News from October 2011
Plaintiffs committee wants past testimony admitted in BP suits
Roy NEW ORLEANS (Legal Newsline) - Plaintiffs attorneys preparing for trial over liability for the Deepwater Horizon explosion seek to admit past testimony of witnesses who now refuse to testify because they might incriminate themselves.
McGraw gets temporary injunction against debt buyers
McGraw CHARLESTON, W.Va. (Legal Newsline) - A West Virginia court has entered an order preventing three Cavalry Company debt-buying businesses from collecting debts in the state without a license.
Millions spent on retention elections, report shows
Kilbride WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - A campaign to unseat Illinois Supreme Court Justice Thomas Kilbride triggered the nation's costliest retention election in 25 years, according to a national report released Thursday.
Mo. judge declares mistrial in tobacco lawsuit
ST. LOUIS (Legal Newsline) - A St. Louis jury on Tuesday failed to return a verdict in a class action case against Philip Morris USA over whether smokers were deceived into believing "light" and low-tar cigarettes reduced health hazards.
Abbott asked to consider suing mortgage company
Abbott HOUSTON (Legal Newsline) - The Texas county that includes Houston said Tuesday it planned to ask state Attorney General Greg Abbott to consider suing Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems Inc. over allegedly unpaid filing fees.
Texas AG suspends ATV dealer's license
Abbott AUSTIN, Texas (Legal Newsline) - Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott on Tuesday announced the resolution of an enforcement action against a New Braunfels-based ATV dealer and its owners.
Iowa AG seeks info from Mich. labor law poster company
Miller DES MOINES, Iowa (Legal Newsline) - Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller asked a Polk County judge on Wednesday to order a Michigan-based labor law poster seller to provide information sought by the Consumer Protection Division.
Barbour: Miss. not really getting $20 million from settlements
Barbour JACKSON, Miss. (Legal Newsline) - Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour has warned a joint legislative budget committee against relying on recent legal settlements with four pharmaceutical companies as a "windfall" for the state budget next year.
Okla. tribe says wind farm doesn't trump its oil, gas rights
TULSA, Okla. (Legal Newsline) - A federally recognized Native American tribe in Oklahoma is asking a U.S. district court to prohibit a group of companies from proceeding with construction of a wind farm on its oil and natural gas-rich land.
Gov. Haley slams unions, promises reform
Haley WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley said Wednesday that the saga of a Boeing plant in her state is "the most un-American thing" she's ever seen.
Congressman calls NLRB a 'rogue agency'
Issa HINGTON - (Legal Newsline) House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R.-Calif.) called the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) a "rogue agency" in an Oct. 17 letter to the board's general counsel Lafe Solomon. Solomon has defied the committee's subpoena.
W.Va. Congresswoman says EPA's agenda is destroying jobs
Capito WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - U.S. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, co-founder of the Congressional Coal Caucus, says the federal Environmental Protection Agency's "extreme agenda" and regulations are destroying jobs.
Health care law tied to unconstitutional mandate, attorney says
Clement WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - Former U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement gave a preview of his future argument in the health care challenge on Wednesday.
Former Ga. AG sees problem with lawsuit-financing
Baker WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - Former Georgia Attorney General Thurbert Baker said Wednesday that integrity of America's courts is in danger because of companies that specialize in funding litigation.
Boehner: Too many regulations against businesses
Boehner WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - House Speaker John Boehner started the 12th annual Legal Reform Summit by criticizing the amount of federal regulations that affect businesses.
Jury returns $18.5M verdict against Maryland
Gansler BALTIMORE, Md. (Legal Newsline) - A jury on Monday found the state of Maryland negligent for the death of a state prison inmate and awarded $18.5 million to the man's family.
Nev. GOP tells SOS to stay out of redistricting process
Miller CARSON CITY, Nev. (Legal Newsline) - The Nevada Republican Party, in a filing Monday, says Secretary of State Ross Miller's emergency petition for writ of mandamus to intervene in a court-conducted redistricting process is inappropriate.
Senior citizens reach out to AG Kroger
Kroger SALEM, Ore. (Legal Newsline) - Senior citizen groups in Oregon are asking state Attorney General John Kroger to stop new reverse mortgage provisions in state law from being implemented.
Canadian cigarette maker paying up in Pennsylvania
Kelly HARRISBURG, Pa. (Legal Newsline) - Pennsylvania Attorney General Linda Kelly announced a settlement on Monday with a Canadian-based cigarette manufacturer for allegedly failing to make escrow payments as required by the Tobacco Settlement Agreement Act.
Ohio AG sues Cleveland paving company
DeWine CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) - Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced on Tuesday that his office has filed a lawsuit against a Cleveland-based paving company for multiple alleged violations of consumer law.