The Legal Intelligencer Blog

Fresh Ink: Inside Today's Legal

Welcome to your Monday morning round-up of stories in today’s edition of The Legal Intelligencer. All of the links below will take you directly to today’s stories, or you can head straight over to The Legal’s homepage. (Some stories may require registration or a paid subscription.)

The top story this morning is a $1.79 million counterclaim being tossed in the family courthouse lawsuit. As reporter Amaris Elliott-Engel writes, Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas Senior Judge R. Stanton Wettick Jr., who is presiding over the suit, ruled that an attorney’s corporate entity cannot recover the amount from the First Judicial District for alleged unjust enrichment.

Below the fold on Page 1, reporter Zack Needles writes that the state Supreme Court has agreed to hear arguments on the summary judgment threshold in an asbestos case.

In more Regional News on Page 3, reporter Gina Passarella writes that a Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas judge has said his ruling in the campaign debt case of U.S. Representative Bob Brady has had a chilling effect.

As always, our People in the News section is on Page 2, and the top stories from our sister publications across the country make up the Page 4 National News section.

In a Litigation column on Page 5, Abraham J. Gafni asks whether there is a settlement negotiation privilege.

In this week’s Law Technology News page, Craig Ball writes that clients are suffering from a low technology bar among lawyers.

If you have questions or comments about any of today's stories, or our coverage as a whole, we invite you to e-mail any of the reporters directly. We hope you'll enjoy today's Legal.

Fresh Ink: Inside Today's Legal

Welcome to your Monday morning round-up of stories in today’s edition of The Legal Intelligencer. All of the links below will take you directly to today’s stories, or you can head straight over to The Legal’s homepage. (Some stories may require registration or a paid subscription.)

The top story this morning is defendants in a Philadelphia judge declaring a mistrial in a hotly contested asbestos case in which plaintiffs counsel amended a portion of his post-trial motion. As reporter Amaris Elliott-Engel writes, the original motion alleged the verdict sheet in the case was developed because of alleged ex parte contact by the defense lawyers with the leadership of Philadelphia’s civil courts, which court leadership strongly denied.

Below the fold on Page 1, reporter Saranac Hale Spencer writes that the Restatement (Second) of Torts is still the law in Pennsylvania products liability cases after a ruling by U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III of the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

In more Regional News on Page 3, Saranac Hale Spencer writes that a class representing hundreds of students suing the Lebanon School District for allegedly collecting fines above the $300 allowed by the state’s truancy law has been certified in federal court.

As always, our People in the News section is on Page 2, and the top stories from our sister publications across the country make up the Page 4 National News section.

In a Business of Law column on Page 5, Sandra G. Mannix writes that an Abelson Legal Search survey illustrates some of the trends in paralegal careers, including many working more than 40 hours per week and fewer than half being paid overtime.

This week’s Law Technology News page details how videoconferencing is maturing as a courtroom tool.

If you have questions or comments about any of today's stories, or our coverage as a whole, we invite you to e-mail any of the reporters directly. We hope you'll enjoy today's Legal.

Fresh Ink: Inside Today's Legal

Welcome to your Thursday morning round-up of stories in today’s edition of The Legal Intelligencer. All of the links below will take you directly to today’s stories, or you can head straight over to The Legal’s homepage. (Some stories may require registration or a paid subscription.)

The top story this morning is a look at Saul Ewing’s firm financials. As reporter Zack Needles writes, the firm’s revenue inched up, about 0.8 percent, and its profits per partner dipped 3 percent last year.

Below the fold on Page 1, reporter Gina Passarella writes that Dechert has opened a Chicago office with a trio of securities lawyers from Katten Muchin.

Also below the fold on Page 1, reporter Amaris Elliott-Engel writes that Monsignor William J. Lynn took the stand in his own defense yesterday. Lynn is charged with endangering two men who testified they were sexually abused by two priests as youths.

In more Regional News on Page 3, Zack Needles writes that Penn State has announced Stephen S. Dunham as its new general counsel. Dunham has been vice president and general counsel of Johns Hopkins University.

Also on Page 3, reporter Ben Present writes that the state Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that exposure to one fiber of asbestos is not tantamount to a lot.

As always, our People in the News section is on Page 2, and the top stories from our sister publications across the country make up the Page 4 National News section.

In a Bankruptcy Update on Page 5, Andrew C. Kassner and Joseph N. Argentina Jr. write about avoidance actions against seller void purchased bankruptcy claims.

In this week’s Young Lawyer column on Page 7, Susan Morse writes about the perils of overlawyering and underlawyering.

If you have questions or comments about any of today's stories, or our coverage as a whole, we invite you to e-mail any of the reporters directly. We hope you'll enjoy today's Legal.

Fresh Ink: Inside Today's Legal

Welcome to your Wednesday morning round-up of stories in today’s edition of The Legal Intelligencer. All of the links below will take you directly to today’s stories, or you can head straight over to The Legal’s homepage. (Some stories may require registration or a paid subscription.)

Today’s top story is the defense verdict being challenged in a hotly contested Philadelphia asbestos case. As reporter Amaris Elliott-Engel writes, the plaintiffs’ counsel has filed a post-trial motion claiming that the verdict sheet was developed because of alleged ex parte contact by the defense lawyers with the leadership of Philadelphia’s civil courts.

Below the fold on Page 1, reporter Zack Needles writes that the state Supreme Court heard oral arguments yesterday on the question of whether messages posted on a Myspace page could be considered communication with a specific group of people. In Commonwealth v. Scott, lawyers disputed whether defendant Khalil Scott’s postings on Myspace were enough to constitute a probation violation. In one of the postings he appeared to identify himself as a gang member and referenced two apparent gang members in another.

In more Regional News on Page 3, Amaris Elliott-Engel writes that the Philadelphia District Attorney aims to reduce homicides by raising bail in gun cases. More than 300 people were murdered in Philadelphia in each of the past five years.

As always, our People in the News section is on Page 2, and the top stories from our sister publications across the country make up the Page 4 National News section.

In an Intellectual Property column on Page 5, Eric G. Soller and Martha S. Helmreich write about the potential high cost of losing an infringement case.

As it is Wednesday, this week’s GC Mid-Atlantic column is on Page 7, as Martha “Frannie” Reilly writes about the ABCs of general counsel issues for nonprofit organizations.

If you have questions or comments about any of today's stories, or our coverage as a whole, we invite you to e-mail any of the reporters directly. We hope you'll enjoy today's Legal.

Fresh Ink: Inside Today's Legal

Welcome to your Wednesday morning round-up of stories in today’s edition of The Legal Intelligencer. All of the links below will take you directly to today’s stories, or you can head straight over to The Legal’s homepage. (Some stories may require registration or a paid subscription.)

Today’s top story is the broadening of the separate-disease rule in asbestos cases by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. As reporter Gina Passarella writes, the court has expanded the rule to allow a plaintiff to sue more than once for two distinct, malignant, asbestos-related diseases arising at different times.

Below the fold on Page 1, reporter Amaris Elliott-Engel writes that a state Superior Court panel has upheld a $17.3 million judgment in a Philadelphia products liability case entered against the manufacturer of a racking system used in a frozen food warehouse. In Rice v. 2701 Red Lion Road Associates LP, plaintiff Leroy Rice, a forklift operator, was partially paralyzed when several 90-pound boxes of frozen food fell on him.

In more Regional News on Page 3, Amaris Elliott-Engel writes that the state Supreme Court has retained and modified the paternity by estoppel doctrine. The common-law doctrine bars DNA testing in every case in which a putative father of a child has held a child out as his own. The modifications will require that judges only apply the doctrine if they determine it is in the best interests of the child.

As always, our People in the News section is on Page 2, and the top stories from our sister publications across the country make up the Page 4 National News section.

In a Health Care Law column on Page 5, Vasilios J. Kalogredis and Karilynn Bayus write about the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s decision that sales tax applies to PET/CT and MRI scan systems.

As it is Wednesday, this week’s GC Mid-Atlantic column is on Page 7, as Krista P. Harper writes that it’s important to keep costs in mind while guiding clients through litigation.

If you have questions or comments about any of today's stories, or our coverage as a whole, we invite you to e-mail any of the reporters directly. We hope you'll enjoy today's Legal.

Fresh Ink: Inside Today's Legal

Welcome to your Wednesday morning round-up of stories in today’s edition of The Legal Intelligencer. All of the links below will take you directly to today’s stories, or you can head straight over to The Legal’s homepage. (Some stories may require registration or a paid subscription.)

Today’s top story is Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Sandra Mazer Moss rejecting Pennsylvania as a forum for a Texas plaintiff’s asbestos case. As reporter Amaris Elliott-Engel writes, the plaintiffs argued that Pennsylvania was an appropriate forum because the defendants they are suing “willingly marketed” asbestos-related products in Pennsylvania, among other reasons. But Moss wrote that all of the alleged exposure to asbestos occurred in Texas, making the Lone Star state a better forum.

Also above the fold on Page 1, Amaris Elliott-Engel writes that Senior Judge Benjamin Lerner said in a report issued yesterday that the pay given to private defense lawyers for defendants facing death row is “grossly inadequate.” He also said that low pay has led to a shortage of lawyers willing to take the cases.

Below the fold on Page 1, reporter Zack Needles writes that a Delaware County trial judge has ruled that a school’s ban on employees with certain prior criminal convictions does not apply to current employees. Two Penn-Delco School District employees were fired following a recent amendment to the state’s Public School Code over prior convictions disclosed at the time they were hired.

In more Regional News on Page 3, reporter Gina Passarella writes that real estate finance is on the rise again, after the practice area plummeted during the recession.

As always, our People in the News section is on Page 2, and the top stories from our sister publications across the country make up the Page 4 National News section, including the U.S. Supreme Court revisiting the divisive issue of affirmative action in higher education as part of Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin.

As it is Wednesday, this week’s GC Mid-Atlantic column is on Page 5, as Catherine Dunn of Legal affiliate Corporate Counsel writes that pro bono work is being inhabited more and more by in-house legal departments in recent years. Esther Lardent, president and CEO of the Pro Bono Institute, said, “It’s like a quiet revolution.”

In a Legal Marketing column on Page 7, Stacy West Clark writes a blueprint for achieving results with your firm’s marketing committee. Her tips include making an agenda for meetings and establishing authority within the committee.

If you have questions or comments about any of today's stories, or our coverage as a whole, we invite you to e-mail any of the reporters directly. We hope you'll enjoy today's Legal.

 

Fresh Ink: Inside Today's Legal

Welcome to your Friday morning round-up of stories in today’s edition of The Legal Intelligencer. All of the links below will take you directly to today’s stories, or you can head straight over to The Legal’s homepage. (Some stories may require registration or a paid subscription.)

The top story this morning is the latest in our look at firm financials, detailing Pepper Hamilton’s 3.5 percent revenue bump in the past year. As reporter Zack Needles writes, pharmaceutical, white-collar and patent litigation practices helped the firm increase its profits per equity partner rise 4.8 percent in the last year.

Below the fold on Page 1, reporter Amaris Elliott-Engel writes that lawyers for out-of-state asbestos plaintiffs are being asked to file their cases in other forums to allow the First Judicial District to get its asbestos case inventory back in compliance. American Bar Association standards require that over 40 percent of cases be resolved within 24 to 25 months.

Also below the fold on Page 1, reporter Gina Passarella writes that a judge has ruled Wolf Block should turn over files and insurance communications to a former client as part of a malpractice suit.

In more Regional News on Page 3, Amaris Elliott-Engel writes that the Commonwealth Court has ruled that a Luzerne County township can’t condemn land to be used for a privately owned charter school. Though condemning land for a charter school is a public purpose, the unanimous court ruled that schools are not included as one of the public purposes for which a township following the Second Class Township Code can exercise its powers of eminent domain.

As always, our People in the News section is on Page 2, and the top stories from our sister publications across the country make up the Page 4 National News section.

In a Litigation column on Page 5, Amie Bailey suggests some tips for putting together the trial team you want, including paying careful attention in the selection process.

In a Bankruptcy Update on Page 7, Rudolph J. Di Massa Jr. and Blake D. Roth write that the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the two-year look-back period set forth in Section 548 of the Bankruptcy Code is not subject to equitable tolling.

If you have questions or comments about any of today's stories, or our coverage as a whole, we invite you to e-mail any of the reporters directly. We hope you'll enjoy today's Legal.

Phila. Judge Upholds Two Defense HRT Verdicts

By Amaris Elliott-Engel
Of the Legal Staff

A Philadelphia judge has denied the efforts of two plaintiffs to overturn defense verdicts issued in favor of drugmaker Wyeth.

In each of the cases, plaintiffs alleged that cases of invasive breast cancer were caused by taking Wyeth's hormone replacement therapy drug Prempro. The plaintiffs' theory was that for postmenopausal women with damaged breast cells and estrogen deficiency, taking HRT drugs resulted in their damaged cells becoming malignant cancerous cells.

Judge James Murray Lynn denied the motions of plaintiffs Sharon Buxton and Joy Henry for post-trial relief last week in Henry v. Wyeth and Buxton v. Wyeth.

The first Philadelphia hormone replacement therapy trial to group cases of multiple plaintiffs together for one trial was reverse bifurcated, and the plaintiffs' attorneys first had to prove to the jury the causation of the plaintiffs' breast cancer from their use of Prempro.

The jurors asked in one question for an explanation of a factual cause, and Lynn repeated his charge that Prempro would be a factual cause of harm when the harm would not have occurred in the absence of Prempro.

The plaintiffs argued that the first question posed to the jury should not have been: "Was Wyeth's drug Prempro a factual cause in the development of plaintiff Mrs. Henry's breast cancer?" The plaintiffs wanted the first question to the jury to be: "Was Wyeth's drug Prempro a factual cause in bringing about harm to Mrs. Henry/Buxton?"

The plaintiffs said they would have won the case if their jury question had been given to the panel because "the incorrect question mis-informed the jury that plaintiffs would have to prove more than mere promotion effect by Prempro in bringing about the harm, a burden that exceeds the plaintiffs' actual burden under Pennsylvania law," according to the plaintiffs motion for post-trial relief.

The trial was held this summer over three-and-a-half weeks.

Judge Asks Appeals Court to Uphold $7 Mil. Asbestos Verdict Against No-Show Defendant

By Amaris Elliott-Engel
Of the Legal Staff

A Philadelphia judge has asked the state Superior Court to uphold a $7 million damage award for a plaintiff against a defendant that failed to appear at trial.

Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Senior Judge Sheldon C. Jelin, writing in a Sept. 30 opinion explaining his reasoning to the appellate court, said that Melrath Supply and Gasket Co. and Melrath Gasket Inc., of Philadelphia, did not defend themselves in a bench trial in Russell v. A.W. Chesterton Co.

The Legal reported Sept. 28 that Jelin upheld a $10 million award in another case, Schroeder v. Anchor Darling Valve Co., in which the Melrath defendants did not defend themselves.

Russell went to trial Feb. 9 on the heels of an order by Judge Sandra Mazer Moss, the coordinating judge of Philadelphia's mass torts Complex Litigation Center, that all defenses available to the Melrath defendants were stricken when they defied the discovery process. The Melrath defendants also did not appear to present a defense at trial.

"Defendant made a conscious decision not to provide discovery, not to attend personally or by counsel, and cannot now complain," Jelin reasoned. "Defendants cannot sit back and wait and then, if dissatisfied, come into court and claim surprise or other issues after having not participated. Without having met the requirements of preservation and specificity, defendants were ineligible for post-trial relief."

In Russell, Jelin awarded $1 million in Survival Act damages, $2 million in Wrongful Death Act damages, and $4 million for loss of consortium, the opinion said.

Plaintiffs Virginia L. Russell and Marlin E. Russell alleged that Marlin Russell's death in September 2008 was caused by exposure to asbestos-containing products, including products made by the Melrath defendants.

Russell served in the U.S. Navy for four years and was employed for 39 years with CH Masland and Sons in Carlisle, Pa., Jelin said. The judge said Russell was exposed to asbestos dust in both workplaces. Russell was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma in December 2007 and died Sept. 20, 2008.

Mitchell S. Pinsly of Margolis Edelstein is representing the Melrath defendants on appeal. the plaintiffs' attorney is Aaron J. DeLuca, of DeLuca & Nemeroff in Spring, Texas.

Prior counsel had withdrawn in August 2009, Jelin said.