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Legal News

The Legal Intelligencer Blog

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By The Legal Intelligencer

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Last Entry: March 29, 2011 at 14:24:47

So, What do Jurors Really Think?

Posted on February 04, 2010
For the past few months, I have been perusing comments folks make about jury duty as @mmgjury on Twitter (www.twitter.com). What I have learned has been quite insightful, and has elicited more than one belly laugh. So, if you want...

Is Twitter Serious Enough to Get You Sued?

Posted on February 02, 2010
Are Twitter tweets, all 140 characters or less, intended to be taken seriously? Or is the microblogging site just one big forum of hot air, where nothing can be taken seriously and nothing is capable of defamatory meaning? That seems...

Scott Brown In. Employee Free Choice Act Out. Union Spirits Down. Union Organizing Campaigns Going Up

Posted on January 27, 2010
[This posting is for informational purposes and should not be construed or interpreted as either legal advice on any matter or as in any way creating an attorney/client relationship] Last week, Scott Brown pulled off something that no Republican had....

Another Possible Solution to Estate Tax Problem

Posted on January 26, 2010
Very recent discussions in Washington have resulted in a proposal that resolves the estate tax issue and avoids litigation on constitutionality. Congress is expected to reenact the estate tax at some point, although the exact date is unclear. Some commentators...

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Nutter Announces Moratorium on Property Tax Reassessment

Posted on January 26, 2010
By Amaris Elliott-Engel Of the Legal Staff Mayor Michael A. Nutter announced further changes to the city's property tax assessment body today, imposing a moratorium on new property tax assessments. The halt is effectively immediately, Nutter said, except for assessments...

Ethics Board Files Complaint Against Clerk of Quarter Sessions

Posted on January 25, 2010
By Amaris Elliott-Engel Of the Legal Staff The Philadelphia Board of Ethics is seeking $3,000 in civil penalties against Clerk of Quarter Sessions Vivian Miller for an alleged campaign finance violation. The board said in its petition filed last week...

Fleisher to Depart Bench in March, Lawyer Says

Posted on January 25, 2010
By Amaris Elliott-Engel Of the Legal Staff Philadelphia Common Pleas Judge Leslie Fleisher will retire from the bench March 15, Fleisher's counsel Samuel C. Stretton said Monday. Fleisher has been back to work after being out sick at the end...

Commerce Program Marks 10th Year With Record Number of Cases

Posted on January 22, 2010
By Amaris Elliott-Engel Of the Legal Staff As the Philadelphia Common Pleas Court's commerce program for business litigation celebrates its first decade in existence this month, the program had its highest number of cases last year, Judge D. Webster Keogh...

The Show Will Go On

Posted on January 21, 2010
When Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus comes to Philadelphia this spring, the show will go on with elephants. Circus-goers will have an opportunity to see the elephants before and during the show, including up close, and for many...

Impeaching Witnesses With Prior Inconsistent Statements: Is All Credibility Eviscerated?

Posted on January 21, 2010
The Question A few years back, two of my colleagues and I had a question: When an attorney impeaches a witness with a prior inconsistent statement, has the credibility of that witness been totally eviscerated? We knew that some folks...

Understanding How and When to Share Your Opinion With the Press ? Submitting to Editorial Pages

Posted on January 20, 2010
On Feb. 11, the Philadelphia Bar Association, Bar-News Media Committee , will host ?How and When to Share Your Opinion with the Press ? Submitting to Editorial Pages.? Members of the media have been invited to speak from several area...

No Appeal From Fox Chase of Decision Refusing to Allow Division of Burholme Park

Posted on January 15, 2010
By Amaris Elliott-Engel Of the Legal Staff Fox Chase Cancer Center has decided not to appeal a unanimous Commonwealth Court decision that determined that a portion of a century-old Northeast Philadelphia park cannot be divided up for the center's expansion...

Local Firm Looks to Represent Local Hospital in Bankruptcy

Posted on January 13, 2010
By Gina Passarella Of the Legal Staff Lower Bucks Hospital looked to Saul Ewing attorneys for help with its Wednesday Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. According to the docket in the case, Jeffrey C. Hampton, a partner and co-chairman of Saul...

Quarter Sessions Failing to Report $1 Bil. in Forfeited Bail, Controller Says

Posted on January 13, 2010
By Amaris Elliott-Engel Of the Legal Staff The clerk for the city's criminal cases, the Clerk of Quarter Sessions, is not reporting about $1 billion in forfeited bail, as well as $353 million in other criminal remittances like court fines,...

A Brief Brouhaha

Posted on January 12, 2010
By Bruce Merenstein Special to the Legal I have read hundreds of legal briefs since I started practicing law almost a dozen years ago. First as a law clerk for an appellate judge and then as an attorney practicing primarily...

2010 Brings Temporary Estate-Tax-Free Period

Posted on January 11, 2010
In the week since the dawning of the (temporarily) estate-tax-free world, it has now been suggested that Congress will not try to re-enact the federal estate tax retroactive to the beginning of the year. There was considerable uncertainty expressed as...

At Trial, You Are a Reflection of Your Client

Posted on January 07, 2010
The Golden Rule With all of the preparations of evidence, witnesses and trial exhibits, some trial teams still forget what I consider to be the golden rule of the jury trials. It is such a simple rule that is all...

Local Firms Win The American Lawyer Awards for Niche Litigation Practices

Posted on January 05, 2010
By Gina Passarella Of the Legal Staff Pennsylvania firms couldn?t be found even among the honorable mentions of The American Lawyer?s Litigation Department of the Year awards, but when it comes to niche practices, they made their presence felt. Reed....

A Holiday Gift for Appellate Procedure Wonks

Posted on January 05, 2010
In early December, the Supreme Court issued its first four opinions in cases argued this term. In reporting on the decisions, Adam Liptak, the New York Times? Supreme Court correspondent, referred to them as ?all minor? cases. But to appellate...

Williams Begins to Assemble Leadership Team at DA's Office

Posted on January 04, 2010
By Amaris Elliott-Engel Of the Legal Staff After R. Seth Williams was sworn in today as the first African-American district attorney in Pennsylvania's 300-year history, Williams announced some of the members of his leadership team. Williams said that Joseph "Joe"...

New Special Master In Foxwoods Case

Posted on December 31, 2009
By Leo Strupczewski Of the Legal Staff The state Supreme Court has named Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge John W. Herron as the new special master in the Foxwoods Casino case. According to an order from the high court, Herron...

Supreme Court Won?t Hear Workers' Comp Act Exclusivity Case

Posted on December 24, 2009
By Zack Needles Of the Legal staff In a per curiam order, the Supreme Court has denied allocator in a case in which a man rendered quadriplegic in an accident while driving his work truck claimed economic damages as a...

State Supreme Court Affirms Decision Striking Pa. Mercury Reductions

Posted on December 23, 2009
By Peter Hall Of the Legal Staff/Law Weekly The state Supreme Court has affirmed a Commonwealth Court decision that declared invalid a Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection rule designed to reduce mercury emissions from coal- and oil-fired power plants...

It?s a Holiday Miracle

Posted on December 22, 2009
Congress has fallen below even the lowest expectations of tax practitioners. It?s like a (bad) dream come true. For the past eight years, I?ve been describing our estate tax system to clients: We?ll have gradually lowering rates, and the exemption...

DA's Office Won't Prosecute Berry, Who Will Return to Hear Criminal Cases

Posted on December 18, 2009
By Amaris Elliott-Engel Of the Legal Staff The Philadelphia District Attorney's Office will not file criminal charges against Philadelphia Common Pleas Judge Willis W. Berry Jr. for running his real estate business out of his judicial chambers, District Attorney Lynne...

7 Ways Lawyers Can Capitalize on Media Coverage

Posted on December 18, 2009
As a public relations practitioner, I am often asked what a firm or attorney should do AFTER they have received media coverage. It is so important to understand that not everyone you want or expect to see the coverage will...

Since When Do Jurors Hate Companies Just for Being Companies?

Posted on December 17, 2009
To Be or Not to Be ? a Company I see it when I am working with both plaintiffs and defendants. It is a belief often held on both sides of litigation, and, in my experience, I find it completely...

Phila. Mortgage Foreclosure Program Receives City Livability Award

Posted on December 16, 2009
By Amaris Elliott-Engel Of the Legal Staff As Philadelphia leaders accepted another award in honor of a court program that requires a mediation conference between homeowners and lenders before foreclosure cases can go to sheriff's sale, program leaders are also...

Ethics Task Force Calls for Independent Inspector General, Other Tweaks to Young System

Posted on December 10, 2009
By Amaris Elliott-Engel Of the Legal Staff After 14 months of meetings, a task force on ethics and campaign finance has recommended multiple tweaks to the city's still-young ethics regime, including making the Inspector General's Office independent from Philadelphia's mayor...

Reaching for Greater Efficiency in Criminal Justice Administration

Posted on December 10, 2009
Thanks once again to Mike Meehan of Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott. With his assistance, I met recently with Administrative Judge D. Webster Keogh about the new challenges in criminal justice administration resulting from the well-publicized budget woes of the...

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