News from 2012
Three to pay $30M for cleanup of Superfund site
PHILADELPHIA (Legal Newsline) - A settlement announced Monday by the Environmental Protection Agency requires three companies to pay about $29.8 million in cleanup costs for a Superfund site.
First black woman chosen to serve on Minn. SC
Dayton, at left, and Wright ST. PAUL, Minn. (Legal Newsline) - Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton made history Monday, appointing Court of Appeals judge Wilhelmina Wright to the state's high court.
Calif. SC enforces arbitration provision in suit against condo developer
Baxter SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) - The California Supreme Court, in a ruling last week, upheld a binding arbitration provision in a homeowners association's governing documents.
Sinclair Oil to spend millions on pollution control equipment
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - Sinclair Oil will have to pay stipulated penalties totaling $3,844,000 and spend approximately $10.5 million on additional pollution control equipment and other projects to settle alleged violations of air pollution limits.
N.H. SC decertifies 'light' cigarette class while Ill. court weighs similar case
Tillery CONCORD, N.H. (Legal Newsline) - Another state supreme court has rejected a class action lawsuit that claims tobacco companies misled customers by labeling some cigarettes as "light."
Amerigroup shareholders file class action over sale
Parasharami WILMINGTON, Del. (Legal Newsline) - Shareholders of Amerigroup have initiated a class action lawsuit against members of the board of directors and executive officers of Amerigroup over its pending sale to WellPoint.
Report: D.C. settles with law firm over unpaid attorney fees
Nathan WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - The District of Columbia has reportedly settled with a local law firm, which specializes in special education cases, over unpaid attorney fees.
Mich. AG against collective bargaining ballot proposal
Schuette LANSING, Mich. (Legal Newsline) - Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette, along with Gov. Rick Snyder, has joined the battle against a union-backed proposal that would add the right to collective bargaining for public and private sector employees to the state constitution.
Fisherman sues federal agency over penalties
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - A former Massachusetts fisherman is suing the federal government for $15 million over penalties he says were too high from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Office of Law Enforcement.
Mechanic challenges NLRB appointments
Obama COLUMBUS, Ohio (Legal Newsline - A mechanic on Friday filed a federal court challenge to President Barack Obama's recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board.
Pa. SC affirms selection of Nemacolin resort for slots license
Castille PITTSBURGH (Legal Newsline) - The Pennsylvania Supreme Court, in a majority ruling Monday, affirmed the state Gaming Control Board's selection last year of a proposed casino project in Fayette County for a slot machine license.
Iowa County Circuit Court judge selected as Wis. 'chief of chiefs'
Dyke MADISON, Wis. (Legal Newsline) - Wisconsin's Committee of Chief Judges has chosen an Iowa County Circuit Court judge as its "chief of chiefs."
SEC settles fraud charges against alleged Ponzi scheme
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - The Securities and Exchange Commission announced Friday that fraud charges have been settled and an emergency asset freeze has been requested to halt an alleged $600 million Ponzi scheme on the verge of collapse.
Wash. SC makes ruling in cases over mortgage registry
Chambers OLYMPIA, Wash. (Legal Newsline) - The Washington State Supreme Court ruled last week that if the national mortgage registry known as MERS is not a promissory note-holder, then it is not considered the beneficiary for purposes of non-judicial foreclosures in the state.
Unions ask S.C. SC to hear case over increased premiums
Haley COLUMBIA, S.C. (Legal Newsline) - The leaders of two South Carolina unions last week filed a petition in the state Supreme Court over a 4.6 percent increase in health insurance premiums for public employees.
Railroad wants asbestos attorneys to pay appeal fees
Daniel Mulholland of Forman Perry Watkins Krutz & Tardy litigated the fraud case against the two asbestos attorneys. NATCHEZ, Miss. (Legal Newsline) - The railroad that won a fraud case against a pair of Mississippi asbestos attorneys is trying to make sure it doesn't lose any more money on it.
Kan. SC to hear challenge over proposed power plant's permit
Chief Justice Lawton Nuss TOPEKA, Kan. (Legal Newsline) - The Kansas Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case over an air pollution permit granted to a company to build a new coal-fired power plant in the state.
Ind. AG gets TRO against Fla. company
Zoeller INDIANAPOLIS (Legal Newsline) - Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller filed a lawsuit and obtained a temporary restraining order on Friday against a Florida company that allegedly made more than 660 illegal calls to Hoosiers offering medical alert devices.
Md. AG says lawyer was con artist
Gansler BALTIMORE (Legal Newsline) - Maryland Attorney General Douglas Gansler announced on Friday that his Consumer Protection Division issued a final order against a man claiming to be a lawyer who allegedly took thousands of dollars from consumers.
Ohio AG sues man over Craigslist sales
CINCINNATI (Legal Newsline) - Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine filed a lawsuit on Friday against Kevin L. Hunter, a Cincinnati resident who allegedly failed to deliver goods he offered for sale on Craigslist.