“A Yukon mining prospector claims federal geologists stole a priceless piece of meteorite he found in the 1980s that contained alien organisms, but RCMP say they haven’t found any evidence to support that allegation.” [CBC]
Archive for October, 2010
Foreclosures on the rocks
Lawyers profited handsomely from devising the foreclosure-mill model, and now will profit handsomely from exposing its flaws, as Larry Ribstein notes. More: Arnold Kling (“If you say that ‘the law is the law’ and ‘rules must be enforced as written,’ that can be a consistent position and I can respect you for it. But then don’t turn around and say that we should empower mortgage counselors to rewrite people’s loans.”) Stephen Bainbridge (prospective lawsuit wave over packaging of mortgages for investors “show the extent to which mass financial torts now adversely affect American business.”)
Yet more: “Lawsuit wave could hurt housing market: FDIC chief” [AP/WaPo]; the elusive search for villains [Holman Jenkins, WSJ]
India: Colgate patented traditional remedy, opponents claim
“Indian activists claim that the patent [awarded to Colgate for a tooth powder] is bogus because the ingredients — including clove oil, camphor, black pepper and spearmint — have been used for the same purpose for hundreds, ‘if not thousands,’ of years on the subcontinent.” [Fox Orlando]
Let’s impeach John Roberts!
Michigan Supreme Court Justice Robert Young
One of the most highly regarded right-of-center state court jurists is up for re-election this year in my native state, and drawing some of the slimiest attacks from Democratic strategists. A sample: they’re hyping still photos of Young with his eyes closed on the bench, supposedly “sleeping,” when videotape context from moments before and after reveals the Justice to be simply blinking or glancing down. Instance #87,231, I’d say, of why it’s dubious to go to the mat in principle for the notion of selecting judges by partisan contested election. More: Tim Skubick/Oakland Press, The Blog Prof.
October 25 roundup
- And she’s a psychology professor too: “Pro se litigant of the day” [ATL]
- “Access to justice” makes handy slogan, but has its limits re: appeal bonds [Ted at PoL]
- New Federalist Society white papers on Michigan, Illinois, California and Alabama supreme courts;
- Per her opponent this year, CPSIA proponent and perennial Overlawyered bete noire Jan Schakowsky ranks as most left-wing member of Congress [ExtremeJan.com]
- Naming opportunity at Faulkner U.’s Jones School of Law falls to Greg Jones of Beasley Allen [BA press release]
- Lockyer pushes divestment of firms for taking wrong stance on ballot controversy [Coyote]
- “Patent marking” suits continue to proliferate as Reps. Latta, Issa propose measures to curb opportunistic filings [Gray on Claims]
- “South Carolina tobacco fees: how to farm money” [ten years ago on Overlawyered]
“I’ll Make Them Pay”
Apparently a Baton Rouge, La. lawyer was awarded a trademark for that phrase last year and is now suing being sued by a Cleveland lawyer who’s been using it in his ads for years. [Cleveland.com]
“D.A.R.E.: Ripping Families Apart Since 1983”
Children inform on their parents. [Radley Balko]
Chevron can depose opposing lawyer in Ecuador case
As evidence mounts of attorney misconduct in a high-profile environmental case, a judge grants the oil company an extraordinary request to put plaintiff’s counsel Steven Donziger under oath. [Roger Alford, Opinio Juris; earlier]
October 23 roundup
- Suffolk County, New York’s new animal abuse registry [Scott Greenfield and more vs. Elie Mystal]
- Examining Dems’ “flood of outside campaign money” claims [Baseball Crank, Sullum]
- “Reverse bill stuffer” turns tables on firms’ efforts to amend fine print [David Horton, Prawfs]
- Occupational licensure and economic sclerosis in Greece [NYT]
- Phoenix cops’ unsettling evidence-plant “joke” [Coyote]
- Legal Left trying to set up argument for Thomas recusal on Obamacare challenge? [Steele, LEF]
- “How Fannie and Freddie Became a $363 Billion Liability” [John Hudson, Atlantic Wire]
- “Lawsuit of the Day: Kid Injured by ‘Deleterious’ Hot Sauce” [Legal Blog Watch]