Laws/Cases |
Lawsuit Against General Motors Tests Attorney-Client Privilege |
Client confidentiality is viewed as sacrosanct to lawyers. But General Motors is facing a challenge to that protection as it fights a barrage of lawsuits over defective ignition switches that have resulted in more than 100 deaths and multiple injuries. Last week, plaintiffs suing G.M. asked the Federal District Court in Manhattan to find that the company and its outside lawyers engaged in criminal or fraudulent activity by covering up the defect. That, the plaintiffs say, allows the court to lift the veil of confidentiality over their communications. PETER J. HENNING, The New York Times 07/14/2015 |
Read Article: The New York Times |
Eric Garner Case Is Settled by New York City |
New York City reached a settlement with the family of Eric Garner on Monday, agreeing to pay $5.9 million to resolve a wrongful-death claim over his killing by the police on Staten Island last July, the city comptroller and a lawyer for the family said. The agreement, reached a few days before the anniversary of Mr. Garner's death, headed off one legal battle even as a federal inquiry into the killing and several others at the state and local level remain open and could provide a further accounting of how he died. J. DAVID GOODMAN, The New York Times 07/14/2015 |
Read Article: The New York Times |
Products |
Justice Dept.: Food Companies Risk Prosecution for Outbreaks |
Following a deadly listeria outbreak in ice cream, the Justice Department is warning food companies that they could face criminal and civil penalties if they poison their customers. After years of relative inactivity, the administration has stepped up criminal enforcement on safety cases. In the most high-profile case, a federal court in Georgia last year found an executive for the Peanut Corporation of America guilty of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, wire fraud and other crimes after his company shipped out salmonella-tainted peanuts that sickened more than 700 and killed nine in 2008 and 2009. Associated Press, The New York Times 07/14/2015 |
Read Article: The New York Times |
Healthcare |
Making the Cut |
ProPublica made public the complication rates of nearly 17,000 surgeons nationwide. Patients will be able to weigh surgeonsâ?? past performance as they make what can be a life-and-death decision. Doctors themselves can see where they stand relative to their peers. Marshall Allen and Olga Pierce, ProPublica 07/14/2015 |
Read Article: ProPublica |
Cellphones in the Operating Room? |
Cellphone use is not generally restricted in the operating room, but some experts say the time for rules has come. In interviews, many described co-workers texting friends and relatives from the surgical suite. Some spoke of colleagues who hide a phone in a drawer and check it when they think no one is watching. Shefali Luthra, The Washington Post 07/14/2015 |
Read Article: The Washington Post |
Class Action |
Lawsuit Seeks More Protection for Baseball Fans |
Major League Baseball is facing a proposed class action lawsuit seeking better protection for fans from foul balls and flying bats. The lawsuit was filed on Monday and seeks to add netting far down the first- and third-base lines to protect fans from being injured by baseballs and splintered bats. The lead plaintiff in the case is an Oakland A's fan who alleges that her seats are not properly protected. The lawsuit was filed in Federal District Court in Northern California and cites a 2014 study by Bloomberg News that said 1,750 spectators were injured annually at M.L.B. games. Richard Sandomir, The New York Times 07/13/2015 |
Read Article: The New York Times |
PUBLISHED BY TRIALSMITH, LITIGATION TOOLS FOR TRIAL LAWYERS |