Legal News

Another Case Pulled from Judge Manuel Real?s Docket

By Dan Slater

Things are bad and getting worse for U.S. District Judge Manuel Real. In March, we told you about Judge Real getting tossed from a securities fraud trial for allegedly aiding the prosecution.

Today, the NLJ reports that Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has removed Real, 84, from the Honda class action, in which plaintiffs claim that the rear suspension systems of particular Honda and Acura vehicles are not of the “double wishbone” design, as promised by the makers.

In an unpublished, July 22 opinion, the Ninth Circuit revoked Real’s order certifying a nationwide class against Honda, saying the judge abused his discretion by certifying the class on his own “without making any findings regarding Rule 23’s requirements for class certification.”

As the NLJ notes, Real — who faced a potential impeachment hearing in Congress in April 2006 over allegations that he interfered in a bankruptcy case to help a woman whose parole he supervised — has seen at least eight of his cases snapped away by the 9th Circuit. (Congress wound up dropping the impeachment.)

In January 2008, the judicial discipline review body for the federal courts, the Conduct Committee of the Judicial Conference of the United States, disclosed that Real had been accused of a pattern in 72 cases over the years of not providing reasons for decisions as required.

Real was not reached by the NLJ for comment.

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on July 24, 2008 (boomark / email).