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Bitter Foes Microsoft and Linux Unite Against Software Rules

The Recorder

The mutual disdain between Microsoft Corp. and Linux, an open-source computer operating system, is unrivaled. But new rules for software contracts put out by The American Law Institute have united the enemies as part of a growing protest by tech companies and their lawyers. The most controversial of the guidelines is that software vendors must guarantee buyers that there are no hidden flaws in the software. "Any project that has Microsoft and Linux on the same side, you know there's something wrong," says one lawyer.

Securities Class Action Filings Nosedive in Second Quarter

The American Lawyer

New securities class action filings have dropped precipitously, according to a midyear report by the Stanford Law School Securities Class Action Clearinghouse and Cornerstone Research. The report, released Monday, identifies 87 federal securities class actions filed in the first half of 2009, a 22.3 percent decline from the 112 filings in the first half of 2008. Of the 87 filings, just 35 occurred in the second quarter, the lowest quarterly number since the first quarter of 2007. What's contributing to the decline?

Questioning Sotomayor Without a License

The National Law Journal

A law degree wasn't a requirement last week to participate in the biggest legal spectacle in the nation -- even for those asking the questions. The Senate Judiciary Committee includes members who haven't sat through 1L classes, let alone had the extensive academic training or practical legal experience of some of their colleagues. So how did they prepare to take on the responsibility of grilling U.S. Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor on complex questions of constitutional theory and statutory interpretation?

Ballard Spahr Axes 2010 Summer Associate Program

The Legal Intelligencer

When Morgan Lewis & Bockius cut its 2010 summer program so as to avoid a deferral-related bottleneck of incoming associates in 2011, the question became: Which law firm would be the next to cut its program? The answer: Ballard Spahr. In a message obtained by the legal blog Above the Law, the University of Pennsylvania Law School has informed its students that Ballard Spahr has pulled out of on-campus interviewing this year because it won't have a 2010 summer associate program.

Sotomayor Responds to GOP Follow-Up Questions

The National Law Journal

Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor told the Senate Judiciary Committee Monday that she has "no personal views about the death penalty that would interfere with my obligation to apply the law as a judge." In written responses to questions following up on a range of issues raised at her confirmation hearing last week, Sotomayor also discussed the use of foreign law in Supreme Court decision-making and explained her decision to resign from the all-female Belizean Grove shortly before her confirmation hearing.

NL Industries Hit With $179 Million Jury Verdict

The American Lawyer

A Dallas jury returned a $178.7 million verdict against NL Industries, subsidiary NL Environmental Services and NL CEO Harold Simmons in a contracts case on Friday. The award included $33.7 million in actual damages, $140 million in punitive damages against NL Industries and $5 million in punitive damages against NL's general counsel. The plaintiffs -- minority shareholders in the NL subsidiary -- claimed that NL had improperly stripped the subsidiary of its assets and reduced the value of their shares tenfold.

Industry Settlement Energizes Debate Over Mandatory Arbitration Provisions

The National Law Journal

The exit of a major player from the consumer arbitration industry is threatening to shake up the debate in Congress over whether to ban mandatory arbitration provisions in consumer contracts. The National Arbitration Forum announced Sunday that it would stop doing business in consumer arbitration by the end of this week, as part of a settlement with the attorney general of Minnesota. A leading lobby group for trial lawyers jumped on the settlement Monday as evidence of malpractice in the arbitration industry.

'Rule of Necessity' Could Be Invoked in N.Y. Judicial Pay Suits

New York Law Journal

The six associate judges of New York's highest court, expected to recuse themselves in cases where the outcome affects them personally, now face the prospect of invoking a "rule of necessity" to consider whether they and the state's other judges must be given a raise. The Court of Appeals has determined there is an appeal as of right in two judicial pay cases. But if the court is disqualified from hearing the issues involved, there apparently would be no other forum to resolve them, leaving the litigants in limbo.

DOJ Targets 'Sophisticated and Stunning' Trafficking Organization

The National Law Journal

Justice Department prosecutors unsealed an indictment Monday in federal district court in Manhattan targeting a "stunning and sophisticated" alleged drug trafficking operation in Mexico that is accused of pumping cocaine and marijuana into the United States. The indictment contains a $1 billion forfeiture demand. The State Department on Monday announced rewards of up to $50 million for information leading to the capture of 10 of the defendants.

Schnader Adds Kasowitz's IP Leader as Partner in New York

New York Law Journal

Schnader Harrison has hired Salem Katsh as a partner in its New York intellectual property practice. Previously the chairman of the IP groups at Weil Gotshal and Shearman & Sterling, Katsh was the chair of the IP group at Kasowitz Benson from 2005 to 2006 before leaving to become a solo practitioner. After two-plus years on his own, Katsh said he "missed the camaraderie and collegiality of a law firm."

$6 Million Verdict Survives Judge's Error on Mid-Trial Jury Discussions

The National Law Journal

In a key opinion about mid-trial jury deliberations, the Massachusetts high court let stand a nearly $6.2 million judgment in a personal injury case, saying that the trial judge committed an error by allowing jurors to talk about evidence by themselves during a trial despite one side's objection. But the opinion also upheld the judgment and said the judge's decision to allow the juror discussions didn't harm the defendant's case.

Rift Emerges at Hearing on Juvenile Records in Judicial Corruption Case

The Legal Intelligencer

A hearing Friday marked the first time the process of expunging records for thousands of juveniles who appeared before a former judge embroiled in a Pennsylvania bribery scandal was discussed in open court. Though both the Juvenile Law Center in Philadelphia and the Luzerne County district attorney's office agreed that the judge's judgments should be vacated, the two sides sharply disagreed over what else could -- or should -- be done.

Venezuelan Ad Exec Sues Insurance Broker Over Stanford Investments

Daily Business Review

A Venezuelan investor who put $2.7 million in family savings into certificates of deposit sold by indicted Texas financier R. Allen Stanford has filed a proposed class action suit in Miami federal court, claiming Stanford's insurance broker vouched for his bank's investments. Advertising executive Reinaldo Ranni filed suit Friday against Britain's Willis Group Holdings and its Colorado subsidiary on behalf of a class of Stanford International Bank's Latin American investors.

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2009 GC Compensation Survey: Immune No More

Corporate Counsel

Through previous recessions, general counsel stayed largely untouched. Indeed, the past decade shows a nearly unbroken string of pay raises. No more. While some indexes of GC pay rose, the basic trend was nearly flat. Why? Because executive pay has become inextricably bound with corporate performance. And if the company doesn't do well, the GC might find a thinner pay packet. How thin? It's all relative. But it seems that top corporate counsel aren't immune to market forces anymore.

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How to Face a Triple Threat

Special to Law.com

The current economic situation is only one facet of a three-pronged attack on the operational side of law firms and how they manage the practice of law. The other issues law firms must face are the changes in the cost recovery landscape and the increase of alternative fee arrangements.

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Furloughs for Unemployment Judges Draw Fire

The Recorder

California administrative law judges who rule on denial of unemployment benefits are having their own employment woes these days. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recently ordered them, and other state workers under his control, to take a third unpaid furlough day every month as a cost-saving measure. The unpaid days will cost judges about 15 percent of their paychecks -- and employment lawyers say the reduced workdays will only add to the case backlog.

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