Florida

Jews For Judges!

Posted on March 23, 2010
Florida AG Bill McCollum today filed a suit in the ND FL seeking to have the new health care reform bill declared unconstitutional.It's a hodgepodge of overheated rhetoric for the most part, though buried in there is a somewhat plausible 10th Amendment and Commerce Clause challenge...

Greer and Stearns -- Together Again!

Posted on March 22, 2010
Well folks, IT finally passed.I'm referring of course to universal healthcare:Fresh from a two-day weekend visit to Iraq, the Bush administration's top health-care official defended the $950 million that will be spent to help Iraq establish universal health care...

Judge Seitz Imposes Rule 11 Sanctions.

Posted on March 22, 2010
JudgeSeitzRule11 Sorry, I couldn't think of any way to make that headline funny.

Slowdown in Judicial Nominating Process?

Posted on March 19, 2010
Ever wonder why Obama is moving so slow on judicial nominations?Here's a good article on the problem:An early chance for the Obama administration to reshape the nation's judiciary -- and counter gains made in the federal courts by conservatives -- appears close to slipping away, due to a combination of White House inattention and Republican opposition...

To access this complete feed in the blog feed reader login or register for free.

SFL Friday -- It Always Comes Back to the Nazis.

Posted on March 19, 2010
Well kids, it's too nice outside to be sitting in front of a computer, so I am getting ready to head east and submerge myself in something warm, delicious and inviting.Sheesh, get your mind out of the gutter, I'm talking about the Atlantic Ocean!Did you all see Bruce Rogow's comments on the Michelle Spence-Jones prosecution?That's not my area of expertise, but is the bowtied one ever really wrong?The you have the State House passing the "slip-and-fall" revision to the Owens case:"We have been operating under the current law for eight years and what we have found simply is that the cost of defending frivolous slip and fall lawsuits have risen dramatically when compared with the same businesses operating in other states," said Rep...

Tallahassee Lassie

Posted on March 18, 2010
This is the time of year when trial lawyers and business interests attempt to bribe -- I mean lobby -- state legislators in order to game the system -- I mean carefully enact legislation affecting important issues of public policy.So far the business interests are winning:Though it's still early in the nine-week session, lawmakers and lobbyists are focusing attention on three bills -- the attorney fee caps on state cases, the slip and fall protections and another measure to restore a parent's right to sign a negligence waiver for a child -- that are considered most likely to pass this year...

Supreme Court Adopts New Rules on Confidentiality, Electronic Access

Posted on March 18, 2010
Well, it took awhile but the Florida Supreme Court has finally adopted recommendations from 2005 that relate to protecting confidentiality while providing electronic access to court filings:The first set of amendments is proposed by the Committee on Access to Court Records (Access Committee)...

Just Get It Done.

Posted on March 18, 2010

Happy St. Pat's Day!

Posted on March 17, 2010
Have you been pinched yet?

3d DCA Watch -- Glass Half Filled Edition

Posted on March 17, 2010
Hi kids, it's a cold rainy Wednesday but things are always warm and toasty inside the hermetically-sealed, temperature-controlled bunker.Let's take a peek.....Fernandez v. Haber & Ganguzza LLP:What's the policy basis for the litigation privilege again?Maybe it's time to revisit the doctrine in light of so many lawyers acting badly lately:Although we do not agree with the actions taken by the Ganguzza law firm, we affirm because as a matter of law, the law firm is entitled to litigation immunity as to Fernandez?s tortious interference claim arising from the filing of the lis pendens in conjunction with pending litigation relating to the subject unit...

Marc Nurik Is Gooey Gooey Rich and Chewy Inside.

Posted on March 17, 2010
And the hits keep coming:Nurik came to the deposition with fortifications ? an energy drink, a power bar and Fig Newtons ? to answer questions from bankruptcy lawyers seeking to reclaim assets for creditors of the defunct Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler law firm...

Spring Break -- Things Sure Are Different.

Posted on March 16, 2010
Boy I can recall an especially riotous Spring Break some years ago involving, in no particular order, Tom Meeks in a Speedo, three cases of Boone's Farm Strawberry Hill, a very young Shelley Long and some amazing Spanish Fly.Oops, I may have inadvertently fused my memories with that early 80s' flick Losin' It...

Judge Moore Certifies Travel Tax Class

Posted on March 16, 2010
Price Line Tax Cert You ever wonder whether online travel sites properly remit tourist development taxes for booking hotel rooms?So has Monroe County.Interesting opinion and pretty much a total defeat for the defendants (represented by Skadden Arps, Jones Day and McDermott's Steve Siff).

11th Circuit to David Dermer -- Next Time, Get Arrested (Just to be Safe)!

Posted on March 15, 2010
I have never heard of this stupid Miami-Dade Ordinance, but David Dermer has and sued to have it declared unconstitutional:The Ordinance provides:It shall be unlawful for any person, entity, or elector intentionally to make or cause to be made any false statement concerning the contents or effect of any petition for initiative, referendum, or recall submitted pursuant to Article 7 of the Miami-Dade County Home Rule Charter to any person who is requested to sign any such petition or who makes an inquiry with reference to any such petition and who relies on such statement...

First Contested Chinese Drywall Case Goes to Trial

Posted on March 15, 2010
Checking Overdraft Well that was a glorious weekend, huh?But it's back to work as the first contested Chinese Drywall case gets underway in New Orleans:"This will be the first contested trial," said Steve Herman, an attorney representing the Hernandez family...

Time For A Blogger Ethics Panel!

Posted on March 12, 2010
With all the crazy and sometimes illegal doings in Broward lately, I can't believe the Broward County Bar Association has decided to devote time and effort to investigating a blog:A Broward County Bar Association committee will meet to determine whether the legal blog JAABlog ? the premiere place for courthouse gossip ? meets its professional standards...

SFL Friday -- Rainy Day Windsurfing.

Posted on March 12, 2010
Oh hail, can you believe it's Friday?As Bob Norman notes, Berger Singerman has put in a fee app for three months of Rothstein work, seeking a fairly sizable chunk of change:Here's the list: -- Lead bankruptcy attorney Paul Singerman's firm, Berger Singerman, is asking for a total fee of $1,230,974...

Kim Rothstein's Size Five Clawback.

Posted on March 11, 2010
Kim Roth Stein Claw Back I'm starting to come around on Kimmie.If she didn't know exactly how her husband made his money, and assumed like all the big shmarties in town that Rothstein had legitimate business investments, then maybe she is somewhat of a victim in all this?Either way Judge Stettin wants the shoes and Botox back:The lawyers itemized a litany of questionable expenses: ? $880,609...

Richard Critchlow in Hooterville

Posted on March 11, 2010
Let's see, I'm in a good mood, mostly because I came across this tremendous streaming archived performance of the Dead at the Miami Jai-Alai fronton from back in June 1974.Geez, remember when they used to have shows there?(What exactly do they do there now?)I see Richard Critchlow traveled to a Sarasota circuit courtroom to do battle on behalf of H&K, sued in connection with the alleged Ponzi scheme of Arthur Nadel and Scoop Management...

3d DCA Watch -- It's Apodictic All Over Again!

Posted on March 10, 2010
Hi kids, I've recently created an iPhone app that inserts the word "apodictic" into any text so that certain 3d DCA judges can more easily avail themselves of this all-purpose, handy-dandy superword.Let's see if anyone takes the bait this week....TRG-Brickell Point v...

Lawyers Who Exercise.

Posted on March 10, 2010
We've come again to the topic of lawyers who discuss their exercise regimen in the newspaper.Let me be clear -- what Bill Strop has undertaken is very admirable:In June, Bill Strop was 40 pounds heavier, working long hours and celebrating his 41st birthday...

Jerry Borbon's Wife is Terrified.

Posted on March 09, 2010
Like many of you, I get ready for work in the morning the old-fashioned way: by downing two raw eggs dropped into a shot of whiskey.Then I jump in my mint-green Dodge Dart, turn up the Terry Jacks, and head downtown.But some of these new-fangled fancy-pants tree-huggers, however, want to "save" the "environment...

Shotgun Tjoflat!

Posted on March 09, 2010
You know how in federal court you always incorporate all your prior counts into your next count, just to be safe?That way if you miss an allegation on page 47, count XVI, you can always refer the judge to earlier allegation in a different count 34 pages back...

RIP Judge Paine

Posted on March 08, 2010
Well-written obit here:The flag outside the federal courthouse flies at half-mast this morning following the death Sunday of one of Palm Beach County's longest serving, hardest working federal jurists, Sr. U.S. District Judge James C. Paine.Paine, 85, died after spending his final few days in hospice care...

Your Monday Morning Iqbal Update

Posted on March 08, 2010
I know I know, Iqbal is so 2009, almost as old as that Sony Playstation Mike Tein held up in front of Magistrate Judge Turnoff the other day.Still, some judges continue to cite to it, as BLT notes:A federal judge in Illinois refused to dismiss a lawsuit against former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld by two Americans who claimed they were detained and interrogated in Iraq...

SFL Friday -- See It Like A Native

Posted on March 05, 2010
Kids, it's been a long week, filled with highs, lows, twists, turns, mountains and valleys -- and that's just in a single order -- so I plan to cut out early and get my windsurfing on.Before I go, fallout from the scandal involving Broward Judge Ana Gardiner continues, with the Bar reopening an investigation of prosecutor Howard Scheinberg, the judge not showing up for work, and this curious episode:Chief Broward Judge Victor Tobin dodged a Sun Sentinel reporter who waited outside his chambers Thursday for two hours to speak to him about Gardiner's absence...

Buju Banton's Informant: The $3.3 Million Man

Posted on March 05, 2010
Us simple country litigators still think $3.3 million is a lot of money:The informant who helped federal agents build a drug case against Jamaican reggae singer Buju Banton has been paid $3.3 million for helping law enforcement in numerous cases over several years, lawyers said in court this morning...

New Standard Civil Jury Instructions!

Posted on March 04, 2010
Commercial litigators don't think too often about jury instructions.Actually, I take that back.At some point during the course of the case, we will assign a few associates to bill many hours to prepare instructions, so that the client pays for retooling old work product that most likely will never be reviewed, let alone used...

Magistrate Judge Brown and the "Full Circle" Game.

Posted on March 04, 2010
JudgeBrownScottOrth Once again Magistrate Judge Brown has issued an order that I cannot do justice by simply summarizing or excerpting, though this perhaps gives a taste:Orth confirms rather than calls into question that he continues to misunderstand his responsibilities to the Court...

It's Nice to Have Friends

Posted on March 04, 2010
You gotta love how they do things in Broward:As she presided over a first-degree murder case, Broward Circuit Court Judge Ana Gardiner engaged in a close and inappropriate personal relationship with the prosecutor, a state judicial watchdog agency claimed in charges filed Wednesday...

Bloggers, promote your law blog by nominating your blog for inclusion in USLaw.com's Law Blog Directory and RSS Reader. Benefits described.