Posts from ‘February, 2009’

Attorneys hired by a Long Island, N.Y., village cannot be held liable under federal civil rights law for the advice they offered, which a developer claims caused costly delays to his condominium project, a federal judge has ruled. Eastern District of New York Judge Arthur D. Spatt held that the attorneys had been functioning as private contractors, whose conduct could not be reached under the law.

When San Diego County Superior Court Judge John Einhorn polled jurors for their votes in a wrongful-death case, he forgot to get one man’s answer on two of 13 questions. What might not seem like a big deal was, leading to a California Supreme Court oral argument to decide whether the judge’s error — which went unnoticed by counsel on either side — requires a new trial. Plaintiffs lawyers, who oppose a new trial, argue that a defense victory in the high court could lead to unwarranted reversals in future cases.

A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals held on Wednesday that the state of Montana went too far in requiring an East Helena church to publicly disclose its financial involvement in a 2004 initiative campaign to ban same-sex marriage in California. The panel found that the church’s in-kind contributions were so small that forcing its leaders to file campaign disclosure forms amounted to an unfair abridgement of the assembly’s First Amendment rights.

Federal authorities brought charges in two major securities fraud investigations Wednesday, saying one scheme fell apart because of publicity about the Bernard Madoff scandal. In that case, New Jersey fund manager James Nicholson was accused of defrauding investors of as much as $900 million since 2004. In the second case, Paul Greenwood and Stephen Walsh were charged with conspiracy, securities fraud and wire fraud.

A Florida couple plan to file a federal lawsuit against National Gypsum over allegedly flawed toxic drywall, and another possible class action is in the works against Chicago-based USG. Homeowners with the drywall have reported a foul odor similar to rotten eggs, a problem also found with faulty drywall manufactured in China. The problem is fallout from Florida’s boom-to-bust housing market, though an attorney notes that homeowners in other states will also be part of the legal action.

A New York judicial conduct commission has recommended a Family Court judge be censured for repeatedly requiring her secretary to perform personal chores, including baby-sitting her children and typing documents and correspondence for her husband. Judge Dandrea L. Ruhlmann’s misconduct took place in 2004, her first year on the bench. The judge told the panel that, at the time, she did not realize the assignments were improper. Her ignorance of the rule did not affect the commission’s decision.