I am a fan of the American court system. There is no natural law requiring people to resolve their differences by asking third parties to represent them and advocate on their behalf in front of impartial decision-makers. The folks in classical Athens and Rome thought it was a good idea, the Europeans rediscovered the practice
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Why Philadelphia Is The Worst Judicial Hellhole In The United States
By Max Kennerly, Esq. on
The American Tort Reform Association’s Annual Report on “Judicial Hellholes” is out again.
Whoops, I mixed up my link — that’s a link to reasonable commentary by the Center for Justice & Democracy. The actual misleading, faux-scientific report is here. My take is similar to The Pop Tort’s ode to the judicial hellholes list:…
Don’t Take Cases That Don’t Fit In Your Firm’s Portfolio
By Max Kennerly, Esq. on
Ronald V. Miller, Jr. at Maryland Injury Lawyer Blog notes:
The Insurance Journal reports a rise in legal malpractice claims. Incredibly, there has been no hand wringing about increased malpractice rates for lawyers or fears that lawyers will no longer be able to keep their practices open as their insurance rates rise. We have
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Investing In Lawsuits, Part III: Here Come The Banks and Hedge Funds
On Sunday, the New York Times returned to third-party funding of lawsuits with “Investors Put Money on Lawsuits to Get Payouts:”
Large banks, hedge funds and private investors hungry for new and lucrative opportunities are bankrolling other people’s lawsuits, pumping hundreds of millions of dollars into medical malpractice claims, divorce battles and class
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The New Wave Of Breach Of Fiduciary Duty Forum-Shopping By Corporate Boards of Directors
By Max Kennerly, Esq. on
[UPDATE: In related news, a federal judge in San Francisco recently ignored a forum selection bylaw that tried to force derivative suits to be filed in the Delaware Chancery Court. “A bylaw unilaterally adopted by directors…stands on a different footing [from contractual forum agreements],” Judge Seeborg wrote. “Particularly where, as here, the bylaw…
Lower Merion Spycam Settlement: Plaintiffs’ Lawyers Take Double Plaintiffs’ Recovery, Less Than Half Defense Lawyers’ Fees
By Max Kennerly, Esq. on
Two of the students which sued Lower Merion School District over the District’s systematic and surreptitious surveillance over them by way of their laptops settled their cases:
The Lower Merion School District will pay $610,000 to settle lawsuits over its tracking of student laptop computers, ending an eight-month saga that thrust the elite district
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The Idiot’s Guide Whistleblowing Under The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act
By Max Kennerly, Esq. on
If you suspect your employer has violated securities, tax, or government contract laws, you can contact our firm for a free, confidential, no-obligation consultation using this form.
Corporate Counsel reported yesterday:
The new federal whistleblower law is proving a hot item for many plaintiff law firms. Attorneys say that tipsters with visions
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E.D.Pa. Shoots From The Hip In Assessing Value of Medicaid / Medicare Lien In Personal Injury Settlement
By Max Kennerly, Esq. on
One of the big issues that’s been floating around the personal injury / wrongful death world over the past few years is the extent to which states can recoup the money they spent on an injured person’s care if that person later sues the person who caused the injury and obtains a settlement.
The Supreme…
Why Can’t Copyright Trolls Be Compelled Into Agency Hearings Or Arbitration?
[Update: I somehow missed Ron Coleman’s earlier take on the article, but it’s required reading if you’re interested in the subject. Coleman and Walter Olson both seem on board with, as Olson words it, "steering rights owners into agency complaints or arbitration as an alternative, or at least precondition, to court action."]
Via…
More False Claims Act Smoke And Mirrors To Deny Whistleblower Awards
By Max Kennerly, Esq. on
Via the WSJ Law Blog, Amy Kolz at The American Lawyer has a new article about the False Claims Act:
"[FCA cases] are a big gamble," says Piacentile’s counsel, former Boies, Schiller & Flexner partner David Stone of Stone & Magnanini, who cites cost-benefit analyses and good relationships with prosecutors as essential to his
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