Supreme Court affirms ruling allowing anti-apartheid claims to proceed after recusals

[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website; JURIST news archive] Monday affirmed [PDF text] a judgment by the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on an anti-apartheid claims lawsuit on the rare grounds that it lacked a quorum due to four recusals. Am. Isuzu Motors, Inc., et al. v. Ntsebeza, Lungisile, et al involved a huge class of plaintiffs suing several dozen companies which did
2008-05-12T14:39:00-04:00

Supreme Court takes death row habeas claim

[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website; JURIST news archive] granted limited certiorari Monday in Bell v. Kelly (07-1223) [docket; cert. petition, PDF], where it will consider whether the US Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals erred when, in conflict with decisions of the Ninth and Tenth Circuits, it applied the deferential standard of 28 U.S.C. � 2254(d), reserved for claims "adjudicated on
2008-05-12T14:39:00-04:00

Jingle Mail And California Law - Giving The Mortgage Back To The Bank

If you owe $800,000 on a $550,000 house, and give the bank the $550,000 house, can the bank then try to collect the $250,000 difference? Or to use the legal terminology, can the bank seek a deficiency judgment? The answer, in California, is probably not...
Tue, 29 Apr 2008 09:25:46 -0500

Pfizer resumes settlement talks with Nigeria state over drug trial lawsuit

[JURIST] US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer [corporate website] resumed settlement negotiations with the Nigerian state of Kano for allegedly illegal clinical trials conducted by the drug company, Kano state Justice Commissioner Aliyu Umar said Monday. Pfizer is accused of administering 200 Nigerian children with meningitis medication - including 100 with the then-experimental anti-biotic Trovan [FDA
2008-04-28T17:37:00-04:00

US House panel threatens to subpoena Ashcroft on DOJ interrogation memo

[JURIST] US House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) [official website] Monday threatened to seek subpoenas [materials] to compel three current and former administration officials, including former Attorney General John Ashcroft [official profile], to testify about a recently released Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel memorandum [text; JURIST report] that advised the US
2008-04-28T17:37:00-04:00

When The Foreclosure Lawsuit Comes, How Do You File An Answer To The Bank's Complaint?

In nearly all cases of foreclosure, when the bank files its initial lawsuit, the homeowners have a chance to respond to the complaint and file their own answer. The problem is that, while mortgage companies hire local lawyers, the owners of the house may have little idea of how to go about filing an answer. While this is an extremely variable topic, with local, county, and state rules all coming into play, a small introduction may help homeowners find the confidence to take on the bank in court.
Fri, 18 Apr 2008 15:00:53 -0500

Federal appeals judge appointed to top post at FISA review court

[JURIST] Bruce Selya [official profile], a senior circuit judge for the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit has been designated as presiding judge of the US Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review [FJC backgrounder]. The designation was made by US Chief Justice John Roberts [Oyez profile; JURIST news archive], in an order dated March 27. The appointment will be effective May 19.
2008-04-14T19:31:00-04:00

Collapsed hedge fund co-founder sentenced to 20 years on fraud charges

[JURIST] A federal judge on Monday sentenced Samuel Israel, III, co-founder of collapsed hedge fund Bayou Group [JURIST report], to 20 years in prison. US District Judge Colleen McMahon also ordered Israel to make $300 million in restitution and forfeit interests in a $100 million account. In 2005, both Israel and Chief Financial Officer Daniel Marino pleaded guilty [JURIST report] to charges
2008-04-14T19:31:00-04:00

Landlord-Tenant Relations in Pittsburgh, PA

Many Pittsburgh landlords are frustrated by the current state of landlord-tenant law, as many rights under current law are ceded to the tenant. Landlord frustration is especially evident in the city proper; Pittsburgh neighborhoods like Oakland and Bloomfield are filled with college students who can be noisy, negligent of property, or late with rent. However, a landlord has certain rights to his or her rental properties, and can require of tenants certain actions and behaviors that are perfectly legal. The following article will explore some landlord rights in the tenant relations and property management arenas.
Thu, 03 Apr 2008 16:28:33 -0500

Expert Witness Testimony for Real Estate

Expert witness analysis and testimony provides both the parties information to settle prior to the actual judicial proceeding. When settlement negotiations are not successful, expert witness testimony provides the trier of fact (judge or jury) information to consider in making their decision. Expert witness testimony is a subset of litigation support services.
Wed, 19 Mar 2008 15:41:22 -0500

Federal appeals court orders new trial for Qwest ex-CEO

[JURIST] The US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit on Monday ordered [PDF text] that former Qwest Communications [corporate website] CEO Joseph Nacchio [JURIST news archive] should be retried before a new federal judge. Nacchio had appealed his April 2007 insider trading conviction [JURIST report] for selling $52 million of Qwest stock in 2001. The court found that US District Judge
2008-03-17T19:36:00-04:00

Supreme Court hears arguments in Philippines assets, right to counsel cases

[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website; JURIST news archive] heard oral arguments [transcript, PDF] Monday in Philippines v. Pimentel [LII case backgrounder; ABA merit briefs], 06-1204 [docket], where the Court considered whether some 9,000 plaintiffs seeking to recover assets held by former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos [official profile] can be awarded assets claimed by
2008-03-17T19:36:00-04:00

Can The Association Deny You Access To The Association's Financial Records?

You receive information that association board members and representatives of the community management firm are having lavish dinners at some of the most expensive restaurants in the area, all at association expense. You request the association to provide you with records in order to substantiate the information that you received. The association declines to provide you with the records. Can the association be forced to provide you with these records?
Thu, 28 Feb 2008 14:44:32 -0600

Why Use A Series LLC?

In order to diversify risk, someone with multiple rental or other investment properties would likely be advised to place each property into a separate entity. This was traditionally achieved with the use of a corporation or limited partnership in years past. Recently, however, the limited liability company has quickly become the entity of choice for real estate holdings.
Thu, 21 Feb 2008 16:21:48 -0600

US, major EU states recognize independent Kosovo

[JURIST] The United States and several key European Union powers formally recognized Kosovo as a sovereign state Monday, one day after the Assembly of Kosovo unilaterally declared Kosovo's independence [text; JURIST report] from Serbia. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice issued a statement
2008-02-18T13:03:00-05:00

US intelligence chief urges replacement surveillance bill with telecom immunity

[JURIST] A new foreign intelligence surveillance bill is needed to ensure that the US intelligence community has "the agility and the speed that we had before" to capture terrorist communications in the war on terror, US Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell [official profile] said
2008-02-18T13:03:00-05:00

Federal judge allows limited probe into White House office in missing e-mails case

[JURIST] A federal judge on Monday issued an order [PDF text] permitting the government watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) [advocacy website] to conduct "very limited" discovery in its case against the White House Office of Administration (OA) [official
2008-02-12T08:10:00-05:00

US arrests 4 suspects in China espionage cases

[JURIST] A former Chinese-American engineer at Boeing [corporate website] was arrested [DOJ press release] Monday for allegedly stealing corporate trade secrets related to the Space Shuttle and other aerospace programs and turning them over to China [JURIST news archive]. Dongfan "Greg" Chung was
2008-02-12T08:10:00-05:00

The Home Repossession Process

Whenever you fail to keep up with the payments on a loan secured on your property, there is always the risk that the lender will take legal action to evict you. The process has a number of stages and can last a few weeks to a few months or longer. There is the possibility of stopping the process at any stage, so never think that it's too late to bring your mortgage payments up to date.
Wed, 23 Jan 2008 09:20:00 -0600

The Short And Tricky Statute Of Limitations Framework For Claims Under ILSA

The federal Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act ("ILSA") can fairly be described as a possible "land mine" for condominium developers, owing to the statute's poorly understood exemption provisions which can be and are subject to competing judicial interpretations. The ILSA exemption morass has been at least partly responsible for the large number of lawsuits which have been filed in recent months in Florida courts by buyers alleging claims under the statute in an effort to recover deposits paid under condo purchase agreements. However, ILSA is not just potentially treacherous from the developer's point of view. Indeed, the statute poses some significant perils for buyers who may have viable claims, and these pitfalls stem from ILSA's unusually short statute of limitations. In judicial parlance, a statute of limitations can sound a "death knell" to the claims of an unwitting plaintiff. See, e.g., Helton v. Clements, 832 F.2d 332, 336 (5th Cir. 1987).
Thu, 17 Jan 2008 13:11:58 -0600