Law Humor

UPDATE: Taster's Choice Case Goes to California Supreme Court

Posted on June 03, 2009
The California Supreme Court is hearing argument today in the case of Russell Christoff, a former model who, in 2002, happened to notice his own face staring back at him from the label of a Taster's Choice jar, and sued...

Gambler Threatens to Sue the Venetian for Bad Feng Shui

Posted on June 02, 2009
The Venetian casino in Las Vegas is reportedly being threatened with a lawsuit by a Taiwanese man, identified only as "Yuan" (which should really narrow it down), who blames "feng shui sabotage" for a two-million-dollar losing streak last year. According...

Reasonable Consumer Would Know "Crunchberries" Are Not Real, Judge Rules

Posted on June 02, 2009
There are days every now and then when my actual legal work directly intersects with my blog work. This is one of those days. On May 21, a judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California...

Swords in the News

Posted on May 31, 2009
Has anybody else noticed that the number of incidents involving one or more people wielding a sword seems to be on the increase? It could be that these have been going on all the time and that I have only...

To access this complete feed in the blog feed reader login or register for free.

"Disaster" Looms If Stronger Beer Allowed, Says Alabama Senator

Posted on May 29, 2009
The Wall Street Journal reported on May 14 that a bill passed by the Alabama Senate would raise the amount of alcohol allowed in beer from 6% to 13.9%. The current six-percent limit means that many kinds of beer, such...

CORRECTION: Alabama Governor Signs Beer Law; Disaster Looms

Posted on May 29, 2009
I am informed by Free the Hops representatives that Alabama Gov. Bob Riley has in fact signed House Bill 373, which raises the state alcohol limit for beer to 13.9 percent by volume. The state's limit was previously six percent,...

Handcuffing Leads to Divorce

Posted on May 28, 2009
Robert Drawbaugh has filed for divorce from his wife, saying that their marriage had "broken down irretrievably." A warning sign: police had to rescue him in March after she handcuffed them together and started biting him. Despite the difficult situation,...

"Just Couldn't Take" The Boredom, Says Juror Who Went Home

Posted on May 27, 2009
Jury duty may look interesting on TV, but then TV makes it look like it only lasts about ten minutes or so. Even the most interesting case involves a fair number of boring interludes, each of which typically lasts a...

Pringles Qualify as "Potato Chips," Court Rules

Posted on May 26, 2009
Reversing a lower court's ruling that Pringles did not qualify as "potato chips" for purposes of taxation, Britain's Court of Appeals has held that they are, basically, close enough. This matters because if Pringles are considered "potato chips" - or...

When To Give Up Crime

Posted on May 23, 2009
When you are beaten and subdued by two 19-year-old Hooters girls. This is a relatively clear sign that you are in the wrong line of work. Last month in Loganville, Georgia, a 40-year-old man saw two girls walk into a...

Missourians Elect Another Dead Man to Office

Posted on May 22, 2009
In April, voters in Winfield, Missouri, elected Harry Stonebraker to a fourth term as mayor. He won an overwhelming victory, taking 90 percent of the vote. He had also been dead for about a month. Stonebraker died on March 11,...

More E-Mail Advice: Don't Reply to All, Know When to Quit, Use Capital Letters

Posted on May 22, 2009
I have in the past violated the "no reply to all" rule, but usually (not always) I judged correctly that what I was sending was funny or useful enough that I would be forgiven. If not, I at least knew...

Compulsive Gambler Says Casino Enticed Him With "Lucky Money"

Posted on May 20, 2009
Testifying this week in his case against Melbourne's Crown Casino, real-estate developer and compulsive gambler Harry Kakavas blamed the casino for causing him to lose $30 million (Australian) during a lengthy gambling spree in which he may have risked as...

More E-Mail Tyranny: No "Out-of-Office" Replies, Says Partner

Posted on May 19, 2009
A partner in the London office of Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton has told lawyers in that office that it is unacceptable to fail to answer an e-mail message at any time, except possibly when a lawyer is on a...

No Text Messages While Testifying, Judge Rules

Posted on May 15, 2009
Here's one to add to your list of Places Where Texting Is Not Appropriate: the witness stand. A judge in Miami declared a mistrial on Wednesday after he learned that a witness for the plaintiff in a property dispute had...

Trail of Chewing-Tobacco Spit Leads to Thieves

Posted on May 14, 2009
In the latest episode of "CSI: Wisconsin," authorities tracked down two men accused of stealing a safe from a tavern in the town of Campbell by getting a DNA profile from the trail of chewing-tobacco spit they left behind them...

Ventura Discusses Cheney, Waterboarding, and Waterboarding Cheney

Posted on May 13, 2009
Jesse Ventura, who said he was waterboarded as part of his military training, on whether torture works: I'll put it to you this way: You give me a waterboard, Dick Cheney and one hour, and I'll have him confess to...

No Trademark for Chippendales' "Cuffs & Collar," Board Rules

Posted on May 13, 2009
The TTABlog, which covers actions by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, noted in March that that the TTAB had refused to allow registration of the "Cuffs & Collar" mark used by Chippendales. The TTAB ruled that the mark was...

Woman Sues Wal-Mart for Nutria Attack

Posted on May 11, 2009
Reports last week stated that Rebecca White, of Abbeville, Louisiana, had sued Wal-Mart for injuries she allegedly suffered when a "large wild nutria" ran out from behind a rack of Coca-Cola products, causing her to run over her own foot...

Law Firm Party-School Rankings Released

Posted on May 10, 2009
The latest U.S. News and World Report law-school rankings were released recently, with few surprises evident, but more interesting may be the recent party-law-school rankings released by the SubtleDig site. Those planning to "party" in law school in the same...

Mule Drivers Must Have Biometric ID, Says TSA

Posted on May 08, 2009
The Transportation Security Administration, taking a break from its critical shoe-removal and water-bottle-disposal duties, has told the mule-skinners at Hugh Moore Park that they must comply with strict post-9/11 security measures by applying for high-tech biometric Transportation Worker Identification Credentials...

Man Sues for Right to Wear Skirt

Posted on May 06, 2009
At least this gentleman is not asking for something ridiculous like three quadrillion dollars, or, given the facts of this case, three dollars. He just wants one dollar, and a ruling that he can freely wear his manskirt without fear...

Holy Spirit Lawsuits, Round Two

Posted on May 05, 2009
Receiving the Holy Spirit seems to get more dangerous all the time. In at least two prior cases, worshippers injured in falls after being "taken by the spirit" have sued their churches for negligence, mostly claiming that the churches failed...

Texting in Court Equals Jail for Utah Woman

Posted on May 04, 2009
A woman who sent two text messages from a Utah courtroom got 30 days in jail for contempt of court, sources reported recently. While pretty much every court prohibits the use of cellphones while court is in session, 15 days...

Dog-Scrotum Observation Preferable to Jury Service, Declares Citizen

Posted on May 01, 2009
Continuing with the theme of ways to get out of jury service, here's one that was tried in January by Erik Slye, a busy citizen of Gallatin County, Montana. You may want to take this down and copy it onto...

I Pity the Fool Who Does Not Strike Mr. T From The Jury

Posted on April 30, 2009
As I've mentioned before, one of the most popular searches that leads people to this site is something like "how to get out of jury duty," and here's the latest idea for that -- be Mr. T. T, born "Laurence...

New Swiss Law Aims to Halt Invasion of Naked Germans

Posted on April 27, 2009
The canton of Appenzell Innerrhoden, located in northeastern Switzerland, has voted to ban nude hiking in an effort to deter naked Germans from tromping around their tiny mountain state. The incursion apparently began last autumn, when residents began encountering Germans...

People, Please Stop Hiding Things in Justice Breyer's Pants

Posted on April 22, 2009
In my experience, people did sometimes stick things in my underwear. [laughter] Or, not my underwear . . . whatever. Whatever. I was the one who did it? I don't know. I mean I don't think it's beyond human experience....

Don Henley Sues Candidate to Stop Song Parodies

Posted on April 21, 2009
Again we learn the lesson that suing somebody who's saying something you don't like is guaranteed to get them more publicity (often now called the "Streisand Effect"). This time the teacher is Don Henley, a founding member of The Eagles,...

Dog-Walking Controversy May Cost Couple Their Home

Posted on April 21, 2009
Robert Wirth, Jr., and his wife, Sandra Blaker, are appealing a court's order directing them to pay over $40,000 in a case stemming from Wirth's insistence on walking their dog without a leash in violation of homeowners-association rules. The association...

Bloggers, promote your law blog by nominating your blog for inclusion in USLaw.com's Law Blog Directory and RSS Reader. Benefits described.