Vet Your Lawyer

Americans are treated, and overtreated, to death – Yahoo! News.

This is directly analogous to lawyers with a no stone unturned policy in litigation.

As you know if you have been through my posts before, I have a policy of not taking ads from lawyers, and I mention that a lot to promote my lack of bias. However, my host has now started running their own ads on my site, and to stop that I have to pay for [...]

First the Spill, Then the Lawsuits – NYTimes.com.

How Best Buy got duped | StarTribune.com.

In jail for being in debt | StarTribune.com.

Wells Fargo ordered to pay $30 million for fraud | StarTribune.com . The fall out from the financial crisis is only beginning. Note that one of the plaintiffs is a foundation set up by the plaintiffs law firm. Query if this case would have gone to trial (the newspapers say this is the first to go to [...]

Editorial – A New Standard of Decency for Juvenile Criminals – NYTimes.com . And, braving the catcalls of nativists, Justice Kennedy also looked to international law to bolster his argument, noting that this form of sentencing had been  rejected by countries the world over . Until Monday, the United States was the only country to impose such sentences on its [...]

Earlier this month Judge Lippman delivered a Law Day speech in Albany arguing for an even broader vision of justice, one that includes guaranteeing a lawyer for poor people in civil disputes where basic needs are at stake, like evictions and foreclosures. He plans to hold hearings around the state before unveiling a detailed plan [...]

Fake Immigration Lawyer Guilty of Bilking Clients – NYTimes.com.

Op-Ed Contributor – Why Miranda Matters — and Why It Doesn’t – NYTimes.com.

Suit Challenging New York’s Public Defense System Can Proceed – NYTimes.com.

Mr. Paterson does not need legislative approval to undertake the new policy. Federal immigration laws enacted in 1996 greatly expanded the categories of legal immigrants subject to mandatory deportation as “aggravated felons,” including people who had pleaded guilty to misdemeanor drug possession. For years after the laws’ passage, immigration authorities had neither the resources nor [...]

Bankruptcy Fees Add Up in Cases Like Lehman’s – NYTimes.com.

It’s a fact: They may not tell you that up front, but just look around. Do you see a link encouraging lawyers to sign up or join? That’s it, that’s the giveaway. All of these websites, every single one ,  supports themselves with revenue from lawyer advertising. That’s why it is “free” to you. What are they selling these [...]

How Do Lawyers Get Away With This Stuff? – You’re the Boss Blog – NYTimes.com.

Justices Put Curbs on Payment for Lawyers – NYTimes.com . I don’t think it is unreasonable to ask the trial judge to make specific findings to back up his enhanced fee award, but some of that may well still be subjective, based on his or her perceptions of the ebb and flow of the trial, what key [...]

Former Blackwater executives charged in weapons case – latimes.com.

Problems always arise when counsel seeks to please the client/employer rather than follow the law. The whole point of legal advice is to avoid these problems, not create them.

Lindsay Lohan vs. the Talking Babies – Top 10 Ridiculous Celebrity Lawsuits – TIME . I agree this one seems like a stretch. But why did her lawyers go along instead of telling her no? Maybe because she would fire them and get someone else to do it? Happens all the time, but it’s not what you [...]

AP IMPACT: In Toyota lawsuits, tests and documents vanish in tactic under scrutiny | StarTribune.com.

Lawyers are supposed to be ‘zealous advocates’ for their clients, but too many decide that means the client is always right, and like the Catholic Church, must be protected at all costs, including justice for the innocent.

The Safety Net – Critics Say Firm That Fights Jobless Claims Harms System – NYTimes.com . I am firmly against this use of the law. If you have rights, by all means defend them, but to use the law to play the percentages or for a war of attrition is an example of poor business leadership, lack [...]