family of a woman killed in a broadside collision has reached a $350,000 settlement in their Jackson County wrongful death case against the other driver's employer. Plaintiffs used "black box" data to argue that...

Verdicts & Settlements April 28, 2008: Accident victim collects $1M from three defendants.
April 28, 2008... Byline: Kyle Lewis A man who suffered injuries in an automobile accident with a semitrailer settled his Jefferson County case against the three defendants for $1.06 million. On June, 23, 2004, the plaintiff, Aaron Williams, was stopped...

Verdicts & Settlements April 28, 2008: Arena parking lot case settles for $100K.
April 28, 2008... Byline: Anne C. Vitale A pedestrian struck outside a Kansas City sports arena has reached a $100,000 settlement in his Jackson County personal injury case against the driver who hit him. Frank Vigliaturo, 51, was leaving a WWF...

Verdicts & Settlements April 28, 2008: Widow recovers $485K for crash that killed husband.(Case overview)
April 28, 2008... Byline: Anne C. Vitale A widow who lost her 81-year-old husband in a fatal car accident settled her Buchanan County wrongful death case for $485,000. The widow, who was a passenger in the vehicle, recovered an additional $50,000 in a...

Verdicts & Settlements April 28, 2008: Man settles with trucking company over highway accident.
April 28, 2008... Byline: Kyle Lewis A Festus man settled his suit against a trucking company for $900,000 for injuries he suffered after a collision with a semitrailer in Jefferson County. On Feb. 7, 2006, the plaintiff, 40-year-old Mark Forir, was a...

Commentary: For Mediation Month, consider your ethical duties.
April 28, 2008... Byline: Maridee F. Edwards On March 14 Gov. Matt Blunt proclaimed April as Mediation Month in recognition of the service mediators provide in resolving conflict in the state. Missouri's Supreme Court has also recognized and supported...

Commentary: In dealing with gizmos, tune into generational needs.
April 28, 2008... Byline: Gretchen Neels Q. I'd like to know your stance on iPods, cell phones and other gizmos in the office. As a law-firm administrator, I want to make our new professionals feel welcome and at home, yet it seems that their propensity...

Commentary: No need to drop Missouri Plan off at the shop.(Nonpartisan Court Plan)
April 28, 2008... Byline: John DeMoor When it comes to understanding the attacks on the Nonpartisan Court Plan, The Missouri Bar President Charlie Harris offers a metaphor to explain it. He begins by describing his father as having a practical approach to...