Well, its 9:30 a.m. and I still haven’t posted on the blog today. Sorry. I gave a speech in Memphis last night to a group of nurse practitioners (more in a later post) and drove back to Music City (180 miles) early this morning. My post this morning is a…
Day on Torts
First Vioxx Case Goes to Jury
The jury in the Texas Vioxx case is hearing closing arguments today. I will let you know when I hear about the verdict. UPDATE: Here is an article giving a brief summary of the arguments.
Florida Tort Reform
The Florida voters passed a constitutional amendment to limit attorneys’ fees in med mal cases to 30% of the first $250K in damages and 10% in any recovery about $250K. So, a $1M verdict would entitle the patient’s attorney to a total fee of $130K. A $2M verdict would result…
Your Input
Last night I posted the 300th post to this blog in a little less than six months. We have had tremendous success – we have lots of people who visit this site regularly and who have told us that they enjoy what we have to offer. What can we give…
Case Involving Suicide Allowed to Proceed
Elizabeth Shin, a student at MIT, committed suicide. Her parents sued MIT and others. A trial judge has dismissed the case against MIT but allowed it to procede against two psychiatrists and two administrators who are not mental health professionals. This article in the Boston Globe has a nice discussion…
Results of Mississippi Trial
Paul Minor, a friend and plaintiff’s lawyer from Mississippi, was indicted on a bunch of charges, including bribery. Oliver Diaz, Jr., a member of the Mississippi Supreme Court whom I got to know during some trips to Mississippi, was also indicted. The trial has been going on for weeks. Last…
Verdict Against Greyhound
A federal court jury in Winchester has returned an $8M verdict against Greyhound for injuries to a passenger after a man attacked the driver who then lost control of the bus. You can read another press report of the story here. The injuries were substantial; the plaintiff had some $1.6M…
Should Verdicts Be Required to be Unanimous?
Tennessee and a minority of other states require that all 12 jurors agree on the verdict? This article comments on the practice. I disagree with the requirement of unanimity. It imposes an unfair burden on the plaintiff, particularly in these times of massive anti-plaintiff sentiment fueled by aggressive campaigns of…
AIG Needs Tort Reform NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
AIG’s recent financial disclosures make it clear that the nation’s property and casualty insurers need tort reform now or they wIll be headed to receivership. I mean, AIG’s profit was only $3,990,000,000. For the 2nd quarter. As in 90 days. As in a profit of about $44,333,000 per day. As…
Brief Writing 101
An appellate lawyer in a big firm got his hand slapped by a 9th Circuit judge for his firm’s choice of words in a brief. Some examples: “The district court’s refusal to apply Daubert was erroneous and stands as yet another example of the court’s twisting the substantive law in…