Recent Updates
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Court rejects Calif. plan to cut prison population
Lawyer Blogs 10/22/2009A federal judicial panel has rejected California's plan for reducing the state's prison population because it failed to meet the terms of an earlier court order.In August, the panel ordered California to reduce its inmate population by roughly 27 per...
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Court blocks names in gay partnership referendum
Lawyer Blogs 10/21/2009The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday temporarily blocked Washington state officials from releasing the names of people who signed referendum petitions to bring expanded rights for gay couples up for a public vote in November.The court's action maintains...
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Ohio high court hears online communications case
Lawyer Blogs 10/21/2009Booksellers, video game dealers, newspaper publishers and other critics of an online child protection law encountered skepticism from state Supreme Court justices Tuesday for their free-speech arguments.A coalition led by the American Booksellers Fou...
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Key figure in NJ corruption probe pleads guilty
Lawyer Blogs 10/20/2009The central figure in a huge New Jersey corruption investigation pleaded guilty to federal bank fraud and money laundering charges Tuesday.Solomon Dwek's work for the government as a cooperating witness directly led to the arrests of 44 people in Jul...
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Judge revokes bail for NYC ex-police commissioner
Lawyer Blogs 10/20/2009A federal judge on Tuesday revoked bail for former New York City Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik and sent him to jail to await a corruption trial scheduled to start next week.Calling Kerik "a toxic combination of self-minded focus and arrogance," J...
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Bankruptcy filing delays church sex abuse case
Lawyer Blogs 10/19/2009A sex abuse case against Delaware's Catholic Diocese of Wilmington and a former priest will be delayed after the diocese filed for federal bankruptcy protection on the eve of trial.The bankruptcy filing late Sunday delays a lawsuit that had been set ...
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Ala. court rejects $274M verdicts in drug cases
Lawyer Blogs 10/18/2009ma Supreme Court on Friday threw out jury decisions awarding the state more than $274 million from three pharmaceutical companies, ruling they did not defraud the state in pricing Medicaid prescription drugs.The court overturned jury verdicts against...
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Court decision seen as good sign for ex-Ala. gov
Lawyer Blogs 10/16/2009Attorneys for former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman and ex-HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy said Wednesday they see a positive sign in the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to hear the appeal of former Enron CEO Jeff Skilling.Like Skilling, some of the charge...
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Court files opened in Letterman extortion case
Lawyer Blogs 10/15/2009Newly released court documents say the newsman accused of blackmailing David Letterman about his sexual affairs told the TV host's attorney that his client's world was about to collapse around him.The documents say CBS News producer Robert "Joe" Hald...
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The Supreme Court Shows Off Its Dull Side
Lawyer Blogs 10/15/2009Chief Justice John Roberts once famously and controversially described a judge's role as akin to an umpire who merely calls balls and strikes. On Wednesday, Roberts offered a new take on that argument in a Supreme Court case about whether lawyers who...
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NY court hears case against gay marriage benefits
Lawyer Blogs 10/14/2009A Christian legal group seeking to stop New York agencies from recognizing same-sex marriages performed outside the state argued in the state's highest court Tuesday that the practice amounts to a policy decision that requires approval by lawmakers.A...
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Court to decide constitutionality of bad advice
Lawyer Blogs 10/13/2009Supreme Court justices are questioning whether defendants should expect their lawyers to advise them on all the possible consequences of a guilty plea before it is submitted to a court.Jose Padilla wants his guilty plea to drug charges thrown out. Th...