September 17 2007 Legal Blog Roundup Hi, folks.The September 4 post at f/k/a titled ''Contingency Fees and the Clueless Fiduciary'' offers an excellent and thorough discussion of the standards for charging contingency fees, lawyers' ethics, and what blogger David Giacalone's dad would say about the matter: ''that's a pretty nice racket those p/i lawyers have.'' The post is thoughtful and provocative, and... (1 views)
Plan for Your Financial Future Now Working a lot of hours and a lot of days? Yes, that is the American way for you. But how can you eventually enjoy the benefits of those long shifts and live out a fantasy splurge or two? By beating the clock—the retirement clock, that is—and getting a head start on your savings. (63 views)
Fraud Charges Filed Against Former General Counsel Lisa C. Berry, former general counsel of KLA-Tencor Corporation and Juniper Networks, Inc., is under fire for allegedly backdating stock option grants. According to a press release from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Bay Area former general counsel has been charged with backdating for the two companies from 1997 to 2003. (1 views)
Ty Warner's Luxe Penthouse Suite What do interior designer Peter Marino, architect I.M. Pei, and artist Thomas Struth have in common? They all contributed to the remodeling of the Ty Warner-owned penthouse in which you will be staying this weekend. Considering the venture took six years and $50 million to complete, paying $30,000 per night is a true bargain. (1394 views)
Lawyers' Bills Become Thicker From a single sheet of paper to a towering stack, lawyers' bills have grown over time.''Today's bills are as thick as case files, and at least as detailed,'' says an article on www.law.com. (6 views)
Remembrance of things past: Coco, Hem and Me PARIS - Rue Cambon is a short, narrow, nondescript street in the historic heart of Paris, just three blocks long between Rue de Rivoli and Boulevard Madeleine. Much of the time it's constricted to a single lane by construction or parking barriers. (550 views)
New 911 Turbo pushes limits of speed, power and prestige, even further The last time I drove a Porsche 911 Turbo I was clocked at 176.8 mph. It would have been faster, but I was beating into a head wind.Lucky me, it wasn't the police aiming the radar gun but the U.S. Auto Club on a stretch of Nevada's Black Rock Desert, not far from the annual Burning Man festival. That speed run on the crusty, dry lake-bed surface was the scariest experience... (32 views)
Vioxx Class Action Suit Rejected Merck & Co. dodged a class action bullet on Thursday, when New Jersey’s Supreme Court ''ruled that a nationwide class was not appropriate for the lawsuit'' over Merck's ''withdrawn painkiller Vioxx,'' says an article on www.law.com. (9 views)
Recovering Michael Vick's Bonuses The Atlanta Falcons, the NFL Players Association, the NFL Management Council, and others are all responsible for figuring out what to do with Michael Vick's millions of dollars of bonuses. (42 views)
$1.2 Million Settlement over Broken Toilet A $1.2 million settlement was reached between the Trump Taj Mahal and an elderly woman, who injured herself after ''her hotel room's toilet broke away from the wall while she was sitting on it,'' says an article on www.law.com. (63 views)
Take a delightful detour from San Francisco for tastes of wine, nature As a lifelong wine lover, I find there are few getaways more satisfying than a visit to Northern California's wine country, be it Napa, Sonoma or the Russian River. I will scheme and strategize before each trip, making sure to include a mix of the most highly regarded vintners. (83 views)
Altima two-door is a good ride in a small package The new Nissan Altima coupe is a good example of how less can be more. This sexy coupe, which went on sale May 27, is based on the Altima sedan, but the coupe is less car. It rides on a new, shortened platform. Its wheelbase is 4 inches shorter than that of the sedan. The coupe's overall length is 7.3 inches shorter, and its height has been shaved by 2.6 inches. Nissan... (31 views)
The Fire Fighting Case over closure of Fire Department Let me venture a truism: Some of the most interesting cases at the Supreme Court are cases the court declines to hear. So it is with the lost cause of Kidwell v. City of Union. The question it presented is sure to rise again. (4 views)
Health Insurance and Retirement Retirement from the daily grind is something we all look forward to. However, experts have found that the savings accumulated for retirement by most individuals are grossly inadequate, especially considering the rising cost of healthcare. (4 views)
A PC That Will Transfix You For some, the ideal weekend consists of nothing more than gaming. Whether it's done alone, with a friend, or even against one's biggest competitor, who just happens to live on the other side of the world, PC gaming is slowly taking over the electronic world. And VoodooPC has the perfect computer not only for your competitive gaming needs but also for your perfect weekend. (31 views)
Judge Decides in Favor of A New York State judge ruled that only some of the 10 million-plus members in a class action suit against Metropolitan Life Insurance Company need to be notified ''that there is a class action proceeding, that they are a member of the class, or that they have the right to 'opt out,''' says an article on www.law.com. (25 views)
September 10 2007 Legal Blog Roundup Hi, folks.In a major departure from its half-century-old tradition, Ford & Harrison, a leading labor and employment firm, has removed ''billable hours'' from its list of requirements for first-year attorneys. With this progressive step, the Atlanta-based law firm has set itself apart from other leaders in the industry and shifted its focus from billing to development of... (1 views)
Eating Out the Right Way Who does not love an occasional fast food splurge every now and again? We all hate to admit it, but sometimes the convenience and comfort of getting quick and inexpensive food is alluring. However, not so alluring is how we may feel after consuming a fattening and not-so-healthy meal. (955 views)
Lawyers' Rates Rocket into the Thousands Lawyers' rates in New York have climbed to $1,000 per hour. And some are even as high as $2,000.''If you have an expert in a field,'' said Claude Stern, the chairman of the intellectual property group at Quinn, Emanuel, Urquhart, Oliver & Hedges, ''and the expertise is hard to come by, it would stand to reason you can charge a great deal.'' (10 views)
Wal-Mart's Healthcare Provisions Revamped In New York State, a federal judge ruled that working parents can claim their stepchildren as dependent children for tax purposes. The ruling came about when Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., refused healthcare coverage for an employee's stepson in upstate Essex County, NY. (7 views)
Law Firms Move to the OC 09/04/07 Over the last seven years, several law firms have opened offices in Orange County, including Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps; Jeffer, Mangels, Butler & Marmaro; Littler Mendelson; and Jackson Lewis, as well as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Southern California. (26 views)
Judge Jumps from Federal to State 09/03/07 A life-tenured federal judge has decided to swap his federal seat for one of California State's. Martin Jenkins, who was appointed U.S. District Judge in San Francisco by President Clinton 10 years ago, "applied for an opening on the California State Court of Appeal bench," says an article on www.law.com. (105 views)
The Case Of Where To Hang The National Flag: Paone V. Heritage Plantation Owners Take, for example, Case No. 06-1635. You might as well take it, for the Supreme Court almost surely will not. (31 views)
The Phone That Epitomizes ''Bling'' Recently, Apple's iPhone dominated the media and consumers' minds because it was the coolest new phone available. Well, ladies and gentlemen, there is a phone out there that drastically surpasses the iPhone in style, excess, quality, and, more than anything else, price. And because you are an individual who desires only the best, this weekend you're going to buy yourself a... (145 views)
Indicted Judge Gets Suspended 08/31/07 When Superior Court Judge Michael T. Joyce was indicted last week on money-laundering charges and federal mail fraud, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court suspended him from all responsibilities as a judge. (13 views)
Whole in one ... Oregon's Sunriver provides a total family vacation package SUNRIVER, Oregon - Maybe it was the simple, idyllic name that conjured thoughts of lazy, uncomplicated days on the banks of blue-green water. Or quite possibly it was a native Southern Californian's longing for the green, green forest that comes with all those buckets of rain we think they get in Oregon. (74 views)
Lincoln MKX burns 87 despite heft and place among luxury-class rivals The Lincoln MKX crossover does something its luxury-class competitors don't. It runs on 87-octane fuel. (307 views)
Cutting Costs to Employers Increases Costs to Employees Many employers offer health insurance to their employees, and this has traditionally served the purpose of attracting and retaining talented professionals. However, more and more U.S. employers are reducing the health insurance benefits they offer to employees in efforts to cut costs and increase their competitiveness. (26 views)
September 3 2007 Legal Blog Roundup Hi, folks. With all the recent hype over associate salary hikes at big law firms, one might have begun to feel that the good days had arrived at last. However, Tom Collins's August 14 post at morepartnerincome, "New Associate Salaries in Midrange Law Firms," tells a different story. According to a recent report by NALP, Collins explains, not everyone has a reason to be... (2 views)
Revealing History and Touching the Heart through Pro Bono Legal Services Almost 70 years ago, in the chaos of World War II, a 19-year-old Polish-Catholic girl, Irene Gut, defied the Gestapo and the German army and made it her personal mission to save the lives of Polish Jews targeted for extinction by the occupying Nazi forces. With little or no thought for her own safety, she hid 12 people in the basement of the Nazi major for whom she worked,... (41 views)