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JUSTICES MAY GO LIGHT ON JUDGE WHOSE LAW FIRM MADE POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS
"The state Supreme Court at a hearing on Tuesday appeared sympathetic to a municipal court judge who faces ethics sanctions because his law partner made political contributions without his knowledge or consent. Philip Boggia's partner donated $2,200, using the firm's business account, after Boggia's January 2004 appointment as Moonachie's part-time judge, despite Boggia having told the partner and firm employees at that time that such contributions would no longer be allowed. The Advisory Committee on Judicial Conduct nonetheless recommended an admonition, based not on a theory of vicarious liability or on the law of partnership but rather on the 'undeniable appearance' that Boggia shared responsibility for the contributions. However, questions from the justices at the hearing suggested they thought Boggia had been placed in a predicament not of his own creation."

COURT PROBES GLITCH IN SOFTWARE USED TO CALCULATE CHILD SUPPORT AWARDS
"The New Jersey court system is looking for bugs in the software it uses to calculate child-support awards, prompted by a Mercer County case in which a lawyer double-checked the court's support figure, determined it was wrong and got an amended order issued. Robert Rottkamp Jr. discovered the problem in connection with a June 23 support order entered against his client, William Connolly. When he advised Judge Mary Jacobson of the discrepancy, she took the matter up with the Administrative Office of the Courts, which investigated and determined that there was an error in the manner in which the court's software calculated Connolly's support obligation. Jacobson's amended order has been circulating among family lawyers, leading them to wonder if the error was an isolated glitch or if they should go back and verify support awards in their own cases. The AOC is still investigating to see if there is a larger problem."

TROOPERS APPEAL STATE'S BAN ON THEIR PRACTICE OF LAW
"State troopers with law degrees have appealed a federal judge's ruling that a government ethics code bars them from practicing law. The trooper-lawyers hope to be more persuasive in the Third Circuit than they were before U.S. District Judge Freda Wolfson, who rejected their arguments that the ban violates equal protection and due process guarantees and interferes with 14th Amendment property rights. Wolfson found that the state's reason for the ban ? preventing conflicts of interest ? is legitimately related to the governmental interest in ethics reform. The troopers filed an appeal on Sept. 9, arguing Wolfson failed to address their claims that they were stripped of their property interest in their law licenses and that the restriction improperly banned them from practicing law in the federal courts and those of other states."

JUDICIAL PAY INCREASE A PRIORITY DESPITE ECONOMY, SOLONS TELL JUDGES
"Congressional leaders on Tuesday told the Judicial Conference that increasing judicial salaries is still a "serious and pressing issue" that deserves the attention of Congress even at a time of economic woe for the nation. The sentiment among legislators at the conference was generally positive about the need for judicial pay increases, though several also said 'we have to get our national economic house in order,' said Anthony Scirica, chief judge of the Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The judiciary has been trying without success for years to win salary increases. A small cost-of-living increase was approved last year, and a salary hike made some headway in committee, but was not enacted. The Judicial Conference is the policymaking body of the federal judiciary, with representatives from the courts of appeals, district courts and Court of International Trade".

TESTMASTERS SUED FOR UNAUTHORIZED USE OF THE LSAT
"The Law School Admissions Council, which administers the Law School Admissions Test, is suing test prep company TestMasters for unauthorized use of LSAT test materials. The council filed its federal copyright infringement and breach of contract case on Sept. 4 in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. According to the complaint, TestMasters started licensing the council's materials in 1992, but stopped making royalty payments in July 2008. The council claims that TestMasters owes it at least $900,000 for the 2007 license, which expired on July 31, 2009. The council asked the court to bar the company and employees from using the materials. It also asked the court to ban TestMasters from claiming on its Web site and in promotional materials that it uses authorized LSAT materials."

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