Overlawyered http://overlawyered.com Chronicling the high cost of our legal system Tue, 14 Feb 2012 11:28:52 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 Bribing states to spend and regulate http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/bribing-states-to-spend-and-regulate/ http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/bribing-states-to-spend-and-regulate/#comments Tue, 14 Feb 2012 05:12:34 +0000 Walter Olson http://overlawyered.com/?p=27583 In the earlier and sounder conception of federalism, local and national government were meant to check each other’s overweening power. Nowadays, unfortunately, the two often interact in a cooperative way to encourage bigger government at both levels, as Washington bribes the states to spend and regulate more. I explain at Cato at Liberty (& Damon Root, Reason).

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]]> http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/bribing-states-to-spend-and-regulate/feed/ 0 February 14 roundup http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/february-14-roundup-2/ http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/february-14-roundup-2/#comments Tue, 14 Feb 2012 05:08:05 +0000 Walter Olson http://overlawyered.com/?p=27567
  • “Brazil Sues Twitter in Bid to Ban Speed Trap and Roadblock Warnings” [ABA Journal]
  • Obama nominates Michigan trial lawyer Marietta Robinson to vacancy on Consumer Product Safety Commission, ensuring aggressively pro-regulatory majority [Bluey, Heritage]
  • “AMA reports show high cost of malpractice suits” [HCFN] “Average expense to defend against a medical liability claim in 2010 was $47,158″ [American Medical News, more] Survey of 1,200 orthopedic surgeons finds defensive medicine rife, at cost of billions, accounting for 7 percent of all hospital admissions [MedPageToday]
  • “Sue us only in Delaware” bylaws would kill off forum-shopping and what fun is that? [Bainbridge]
  • Trial by media: Lefty “SourceWatch” posts, then deletes, docs from Madison County pesticide suit [Madison County Record]
  • Think you’ve beaten FCPA rap? Meet the obscure “Travel Act” [Mike Emmick, Reuters] Federal court expands “honest services fraud” in lobbying case [Paul Enzinna, Point of Law]
  • “On the horrors of getting approval for an ice-cream parlour in San Francisco” [NYT via Doctorow/BoingBoing]
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    ]]>     http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/february-14-roundup-2/feed/ 1     Fordham Law School tomorrow http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/fordham-law-school-tomorrow/ http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/fordham-law-school-tomorrow/#comments Mon, 13 Feb 2012 05:38:50 +0000 Walter Olson http://overlawyered.com/?p=27545 I’ll be speaking about my book Schools for Misrule tomorrow (Tuesday) at 12:30 at Fordham Law School in New York City. The Federalist Society is sponsoring, and Prof. Zephyr Teachout will provide critical commentary. The event is open to the public, so feel free to introduce yourself afterward as an Overlawyered reader.

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    ]]>     http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/fordham-law-school-tomorrow/feed/ 0     “The most plausible route to the death of football…” http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/the-most-plausible-route-to-the-death-of-football/ http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/the-most-plausible-route-to-the-death-of-football/#comments Mon, 13 Feb 2012 05:30:16 +0000 Walter Olson http://overlawyered.com/?p=27543 “…starts with liability suits.” As concussion suits mount, will broadcast networks and high school referees need to worry about being named as defendants along with team franchises, schools, helmet manufacturers and other more obvious defendants? [Tyler Cowen and Kevin Grier, Grantland, via Ilya Somin]

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    ]]>     http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/the-most-plausible-route-to-the-death-of-football/feed/ 2     As FDA and Congress fiddle http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/as-fda-and-congress-fiddle/ http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/as-fda-and-congress-fiddle/#comments Mon, 13 Feb 2012 05:08:08 +0000 Walter Olson http://overlawyered.com/?p=27553 “Supplies of Critical Child Leukemia Drug Are Almost Gone” [Atlantic Wire] Earlier on the shortage of hospital and community drugs, and Washington’s role in it, here, here, here, here, and here.

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    ]]>     http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/as-fda-and-congress-fiddle/feed/ 1     Getting a bad judge off the bench http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/getting-a-bad-judge-off-the-bench/ http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/getting-a-bad-judge-off-the-bench/#comments Mon, 13 Feb 2012 03:47:01 +0000 Walter Olson http://overlawyered.com/?p=27551 Sinking deeper into substance abuse, a prominent Tennessee judge spins ever further out of control. How long does it take before he’s removed and the public alerted to his problem? Way too long for comfort [Knoxville News Sentinel]

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    ]]>     http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/getting-a-bad-judge-off-the-bench/feed/ 0     Long-arm blasphemy prosecution http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/long-arm-blasphemy-prosecution/ http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/long-arm-blasphemy-prosecution/#comments Sun, 12 Feb 2012 05:03:36 +0000 Walter Olson http://overlawyered.com/?p=27533 Islamists are demanding the execution of Saudi journalist Hamza Kashgari over tweets, since retracted, that they say are blasphemous toward their religion. Malaysia has detained Kashgari and may extradite him to face the charges; according to reports, the international police organization had put out an order for his arrest at the behest of the Saudi government [Guardian, Nina Shea/NRO, Daily Beast, Reason, Facebook support page, blog, #FreeHamza]

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    ]]>     http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/long-arm-blasphemy-prosecution/feed/ 2     O lawmakers, heed not the mob’s wrath http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/o-lawmakers-heed-not-the-mobs-wrath/ http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/o-lawmakers-heed-not-the-mobs-wrath/#comments Sat, 11 Feb 2012 15:53:10 +0000 Walter Olson http://overlawyered.com/?p=27527 They understand not the wisdom of SOPA [Julian Sanchez, Cato at Liberty]

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    ]]>     http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/o-lawmakers-heed-not-the-mobs-wrath/feed/ 7     “Lawyer wants jinn to testify in court” http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/lawyer-wants-jinn-to-testify-in-court/ http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/lawyer-wants-jinn-to-testify-in-court/#comments Sat, 11 Feb 2012 15:05:11 +0000 Walter Olson http://overlawyered.com/?p=27403 That’s genie “jinn” not potable “gin,” though the latter would work as a headline for a different story. The spirit in question was said to have seized a Saudi judge arrested on corruption charges. [Emirates 24/7]

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    ]]>     http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/lawyer-wants-jinn-to-testify-in-court/feed/ 4     “Auto-litigation” http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/auto-litigation/ http://overlawyered.com/2012/02/auto-litigation/#comments Sat, 11 Feb 2012 12:26:51 +0000 Walter Olson http://overlawyered.com/?p=27525 Kevin at Lowering the Bar has been collecting more cases in which plaintiffs have sued themselves.

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