Overlawyered: Chronicling The High Cost Of Our Legal System

Posts Tagged ‘New Zealand’

Banning spanking in Massachusetts?

Since 1979 nineteen countries led by Sweden have banned corporal punishment by parents of kids in the home. A bill scheduled for debate today before the Massachusetts legislature would make that state the first to join the trend. (Laurel Sweet, “Bay State’s going slap-happy”, Boston Herald, Nov. 27; “Anti-spanking bill is folly” (editorial), Nov. 28; Stephen Bainbridge, Nov. 22 (New Zealand)). Earlier: Apr. 19, 2004 (U.K.); Feb. 14 and Feb. 24, 2007 (proposal in California).

More: such laws in both Sweden and New Zealand have been softened (i.e., made more lenient toward parents) by the interpolation of reasonableness standards, per Kiwi website Big News (via QuizLaw).

Filed under: , , ,

November 20 roundup

  • Dickie Scruggs will host Dec. 15 Hillary fundraiser headlined by Bill [Clarion-Ledger via WSJ law blog]

  • Megabucks campaigns for state judicial office: Symptom? Illness? Both? [Justice O’Connor @ OpinionJournal.com, Adler @ Volokh; Pero]

  • U.K. kids’ author says publisher’s safety worries vetoed depiction of fire-breathing dragon in book [Daily Mail]

  • Roger Parloff describes the Judith Regan complaint as bizarre, and angry commenters are soon denouncing him as a Fox’s-paw [Fortune Legal Pad; Althouse; ritual disclaimer]

  • Wonder why booking a dance venue can get pricey? Here’s one reason [WV Record]

  • “Why should I take a dollar out of [my neighbor’s] pocket?”: a Virginia Tech family wrestles with the temptation to sue [Mundy, WashPostMag]

  • Essential silliness of the “media diversity” scare [Welch, LAT]

  • Boston’s James Sokolove, known for his heavy rotation of personal-injury TV ads, is now chasing for … patent plaintiffs? [WSJ law blog; earlier]

  • Great big gobs of mutilated monkey meat could bring five years in slammer for NYC immigrant [IHT]

  • Recounting the tale of Miami’s one-time high-living “King of Torts” Louis Robles, who stole from around 4,500 clients [AJP “CEO Alert” series, PDF]

  • Campaign regulation laws spell incumbent protection in New Zealand too [Bainbridge]

  • Influence of newspaper lobby retards natural migration to the web of fine-print legal notices [Liptak, NYT]

Filed under: , , ,

His reputation to protect

Defamation-suit Hall of Fame: a New Zealand prisoner serving a life sentence for the notoriously brutal murder of a 17-year-old girl has won cash compensation from newspapers which described him as a rapist. “Andrew Ronald MacMillan was granted legal aid – a government- funded scheme which allows people who cannot afford legal representation to get a lawyer – to sue Fairfax Media, publishers of New Zealand newspapers The Press and Dominion Post, for defamation and punitive damages.” The victim, whose body was discovered nearly naked, had suffered violence in intimate places, but authorities never charged MacMillan with rape in the case. (“Murderer gets compensation from paper over rape allegation”, DPA/MonstersAndCritics.com, Apr. 10). Two and a half years ago MacMillan won $1200 for hurt feelings and humiliation because the Corrections Department had not shown him the text of a letter accusing him of misbehavior while on prison furlough. (Bridget Carter, “‘Hurt feelings’ win killer $1200 compensation”, New Zealand Herald, Aug. 23, 2004).

Filed under: , , , ,

Suit: biometric scanners are religious discrimination

Don’t load up on stocks in that newfangled biometric scanner technology just yet. A federal complaint alleges that workers have a religious right not to sign in using handprints; Matthew Heller has the details and the complaint. Canada has required reasonable accommodation of such beliefs, while New Zealand rejects it. American law simply requires beliefs be “sincerely held.”

Filed under: ,

November 21 roundup

  • Today at AEI: Panel (and webcast) on Massachusetts v. EPA Supreme Court argument on carbon dioxide regulation. [AEI]
  • Paulson to Economic Club of New York: “Legal reform is crucial to the long-term competitiveness of our economy.” [Paulson; WSJ; WaPo; NYT; American]
  • One who reposts on Internet allegedly libelous news article immune from liability in California. One hopes this deters a certain attorney complaining about a six-year-old Overlawyered post recounting a 2000 LA Times article. [Point of Law; Volokh]
  • It’s an obvious point, but many judges simply refuse to acknowledge it in failure-to-warn litigation: overwarning can be counterproductive. [WaPo]
  • Congress holds that Psalms 37:21 trumps Leviticus 27:30; Senator Obama objects. [WaPo]
  • Russia: woman successfully sues Coca-Cola for causing gastrointestinal distress. [Kevin M.D.]
  • More on breast implants. [Bernstein @ Volokh]
  • More on the New Zealand no-fault med-mal system. [Point of Law]
  • Posner on Friedman. [Posner]
  • John Edwards seeks to cut in front of line to purchase Playstation 3 at Wal-Mart. Which of the Two Americas is that again? [Taylor @ Reason via Kirkendall]

Filed under: , , , , ,

“A cult named Sue”

Yes, it’s the Scientologists again (see Apr. 16, 2004; Mar. 25-26, 2002; Mar. 19-20, 2001; May 3, 2000). This time they’re threatening a New Zealand parody site named ScienTOMogy.info, which is thus named in honor of Scientology adherent Tom Cruise (via Matt Welch, Reason “Hit and Run”, Oct. 19, headline and all). More: Ron Coleman, Likelihood of Confusion, Oct. 22.

Filed under: , , ,

Caesarean sections in Australia

Use of the procedure seems to be following the American path, “and could soon hit a record of 32 per cent of deliveries — far higher than in countries such as Britain and New Zealand.” Among the factors:

Andrew Pesce, consultant obstetrician at Westmead Hospital in Sydney, told the conference litigation was a factor in the caesarean rates.

No obstetrician had ever been sued for doing a caesarean, while some of the largest medical negligence payouts — including the $11 million Calandre Simpson case in 2001- – followed claims the doctor should have performed a caesarean section earlier, Dr Pesce said.

(Adam Cresswell, “Midwives left ‘powerless’ by soaring caesar births”, The Australian, Sept. 5). See Nov. 29, 2004; Jul. 18 and Aug. 13, 2003; and Feb. 5, 2001.

Filed under: , , , ,

Holiday-dinner-table obesity roundup

The Centers for Disease Control admitted last week that a much-touted estimate of enormous mortality rates resulting from increasing obesity in America was wrong and arose from incorrect methodology; it promises a revised and lower estimate (Gina Kolata, “Data on Deaths From Obesity Is Inflated, U.S. Agency Says”, New York Times, Nov. 24; Radley Balko, Nov. 24; Jacob Sullum, Reason “Hit and Run”, Nov. 24; Jim Copland, PointOfLaw, Nov. 24 and Nov. 30). The National Institutes of Health’s body mass index is also falling into disrepute for overrating the incidence of obesity (Gina Kolata, “Tell the Truth: Does This Index Make Me Look Fat?”, New York Times, Nov. 28)(see Apr. 29-30, 2002).

As for lawsuits, the scary Public Health Advocacy Institute, where trial lawyers meet dietitians, held its second annual conference in September, with opening remarks by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) (Marguerite Higgins, “Anti-obesity group mulls swell in suits”, Washington Times, Sept. 19; “Lawyers see obese U.S. ripe for fat lawsuits”, Sept. 20; Center for Consumer Freedom, “Looking For Lawsuits In All The Wrong Places”, Sept. 24). The food-industry-defense Center for Consumer Freedom (“Don’t Sue the Hand That Feeds You”) has prepared a “Thanksgiving Guest Liability and Indemnification Agreement” (PDF) (via LawfulGal, Nov. 25) and has also (Sept. 27) compiled a list of the “Ten Dumbest Food Cop Ideas” of the year. These include law prof John Banzhaf’s proposals for suing parents of obese children and doctors who fail to warn their obese patients against overeating; Texas officials’ edict against schoolkids’ sharing of snacks; and a proposal by the New Zealand health minister to apply age restrictions, in the manner of carding for alcohol and tobacco purchases, to keep kids from buying hamburgers, pie and candy. A Deloitte consumer opinion survey (“The Weight Debate”, last updated Jul. 14) finds the public overwhelmingly opposed to lawsuits against restaurants.

Read On…

Filed under: , , , , ,

“‘Hurt feelings’ win killer $1200”

“A man jailed for brutally murdering a teenage girl has been awarded [NZ]$1200 compensation for hurt feelings and humiliation while in prison.” (Bridget Carter, New Zealand Herald, Aug. 23). “In a decision that prompted political anger, the Human Rights Review Tribunal said inmate Andrew MacMillan had suffered “injury to his feelings, loss of dignity and humiliation” when he was denied access to [a letter written about him]. MacMillan was jailed in 1988 for raping and killing Jayne McLellan, 17.” (“Convicted NZ murderer compensated for hurt feelings”, ABC News Online, Aug. 23; “Rapist-killer wins cash award for hurt feelings”, Sydney Morning Herald, Aug. 23).

Filed under: , , ,