The Legal Intelligencer Blog

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.)

Today’s top story details the Commonwealth Court’s ruling that sexual harassment is not akin to sexual discrimination in public accommodations such as police departments under the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act. As reporter Gina Passarella writes, the court affirmed the dismissal of plaintiff Carolyn Oravitz’s claim against Saxonburg Borough, Pa., that an officer assisting her allegedly asked her for sex and sexually harassed her.

Also above the fold on Page 1 today, reporter Amaris Elliott-Engel writes that total case filings dropped last year in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. There was a 14 percent falloff in the number of criminal and civil cases between 2010 and 2011, as the number dropped from about 55,000 to about 47,000.

Below the fold on Page 1, reporter Zack Needles writes that Philadelphia-based Dilworth Paxson has started an immigration practice with the addition of Washington, D.C.-based attorney Rana Jazayerli. Jazayerli focuses a large portion of her practice on foreign investor visas. As Jazayerli said, “All employers are going to find themselves in need of the counsel of an immigration attorney at some point.”

Today’s Regional News continues on Page 3, as Amaris Elliott-Engel writes that Donald J. Martin, the new Montgomery Bar Association president, plans to focus on diversity and court funding in the coming year. The 63-year-old took the reins of the third-largest judicial jurisdiction on Jan. 13.

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 this week’s Insight on Diversity column on Page 5, Sherry Lowe Johnson writes that diverse representation is profitable in generating business. She discusses the National Football League’s Rooney Rule, which ensures that teams interview minority coaches for high-level positions, and wonders if such a rule should be carried over into corporate America.

As it is Thursday, this week’s Young Lawyer column is on Page 7, Christian E. Mammen writes that taking charge of a legal career early can have great advantages. He suggests broadening your international appeal, learning to read a balance sheet and doing what excites you among his methods for getting ahead.

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.

Fairness Commission Calls for Improvements in Indigent Defense

By Amaris Elliott-Engel
Of the Legal Staff

The Pennsylvania Interbranch Commission for Gender, Racial and Ethnic Fairness has asked the state Supreme Court to work with the commission to increase diversity among the lawyers who are appointed to represent indigent criminal defendants not represented by public defenders, according to the commission's annual report released today.

Six committees of the commission work on policies and procedures to eliminate racial, ethnic and gender bias in the judiciary. The commission was created in 2005 after the state Supreme Court commissioned a study to examine the prevalence of racial and gender bias in Pennsylvania courts; that study was released in 2003.

Philadelphia Chief Defender Ellen Greenlee, who is serving on a state commission examining the issue of indigent defense in Pennsylvania, said during a meeting of the commission today that Pennsylvania is the only state in the United States that does not provide state funds for indigent defense.

The indigent-defense commission, which will release its report in the next few months, wants to "move it off the blackboard and onto the agenda of the state legislature."

Once the report is launched, Lisette M. McCormick, who is both the director of the commission for fairness and a member of the indigent defense commission, said that a statewide coalition will be formed to educate the public and legislators about how the lack of state funding for indigent defense results in deficient legal representation for defendants.

Speakers at the meeting today included Philadelphia Bar Association Chancellor Rudolph Garcia, Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams and Greenlee.

Williams said many Philadelphians of color feel that the criminal justice system is an oppressor of their communities, not protectors of them.

But in order to achieve fairness in the courts, criminal justice leaders have to focus on victims, Williams said.

But many victims are young black men who are just as likely to be shot as to be the shooter, Williams said. There is overlap between assailants and victims on the "Venn diagram" of crime in the city because the number one cause of death for young black men is homicide, Williams said.

Eight people were killed last weekend in Philadelphia, he said, which did not make headline news. But if eight tourists from Sweden had been killed while visiting Philadelphia, the city would be thrust into lockdown in order to solve gun violence, Williams said.

"When we think about fairness and justice we have to think that -- those men in that diagram -- that their lives are just as important," Williams said.

The Legal will have more coverage of the latest report from the commission in an upcoming section of its Pennsylvania Law Weekly section.

Amaris Elliott-Engel is a reporter for The Legal. She can be contacted at 215-557-2354 or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter: @AmarisTLI.

Fresh Ink: Inside Today's Legal (and Delaware!)

By Jaime Bochet
Of the Legal Staff

Welcome to your daily round-up of stories in today's edition of The Legal Intelligencer. Click the links below to access stories directly, or head to The Legal homepage.  (Some stories may require registration or a paid subscription.)

Just as Tuesdays always include our Pennsylvania Law Weekly section, Wednesday is the unofficial "Day of Delaware," when we roll out the fresh ink from our First State to the south. That includes the Delaware Law Weekly, available online at www.delawarelawweekly.com, as well as our newest product, the Delaware Business Court Insider, an online newsletter that definitely warrants a look.

But more about Delaware in a bit … let's get to today's Legal.

Topping the front page, U.S. Courthouse Correspondent Shannon P. Duffy has news that deals a legal setback to the Obama administration: "A federal judge in Harrisburg has struck down several provisions of the Affordable Care Act after concluding that the law's 'individual mandate' is an unconstitutional extension of Congress's authority under the Commerce Clause. 'The issue is whether Congress can invoke its Commerce Clause power to compel individuals to buy insurance as a condition of lawful citizenship or residency,' U.S. District Judge Christopher C. Conner wrote in his 53-page opinion in Goudy-Bachman v. United States."

Below the fold, reporter Amaris Elliott-Engel was there as the Supreme Court heard (televised) oral arguments in an historic setting in Old City Philadelphia yesterday. In the case she covered, a state Supreme Court justice characterized the drugmaker Wyeth as asserting that there is enough protection for persons harmed by prescription drugs in federal regulation of the release of drugs onto the market, and limiting plaintiffs to lawsuits for drugmakers' alleged failures to adequately warn of risks.

Today's Page 3 Regional News story is by reporter Zack Needles, who chronicles the growth of an area law firm: Philadelphia-based Zarwin Baum DeVito Kaplan Schaer Toddy has acquired four transactional lawyers from the Philadelphia office of Maryland-based Offit Kurman, saying increased work in that practice area over the last few months has necessitated the growth.

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

Today's contributed columns begin on Page 5 with an "Employment Law" column by Sid Steinberg of Post & Schell, who writes that as cases under the amended Americans with Disabilities Act begin to reach the courts, less emphasis will be placed on whether an employee is "disabled" and a greater emphasis will be placed on the questions of whether an employee is a "qualified individual" under the act and whether an employee could be reasonably accommodated.

Page 7 features our weekly "GC Mid-Atlantic" page, with an article from affiliate Corporate Counsel magazine, which profiles the new head of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA), Joe West.

As we move south in our weekly coverage to Delaware, we'll stop first at the Delaware Law Weekly, where reporter Jeff Mordock has the top stories. Please note: all of our Delaware coverage is for paid subscribers, but you can register for a free 30-day trial by clicking here.

In the top slot, Jeff writes that four Sussex County residents have filed a lawsuit accusing the county's legislative council of explicitly endorsing Christianity by beginning each meeting by reciting the "Our Father."

Jeff also reports that St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Co. has filed a lawsuit seeking to remove itself from the duty of defending or reimbursing the Beebe Medical Center in Lewes, Del., from civil lawsuits related to the crimes committed by former pediatrician Earl Bradley.

Finally, we'd like you to meet (if you haven't already) the Delaware Business Court Insider.  As the name suggests, this is a national product covering the latest news, analysis and cases from the Delaware Chancery Court, Bankruptcy Court and Supreme Court. The accompanying website is www.delbizcourt.com, where you can go to subscribe to this newsletter weekly. You can also follow us on Twitter at: @delbizcour.

Top stories there include the following:
- President Obama is set to overhaul the nation's patent system, but attorneys say it is too early to see how the law will affect business.
-  Plaintiffs filed yet another amended complaint in their derivative suit against News Corp., including new allegations against the company.
- Vice Chancellor Noble denies plaintiffs' request for interim attorney fees in the Novell shareholder dispute.

Have questions or comments about any of today's stories, or our coverage as a whole? E-mail me or any of the reporters directly. We hope you'll enjoy today's Legal and our Delaware coverage!

Jaime Bochet is the Magazines & Supplements Editor for The Legal. Follow her on Twitter at @JaimeBochetTLI or e-mail [email protected].

Fresh Ink: Inside Today's Legal

By Jaime Bochet
Of the Legal Staff

Welcome to your daily round-up of stories in today's edition of The Legal Intelligencer. Click the links below to access stories directly, or head to The Legal homepage. (Some stories may require registration or a paid subscription.)

Just as a heads-up, tomorrow's Friday issue will be devoted mainly to a special section on the 10-year anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. In commemoration of the anniversary, we asked readers to send us their stories of what they remember about that day, and what they feel about it now - and you won't want to miss the amazing stories you sent in.

But for now, today's paper features a ton of business of law stories, so let's get to them!

Leading the front page on this soggy Thursday morning, senior reporter Gina Passarella has a salary story of particular interest: "With some evidence that associate salaries are on the rise, one might start to think that it's a case of back to the future. But this time around, firms appear to be treading lightly. After a few years of taking advantage of a down market and decreasing associate salaries, some firms are starting to edge up what they pay first-year associates. Whether this means a wholesale increase across all associate levels is unclear." Read the full article here.

Alongside Gina's story, sharing the top of the front page, Zack Needles reports on a lateral move that may surprise you: David H. Marion, a 25-year veteran of Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhoads who served as the firm's chairman for seven years until 2003, has left the firm to join the Philadelphia office of Haddonfield, N.J.-based Archer & Greiner.

Below the fold, U.S. Courthouse Correspondent Shannon P. Duffy has a (non-business of law-related) ruling from the 3rd Circuit: When an employer is hit with a proposed collective action under the Fair Labor Standards Act, it cannot "pick off" the lead plaintiff by making an offer of judgment that moots her claim before any other workers have the chance to "opt in" to the case, according to the court.

Zack also has today's Page 3 Regional News story, reporting on a Philadelphia-based firm's expansion to the western part of the commonwealth: Insurance defense firm Bennett Bricklin & Saltzburg announced the opening of a Pittsburgh office Tuesday, citing a desire to bring in more of its clients' Western Pennsylvania-based work.

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.

Today's Page 5 "Insight on Diversity" column is by Christopher A. Lewis of Blank Rome, who takes a deeper look at the business case for diversity.

Page 7 is where you'll find our weekly "Young Lawyer"or "YL" page, which today features a story from the Connecticut Law Tribune, a Legal affiliate. It looks at the emerging trend of recent law grads going solo because of the down economy.

Have questions or comments about any of today's stories, or our coverage as a whole? E-mail me or any of the reporters directly. We hope you'll enjoy today's Legal!

Jaime Bochet is the Magazines & Supplements Editor for The Legal. Follow her on Twitter at @JaimeBochetTLI or e-mail [email protected].

Fresh Ink - Inside Today's Legal

By Jaime Bochet
Of the Legal Staff

Welcome to your daily round-up of stories in today's edition of The Legal Intelligencer. Click the links below to access stories directly, or head to The Legal homepage. (Some stories may require registration or a paid subscription.)

Today's top story is by our U.S. Courthouse Correspondent, Shannon P. Duffy, who writes that the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, adopting a nine-factor balancing test for deciding when litigants may keep their names secret, has ruled that pseudonyms should be reserved for those who can show a "reasonable" fear of "severe" harm.

Also leading the front page is a story from reporter Amaris Elliott-Engel: The Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office moved Friday to disqualify law firm Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young from representing both the Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia and retired Cardinal Anthony J. Bevilacqua in the latest round of allegations of church sex abuse.

Below the fold, senior reporter Gina Passarella writes that a Philadelphia attorney suspended for five years after her conviction for mail fraud related to a cash payment to disgraced former city treasurer Corey Kemp has been reinstated to the bar with the blessing of all but one state Supreme Court justice.

In our Page 3 Regional News section, reporter Zack Needles has a story about the Philadelphia Parking Authority: As the question of whether PPA has the power to create its own taxicab regulations without public input awaits argument before the state Supreme Court, the Commonwealth Court has ruled that agency-issued citations based on those regulations remain unenforceable in the meantime.  

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.

Our first contributed article on this Monday morning is our "Insight on Diversity" column by Stacy Hawkins of Rutgers School of Law-Camden, who wonders if the legal profession is unconsciously undermining its diversity commitment.

Our second contributed article is our "U.S. Supreme Court" column by John S. Summers and Dylan J. Steinberg of Hangley Aronchick Segal & Pudlin, who take a look at the court's June 23 decision in Sorrell v. IMS Health Inc.

Have questions or comments about any of today's stories, or our coverage as a whole? E-mail me or any of the reporters directly. We hope you'll enjoy today's Legal!

Jaime Bochet is the Magazines & Supplements Editor for The Legal. Follow her on Twitter at @JaimeBochetTLI or e-mail [email protected].

PBA Hires First Diversity Officer

By Amaris Elliott-Engel
Of the Legal Staff

Today is the first day of work for the Pennsylvania Bar Association's first diversity officer, the PBA announced today.

Janis M. Leftridge was hired to work with the statewide legal group's Board of Governors, diversity team and senior staff to facilitate efforts to improve diversity within the bar association as well as the overallbar in Pennsylvania, according to a news release issued today.

Leftridge's professional experience includes working as the senior director for business diversity for the Harrisburg Regional Chamber of Commerce and Capital Region Economic Development Corporation, as a human relations consultant for Bayer Corp. in Pittsburgh, as a human relations manager for McCormick & Co. in Sparks, Md., and as the assistant director of law admissions for the University of Baltimore School of Law, the release said.

"Janis Leftridge's experience, professionalism and leadership will be critical to the PBA's efforts to ensure that we are a bar association and a legal profession for everyone," said PBA President Matthew J. Creme Jr. in the release. "We are fortunate to have someone with her depth of experience and knowledge to develop and grow our diversity effort."

Look for a profile of Leftridge in an upcoming edition of The Legal.

Amaris Elliott-Engel is a reporter for The Legal. She can be contacted at 215-557-2354 or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter: @AmarisTLI.

Memeger and 'The Legal' Team Up to Celebrate Diversity

By Jaime Bochet
Of the Legal Staff

Many of our readers will remember seeing our 2011 Diversity supplement, which was published in The Legal and online in early April. In that supplement, we recognized 20 individuals from across the commonwealth as Diverse Attorneys of the Year, and now, we’re gearing up to honor them in person.

The Legal will hold a very special luncheon to honor those individuals on Tuesday, June 7, at the Crystal Tea Room in the Wanamaker Building, located at 100 Penn Square East, Philadelphia. The luncheon will begin at noon (registration opens at 11:30 a.m.) and will feature an awards ceremony for our Diverse Attorneys of the Year (whom you can read about here).

Additionally, we are very proud that one of those honorees has also agreed to be our keynote speaker for the luncheon: Zane David Memeger, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (pictured above left).

For more information on how to purchase tickets for the event or to inquire about sponsorship opportunities, contact Lana Ehrlich at 215-557-2392, Diane McCollum at 215-557-2335, or you can register online by clicking here.

We hope that you’ll join us in recognizing our honorees and celebrating diversity in the Pennsylvania legal community on June 7!

Jaime Bochet is the Magazines & Supplements Editor for The Legal Intelligencer. Follow her on Twitter at @JaimeBochetTLI or e-mail [email protected].

The Legal's Diverse Attorneys of the Year

By Jaime Bochet
Of the Legal Staff

Every two years, The Legal Intelligencer recognizes outstanding minority attorneys from across Pennsylvania. We solicited letters of recommendation from bar associations, law firms, public interest groups, corporations and government offices and received dozens of responses. While all of them are certainly worthy of praise, the editorial staff has selected the following 20 individuals in recognition of their outstanding professional achievements in the two years since we last gave out the honor.

Following are the names of the 20 Pennsylvania attorneys who have been selected as 2011's Diverse Attorneys of the Year, in alphabetical order:

Robert L. Archie, Duane Morris
Joseph Centeno, Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hippel
Daniel J. Clifford, Weber Gallagher Simpson Stapleton Fires & Newby
Kenya Mann Faulkner, Pennsylvania Inspector General
Stephanie Franklin-Suber, Ballard Spahr
Rudolph Garcia, Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney
Mohammad Ghiasuddin, Kaplin Stewart Meloff Reiter & Stein
Deborah Hong, Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young
Judge Renee Cardwell Hughes, Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas
Pearl H. Kim, Delaware County District Attorney's Office
Kassem Lucas, Pepper Hamilton
Glenn Mahone, Reed Smith
Zane Memeger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Richard Negrin, Managing Director of the City of Philadelphia
Will Sylianteng, Bennett Bricklin & Saltzburg
George B. Vashon (dec.)/ Nolan N. Atinkson Jr., Duane Morris
Seth Williams, Philadelphia District Attorney
Rhonda Hill Wilson, The Law Offices of Rhonda Hill Wilson
Judge Dwayne D. Woodruff, Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas
Judge Sheila Woods-Skipper, Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas

Profiles and details about each attorney will be included in our "Diversity" supplement, scheduled to be published in The Legal on Tuesday, April 5. They will also be honored at a special luncheon in Philadelphia on Tuesday, June 7; for more information, contact Diane McCollum at 215-557-2335 or [email protected]. Congratulations to all!

Jaime Bochet is the Magazines & Supplements Editor for The Legal Intelligencer. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/JaimeBochetTLI or e-mail [email protected].

Seeking Recommendations for Our 'Diverse Attorneys of the Year'

By Jaime Bochet
Of the Legal Staff

Every other year since 2007, The Legal has published a “Diversity” supplement, alternating years with our “Women in the Profession” supplement. They are similar in structure, containing a selection of contributed articles, a transcript from a moderated roundtable discussion and a list of individuals being recognized for their contributions as Pennsylvania lawyers, leaders and innovators.

This year, I’m in the midst of preparing for our 2011 Diversity supplement, and the pieces are falling into place: the articles have been assigned, the roundtable participants have been chosen and the date selected. Now all that remains is to find those special lawyers to honor as our “Diverse Attorneys of the Year.”

Which is where YOU come in. These honorees can be from law firms of any size, solo practitioners, in-house counsel, government employees, public interest attorneys -- any minority attorney, of any age, whose practice is based anywhere in Pennsylvania. We welcome ALL of your suggestions.

There is no formal nomination process. All we ask is that you write us a letter of recommendation detailing why this person deserves to be recognized, including professional highlights over 2010. The letter should be signed by someone other than the recommended honoree, and that can be a colleague, boss, friend or client -- anyone who can speak to that person's merits.

The honorees will be selected by the editorial staff of The Legal, then profiled in our Diversity supplement, scheduled to be published in April, and honored at a luncheon scheduled for early June. We are very excited about this event, which in 2009 had almost 300 attendees!

But here’s the kicker -- we can’t honor these individuals unless they are recommended! So this is my special appeal to you. Please take the time to write a letter on behalf of the outstanding diverse attorney(s) around you. Don’t think to yourself, “Someone else will do it,” because they may not. And if they do, all the better -- at least that person will be guaranteed consideration.

The letters of recommendation are due to me this Friday, and they can be e-mailed, faxed to 215-557-2301, or snail-mailed to Jaime Bochet, The Legal Intelligencer, 1617 JFK Boulevard, Suite 1750, Philadelphia PA 19103. If you have any questions about this process or the publication, please send me an e-mail or call 215-557-2368.

I hope to soon have my mailbox flooded with letters of recommendation for outstanding diverse Pennsylvania attorneys, so get writing!

Philadelphia's Female Chancellors Offer Advice to Fellow Women

By Fiona McCrone
For the Legal

“You can be a leader wherever you are,” said Jane Leslie Dalton, partner at Duane Morris and former chancellor of the Philadelphia Bar Association, to a packed room of female attorneys yesterday. “But nothing happens without obstacles.”

A panel of former female chancellors of the Philadelphia Bar Association spoke about their career experiences, balancing home and work life, and the challenges they faced on their path to becoming chancellor during the “Pathways to Leadership” discussion. 

The panelists were Deborah R. Willig, first female chancellor and managing partner of Willig Williams & Davidson; Doreen Davis, a partner at Morgan Lewis & Bockius: Dalton, a partner with Duane Morris; Audrey Talley, a partner at Drinker Biddle &Reath; and Kathleen Wilkinson, a partner at Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker and chancellor-elect for 2013. 

Talley, as the first woman of color to become chancellor, said her campaign was filled with people telling her to drop out, “to save me the embarrassment.” Talley exclaimed that she was offended by people being “sorry” for her, and also advised, “don’t let anybody say ‘never’ to you.”

Dalton also commented on issues she had faced in her second year of law school, when applying to law firms. “They’d ask me questions like, if I was on birth control, or if I planned on getting pregnant … things that no one would ask now.”

Wilkinson noted that when she came out of college there were very few women in the profession, but that the bar association helped her to meet other professional women and create lasting friendships.

Each of the panelists noted that being a leader does not necessarily mean being “the” leader.  Commenting on women going for leadership positions in the bar, Wilkinson said, “firms will appreciate you stepping outside of your comfort zone. Win or lose, it shows that you are trying to better yourself.” 

All of the panelists commented that it takes a great deal of courage to “put yourself out there,” but that working with the bar helps attorneys (of all genders) hone specialized skills that will make them effective leaders.

Their main piece of advice to the women present was to be involved, in any way possible, at the bar association. 

“It opens the doors to the citizenry of Philadelphia, and gives attorneys the opportunity to give back the community as well as build relationships within the bar,” said Willig.  Talley called the bar a “navigating force that brings people together,” and advised the audience to be open-minded in their career and in whatever other position they hope to hold. 

Finally, Wilkinson ended the discussion with the comment, “I would not feel fulfilled [in my career] if I were not part of the legal community.”