It can consist of kids’ playing, as in this British case in which an irate neighbor called in “the environmental health” to complain about a nearby nursery school. The school has agreed to restrictions under which “games such as What’s the Time, Mr Wolf? can no longer be played outdoors.” (Stewart Payne, “Nursery children must stay inside to protect neighbour’s rights”, Daily Telegraph, Nov. 10).
Author Archive
Jack Thompson quits Grand Theft Auto case
“Jack Thompson, the colorful Miami attorney who has become synonymous with lawsuits against video game companies, withdrew as the attorney for the plaintiffs in Fayette’s video game trial.”
…Thompson’s withdrawal comes after a hearing on a motion from the defense attorneys, who represent video game manufacturers and distributors, to revoke Thompson’s privilege to practice law in Alabama during the case. Judge James Moore granted Thompson, pro hac vice, the legal term for the temporary privilege, when the suit was filed.
Defense Attorney Jim Smith claimed that Thompson bombarded him, his co-counsel Rebecca Ward and his law firm, Blank Rome, with threatening and harassing e-mails and letters. He also accused Thompson of violating legal ethics, misrepresenting an alleged past history of disciplinary problems and attempting to poison the jury pool with frequent press releases and appearances in the news media….
Since defense attorneys filed the motion, Thompson has claimed they were “coming after” him. He said Blank Rome’s strategy has always been to attack its opponents.
(“Robert DeWitt, “Attorney in Fayette case bows out”, Tuscaloosa News, Nov. 8). More coverage: IGN, GamePolitics.com, GameSpot News, The Inquirer. For more on Thompson’s antics, see Feb. 19, Oct. 21, etc.
Balloting results
In Washington state, voters defeated I-330, a doctor-backed plan to limit medical malpractice awards and lawyers’ fees, by about a 54-46 margin, while also drubbing I-336. a lawyer-backed alternative (Seattle P-I, Seattle Times). California voters trounced, by a 61-39 margin, Proposition 79, which would have regulated drug prices via freelance lawsuits among other means; they defeated Proposition 78, a drug-industry-backed alternative, by nearly as wide a margin. (L.A. Times, Sacramento Bee). In Virginia, former Richmond mayor and Democrat Tim Kaine, who had been criticized by the American Justice Partnership (Nov. 2), won the governorship anyway (Wash. Post). Texas voters easily passed an anti-gay-marriage constitutional amendment that Houston attorney Warren Cole, chairman of the State Bar of Texas’ family law section, called “horribly drafted” and which would prohibit the recognition of any “legal status” that is “similar to marriage” (more from Cathy Young)(see yesterday’s post) (Dallas Morning News) (cross-posted at Point of Law).
Ballot propositions today
Over at Point of Law, I’ve been collecting links on California’s Prop 79 (empower trial lawyers to sue over drug prices, among other provisions) and Washington’s I-330 (med-mal). Also, Virginia Postrel reminds Texans to vote no on Proposition 2, which is billed as banning gay marriage and in fact, like some tricky predecessors in other states (see Mar. 20, etc.), would probably extend much further than that.
Welcome Declan McCullagh readers
The widely read technology correspondent discusses the controversy arising from the revelation that Sony has been “injecting an undetectable copy-prevention utility into Microsoft Windows”. On the one hand, lawyers have already filed a class-action suit against Sony complaining of the practice; on the other hand, consumers who try to rid their computers of the anticopying program are at risk of violating “Section 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which bans the ‘circumvention’ of anticopying technology.” McCullagh goes on to observe:
If your head isn’t spinning by now, it should be. It’s a wacky result when both Sony and its hapless customers could be embroiled in legal hot water at the same time.
These citations to state laws, federal statutes and common law torts above should demonstrate an obvious point: The American legal system is, all too often, used as a weapon against businesses or individuals who can’t hope to comply with every regulation on the books. Entrepreneurs write checks to law firms instead of developing products. Guilt and innocence turn too often on technicalities rather than whether an action was inherently right or wrong.
Why? As Manhattan Institute fellow Walter Olson documents on Overlawyered.com, our legal system is set up to encourage lawsuits. They’re easy to file and difficult to dismiss. Plus, politicians receive attention by enacting new laws, not by repealing them. No wonder the Federal Register was growing by between 55,000 and 70,000 pages annually even by the first Bush presidency. …
(“Perspective: Why they say spyware is good for you”, CNet News, Nov. 7).
Microsoft fee squabble: judge has “better things to do”
Declaring that he had “better things to do”, U.S. District Judge Frederick Motz in Baltimore has dismissed for lack of jurisdiction an action by plaintiff’s lawyers seeking to grab more than $24 million from a $79 million fee pot awarded another group of lawyers for their work suing Microsoft in six states and the District of Columbia. The lawyers are still free to pursue their claims in state courts. (Brian Witte, “Federal judge dismisses request for legal fees in Microsoft case”, AP/Grand Forks Herald, Oct. 27). More on MS fee-ing frenzies: Jul. 25, 2004 and links from there.
Court: workers’ comp covers hockey-fight injury
Confirming every suspicion about ice hockey:
A former minor-league hockey player who injured his shoulder in a fight he claimed his coach told him to start is entitled to workers’ compensation, a Virginia appeals court ruled.
The Virginia Court of Appeals upheld a Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission finding that “fighting is an integral part of the game of hockey” and that Ty A. Jones’ injury arose in the course of his employment as an “enforcer.”
(Sonja Barisic, “Court: Workers’ comp covers hockey player”, AP/Detroit News, Nov. 4).
Not about the money, cont’d
In our continuing series (see Jul. 5): the family of 58-year-old Gerald Glover, who became ill following the recent Toronto outbreak of Legionnaire’s Disease, is suing. “It’s never been about the money,” said his daughter Cheryl. The suit seeks class action status and asks C$600 million. (“Legionnaires’ class action suit seeks $600M”, CTV, Oct. 26) (via KevinMD). Other suits that were not about the money: Apr. 30, Jun. 15, Jun. 30, and Jul. 5, 2005; Aug. 16, 2004; Mar. 27-28 and Sept. 3-4, 2002; Apr. 24 and May 9, 2001; Jul. 26-27, 2000. And one that was: Jun. 14, 2001.
Update: Jamie Olis wins resentencing
Last year, as has been mentioned in this space (May 18, 2004, Oct. 19, 2005) a Texas judge handed down a sentence of 24 years in prison to Dynegy executive Jamie Olis, convicted by a jury of committing accounting fraud which advanced his employer’s aims but from which he did not benefit personally. Now Fifth Circuit Judge Edith Jones has handed down a ruling (PDF) finding that Olis is entitled to resentencing and laying down guidance which likely will result in a shorter sentence. Tom Kirkendall is covering the story as usual (Nov. 1, Nov. 4) as is Larry Ribstein (Nov. 1).
Outdoor smoking bans
Advancing toward prohibition, 25 feet at a time:
On Tuesday, Washington state voters will consider the first statewide ban on smoking within 25 feet of buildings that prohibit smoking….
Limits on smoking outdoors have taken off in the past two years, says Maggie Hopkins of the American Non-smokers’ Rights Foundation.
Among the examples: many beaches in California (see Jun. 24, 2004), and hospital grounds in Iowa: “Patients and visitors will have to trek off hospital grounds — one campus is 44 acres — to smoke.” (Dennis Cauchon, “Smoke-free zones extend outdoors”, USA Today, Nov. 1). See Jul. 27 (smoking while driving); Aug. 15 (prison terms proposed for smoking too close to buildings).