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Cordial End to Senate Hearing Paves Way for Sotomayor Confirmation

The National Law Journal

Senate Judiciary Committee questioning of Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor ended on a friendly note Thursday, with Republicans joining Democrats in praising her demeanor and thoughtfulness, even as GOP senators expressed frustration that she had not fully answered their concerns. Whether the cordial ending of three days of grilling will translate into more than a handful of Republican votes for Sotomayor is unclear. But confirmation seems assured, and a committee vote is likely to come before the end of July.

Judge Puzzled at BofA's Stance in $58 Million Heller Suit

The Recorder

Bank of America might have a hill to climb in its dispute with Heller Ehrman's creditors after a bankruptcy judge said Thursday he "can't make any sense" of the bank's legal defense theories. Heller's creditors are claiming the bank should return about $58 million paid to it in the 90 days before the firm's Dec. 28 bankruptcy filing, arguing it was not secured. The bank intends to try to go past Heller's main partnership to the partner corporations that composed it, and assert they were liable for debts to the banks.

Judge Narrows Discovery for 9/11 Federal Claims

New York Law Journal

Defendants being sued for negligence in connection with the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks will not be able to depose six FBI agents on the government's investigation into the attacks, Southern District of New York Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein ruled Thursday. Airlines, airline security companies and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey had hoped the depositions might show that the government's failure to stop the terrorists was so egregious that the attacks would have happened regardless of any negligence on their part.

'Torture Memo' Author Yoo Gets Private Lawyer for Appeal of Detainee Lawsuit

The Recorder

John Yoo, author of some of the Bush administration's war-on-terror memos, has hired Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher's Miguel Estrada to appeal a ruling that allowed an allegedly mistreated detainee's suit against Yoo. The Justice Department, which recently announced in a court filing that its lawyers were no longer representing Yoo, said it will still pay for Yoo's defense, "as is normal practice when the potential exists for disagreement between the government and the defendant over complex legal questions."

'Tiffany v. eBay' Appeal Grabs 2nd Circuit Spotlight

The American Lawyer

The packed house during Thursday's oral arguments in the Tiffany v. eBay appeal showed how high the stakes are in the case, which has attracted a large number of amicus briefs. Much of the discussion involved the relevance of the Supreme Court's Inwood v. Ives ruling on third-party liability for infringement. Noting the changes in retail and technology in the 27 years since that decision, Judge Barrington Parker said, "When Inwood was written, what's going on now was in the realm of science fiction."

Furth's Settlement Proposal Rejected in Wal-Mart Wage-and-Hour Class Action

The American Lawyer

A Massachusetts judge on Wednesday struck down efforts by famed class action lawyer Frederick Furth to try to settle a wage-and-hour class action against Wal-Mart in that state. Furth had been accused by other plaintiffs lawyers in the case of going behind their backs to try to strike a collusive deal with Wal-Mart's lawyers from Greenberg Traurig. Furth denied the accusation and asserted that he had negotiated an excellent settlement proposal for the class that was worth $20 million to $40 million.

Judge's Defamation Suit Against Lawyer Is Dismissed

New York Law Journal

A judge's unusual $10 million defamation suit against attorney Ravi Batra for allegedly telling a New York Daily News columnist the judge improperly presided over a case involving a lawyer who represented the judge before a judicial conduct commission has been dismissed. However, a defamation claim has been allowed to proceed against the paper and columnist Errol Louis. The judge had claimed he was defamed by two articles and several blog postings about judicial corruption.

Harvard, Recruiters Advise Law Students to Cast a Wider Net

The American Lawyer

In the wake of mass deferrals at law firms, Harvard Law School is advising first- and second-year law students to widen their search for summer associate positions. Considering law firms outside major metropolitan areas might be a smart way to stay in the game, according to the school. Meanwhile, the global practice group leader of Major, Lindsey and Africa's associate group recommends that law students look for job opportunities in international offices for the summer.

Los Angeles Superior Court Survives Its First Furlough

The National Law Journal

Los Angeles County Superior Court survived the first of 12 days of self-imposed job furloughs Wednesday. But that didn't mean judges weren't busy. "It was a long day yesterday," said Presiding Judge Charles "Tim" McCoy, who began an arduous, daylong series of interviews with reporters at 3 a.m. The court, which faces an estimated shortfall of almost $138 million during the fiscal year that began on July 1, has taken the unprecedented step of voluntarily furloughing employees on the third Wednesday of each month.

Defense Verdict Reached in Case of Drunken Man's Airport Injury

The Legal Intelligencer

A Philadelphia jury has found in favor of two airlines accused of botching their efforts to aid a drunken airport patron and failing to prevent him from falling down drunk at the airport -- an incident that led to serious brain injuries and ultimately his death three years later. Jurors denied the plaintiff's estate compensation from Southwest and Continental airlines. Aside from the airlines, several other dram shop defendants settled for a confidential amount within days of jury selection.

Law Firm Sued for Allegedly Using Filing Fees for Its Own Expenses

Fulton County Daily Report

NCO Financial Systems has filed a federal suit against Trauner Cohen, which it hired to file collection actions for such clients as Capital One and American Express. NCO claims it gave the firm more than $1.3 million as reimbursement for fees related to more than 15,000 collection lawsuits, but that the firm instead used the money to cover its own expenses. The lawsuit, which alleges fraud, breach of contract and other claims, says the collection actions were intended to collect more than $100 million in outstanding debts.

Huddled Masses Yearning to Strike It Rich: Foreign Plaintiffs Shopping for Gold in American Courts

Special to Law.com

Foreign plaintiffs pursue entrance through the golden doors of American courtrooms because U.S. civil litigation offers potentially lucrative benefits that their homeland's judicial system does not. Too often foreign plaintiffs seek access to American courts on tenuous legal and factual grounds, write Bowman and Brooke's Paul G. Cereghini and John D. Sear. When public and private interests favor dismissal, the doctrine of forum non conveniens can help to reinforce the floodgates.

Bonus Earns Slaughter and May Top Spot in U.K. Associate Survey

Legal Week

Slaughter and May has emerged as the U.K. firm with the most satisfied associates when it comes to salaries and bonuses, according to Legal Week research. Slaughter associates have put the firm at the top of a table grading firms on their combined remuneration packages. The rankings form part of Legal Week Intelligence's 2009 Employee Satisfaction Survey, which gauged the perceptions of more than 4,000 associates at the top 75 law firms in England and Wales and the top 10 U.S. firms in London.

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'Weaver' and the Future of Extrasensory Tech

New York Law Journal

Extrasensory technologies collect and process information beyond the human senses. These technologies, such as license plate reading, which uses infrared cameras to capture digital images of plate numbers, raise privacy concerns similar to the warrantless use of GPS in Weaver.

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Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act Sends Law Agencies New Tools and a Message

Special to Law.com

The Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009 provides government agencies with increased funding and more stringent legislation to combat financial and mortgage fraud. It also sends a message that Congress and the Obama administration want increased fraud enforcement in the financial arena. Businesses will be well served by understanding how the new areas of emphasis may apply to them, and by marshaling compliance and defense resources accordingly, say attorneys C. Shawn Cleveland and Emily Coleman McCall.

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Hastings Grad Tells Lawyers How to 'Leave Law Behind'

The Recorder

Long before the recession killed the job market, Casey Berman realized the law wasn't for him. Having already launched a number of companies -- and sold one -- he's now starting a consultancy called Leave Law Behind through which he'll hold the hands of disillusioned lawyers who want to start their own businesses. On Tuesday night, the 1999 Hastings College of the Law graduate pitched an alternative path for J.D.s at his alma mater in San Francisco: "Doing something you love."

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