How Appealing



Wednesday, October 22, 2008

“Ruling in ’64 Miss. crime could affect other cases”: The Associated Press provides a report that begins, “Federal prosecutors have identified 22 current investigations into civil rights-era crimes that could be impacted by a federal appeals court’s decision to overturn a conviction in a 1964 kidnapping case.”

Posted at 10:58 PM by Howard Bashman



“Defense: Joyce investigation caused by ‘jilted’ ex-fiancee.” The Erie (Pa.) Times-News provides an update that begins, “The lead lawyer for former state Superior Court Judge Michael T. Joyce told a jury today that Joyce was indeed injured in an automobile accident in 2001, and he said Joyce is now the victim of a ‘vindictive, vicious, jilted’ ex-fiancee.”

Paula Reed Ward of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has a news update headlined “Feds open insurance fraud trial against Pa. ex-judge.”

And The Associated Press provides a report headlined “Prosecutor: Ex-Pa. judge lied to collect insurance.”

Posted at 7:15 PM by Howard Bashman



“How green is the high court? Five cases put environmental laws to the test.” Marcia Coyle has this article in this week’s issue of The National Law Journal.

Posted at 12:35 PM by Howard Bashman



“Shame on Dennis Jacobs”: In the October 27, 2008 issue of The National Law Journal, Dean Erwin Chemerinsky will have an op-ed that begins, “Dennis Jacobs, the chief judge of the 2d U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, should be ashamed of himself. In a speech in Rochester, N.Y., on Oct. 6, it was reported that he ridiculed lawyers who do pro bono work. He said that pro bono work is an ‘anti-social’ and self-serving activity that law firms use to recruit and ‘give solace’ to associates and that nonprofits use to further a political agenda.”

Update: A response from the Second Circuit’s chief judge appears at the outset of this post at WSJ.com’s “Law Blog.”

Posted at 12:27 PM by Howard Bashman



It took two judges to write these federal appellate court rulings: Jointly issued opinions appear to be this week’s hot new development at the federal appellate level.

Yesterday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued an eleven-page unanimous en banc ruling that was jointly written by two federal appellate judges.

And today a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued a thirteen-page unanimous ruling that was jointly written by two federal appellate judges.

Posted at 12:23 PM by Howard Bashman



“Some Rehnquist Papers Will Be Made Public Soon”: At “The BLT: The Blog of Legal Times,” Tony Mauro has a post that begins, “The family of the late Chief Justice William Rehnquist has decided to donate his extensive papers from 33 years on the Supreme Court and before to the Hoover Institution Archives at Stanford University, Rehnquist’s alma mater. Hoover is expected to announce the acquisition later today, Legal Times has learned, and will make some of the documents available within weeks.”

Posted at 12:05 PM by Howard Bashman



Available online from law.com: Tony Mauro reports that “Former Blogger Makes High Court Debut.”

And in other news, “En Banc 11th Circuit Case Tests Mail Fraud Law; On an issue that has split circuit courts, DOJ sends top criminal appeals lawyer to argue in rare en banc session.” Although it’s true that the federal government was represented at oral argument by Deputy Solicitor General Michael R. Dreeben, I have no doubt that the defendants’ case was capably presented by Philadelphia-area appellate lawyer Peter Goldberger.

Posted at 9:40 AM by Howard Bashman



“Trial begins today for retired Pa. judge; Ex-jurist from Erie charged with fraud”: Today in The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Paula Reed Ward has an article that begins, “Opening statements in the criminal fraud case against former state Superior Court Judge Michael T. Joyce are expected to be made today in federal court following a short interruption in jury selection yesterday. Mr. Joyce, a retired judge from Erie, is charged with nine separate counts of mail fraud and money laundering stemming from two insurance claims he filed after a low-speed accident in 2001, in which his new Mercedes-Benz was rear-ended at an estimated speed of 5 mph.”

Today in The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Jason Cato reports that “Picks on Joyce jury to be public.”

And The Erie (Pa.) Times-News reports that “Jury to be seated today; Lawyers to make opening statements in Joyce trial.”

Posted at 9:28 AM by Howard Bashman



“Guns, abortion and the Supreme Court: Scalia’s opinion on gun ownership is criticized as judicial activism by two prominent conservative judges.” The Los Angeles Times contains this editorial today.

Posted at 9:17 AM by Howard Bashman



“Immigrants’ advocates decry cervical cancer vaccine order; Gardasil, recommended for young female residents, is required for their immigrant counterparts; Its cost and safety questions raise concerns”: This article appears today in The Los Angeles Times.

Posted at 9:12 AM by Howard Bashman



“UM film presents struggle between law and fear”: Today’s edition of The Baltimore Sun contains an article that begins, “In the spring of 2006, sitting in a class at the University of Maryland law school, Sig Libowitz lit up when his professor distributed transcripts from the military tribunals that decided cases of detainees held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. To Libowitz, the transcripts seemed like a Kafkaesque nightmare in which detainees could be held indefinitely, not knowing the evidence against them. They also seemed like a movie.”

Posted at 8:57 AM by Howard Bashman



“Pentagon dismisses terror charges for 5 Guantanamo detainees; After another shake-up at the Pentagon office overseeing the war court, the administration withdrew, for now, war crimes charges against five men at Guantanamo”: Carol Rosenberg has this article today in The Miami Herald.

The New York Times reports today that “U.S. Drops Charges for 5 Guantanamo Detainees.”

The Washington Post reports that “Charges Against 5 Detainees Dropped Temporarily; Chief Guantanamo Prosecutor Denies That Flap Over Evidence Played Role.”

Carol J. Williams of The Los Angeles Times reports that “U.S. drops charges against 5 terrorism suspects; The men will remain imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay; Defense lawyers see the move as a way to give prosecutors more time to prepare for trial after the resignation of a key prosecutor.”

And Bloomberg News reports that “Gates Says Guantanamo Closure Needs Congress’s Action.”

Posted at 8:34 AM by Howard Bashman



“Desert cross may lead to landmark ruling; The Supreme Court soon will decide whether to take up the case of the monument to fallen service members in Mojave National Preserve; At stake is a new definition of the church-state separation”: David G. Savage has this article today in The Los Angeles Times.

Posted at 7:53 AM by Howard Bashman