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      Overlawyered

      Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

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        December 29 roundup

        by Walter Olson on December 29, 2009

        • “Trial lawyer group hails Senate health care bill as ’stunning victory’” [Point of Law]
        • Christopher Hitchens on our leaders’ absurd reaction to the attempted plane bombing [Slate] More: Stewart Baker on the security challenges [first, second]; Mark Steyn [first, second]
        • Lots of coverage for Ted Frank’s Center for Class Action Fairness and its objection in a Yahoo! settlement [Zywicki/Volokh, Stier/Mass Tort Lit, CCAF, Turkewitz; Drum] And the Center has also filed objections in an AOL settlement of claims arising from advertising copy placed in the footers of emails;
        • Sad: “Texas Man Freed by DNA Sues Over ‘Excessive’ Attorney Fees” [AP/Law.com]
        • Litigious creationists: promoters of “intelligent design” back in court yet again [L.A. Times via WSJ Law Blog]
        • “One Possible Class-Action Defense Strategy: Disappear and Live in a Tent” [Lowering the Bar]
        • “Softballer can’t slide, wants money” [Elie Mystal, Above the Law; Queens, N.Y.]
        • Litigators advised to use social media to snoop on players in their cases [Trial Lawyer Tips]

        Tagged as: baseball, class action settlements, class actions, politics, social media, Ted Frank, terrorism

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        The Kindle under the tree

        by Walter Olson on December 29, 2009

        Now that it’s unwrapped, don’t forget to stock it with a subscription to Overlawyered, only 99 cents a month [via @kindle_blog]

        Tagged as: about the site

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        Photo-retouch blogging draws lawyer nastygram

        by Walter Olson on December 28, 2009

        Photographer Anthony Citrano:

        On Tuesday night, I received an aggressive and threatening letter from Martin Singer, Demi Moore’s attorney. It is marked “Confidential Legal Notice – Publication or Dissemination is Prohibited”. However, since Mr. Singer and I have no confidentiality agreement, and it provides essential context to the matter at hand, I have decided to publish it.

        Citrano’s original post on Boing Boing discussed evidence that a Vanity Fair cover photo of the actress had been retouched. Now Boing Boing reports that it too, as well as other blogs such as Jezebel, have received nastygrams from Singer, and responds with new evidence on the retouching question. And it adds:

        Yes, the discussion at hand is only about an image of a celebrity on the cover of a fashion magazine. But the ability to freely discuss the provenance and technical history of a photo, including those with more crucial news value — say, images of detainee abuse, or Iranian missiles — is a freedom we believe should be preserved.

        On the Lavely & Singer firm’s “don’t you dare print this nastygram” demands, see, e.g., this earlier post. More: Scott Greenfield.

        Tagged as: art and artists, nastygrams

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        Update: O’Quinn estate will refund $46.5 million to implant clients

        by Walter Olson on December 28, 2009

        As longtime readers of this site know well, the late mass tort king John O’Quinn nicked the accounts of breast implant plaintiffs with a fortune in unauthorized overcharges. Austin attorney Terry Scarborough, who spent ten years helping get some of the money back, “says he could have built a practice based on people itching to sue O’Quinn, whose generosity toward charitable and Democratic causes was shadowed by a reputation for stiffing fellow attorneys — a mortal sin in the practice of law.” [Austin American-Statesman, Texas Lawyer]

        Tagged as: attorneys' fees, John O'Quinn, silicone breast implants

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        Canada: STDs not insurable “accident”

        by Walter Olson on December 28, 2009

        “The Supreme Court of Canada has taken away a $200,000 insurance award made to a Vancouver man who became paralyzed after a series of medical calamities arising from him having unprotected sex.” [The Globe and Mail]

        Tagged as: Canada, communicable disease, insurance

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        Caesarean births up 30% in NYC since 2000

        by Walter Olson on December 28, 2009

        “A rapidly growing number of Big Apple moms are delivering their babies by Caesarean sections, with convenience and doctors’ fears of malpractice lawsuits fueling the dangerous trend according to a study by the nonprofit group Choices in Childbirth.” [NY Post/MyFox Boston]

        Tagged as: NYC, obstetrics

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        Dead from eating bad oysters?

        by Walter Olson on December 27, 2009

        No, it turns out, very much alive, and now a Florida couple may have to give back that $2 million insurance payout [Sioux Falls, S.D. Argus-Leader via Obscure Store]

        Tagged as: insurance fraud

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        “Car dealer tells man to delete Facebook, Twitter posts …. or else!”

        by Walter Olson on December 26, 2009

        A nastygram from Route 60 Hyundai [Obscure Store, TC Palm, Florida]

        Tagged as: Facebook, nastygrams, Twitter

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        Federalist Society pro bono center

        by Walter Olson on December 25, 2009

        It’s a little-heralded gem, as I can confirm from personal experience [Somin, Volokh]

        Tagged as: Federalist Society, pro bono

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        “Penguin v Steinbeck Estate re: The Pearl”

        by Walter Olson on December 24, 2009

        The 1947 novella always did seem to evoke the process of litigation on some psychological level, and here’s a literal lawsuit that arose from it just lately [Schwimmer, Trademark Blog]

        Tagged as: publishers

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        Update: “Pizza Hut and cop prevail in door injury claim”

        by Walter Olson on December 23, 2009

        Possibly bringing to an end an odd door-swing case that we last blogged two years ago [Madison County, Ill. Record]

        Tagged as: Madison County, restaurants

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        Wayward federal judges

        by Walter Olson on December 23, 2009

        A Houston Chronicle article claims that discipline is too infrequent and too secret (via WSJ Law Blog)

        Tagged as: judges

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        December 23 roundup

        by Walter Olson on December 23, 2009

        • AT&T sued for $1 billion for allegedly misclassifying managers [Hyman, American Lawyer]
        • Shaken-baby-syndrome angle deserved more attention in Baucus-girlfriend-for-U.S.-Attorney flap [Kos, Freeland, earlier]
        • Awful: “Holocaust Denier Sues Survivor” [South Florida Sun-Sentinel via Faces of Lawsuit Abuse "worst lawsuits of 2009" poll which you can take here]
        • Bizarre new twist in rogue Philly cop unit story [Balko, earlier here, here, etc.]
        • More on the first “Bruno” lawsuit against Sacha Baron Cohen [Lowering the Bar, earlier]
        • False accusation as academic career booster: “The Rot at Duke” [Stuart Taylor, Jr., National Journal]
        • Claim: Netflix recommendation algorithm contest exposed a subscriber’s privacy to her detriment [Singel, Wired]
        • No “Continuing Duty to Investigate Accuracy” of Newspaper Article Posted on Web Site [Volokh on Jenzabar case, earlier here and here]

        Tagged as: Borat, junk science, libel slander and defamation, wage and hour suits