News
Can judges and lawyers be friends on Facebook?
In the latest collision of cyberspace and justice, the state’s Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee has ruled that it is unseemly for judges to be Internet “friends” with lawyers who could have cases in their court. “The committee believes that listing lawyers who may appear before the judge as ‘friends’ on a judge’s social networking page [...]
Purported Investments in Personal Injury Settlements – SEC Blocks Early-Stage Ponzi Scheme
Washington, D.C., Dec. 8, 2009 — The Securities and Exchange Commission today halted a Ponzi scheme involving a New York firm that solicited investments involving personal injury lawsuit settlements but instead shipped the money overseas. The SEC obtained a court order freezing the assets of the firm, its president, and several companies holding money from [...]
Texas Daycare Lawsuit Exposes Dangerous Loophole
A lawsuit filed against Woodbridge Day school may play an important role in changing laws and regulations related to daycare owners in Texas. The lawsuit alleges that two-year-old Isabella Estep died in 2008 after ingesting a rock in the classroom. The suit alleges that her teacher failed to attend to her while she lay on [...]
Former Memphis Police Officer Convicted of Excessive Force
WASHINGTON—Isaac White, formerly an officer with the Memphis Police Department, pleaded guilty today in federal court in Memphis, Tenn., to using excessive force and causing bodily injury. White faces up to 10 years in prison for the civil rights violation. White, 29, admitted in court that on Nov. 1, 2008, he struck a handcuffed arrestee [...]
Virginia State Bar Professional Guidelines To Be Published Online in Searchable Format
The Virginia State Bar Professional Guidelines for the first time are being published online in a searchable HTML format that will allow users to quickly access the sections they are looking for without flipping through pages or waiting for PDFs to download. Because the format will meet most VSB members’ needs, print copies of the [...]
14 Year Old Injured in Wood Chipper Accident
State authorities will investigate the death of a 14-year-old Poquoson boy caught by the blades of a wood chipper. Investigators from the Va. Department of Labor and Industry will not say if the wood chipper Anthony Gornick was using had a functioning safety bar or whether it would have made a difference in his death. [...]
Many factors contribute to work-related injury
Many different factors — from being obese to using vibrating hand tools to having little authority to make decisions in the workplace — seem to influence a person’s risk of developing certain work-related injuries, French researchers report. Aging, along with on-the-job constraints, “drastically” increased workers’ risk of such injuries, Dr. Yves Roquelaure of the Universite [...]
Judge consolidates personal injury fraud trials
A federal judge has decided that Las Vegas personal injury lawyer Noel Gage and medical consultant Howard Awand should be tried together. Gage and Awand are accused of conspiring to cheat personal injury clients by inflating medical costs, protecting doctors from malpractice claims and sharing kickbacks from settlements. Read full story via San Jose Mercury [...]
Calif. Jury Awards $49 Million in Personal Injury Case
A Santa Clara, Calif., jury awarded $49 million in damages Monday to a college student who was on his way to a camping trip when two trucks collided and one struck the car he was riding in, causing him traumatic brain injuries. It appears to be the biggest single-plaintiff personal injury jury verdict by far [...]
Furnaces Recalled by Northwest Manufacturing Due to Fire Hazard
Furnaces Recalled by Northwest Manufacturing Due to Fire Hazard The following product safety recall was voluntarily conducted by the firm in cooperation with the CPSC. Consumers should stop using the product immediately unless otherwise instructed. Name of Product: WoodMaster AFS 900 Outdoor Furnaces Units: About 600 Distributor: Northwest Manufacturing Inc., of Red Lake Falls, Minn. [...]
