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Volunteer to End Distracted Driving |
| The American Association for Justice and the non-profit group End Distracted Driving (EndDD) have teamed up to engage plaintiff’s lawyers in helping to spread the message about the dangers of distracted driving, and to get attorneys involved in the movement to end this dangerous practice. As April has been designated National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, TTLA is encouraging our membership to get involved and become advocates for safer driving in our Texas communities. Please see the message below, and click on the links to find out how you can volunteer to help end distracted driving in Texas. Click on the headline to learn more. |
Laws/Cases |
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Settlement Encouraged in Beaten Fan Lawsuit |
| A California bankruptcy judge has encouraged both sides of a lawsuit over the beating of a fan at a Dodgers game to discuss settling the suit. The judge refused to push the case forward against the Dodgers, saying the sides need to "talk and get a little bit closer." The man was severely beaten at a Dodgers game last year, and may never walk again due to injuries suffered. Tom Hals, Reuters 03/08/2012 | Read Article: Reuters |
A Juror Walks Into a Bar and Gets a Med-Mal Defense Verdict Reversed |
| A juror who walked into a bar after the conclusion of a medical malpractice case and talked to a stranger who happened to be an attorney about his bias against the plaintiffs and insistence on trying the case according to his own rules has managed to achieve the opposite of what he wanted—a new trial in a case that had concluded with a defense verdict. In a decision that the Oklahoma Supreme Court warns must be very narrowly applied to any future cases, the state's top bench said it had no choice but to act on what it called "the shocking circumstances of this rogue juror ... an absolute factual anomaly that we hope is never to be seen again in Oklahoma jurisprudence," the Legal Profession Blog reports. Martha Neil, American Bar Association Journal 03/08/2012 | Read Article: American Bar Association Journal |
Issues |
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Emails Reveal How Agency Grappled with Doctor Abuse Case, Aftermath |
| Emails released last month to the American-Statesman by the Department of State Health Services is among hundreds that paint a behind-the-scenes picture of how agency officials responded to one of the biggest crises to hit the state hospitals in years. In the days and weeks after the news broke, department officials scrambled to field media inquiries, provide information to advocacy groups and develop "talking points" for anxious parents calling to see if their children were safe. They drafted new patient safety policies, then had to sort through the logistics of those decisions Andrea Ball, Austin American Statesman 03/08/2012 | Read Article: Austin American Statesman |
Insurance |
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‘Forced’ Home Insurance Policies Face New Scrutiny |
| Officials at the state and federal level have been concerned that insurers have been charging too much for something known as “force-placed insurance,” which takes the place of a lapsed policy. This week, a new U.S. consumer watchdog and mortgage giant Fannie Mae have been promising a crackdown on those homeowners insurance policies. In a speech Tuesday, the director of the new federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Richard Cordray, said his agency will issue rules “to prevent (mortgage) servicers from charging for this product unless there is a reasonable basis to believe that borrowers have failed to maintain their own insurance.” Alan Zibel, WSJ Blogs 03/08/2012 | Read Article: WSJ Blogs |
Labor/Employment |
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Celebrity Chef Settles Class-Action Lawsuit |
| Celebrity chef Mario Batali and his business associate have agreed to settle a $5.25 million class-action lawsuit filed by servers at some of Batali's New York restaurants. The lawsuit claimed Batali and his partners "unlawfully confiscated a portion of their workers' hard-earned tips in order to supplement their own profits." The lawsuit specifically states that Batali pocketed waiter's gratuities from nightly wine sales. Staff Report, LA Times 03/08/2012 | Read Article: LA Times |
Wrongful Death |
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Wrongful Death Suit Filed over Caribbean Drowning |
| A wrongful death lawsuit has been filed against New England grocery store mogul Stew Leonard over the death of a Westport, Conn., man while the two were boating in the Caribbean. The suit claims Leonard was operating the small power boat "at a high speed" in a "negligent and reckless" manner, despite choppy seas. The victim was allegedly tossed around the boat, injuring his head and spine and then fell into the water, where he drowned. Janice Podsada , The Hartford Courant 03/07/2012 | Read Article: The Hartford Courant |
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