FindLaw News for Legal Professionals

Would You Even Know if Hackers Listened to Your Videoconference?

2012-02-09T13:02:06Z

Your videoconference can be hacked. And it's surprisingly simple. Hacker HD Moore works for security company Rapid7. He spent time looking into flaws in videoconferencing security. What he found was surprising. Thousands of boardrooms across the nation are configured without safeguards. This means that confidential meetings may run the risk......

Ex Law Students Sue Over 'Arbitrary and Capricious' D in Contracts

2012-02-09T12:02:06Z

Welcome Karla Ford and Jonathan Chan to the worldwide web of ridicule. They're going to need all the support they can get. The pair was kicked out of law school after earning "D" grades in a first-year contracts course. They've since filed a federal lawsuit against Texas Southern University's Thurgood......

Will Seventh Circuit Reverse Illinois Ban on Guns in Public?

2012-02-08T21:06:02Z

Last week, a federal judge dismissed a challenge to the Illinois ban on carrying guns in public, finding that the Second Amendment only provides a narrow right to the right to bear arms. Plaintiffs in the case, Moore v. Madigan, have filed a notice of appeal with the Seventh Circuit......

Plaintiff Can Bring Slip and Fall Case Under Respondeat Superior

2012-02-08T23:03:46Z

The California Supreme Court revived a plaintiff's slip and fall case against a jewelry store this week under the theory of respondeat superior, noting that it was no ordinary slip and fall case. The difference in this premises liability case? The plaintiff was not a customer, but an independent contractor......

Beware Ex Parte Order Suspending Statute of Limitations

2012-02-08T20:02:02Z

Never send to know for whom the statute of limitations tolls; it tolls for thee the government. Unless a court files an ex parte order suspending the running of the statute of limitations so the government can gather evidence from a foreign country. And according to a Second Circuit Court......

Judge Sparks Criticizes 5th Cir As Texas Sonogram Law Takes Effect

2012-02-08T18:03:38Z

There are approximately 80,000 abortions in Texas each year, according to the Houston Chronicle. With this week’s implementation of the new Texas sonogram law, there will be approximately 80,000 additional sonograms in the state. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals lifted U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks’ temporary order blocking enforcement......

'The Meth Made Me Do It' Does Not Support Confession Suppression

2012-02-08T19:03:16Z

A jury convicted Cami Braden of participating in a conspiracy to obtain methamphetamine from suppliers in Utah and transport it to Wyoming for resale. The case was essentially a cake walk for the prosecutor because the government had testimony from Braden's co-conspirators and Braden's own confession. Not so fast, Braden......

Newt Gingrich Withdraws Virginia Republican Primary Challenge

2012-02-08T14:22:36Z

The Newt Gingrich/Virginia Republican Primary court battle has sputtered to an undramatic end. Gingrich's lawyers filed paperwork with a Virginia federal court on Saturday -- and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday -- indicating that they would be dropping their challenge to place Gingrich on the Virginia Republican......

Take It or Leave It: Seniors Can't Reject Medicare Eligibility

2012-02-08T14:02:34Z

In an atypical case of Americans refusing government entitlements, a group of senior citizens on Social Security has tried and failed to stop their automatic eligibility for Medicare. Like green eggs and ham, Burt and Ernie, and Batman and Robin, you can’t have Social Security without Medicare, no matter how......

More Firms Are (Cautiously) Hiring Summer Associates

2012-02-08T14:03:58Z

Law firms are hiring more summer associates now. Remember the blissful law school days before the financial meltdown in 2008? When you were a wee little 1L? When your hopes and dreams of landing that summer associate gig were actually within your reach? If you do, you probably also remember......

The Paxil Defense: Antidepressant Made Man Rob a Bank of America

2012-02-08T13:05:59Z

Criminal defense lawyers know that the right strategy can make or break your client's case. Enter the "Paxil defense." Georgia attorney Peter Johnson is likely hoping this argument will help his client, Feliz Vega Jr. Vega is accused of robbing a Bank of America branch in 2010. He donned a......

Don't Fall Prey to Facebook 'Timeline' Scams

2012-02-08T13:04:32Z

FindLaw columnist Eric Sinrod writes regularly in this section on legal developments surrounding technology and the Internet. You may be either "pro" or "con" when it comes to Facebook's new Timeline feature. If you are in the "con" category, you may wish for a solution that will cause the service......

Law School Offers Free Semester if Students Postpone July Bar Exam

2012-02-08T13:04:05Z

Besides the obvious reasons -- avoiding real life, student loans and the terrible job market -- why would anyone want to spend a seventh semester in law school? They wouldn't, right? Even so, administrators at City University of New York Law School think some of their graduating 3Ls should. Those......

Martha Stewart Cites Loophole in Macy's Contract Breach Lawsuit

2012-02-08T13:02:58Z

Macy's is suing Martha Stewart's company for an alleged contract breach involving J.C. Penney that could affect billions of dollars in sales. But the contract at issue contains a legal loophole, attorneys for Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia contend, according to Reuters. As Martha Stewart herself might say, "It's a good......

Whistlerblowers Private Emails Monitored by FDA, Lawsuit Claims

2012-02-08T12:03:08Z

Can a whistleblower's emails be monitored by an employer? Most general counsels will agree that the answer depends on several factors. One factor may be whether or not the emails were sent on a work or a private home computer. Many companies explicitly disclaim that activity on work consoles do......

A Look At FindLaw Corporate Social Channels

2012-02-07T23:15:52Z

Facebook, check. Twitter, check. LinkedIn, check. Blog, check. FindLaw corporate has social media covered. More than just the top website for free legal information, FindLaw's social media channels are designed with one goal in mind: connecting us with our users. Whether you are interested in reading relevant legal updates or......

Perry v. Brown: What the California Prop 8 Ruling Means for Gay Couples

2012-02-07T23:15:00Z

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision today in Perry v. Brown did not say that same-sex couples have a constitutional right to wed, (like Judge Vaughn Walker's previous ruling in the case), nor did it immediately lift the California Prop 8 same-sex marriage ban. Instead, Judge Stephen Reinhardt's narrowly-tailored......

No Immigration Removal Relief for Defendant Caught Lying to FBI

2012-02-07T20:05:02Z

Lying to the FBI is a bad idea. For an alien, lying to the FBI is even more dangerous, as it could be considered aggravated felony for immigration removal. Ramani Pilla learned that lesson the hard way. This week, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals denied Ramani Pilla's writ of......

Court Applies Collateral Estoppel to Stop Illegal Reentry Prosecution

2012-02-07T17:02:18Z

This week, a defendant prevailed in his appeal to dismiss an indictment charging him with one count of illegal reentry by an alien. The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with Emiliano Valdiviez-Garza that the indictment must be dismissed based on collateral estoppel, and reversed and remanded the case with......

Perry v. Brown: Ninth Circuit Says Prop 8 is Unconstitutional

2012-02-07T19:26:53Z

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled this morning in Perry v. Brown that California Prop 8 is unconstitutional, but that doesn't mean that wedding bells will start pealing for the state's gay couples. The court's repeal of the same-sex marriage ban is on hold pending further review from an......