Progressive Legal Blog

Dallas Lawsuits Question Labor Demands of Email and Cellphones

2009-08-10T15:15:00.000-07:00

Two recent lawsuits raise a question that many employees and employers have deliberated: Should hourly workers be paid for time spent responding to work calls or emails while off the clock?

The federal suits highlight the legal issues sparked by the proliferation of personal technology as well as the blurring of work and free time, said Weinberg Law Firm, Labor Lawyer Dallas.

Lohan Gets 1 Day in Jail on Los Angeles DUI Plea

2009-08-10T14:55:00.000-07:00

Attorney Michael Bialys (who also represented Mel Gibson in his drunken-driving case) entered pleas on Lohan's behalf: she pleaded guilty to two counts of being under the influence of cocaine; no contest to two counts of driving with a blood-alcohol level above .08 percent and one count of reckless driving. Two counts of driving under the influence were dropped, said Michael Bialys, Los Angeles DUI lawyer.

Family of New York Woman Killed in Truck Crash Settles Lawsuit for $16 Million

2009-08-05T10:53:00.000-07:00

FORT WORTH, Texas, July 13 /PRNewswire/ -- A Cleburne, Texas family has settled a wrongful death lawsuit arising out of an 18-wheel truck crash against Pioneer Drilling Co. (AMEX: PDC) , PDC MGMT Co., Pioneer Drilling Services, Ltd. and Daniel Armstrong. The family was represented by John David Hart of the Law Offices of John David Hart in Fort Worth, Texas and Dan Boulware and John MacLean of MacLean & Boulware in Cleburne, Texas, said John Q. Kelly, a New York catastrophic injury lawyer.

Pioneer Drilling Co. settled the lawsuit on July 9, 2009, after three days of trial in Johnson County before the Honorable William Bosworth. Plaintiffs had not yet rested their case when the $16 million settlement was reached.

Planned Parenthood fraud case appealed

2009-08-05T09:11:00.000-07:00

The FCA forbids government contractors
from submitting "false or fraudulent" claims for payment.

"No one should be permitted to scam the public treasury for profit," said Jay Sekulow, chief counsel of the ACLJ. "The FCA was designed to remedy such illegal runs on taxpayer money."

The qui tam lawyer Los Angeles brought in federal court by the former Planned Parenthood worker against the business claimed the company fraudulently overbilled the state and federal governments. But attorneys for the prominent law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher and Flom began representing Planned Parenthood for free, and the Skadden lawyers convinced the lower court to dismiss the case on technical grounds.

Chicago Business Corus Bankshares Inc. on cusp of crisis

2009-08-04T14:59:00.000-07:00

FDIC may seize 'critically undercapitalized' Chicago-based lender
By Becky Yerak | Tribune reporter
August 2, 2009

On July 2 the FDIC proposed requiring that private firms investing in a failed bank maintain a Tier 1 leverage ratio, or capital as a percentage of average total assets, of 15 percent for three years. Currently a bank is considered well-capitalized if it has a 5 percent leverage ratio.

The private-equity industry immediately cried foul, saying the proposed guidance would deter future private investments in capital-starved banks. The FDIC comment period expires Aug. 10 but has already had an impact.

"We've been looking at a lot of banks, but if anything our appetite is less because we were hoping regulations would get lightened, not tightened," said a Chicago business attorney.

Pittsburgh DUI Defense Lawyer

2009-08-03T16:13:00.000-07:00

"We don't want to delay motorists any more than possible," Ms. Tress said. "The best advice I can give is for people to choose a designated driver, or leave bars, clubs and parties some other way besides getting behind the wheel."

DUI arrests at checkpoints are made on the spot. Drivers who can arrange for somebody to pick them up can leave after being processed; each will receive a summons by mail to appear before a district judge.

Police have never been known to conduct a checkpoint on an interstate highway in the region. But Ms. Kress said there's no law against it, though safety has always been the overriding concern because of speed and traffic volumes.

Hire a Pittsburgh DUI Defense Lawyer

California Class Action Lawyers Ringler Kearney Alvarez LLP

2009-07-31T11:57:00.000-07:00

Los Angeles accident law firm Ringler Kearney Alavarez LLP have established themselves as a premier law firm by providing clients with consistently excellent service. They pride themselves on their intellect, creativity and tenacity.

These Los Angeles personal injury attorneys have achieved victories in over 100 trials with total verdicts in excess of $250 million.

Ringler Kearney Alvarez LLP achieves their verdicts by utilizing their substantial financial resources to obtain the best result possible for each of their clients. This California accident specialist law firm fights tirelessly for their clients, no matter the cost and no matter the foe.

Catastrophic Injury Lawyer John Q. Kelly in NY Launches Website

2009-01-08T14:18:00.000-08:00

NY Catastrophic Injury Lawyer John Q. Kelly is pleased to announce the launch of his new website for The Kelly Group P.C.

The website can be viewed at http://www.kellygrouppc.com and features notable cases and clients of Mr. Kelly.

About John Q. Kelly
One of the most renowned litigators in the country, Mr. Kelly has a proven track record in complex civil and corporate litigation nationwide.

His clients include some of the most widely publicized victims in recent times, including:

- Estate of Nicole Brown Simpson
- Parents of Natalee Holloway
- Estate of Kathleen Savio, ex-wife of Drew Peterson
- Estate of Heiress Anne Scripps Douglas
- Former Yankee great Joe Pepitone

Chatsworth Metrolink Attorney

2008-09-24T13:30:00.000-07:00

www.rkallp.com

Chicago Business Firm Roth Law Named Featured Law Firm

2008-06-13T13:56:00.001-07:00

The Roth Law Group has been named a Breaking Legal News Featured Law Firm for its outstanding achievements in Business law and contract law in the Chicago area. Below is a little bit about the firm.

About Roth Law:
Business owners know that it takes hard work and dedication to make it in today's competitive marketplace. And choosing a law firm that understands the needs of small business is essential if you want to get a leg-up on the competition. You expect that your law firm will provide you with practical solutions and attentive individualized service. At the Chicago-based business law firm of the Roth Law Group, that's what you get.

At the Roth Law Group, we understand the concerns of small business owners like you and we have experience working in industries ranging from construction to chemical manufacturing. Our lawyers know that you need to remain focused on business and legal issues often detract from this goal. When the Roth Law Group represents you, we concentrate our efforts on resolving matters efficiently and economically and seek to reach the best business outcome in the least amount of time whenever practical. From contract negotiations to commercial litigation, we offer a full-range of business legal services specifically tailored to meet your needs.

If your small business is in the market for business legal services in Cook County or throughout Illinois, contact the Chicago-based Roth Law Group for a Free Initial Consultation. We offer practical solutions to your small business legal challenges at affordable rates.

A Few Representative Matters

-Obtained six-figure settlement on behalf of an Italian-based Manufacturer of wood veneer products in a breach of contract action against U.S. based distributor.

-Obtained judgment in favor of a Commercial Landscaping Contractor involving breach of contract.

-Negotiated nuisance value settlement on behalf of a Multi-Media Company sued for violation of Non-Compete Agreement, thus avoiding business interruption and an injunction.

-Successfully prosecuted foreclosure and other actions on behalf of a Colorado-based Mortgage Company.

www.rothlawgroup.com

Google Blurs Faces

2008-05-14T15:06:00.000-07:00

After privacy complaints, Google Inc. is beginning to automatically blur faces of people captured in the street photos taken for its Internet map program. Rolling it out will take several months, however.

Although Google's Street View service was not the first to augment online maps with photos, the detail and breadth of images on the site surprised and unsettled many users when it launched last year.

As specially equipped Google vehicles cruised city streets snapping panoramic images of homes and businesses, the resulting photos revealed people falling off bikes, exiting strip joints, crossing the street, sunbathing — everyday, in-public things but nonetheless, things they might not have wanted preserved for posterity.

Some privacy advocates, including the influential Electronic Frontier Foundation, suggested that Google blur the images of people. That move, the critics pointed out, would not inhibit Street View's goal of helping people become familiar with the look and feel of a location before they travel there.

This week, Google revealed it had indeed begun deploying a facial-recognition algorithm that scans photos for mugs to blur. The changes are happening first in scenes in New York, before slowly expanding to the other 40 cities in Street View.

Google spokesman Larry Yu said the company is still tweaking the system. For now it tends to err on the side of blurring too many things — things a computer erroneously interprets as faces — but that is better than leaving too many faces unblurred, Yu said.

Yu said Google was responding not only to privacy complaints in the U.S., but also trying to head off legal or cultural objections that might emerge as Street View expands into other countries.

Rebecca Jeschke, a spokeswoman for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, praised Google's decision, but she added that "it's just a shame it didn't happen before the tool launched."

Archdiocese Sues Facebook

2008-05-14T15:03:00.000-07:00

A school administrator who charges his identity was stolen is now part of a lawsuit against a popular web site.

The Archdiocese of Indianapolis is suing the popular social networking web site Facebook after someone posted a page using the name of the dean of students at Roncalli High School without his knowledge or consent. Tim Puntarelli, dean and assistant football coach at Roncalli, says he became aware of the website last month.

The lawsuit alleges identity deception, stalking and harassment after someone used Puntarelli's name and personal information to not only set up the account, but send e-mails to students in his name. According to court documents, postings included invitations to dozens of students to be Puntarelli's Facebook friends, a message to a student suggesting Puntarelli may take disciplinary action against him and other pictures and messages deemed inappropriate.

"The question is, is this libel and can someone be sued for it?" asked IUPUI law professor Henry Carlson.

He says while the legal issue is not a new one, the context is.

"We used to be able to libel people by a magazine or written newspaper, then we got radio and television, and now we have the Internet," Carlson said. "So the amount of damage that can be done is dramatically increased."

While school administrators asked for the identity of the person who created the false Facebook account, Facebook refused.

"We cannot release the information unless we receive a valid subpoena or court order, there may be situations where we are unable to retrieve the information due to technical limitations," they explained.

The archdiocese filed and was granted an emergency restraining order after Facebook refused to identify the person who created the web page.

"Given the nature of technology today, it would be almost impossible to prevent someone from creating a website like that," Carlson said.

After a request by the school, Facebook eventually removed the web page and a judge ordered the web site to proved any identifying information about the person who created the page.

"The archdiocese hopes to resolve the issue as quickly as possible in order to restore damage done to Mr. Puntarelli's reputation and to prevent this type of identity theft from happening again," the archdiocese said in a statement.

Myspace Wins $230M Spam Suit

2008-05-14T14:58:00.001-07:00

The popular online hangout MySpace has won a $230 million judgment over junk messages sent to its members in what is believed to be the largest anti-spam award ever.

A federal judge in Los Angeles issued the award when Sanford Wallace and associate Walter Rines failed to show up for a court hearing.

Wallace earned the monikers "Spam King" and "Spamford" as head of a company that sent as many as 30 million junk e-mails a day in the 1990s. He left that company, Cyber Promotions, following lawsuits from leading Internet service providers such as Time Warner Inc.'s AOL, only to re-emerge in a spyware case that led to a $4 million federal judgment against him in 2006.
Click here to find out more!

MySpace sued under the federal anti-spam law that provides $100 in damages for each violation and triples that if the violation is on purpose.

Wallace and Rines were accused of sending more than 730,000 messages to MySpace members as fake friends, recommending "cool" sites that turned out to be money-making schemes selling things like ring tones.

MySpace said the spamming ate up valuable space and angered members.

Craigslist Countersues Ebay for Deception

2008-05-13T15:07:00.000-07:00

Craigslist on Tuesday launched a legal counterattack against eBay, which sued Craigslist in Delaware two weeks ago for violating its rights as a minority shareholder.

"We filed a complaint in California today, charging eBay with unlawful and unfair competition, misappropriation of proprietary information, deceptive passing-off, business interference, false advertising, phishing attacks, free-riding, trademark infringement, trademark dilution, and breaches of fiduciary duty," said Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster in a blog post.

Buckmaster said that Craigslist is asking the Superior Court in San Francisco to put a halt to eBay's alleged misconduct, to force eBay to make restitution to Craigslist and return related profits, to restore the Craigslist shares that eBay owns to Craigslist, and to impose punitive damages on eBay.

In 2004, eBay acquired a minority stake in Craigslist from a former shareholder. Since that time, the Craigslist filing alleges, eBay has "engaged in conduct designed to harm Craigslist, its users, and consumers in California and elsewhere."

The Craigslist complaint, for example, claims that eBay placed on Google ads that purported to direct users to Craigslist but instead sent them to Kijiji, a community site owned by eBay that competes with Craigslist.

EBay's supposed motivation for this and other alleged skullduggery cited in the complaint was to gain control of Craigslist. Having failed to achieve that goal, Craigslist claims that eBay wants to promote Kijiji to kill off Craigslist.

"Sadly, we have an uncomfortably conflicted shareholder in our midst, one that is obsessed with dominating online classifieds for the purpose of maximizing its own profits," Buckmaster said in a blog post made following the filing of eBay's lawsuit two weeks ago.

EBay's lawsuit paints a somewhat different picture. In its legal filing, the company accuses Craigslist founder Craig Newmark and Buckmaster with planning to dilute eBay's investment in Craigslist and to diminish eBay's voting power as it relates to Craigslist. It also accuses the pair of adopting Poison Pill rules that inhibit eBay's ability to sell its Craigslist shares to anyone other than Newmark, Buckmaster, or their company.

Dim Future for GM Crops

2008-05-12T15:11:00.001-07:00

A ruling by Justice Mallon in the High Court reaffirms that the HSNO Act (under which ERMA operates) does not require testing for negative impacts of GM organisms to be part of any research during field trials.

But the lack of safety research makes it unlikely GM crops will ever be commercialised in New Zealand in the forseeable future.

Under the current HSNO Act ERMA is powerless to require such research as part of a field trial. On the other hand, under the same law ERMA is required to assess such data if it is to ever legalise GE crops.
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As GM companies can avoid proper testing the trials are a scientific 'dead end' with insufficient data to ever support an application to release these crops in New Zealand. Having exposed New Zealand in the field trials, overseas investors may then impose their products on countries with even poorer regulation.

The decision confirms at least two disastrous flaws in the HSNO Act; ERMA is powerless to require such safety testing, and the public purse is liable if things go unexpectedly wrong.

GE Free NZ (in food and environment) challenged the process of ERMA's approval of GE brassica in our role as a public watchdog and without malice. The decision to uphold ERMA's approval of the trial confirms the concerned public of New Zealand’s worst fears.

"Turning a blind eye to proper scientific research as part of field trials may be convenient for the GE companies right now but it is fated to come back and bite them. Given problems overseas with similar types of GE crops, the HSNO Act would require ERMA to block any commercial release down the track, simply because the applicants were never required to gather the safety data", says Jon Carapiet from GE-Free NZ (in food and environment)

GE Free NZ is fearful that the costs of the case will be used as a stick to beat down public-interest watchdogs and silence the public in it’s engagement with the ERMA process.

MADGE went out of existence after a previous legal challenge. When it comes to costs we are the David to industry's Goliath. We are at the mercy of ERMA and the GE companies in hoping they will not try to crush public involvement so important to democracy and good governance. In any event the law must be changed to bring it into line with public expectations and common sense.

Progressive Tax Recommends....

2006-12-28T15:06:00.000-08:00

We recommend these law firms:

West coast:
www.costell-law.com - entertainment, real estate, litigation, etc.

East Coast:
www.fw-law.com/new - Cable, Commmunications, Internet, Litigation, Broadcasting, etc.

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2006-12-28T15:04:00.000-08:00

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2006-12-28T14:51:00.000-08:00

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