Posts on ‘July 13th, 2009’

Paris Hilton flirted with a Miami federal judge as she testified Friday in a civil trial involving the box office bomb “Pledge This!” The celebrity heiress’s company is being sued by a receiver for Worldwide Entertainment Group for the movie’s full production cost of $8.3 million. Worldwide’s receiver accused Hilton of failing to fulfill her publicity clause by ignoring eight promotion requests by Worldwide to talk to media in several countries.

University of Illinois College of Law Dean Bruce Smith, in an effort to counter a scandal that indicated that some applicants to the college were admitted with the help of influential state officials, university officials or large donors, said on Thursday that no applicant will get special treatment under a new policy. In a letter to staff, faculty, students and alumni, Smith said the policy will require the college to respond to inquiries on the status of an application only if the inquiry is made by the applicant.

Rosetta Stone, maker of the popular foreign language software, filed a federal trademark suit against Google in Virginia Friday, alleging that one of the Web giant’s major advertising programs allows companies to confuse consumers. Rosetta Stone’s suit accuses Google of allowing companies a “free ride” on its brand and of “hijacking” consumers by confusing them into clicking on the wrong sites. Google has been hit with a string of similar lawsuits over its AdWords program.

A Pennsylvania attorney who was released from prison Friday after serving the longest imprisonment on a civil contempt charge in U.S. history said judges have too much discretion in cases like his. “If I had been convicted of murder … I would have been out in half the time,” H. Beatty Chadwick said. A judge ordered Chadwick’s release more than 14 years after he was jailed for refusing to turn over millions of dollars in a divorce battle. The case prompted dozens of appeals, twice reaching the U.S. Supreme Court.

The California Supreme Court, in a case of first impression, has ruled that sexual harassment under a state civil code statute governing conduct in business relationships should be defined using the same “pervasive” or “severe” standard established under case law for sexual harassment in the workplace.

The trustee charged with liquidating the investment advisory firm of Bernard Madoff asked a bankruptcy judge on Friday to approve more than $15 million in interim counsel fees. The $14.7 million that the team of lawyers, paralegals and non-legal staff is requesting amounts to a 10 percent discount off their customary rates. A second fee application requested $759,000 for trustee Irving H. Picard, “of which 20 percent is to be deferred through the conclusion of the liquidation period,” and a mere $45 for his expenses.

The concept of law firms talking to clients isn’t a new one. But most general counsel and consultants say firms that employ client interviewers and use other client relationship management tools are still in the minority. However, the paradigm shift in the business of law is starting to generate some much-needed lip service. “If you don’t have communication and they can’t tell you what they like and dislike, then you’re leaving them one choice and that’s to leave,” says Flaster Greenberg managing partner Peter Spirgel.

No one enjoys clearing rights for content use. Checking whether you can use content and won’t be sued over it takes time and effort. The rules governing such usage have always been complex, says attorney Stanley P. Jaskiewicz, but use the lessons you’ve learned over time and ask permission first.

M&A stars Richard Climan and Keith Flaum and tech transactions group leader Eric Reifschneider parted ways with Cooley Godward Kronish last week to join Dewey & LeBeouf. But for Climan, at least, the parting may have started a while ago. “It did not come as a surprise that Rick is leaving,” Cooley Chairman Stephen Neal said on Friday. “Rick has not been happy with things for some time — it was somewhat more of a surprise that Keith and Eric were leaving.”

Mayer Brown partner Joseph P. Collins was found guilty Friday of conspiracy and four other charges in connection with a massive fraud at now-bankrupt Refco Inc. Collins, who testified in his own defense that he was kept in the dark about more than $2.4 billion in debt hidden by top officials at the financial services firm, is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 3. Technically, he faces a maximum of five years on the conspiracy count and 20 years on each of the substantive counts. However, he is likely to receive far less.