Overlawyered: Chronicling The High Cost Of Our Legal System

Posts Tagged ‘Pennsylvania’

CPSIA chronicles, March 2

Reading from the weekend:

  • At the American Spectator, Quin Hillyer says his co-thinkers “need to really get up newcriterionin arms about” changing the law, and has kind words for a certain website that is “the single best place to track all its devastation”. At The New Criterion, Roger Kimball finds that the threat to vintage children’s books provides a good instance of the dangers of “safety”. And commentator Hugh Hewitt is back with another column, “The Congress Should Fix CPSIA Now“.
  • Numerous disparaging things have been said of the “mommy bloggers” who’ve done so much to raise alarms about this law. Because, as one of Deputy Headmistress’s commenters points out, it’s already been decided that this law is needed to “protect the children”, and it’s not as if mere mothers might have anything special to contribute about that.
  • Plenty of continuing coverage out there on the minibike/ATV debacle, including Brian O’Neill, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (office of local Congressman Mike Doyle, D-Pa., says most members think, dubiously, that ban “can be fixed without new legislation”); Lebanon, Pa. (“Ridiculous… It’s closed an entire market for us”), Waterbury, Ct. (“The velocipedesadgovernment does stupid things sometimes without thinking”), and, slightly less recent, Atlantic City, N.J. (“I would’ve had three sales this weekend, so they stomped us”). Some background: Off-Road (agency guidance in mid-February told dealers to get youth models “off their showfloors and back into holding areas”); Motorcycle USA (“With right-size models being unavailable to families, we may see more kids out on adult ATVs and we know that this leads to crashes”). To which illustrator Meredith Dillman on Twitter adds: “Just wait until someone gets hurt riding a broken bike they couldn’t get replacement parts for.”
  • One result of CPSIA is that a much wider range of goods are apt to be subject to recalls, but not to worry, because the CPSC recall process is so easy and straightforward.

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February 19 roundup

  • Surprising origins of federal corruption probe that tripped up Luzerne County, Pa. judges who were getting kickbacks on juvenile detention referrals: insurers had noted local pattern of high car-crash arbitration sums and sniffed collusion between judges and plaintiff’s counsel [Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, Legal Intelligencer] Court administrator pleads to theft [Times Leader] Judge Ciavarella had secret probation parole program [PAHomepage]
  • We get accolades: “Overlawyered.com has a new look. Great new format, same good stuff,” writes ex-securities lawyer Christopher Fountain, whose real estate blog I’m always recommending to people even if they live nowhere near his turf of Greenwich, Ct. [For What It’s Worth]
  • “Fla. Jury Awards $8M to Family of Dead Smoker in Philip Morris Case” [ABA Journal; for more on the complicated background of the Engle case, which renders Florida a unique environment for tobacco litigation, start here]
  • Scott Greenfield vs. Ann Bartow vs. Marc Randazza on the AutoAdmit online-bathroom-scrawl litigation, all in turn playing off a David Margolick piece in Portfolio;
  • Eric Turkewitz continues his investigations of online solicitation by lawyers following the Buffalo crash of Continental Flight #3407 [NY Personal Injury Law Blog, Mon. and Tues. posts; earlier]
  • One vital element of trial management: keep track of how many jurors there are [Anne Reed, Deliberations]
  • Public Citizen vs. public health: Sidney Wolfe may succeed in getting the FDA to ban Darvon, and the bone marrow transplant nurse isn’t happy about that [Dr. Wes, KevinMD, more on Wolfe here]
  • “Baseball Star’s [uninfected] Ex Seeks $15M for Fear of AIDS” [OnPoint News, WaPo, New York Mets star Roberto Alomar]

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Judges took kickbacks from juvie detention centers

Two senior judges in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, have taken a plea agreement under which they will serve seven years in prison. The judges are “alleged to have pocketed $2.6 million in payments from juvenile detention center operators”. After helping the center operators secure a county contract, according to their critics, Mark A. Ciavarella Jr. and Michael T. Conahan then proceeded to railroad hundreds of kids to the centers on petty charges to provide the operators with a clientele to serve (Philadelphia Inquirer, Legal Intelligencer, Wilkes-Barre Times-Leader and more via Instapundit)

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ABA publishes flattering book as part of lawsuit settlement

Kudos to Law Librarian Blog (via Ambrogi) for this astonishing story: longtime readers may remember the bizarre defamation case filed by Philadelphia lawyer Richard Sprague against the American Bar Association over an article in which Terry Carter, a respected veteran of legal journalism, had described Sprague as “perhaps the most powerful lawyer-cum-fixer” in the state of Pennsylvania. Although the word “fixer” is long established in its meaning of “political wheeler-dealer and problem-solver”, a sense which cannot be said to imply any illegality, Sprague argued that in this instance it implied that he “fixed” legal cases. When the settlement was announced, its terms were disclosed only in part: Shannon P. Duffy of the Legal Intelligencer quoted Sprague’s lawyer, the very powerful James Beasley Jr., as saying it was a “damned good settlement.” Pennsylvania and Philadelphia in particular, as I’ve had occasion to note in the past, have a local tradition of plaintiff-friendly jurisprudence for public figures that is almost enough to make you wonder whether they exist as part of the same country as the rest of us who publish under the Times v. Sullivan regime.

But I never anticipated what was to emerge next from the ABA/Sprague entanglement. Here’s the first paragraph of Robert Ambrogi’s blog entry:

The American Bar Association’s book division recently published Fearless: The Richard A. Sprague Story. The ABA calls the biography the chronicle of “the significant events of a renowned Philadelphia lawyer” and the “compelling story of a man who wasn’t afraid to risk everything to fight for his fellow man.” Amidst all this praise for the book, the ABA never mentions that it agreed to publish it only as part of a settlement of Sprague’s libel lawsuit against it.

Sprague long represented Pennsylvania State Sen. Vincent Fumo but eventually fell out with him; he makes a cameo appearance in this vignette which itself tells much about the, um, vigorous way some figures in the Philadelphia political establishment deal with their critics. Fumo is now the defendant in a spectacular trial on corruption charges that itself deserves much more national attention than it has received. More: Philadelphia Daily News.

More from Ken at Popehat: “I’ve seen many things exchanged in aid of settlement — money, real property, personal property, apologies, handshakes, and a wide variety of promises. … However, before now, I had never seen a litigant promise to act as a vanity press.” And attorney/blogger Max Kennerly of the Beasley Firm also has a comment giving further background on the controversies, as well as on the Fumo trial, which he’s been blogging.

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Judge Joyce convicted in Pennsylvania insurance fraud

“Former Superior Court Judge Michael T. Joyce was convicted Wednesday on charges that he lied about neck and back injuries and abused his position on the bench to receive a $440,000 payout from two insurance companies following a slow-speed automobile accident. … the judge filed his claims on judicial letterhead, [Assistant U.S. Attorney Christian] Trabold said, and referred to himself as a judge 115 times in the letters.” (Leo Strupczewski, “Former Judge Convicted for Lying About Injuries in Auto Accident”, Legal Intelligencer, Nov. 20). Earlier here and here. The trial was covered extensively in the Pennsylvania press, and the defense called a parade of witnesses, including high-ranking judges, in support of the accused jurist. (Paula Reed Ward, “Fellow jurists defend judge charged with faking injury”, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Nov. 11)

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Judge Joyce’s insurance-fraud trial begins

A year ago we reported on the indictment of Erie, Pa.-based state appellate judge Michael T. Joyce, whose $440,000 settlement after a rear-ending of his Mercedes-Benz was premised on his having suffered physically disabling injuries, but who in fact was found to have engaged in scuba diving and golf, among other pastimes, during the period in question. According to the indictment, the judge used the proceeds to buy a Harley-Davidson and a share in a Cessna, as well as for other purposes. Today his trial is set to begin. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Tribune-Review, Erie Times-News via Bashman).

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September 29 roundup

  • Watch where you click: “Kentucky (secretly) commandeers world’s most popular gambling sites” [The Register/OUT-LAW]
  • Erin Brockovich enlists as pitchwoman for NYC tort firm Weitz & Luxenberg [PoL roundup]
  • U.K.: “Millionaire Claims Ghosts Caused Him to Flee His Mortgage, I Mean Mansion” [Lowering the Bar]
  • Prosecution of Lori Drew (MySpace imposture followed by victim’s suicide) a “case study in overcriminalization” [Andrew Grossman, Heritage; earlier; some other resources on overcriminalization here, here, and here]
  • Exonerated Marine plans to sue Rep. John Murtha for defamation [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]
  • Snooping on jurors’ online profiles? “Everything is fair game” since “this is war”, says one jury consultant [L.A. Times; earlier]
  • Allentown, Pa. attorney John Karoly, known for police-brutality suits, indicted on charges of forging will to obtain large chunk of his brother’s estate; “Charged with the same offenses are J.P. Karoly, 28, who is John Karoly’s son, and John J. Shane, 72, who has served as an expert medical witness in some of John Karoly’s cases.” [Express-Times, AP, Legal Intelligencer]
  • School safety: “What do the teachers think they might do with the Hula-Hoop, choke on it?” [Betsy Hart, Chicago Sun-Times/Common Good]

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Update: Pennsylvania politician Vincent Fumo

Longtime readers may recall (Oct. 24-25, 2001) what we described as the “unusually bare-knuckled” tactics, “even by Philadelphia standards”, of the Philly political machine when a business-oriented advocacy group called Pennsylvania Law Watch organized with a plan to issue ratings of judges statewide. We quoted the Philadelphia Daily News at the time:

“State Sen. Vincent Fumo prompted some controversy last month when he told the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce that anyone who helped [Republican judge/candidate Michael] Eakin by donating to Pennsylvania Law Watch ’should expect to be arrested,’ according to a witness at the chamber meeting, who also said Fumo mentioned Richard Sprague as a member of a team of attorneys ready for action.”

Although no one was literally arrested, three local Democratic politicians proceeded to file a suit against Pennsylvania Law Watch seeking “a freeze on Law Watch’s assets, the right to go through its books, an injunction against its activities, and more.” Almost before the episode got any national attention, the case settled, “with Law Watch agreeing with Pennsylvania Democrats that ‘it would not attempt to influence the statewide judicial elections through advertising, ‘push polling’ or any other kind of communication with the public'”.

Now, six years later, and with no direct relation to the above, longtime powerbroker and State Sen. Fumo is going to trial in federal court “on charges he used $3.5 million in what he called ‘OPM’ _ other people’s money _ to keep his political machine well-oiled and fund a high life that included three vacation homes and heated sidewalks outside his mansion. Jury selection is expected to last a week, and the trial three months.” [AP/Wilkes-Barre Times-Leader, AP/York Daily Record, Philadelphia Daily News, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review].

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After Setting Fires, Firefighter Wants Job Back

In 1997, Erie, Pa. hired its first female firefighter. Nearly a decade later, she was quietly fired after setting fire to her father’s house as part of a suicide attempt.  In fact, the Erie Civil Service Commission wrote at the time that: “Her setting a fire … is the single most significant act a fire fighter may not commit.  The act of establishing a fire in a residence is wholly incompatible with the role of the fire fighter, despite the mitigating circumstances of [her] psychological state.”  Now, she has brought her appeal public in a filing in local courts earlier this year. (GoErie.com, 3/24)

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FACTA receipts, restaurant coupons and “annihilating” damages

Entrepreneurial lawyers have launched a thriving industry of class actions demanding statutory damages of $100-$1000 per violation (times the number of customers) from businesses that continue printing too much credit card information on receipts despite a federal law requiring them to stop that practice, the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act (FACTA). Kings Family Restaurants, a Western Pennsylvania chain, has agreed to distribute coupons, as well as very non-couponic attorney’s fees, in one such case (WSJ law blog, Apr. 25). “Coffee Bean Tea & Leaf, a Los Angeles-based coffee-shop chain, agreed to give customers free drinks and pay customer lawyers $110,000.” On the other hand, judges have not always gone along with demands for class certification: “Costco, the largest U.S. warehouse-club chain, might have to pay as much as $17 billion without having harmed anyone, U.S. District Judge A. Howard Matz said in January, refusing to certify a class action. That’s 15 times the Issaquah, Washington-based company’s 2007 profit.” (Cynthia Cotts, “Costco, Kinko’s Battle Trial Lawyers Over Credit-Card Receipts”, Bloomberg, Apr. 5). One tactic, used in suits against U-Haul and In-N-Out Burger, is to limit the scope of the class action to a few stores or locations, on the theory that a court that might not let a class action with “annihilating” damages go forward might yet approve one inflicting a nonfatal though large shark-bite. (Matthew Hirsch, “Plaintiffs Attorneys Think Globally, Act Locally in Financial Privacy Cases”, The Recorder, Aug. 27, 2007). Among the 300+ defendants in receipt suits is 1-800-FLOWERS, whose attorney David E. Block expresses outrage:

“In 22 years, I have never had a plaintiff sit across the table from me and say, ‘I have no damages. My identity hasn’t been stolen. I’m just bringing this lawsuit because I can,'” said Block of the Miami office of Jackson Lewis. “There’s something inherently wrong with a lawsuit where the plaintiff has no injury.”

(Tresa Baldas, “Landslide of Suits Over Data on Receipts”, National Law Journal, Apr. 7). “Receipts” needn’t actually be printed out in a shop or public place to trigger the act; those that flash on a customer’s home computer screen count too. (WSJ law blog, Apr. 8). Our earlier coverage: May 10 and Oct. 31, 2007, and Apr. 4 of this year.

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