Lawyers Weekly USA articles from April 2006

Lawyers Weekly USA archives from April 2006

Maryland Court of Appeals rules pharmacy liable for advice contained in prescription insert.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A pharmacy could be liable for breach of express warranty where its prescription insert incorrectly advised the plaintiff that she could take her medicine with milk, Maryland's highest court has ruled in...

Arizona Supreme Court says firefighter's rule doesn't bar negligence suit.(Espinoza v. Schulenburg)(negligence case)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff The firefighter's rule did not bar an off-duty firefighter who was injured when volunteering at the scene of an accident from suing the person whose negligence caused the accident, the Arizona Supreme Court...

S.C. Supreme Court rules fatal injury in truck not covered by insurance.(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A fatal injury caused by the accidental discharge of a shotgun as it was being removed from a pickup is not covered by auto insurance because the injury didn't arise out of the "ownership, maintenance, or...

Mass Supreme Judicial Court rule suit over sexual relationship with counselor is time-barred.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A woman's claim for breach of fiduciary duty against her former counselor is time-barred because it arose out of sexual activity that occurred more than three years previously, Massachusetts' highest court...

Florida Court of Appeal rules family's claims for pain and suffering not limited by 'per person' cap.(State Farm Mutual Auto Insurance Co. v. Reis)(underinsured motorist insurance case)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff An automobile insurer's payment of underinsured motorist limits for the death of its insured did not bar payment of additional benefits for the pain and suffering suffered by a wife and child who witnessed...

Alabama Supreme Court rules medical equipment company sued for failure to instruct doctor.(Pritchett v. ICN Medical Alliance, Inc)(vicariously liability case)(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A leasing company that provided a laser surgery machine to a cosmetic surgeon can be held liable for a patient's injuries during surgery because its employee failed to instruct the doctor on the proper use...

Florida Court of Appeal rules pharmacy not liable for customer's crash.(Dent v. Dennis Pharmacy, Inc)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A pharmacy could not be held liable for injuries caused by a customer who fell asleep at the wheel after taking prescription medicine, even though the pharmacy's warning label failed to instruct the...

Iowa Supreme Court rules revocable inter vivos trust subject to spousal share.(Sieh v. Sieh )(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A revocable inter vivos trust created by a husband is property subject to the surviving wife's statutory share, the Iowa Supreme Court has ruled. The husband created the trust and transferred farmland,...

Missouri Court of Appeals rules federal Medicaid law preempts state eligibility requirement.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff The federal Medicaid statute preempts a state regulation that requires including the resources of care-giving family members in determining a disabled adult's eligibility for benefits, the Missouri Court of...

Iowa Supreme Court rules joint tenants' property subject to Medicaid repayment claim.(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Property held in joint tenancy may be subject to a Medicaid repayment claim - but the claim is limited to the share owned by the decedent prior to her death, the Iowa Supreme Court has ruled. A woman's...

Kansas Supreme Court rules employee injured by 'horseplay' can get comp.(Coleman v. Armour Swift-Eckrich)(workers compensation case)(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff An employee who was injured as a result of a fellow employee's horseplay can recover workers' compensation benefits, the Kansas Supreme Court has ruled. The plaintiff was sitting on a chair with...

5th Circuit Court rules settlement of underlying suit doesn't bar legal malpractice claim.(American Reliable Insurance Co. v. Navratil )
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A legal malpractice claim was not barred by the client's settlement of the underlying suit without appealing the adverse judgment that was allegedly the result of its lawyer's negligence, the 5th Circuit...

6th Circuit Court rules lender can't repossess truck in bankruptcy case.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff An auto lender could not repossess a truck owned by Chapter 13 debtors, even though loan payments under their modified bankruptcy plan would not keep pace with the rate of depreciation on the vehicle, the...

Federal bankruptcy court rules bankruptcy lawyer's conflict requires disgorgement of fees.(conflict of interest required lawyer)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Because a debtor's bankruptcy attorney also worked for the bank that refinanced the debtor's home mortgage, this conflict of interest required that the lawyer disgorge his fees - even though the debtor had...

Ohio Supreme Court rules bank owes no fiduciary duty to prospective borrower.(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A bank cannot be held liable for an employee's wrongful use of confidential information obtained from a prospective borrower, the Ohio Supreme Court has ruled. The bank was approached by prospective...

N.J. Supreme Court rules state consumer law governs rent-to-own contracts.(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A plaintiff could sue Rent-A-Center under state consumer protection laws, claiming that its rent-to-own contracts imposed usurious interest rates, the New Jersey Supreme Court has ruled in reversing...

Georgia Supreme Court rules state tobacco settlement bars plaintiff's punitive damages claim.(Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp. v. Gault )(product liability case)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff The terms of a settlement between the state and tobacco manufacturers bar a smoker's claim to collect punitive damages from a company that was a party to the agreement, the Georgia Supreme Court has ruled....

California Court of Appeal rules business can't 'split' claims against its insurer.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A business that was initially denied coverage for a personal injury claim filed against it could not sue its insurer for bad faith after it had already sued for breach of the duty to defend, the California...

Arizona Supreme Court rules vehicle lessee cannot sue under Magnuson-Moss Act.(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff The lessee of a vehicle does not qualify as a "consumer" with standing to sue under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, the Arizona Supreme Court has ruled. The plaintiff, who leased an SUV, filed suit...

10th Circuit Court rules insurer must defend suit over unsolicited faxes.(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff An insurer has a duty to defend a claim alleging that a policyholder violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act by sending unsolicited faxes, the 10th Circuit has ruled in applying Kansas law. The...

N.J. Supreme Court rules excess liability policy covers accident victim.(New Jersey )(Gazis v. Miller )(liability for traffic accident case )
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff In the absence of prejudice, an excess liability insurer cannot decline coverage based on the insured's failure to comply with the policy's 120-day notice provision, the New Jersey Supreme Court has ruled....

D.C. Circuit Court finds DNA testing of probationers is consitutional.(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff DNA testing of probationers is allowed under the Constitution, the D.C. Circuit has ruled. The plaintiff had been convicted of stealing two cars while suffering from "untreated mental health problems,"...

8th Circuit Court rules search based on renter's consent was reasonable.(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Police officers could reasonably believe that the renter of a home had the authority to consent to a search of the defendant's filing cabinet, which was located in a common closet, the 8th Circuit has...

9th Circuit Court rules airline passenger can't avoid screening by not flying.(airline passenger)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A prospective airline passenger can't avoid a secondary security screening by saying he no longer intends to fly and wants to leave the terminal, the 9th Circuit has ruled. The defendant checked in at...

10th Circuit Court rules consent to search valid even though police outside jurisdiction.(stolen motorcycle )
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Consent to search obtained by police officers was valid even though the officers were acting outside their jurisdiction in another state when they obtained it, the 10th Circuit has ruled. Two Kansas...

9th Circuit Court rules criminal's pension can be tapped to pay restitution.(transport stolen goods )
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A criminal defendant's pension can be garnished to pay restitution to his victims - the benefits are not protected by ERISA's anti-alienation provision, the 9th Circuit has ruled in reinstating a writ of...

Illinois Supreme Court rules state DNA sampling statute is constitutional.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A state statute mandating that convicted felons submit a DNA sample for analysis and entry into a computer database is constitutional, the Illinois Supreme Court has ruled. After the defendant was...

plaintiff's ADA claim not barred by receipt of Social Security benefits.(Turner v. Hershey Chocolate USA)(disability rights case)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Even though an employee made certain assertions of disability in obtaining Social Security disability benefits, this did not preclude her from later arguing she had a viable ADA claim, the 3rd Circuit has...

Maryland Court of Appeals rules arbitration clause in employment application is enforceable.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff An arbitration clause in an employment application was supported by adequate consideration and accordingly is enforceable, Maryland's highest court has ruled. The employer was charged with sexual...

8th Circuit Court rules Wal-Mart not liable for manager's racial remarks.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff An employee could not sue for "hostile work environment" harassment under Title VII based on a claim that a supervisor's racially offensive comments constituted evidence of unlawful race discrimination, the...

Ill. Supreme Court rules public policy doesn't bar enforcement of employment arbitration agreement.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Public policy does not bar enforcement of an arbitration agreement where a worker sued her former employer for retaliatory discharge, the Illinois Supreme Court has ruled. The plaintiff was an employee...

8th Circuit Court rules hospital benefit plan not exempt from ERISA as 'church plan'.(Baptist Health)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A hospital employee's health plan did not fall within ERISA's exception for "church plans" - and therefore a federal court had jurisdiction to decide the employee's suit over the denial of long-term...

Pa. Supreme Court rules a child can't enforce divorced parents' property settlement agreement.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A child may not enforce the terms of her parents' property settlement agreement, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled. The agreement was executed in connection with a divorce proceeding. When the...

Maine Supreme Judicial Court says SSI payments may be considered during property division at divorce.(Social Security benefits)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Although a court could not offset the present value of a husband's expected Social Security benefits in dividing marital property at divorce, it could consider the benefits in deciding how equitably to...

Arizona Court of Appeals rules father's support obligation revived by annulment of child's marriage.(Brief article)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff The annulment of a child's marriage revives the noncustodial parent's child support obligation, the Arizona Court of Appeals has ruled. After he divorced his wife, the father was ordered to pay child...

U.S. Supreme Court Certiorari Granted: April 10, 2006.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff IMMIGRATION LAW If an immigrant is convicted under state law of a felony drug crime that is considered a misdemeanor under federal narcotics law, does the conviction qualify as an "aggravated felony"...

Law firms eye focus groups for market research.(Graham & Dunn)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Nora Lockwood Tooher When Graham & Dunn, a mid-sized Seattle law firm, considered moving its offices from downtown to the up-and-coming waterfront several years ago, its attorneys wondered how clients would react. Also, they...

The verdict is only the beginning.(appeals)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Correy E. Stephenson Nobody wants to lose. But lawyers are increasingly preparing themselves, win or lose, for the inevitable appeal. "Our firm has been increasingly called in earlier and earlier in cases in the trial...

Perchlorate litigation heating up?
April 10, 2006... Byline: Dick Dahl The chemical compound perchlorate has already generated plenty of heat as a key ingredient in rocket fuel. But now it's generating heat of a different kind. Over the last few years, scientists, policy makers and...

Corporate clients dissatisfied with outside counsel.(Survey)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Dick Dahl Back in the old days, a law firm's relationship with its clients was oftentimes a cozy affair. Senior corporate managers and senior partners belonged to the same country clubs, and the legal bills that the firms submitted...

Commentary: Problem partners.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Nancy Byerly Jones Partners sometimes disappoint each other. But if one of your partners has a legitimate and serious problem such as alcoholism or anger management issues, you need to face it squarely and quickly, while taking all...

Ambien users are filing lawsuits.(Janet Makinen v. Sanofi-Aventis)(class action lawsuits case)(Case overview)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Nora Lockwood Tooher Janet Makinen, a Florida housewife, was prescribed Ambien in 1998 for insomnia. About two weeks later, she began walking in her sleep to her kitchen and devouring food. It didn't matter what kind of food,...

U.S. Supreme Court rules one spouse cannot consent to police search when other spouse objects.(Georgia v. Randolph)(Case overview)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Correy E. Stephenson One person can't give valid consent for a police search of the common areas of a marital residence when the other spouse is present and objects, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled. The decision resolves a...

U.S. Supreme Court justices hear arguments in Guantanamo detainee case.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Caryn Tamber The Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments in the case of Salim Ahmed Hamdan, a Yemeni identified by the U.S. government as Osama bin Laden's driver. Hamdan was captured in Afghanistan in the wake of the Sept. 11...

U.S. Supreme Court Decisions: April 10, 2006.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff SEARCH AND SEIZURE One spouse can't give valid consent for a police search of the common areas of the marital residence when the other spouse is present and objects. U.S. Supreme Court. Georgia v....

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $619K awarded in defibrillator suit.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A Florida jury ordered a health club chain to pay $619,650 to the family of a Fort Lauderdale man who died of sudden cardiac arrest while working out at an Oakland Park gym. The jury needed only two...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $750K settlement over air rage assault.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A former TWA flight attendant has received the bulk of a $750,000 settlement stemming from an air rage assault case after five years of litigation. The settlement is reportedly the highest payment for...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $5.3M for girl assaulted by caregiver.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A girl who contracted HIV when she was sexually assaulted by a city-approved caregiver in Philadelphia will get up to $5.35 million in damages. The city and several agencies placed the girl, then 8,...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $14.5M for man wrongly convicted of rape.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff An Oklahoma jury awarded $14.5 million to a man who spent 14 years in prison for a rape he didn't commit. Arvin McGee Jr. was released in February 2002 after DNA testing exonerated him in a 1987 rape....

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $14M Paxil settlement.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff The makers of Paxil have agreed to pay 49 states a total of $14 million to settle a suit that accused the British drug maker of using fraudulent tactics to delay cheap generic versions of the popular...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: Wyeth wins Texas fen-phen case.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Drug maker Wyeth recently won a case in Texas against a plaintiff who claimed that the phen-fen diet drug caused his heart valve injuries. A district court jury in Beaumont, Texas, ruled in favor of...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $25M in airplane collision suit.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A Florida jury awarded $25.2 million to the family of a pilot killed in a mid-air collision near Deerfield Beach almost three years ago. The family of Steve Ross, a Boca Raton chaplain, filed the...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $1.8M in cherry picker accident.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff The widow of a Massachusetts electrician who was killed in 2002 when a cherry-picker truck tipped over has settled a wrongful-death lawsuit for more than $1.8 million. Dennis O'Neil was killed while...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: Race discrimination suit settles for $1M.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A Texas company has reached a $1 million settlement in a discrimination lawsuit filed by a black man who said he was racially harassed by a white co-worker who placed a noose around his neck and choked him....

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $9M against police for restraint chair death.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff An Arizona jury awarded $9 million to the parents of a mentally retarded man who died in 2001 after being tied to a restraint chair at a Maricopa County jail. According to the Arizona Republic, it is...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $29.3M in med-mal case.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A New York jury awarded $29.3 million on March 21 to the mother of a girl who was born with cerebral palsy. After a twelve-day trial, a Kings County jury found Dr. John Luke negligent in the Nov. 15,...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $2.65M for routine surgery death.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A Pennsylvania jury has awarded $2.65 million to the family of a woman who died after elective surgery to correct a bowel problem. According to The Scranton Times-Tribune, the jury concluded that Dr....

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $17M in birth injury suit.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A West Virginia jury awarded $17 million to the parents of a girl who was severely brain-damaged at birth after a traumatic delivery at Monongalia General Hospital. According to the lawsuit, the...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: Excessive force suit settles for $6.5M.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Cincinnati, Ohio, has agreed to pay $6.5 million to the family of a man who died in police custody, one of the largest settlements in the city's history. Black activists were outraged by the November...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: Couple awarded $2M over natural gas explosion.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff An Indiana jury awarded more than $2 million to a couple whose home exploded following a natural gas buildup. The Porter Circuit Court jury found Northern Indiana Public Service Co. was at fault for the...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $125K against police assaulted woman.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A law school student has settled a suit against New York City that claimed police officers refused to help her when she was sexually abused after a parade in 2000. The $125,000 settlement was reached...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $9M settlement reached in ferry crash.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff New York City has agreed to pay nearly $9 million to a man who lost his legs in a 2003 Staten Island ferry crash. The payout for Paul Esposito was by far the largest so far in the tragedy that killed 11...

Verdicts & Settlements April 10, 2006: $1.9 million asbestos verdict.
April 10, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A San Francisco jury has awarded $1.9 million to a retired Navy machinist who contracted lung cancer after being exposed to asbestos. Charlton Clemmer sued John Crane, Inc., which manufactured valves...

Hawaiian jury finds doctor liable for inserting screwdriver in patient's spine.(Iturralde v. Ricketson)(medical malpractice case)(Case overview)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Natalie White A Hawaiian jury awarded $5.6 million to the family of an elderly minister whose doctor improvised by implanting the shaft of a screwdriver into his spine during surgery. "This was the most egregious case of...

California jury awards people-phobic social worker $6.5M for employment discrimination.(Alberigi v. Sonoma County)(Case overview)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Natalie White A California jury recently awarded $6.5 million to a case worker who was forced out of his job because his panic disorder prevented him from dealing with clients face-to-face. The defendant claimed that the job...

Maine jury holds prominent law firm liable for breach of duty.(Glenwood Farms Inc. v. Hagens Berman Sobel Shapiro)(Case overview)
April 10, 2006... Byline: Natalie White In a star-studded case, a Maine jury recently ordered a prominent Seattle law firm to pay $10.8 million for sabotaging a settlement offer for three small bottled water company clients in favor of a potentially more...

Louisiana Supreme court rules the search of a motorcyclist didn't violate Constitution.(Louisiana Supreme Court. State v. Sherman)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A warrantless search of a motorcyclist who did not have a driver's license did not violate his Fourth Amendment rights, the Louisiana Supreme Court has ruled in reversing a trial court. Police observed...

Maryland jury rules out-of-state lawyer cannot be sued for legal malpractice.(Bond v. Messerman)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Telephone calls and letters were not sufficient contact to establish personal jurisdiction over an out-of-state attorney sued by his former client for legal malpractice, Maryland's highest court has ruled....

Fired music director cannot sue church due to the protection of the first amendment.(Tomic v. Catholic Diocese of Peoria)(age discrimination case)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff The First Amendment bars an age discrimination claim brought by the fired music director of a Catholic Church, the 7th Circuit has ruled. The plaintiff worked as an organist and music director. He was...

Adding defendant in chemical spill case starts new suit.(Braud v. Transport Service Co. of Illinois)(class action lawsuit in chemical spill case)(Brief article)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Amending a complaint so as to add a defendant "commences" a new suit under the Class Action Fairness Act, the 5th Circuit has ruled. The plaintiffs, who claimed to have been damaged by a chemical...

Lawyers hired to handle foreclosure can be sued under Fair Debt Act.(Wilson v. Draper & Goldberg, P.L.L.C., )(Fair Debt Collection Practices Act case)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Lawyers retained to foreclose on a woman's home could be sued for violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the 4th Circuit has ruled in reversing a summary judgment. A bank retained the...

Louisiana Supreme Court rules a lawyer isn't entitled to contingent fee after settlement rejection.
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A lawyer who agreed to work on a contingent fee basis can't bill a client who recovered nothing after rejecting a proposed settlement, the Louisiana Supreme Court has ruled. The client retained the...

Utah lawyer can be sued under Fair Debt Act for seeking to recover bad check fees.(Johnson v. Riddle)(fair debt collection act case)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A lawyer who tried to collect bad check fees that exceeded a state law limit may be liable under the Fair Debt Collective Practices Act - the Act's bona fide error defense may not protect him, the 10th...

North Carolina attorney disciplined for false statements on letterhead.(North Carolina State Bar v. Culbertson)(professional misconduct case)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A lawyer who claimed on his letterhead and website that he was "published" in the Federal Law Reports could be disciplined for making false and misleading statements, the North Carolina Court of Appeals has...

Massachusetts Court of Appeals rules that an attorney can't enforce mortgage on client's property.(McLaughlin v. Amirsaleh)(Brief article)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Public policy prohibits an attorney from enforcing a mortgage held on his client's property, the Massachusetts Court of Appeals has ruled. The client, a divorced woman living in California, held an...

Minnesota law firm may be liable for failing to protect client's interest on unsettled area of law.(Jerry's Enterprises, Inc. v. Larkin, Hoffman, Daly & Lindgren, Ltd)(legal malpractice css)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A law firm could be liable for failing to protect a client's interest regarding an unsettled area of the law, the Minnesota Supreme Court has ruled in reversing a directed verdict in favor of the firm. ...

Tax refunds are exempt from bankruptcy estate.(Benn v. Cole)(exemption of tax refunds case)(Brief article)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A debtor's state and federal tax refunds are exempt from the bankruptcy estate, the 8th Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel has ruled. The court based its ruling on a Missouri statute that permits...

Added defendant starts new suit under Class Action Fairness Act.(Braud v. Transport Service Co. of Illinois)(class action lawsuit case)(Brief article)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Amending a complaint so as to add a defendant "commences" a new suit under the Class Action Fairness Act, the 5th Circuit has ruled. The plaintiffs, who claimed to have been damaged by a chemical...

A state law consumer fraud claim is not preempted by FIFRA.(Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act)(Peterson v. BASF Corp)(Brief article)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A state-law consumer fraud claim is not preempted by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, the Minnesota Supreme Court has ruled. The plaintiffs, a nationwide class of farmers,...

Arizona Court of Appeals rules junk fax claims cannot be assigned.(Brief article)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff Junk fax claims brought under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act can't be assigned, the Arizona Court of Appeals has ruled in affirming a dismissal. An insurance company assigned its junk fax claims...

Kansas City grooming service could pay for veterinary bills for injuring 13-year-old dog.(Burgess v. Shampooch Pet Industries, Inc., )(negligence case)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A woman whose 13-year-old dog was injured by a grooming service could recover $1,300 for her veterinary bills, even though her pet had no discernable market value, the Kansas Court of Appeals has ruled. ...

No presumption of reasonableness for guidelines sentence of drug defendant.(U.S. v. Zavala)(U.S. v. Fernandez)(drug traffic case)(Case overview)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A federal judge sentencing a drug defendant could not treat a sentence calculated in accordance with the federal sentencing guidelines as the defendant's "presumptive" sentence, the 9th Circuit has ruled in...

U.S. District Court rules marijuana smell justifies traffic stop.
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff The source of the odor of marijuana was sufficiently particularized to justify a traffic stop, even though police could not pinpoint which of two adjacent cars was the source, the 3rd Circuit has ruled in...

A sentencing judge may not rely on facts in a presentence report to calculating a sentence.(Brief article)
April 24, 2006... Byline: Lawyers Weekly USA Staff A sentencing judge may not rely on facts in a presentence report in calculating a sentence, the 4th Circuit has ruled. The defendant did not object to the report's findings as to drug quantity. The...