Legal Research

Selections from National Law Journal Daily Headlines February 23, 2009.

By David Badertscher, PLL

Source: NLJ.COM, February 23, 2009.

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Debating judges' role in foreclosure remedy
"President Obama's recent proposal to address the rising tide of home foreclosures calls for legislation to allow bankruptcy judges under Chapter 13 of the bankruptcy code to modify the terms of home mortgages when families run out of other options. Legislation to do just that has stalled in the House and the Senate for the past two years because of opposition by Republicans and the lending industry. Has the foreclosure landscape changed sufficiently to break the back of this determined opposition?"

Action stirs on U.S. attorneys
"Senators in nearly a dozen states have recommended or are accepting applications for U.S. attorney positions, even though the Obama administration has asked all 93 of the nation's top federal law enforcement officers to remain in place for now. But in some states, the delay hasn't stopped senators and their advisory commissions from accepting applications, interviewing and, in at least five states, recommending candidates for U.S. attorney"

EMPLOYMENT LAW  |  Afghanistan deployment to test new FMLA rules
"More troops in Afghanistan could mean more Family Medical Leave Act headaches for employers. Labor and employment lawyers say the Obama administration's recent announcement that 17,000 more troops are headed to Afghanistan will put to the test some new FMLA changes that give certain military families new leave rights. Under the amendments, which took effect on Jan. 16, a wide range of relatives of military personnel will be eligible for FMLA leave because their lives have been disrupted by the deployment of loved ones."

WASHINGTON  |  String of tough midterm cases await justices
"The U.S. Supreme Court returns this week after a monthlong break to what may be potentially the term's most difficult and significant decisions affecting business, employees, the environment and civil rights. The court will hear 18 cases in its February and March sessions. No arguments had been scheduled for April, but 14 granted cases remain unscheduled, including two potential landmark civil rights cases: one, a challenge to the heart of the Voting Rights Act, NAMUD v. Holder, and another, Ricci v. DeStefano, raising issues of reverse discrimination and disparate impact in promotion tests for Connecticut firefighters."

LAW FIRMS  |  Legal malpractice suits may surge
"With the economy tanking, experts say the stage is set for a surge in legal malpractice lawsuits, as clients look to recoup their losses from third parties. Insurance carriers and attorneys haven't seen a tidal wave of legal malpractice suits yet, but they anticipate a spike later in the year and into 2010."

FLORIDA  |  Controversial Miami case dealt a blow
"In a second major blow to the government's case involving prominent Miami attorney Ben Kuehne, who was charged with laundering drug trafficking money for legal fees, a federal judge has dismissed all the charges against a co-defendant because she was not provided with a speedy trial as required under the Sixth Amendment. Also, U.S. Magistrate Judge Ted Bandstra recommended late last week that a wire and mail fraud count against Kuehne and his Colombian co-defendant be dismissed."

Full post as published by New York Supreme Court Criminal Term Library on February 23, 2009 (boomark / email).