SBM Blog

Class Action Filings Down, But Settlement Values Up

NERA Economic Consulting and the Stanford Law School Securities Class Action Clearinghouse (SLSSCAC) have both reported that federal securities class actions fell in the first half of 2010.  NERA predicted that if the trend continues, 2010 filings will be down 9%. But settlements set a record:  half of all settlements in the first half of 2010 were for more than $11.8M.

 U.S. securities class actions hit their lowest point since 2007, declining 15.5% decline from in each half of 2009.  SLSSCAC attributed that decline to a drop in litigation related to the credit crisis, which accounted for only eight filings in the first half of 2010 compared with 37 filings in the first half of 2009 and 16 filings in the second half of 2009.

HT: Legal Post  

Court Okays Counterclaim for Disgorgement of $628K in Excessive Legal Fees

A boutique NY/DC law firm seeking seeking $359,000 plus interest and punitive damages for work performed has been counter-sued by the client for $628,000, who is claiming the firm "vastly overcharged" for work done for the family business. A Manhattan Supreme Court justice found there was a sufficient legal and factual basis to support the disgorgement counterclaim, but denied another counterclaim that the firm should not be permitted to collect because it did not obtain a signed engagement letter.

HT: ABA Journal

Has Ohio State Outdone Michigan on Tail-Gating -- for Bar Exam Takers?

This news story from the Columbus Dispatch reports that Ohio State law grads were treated not only to lunch on their break from the rigors of the bar exam, but massages as well. "The mood is not a talk-gating mood," said one law school representative.  More than one law school provided Tums to their alums.  SBM Blog wants to hear from Michigan's bar exam takers.  How were your lunch breaks?  How are y'all doing?  We're pulling for you...

Fewer Jobs for New Law Grads, But No Decline in Pay -- At Least for Some

NALP (formerly National Association for Law Placement) says that in 2009 there were markedly fewer jobs available for new law grads, but that at least at the larger firms, pay held steady.  The national median starting salary for full-time law jobs was $72,000, and the average was $93,454.  But the NALP report  notes that salary figures are much more widely available for large firms than small firms, so the real average may be lower.  Read it here.

Twitter, Blogs and Court Reporting in the 21st Century

We in Michigan have already experienced live blogging from the courtroom of Kwame Kilpatrick's probation violation hearings. It was an opportunity for truly open justice, where any member of the public could follow what happened in that courtroom within moments of it happening.

But many judges see an inherent danger in allowing blogging or Tweeting from courtrooms. They are concerned that jurors may see this information online and become biased in the outcome of a case.

Afua Hirsch, a blogger for The Guardian asks the question, "Can live-blogs and Twitter take court reporting into the 21st century?" In it she weighs the pros and cons of open justice vs. jury contamination. She cites an interesting policy created by the Media Law Resource Center on the use of electronic devices in court. It's worth a look.

Posted by Samantha Meinke

Diversity: A Banner Week of Diverse Views

It's been a big week for people focused on the ins and outs, whys and why-nots, and ups and downs of "diversity" and what some see as its evil twin, "affirmative action."  Ross Douthat, the New York Times resident young conservative, weighed in twice, with a post, "The Trouble with Meritocracy", elaborating on his own op-ed, "The Roots of White Anxiety".

Michigan Attorney Co-Authors Book on Abu Ghraib

A Michigan attorney who prosecuted all but two of the major Abu Ghraib criminal prosecutions and was the lead prosecutor in the case against Lynndie England has co-authored a book, The Secrets of Abu Ghraib Revealed. Christopher Graveline wrote the book with Michael Clemens, an investigator.  Graveline is now an assistant U.S. attorney in Detroit. Previously, he served as a JAG attorney with the 101st Airborne Division; the US Army Legal Services Agency in Arlington, Virginia; V Corps in Heidelberg, Germany; and on deployments to Kosovo and Iraq. In 2008 he was one of the attorneys responsible for the successful human rights prosecution of Chuckie Taylor, the son of the former Liberian dictator, Charles Taylor, for torture.

See Abu Ghraib Lawyer's Book Targets Scandal, in the Detroit News.

 

Unlikely Venue for Hearing to Decide Which Jurisdiction Will Oversee BP Civil Lawsuits

Boise, Idaho will be the venue tomorrow for a special panel of seven federal judges, sitting as U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, to consider the question of where the lawsuits against BP will be tried.  According to a report in Reuters, the judges will consider which U.S. court or courts will oversee the hundreds of spill-related civil lawsuits brought by injured rig workers, fishermen, investors and property owners, and before which judge.  The scene should be memorable.  A Houston lawyer joked to Reuters, “There will be more lawyers in that courtroom than exist in the entire city of Boise put together. It’s going to be a circus.”

Willing to Go to Jail for Closing Argument

Now that's a passionate defense. When the federal judge presiding over the Blagojevich corruption trial told Blagojevich's attorney, Sam Adam Jr., that he couldn't mention all the witnesses the government could have called but didn't and threatened to hold him in contempt, Adam said he was "willing to go to jail on this." Here's the Associated Press story.

England Poised to Decide if Accountants' Advice Qualifies for Confidentiality Privilege

England's highest court says it will decide a case argued last week about whether the advice given by accountants on tax matters qualifies for the "legal professional privilege."  According to a report in Accountancy Age,  Court battle rages over legal privilege for tax advisers, the lawyer arguing for extending the privilege to accountants characterized the privilege as a fundamental right of the client and asked questioned whether there is a proper justification for confining it to lawyers.  The  the three justices hearing the case peppered the accountants' lawyer with questions about when and how the privilege would apply, voicing concern about whether opening up the privilege to accountants would create major complications.  The case has generated huge attention in the legal community in Great Britain, and the hearing was standing-room only.