Appeals Court Gives Go-Ahead on BP Investor Suit

Last year, Judge Ellison permitted the certification of a class of investors who purchased BP stocks from April 26 to May 28, 2010. Ellison, however, ruled that investors who purchased BP securities in the 2 ½-year period before the spill were not permitted to sue as a class. Disappointed, both BP and the plaintiffs’ attorneys appealed the rulings. Writing for the unanimous panel, Circuit Judge Patrick Higginbotham found that the question of BP executives’ forthrightness during the early days of the spill was “undeniably common to the class, and is susceptible of a class-wide answer.”


Erin Brockovich Fights against Pollution for Navajo Nation

Brockovich and Begaye toured the riverfront and some of the hardest hit agricultural areas, culminating with a speech to students at a Shiprock, New Mexico highs school. Insisting that the government clean up its mess, Brockovich said “They did not tell the truth about the amount. There were millions and millions of gallons.” Brockovich accused federal regulators of lax oversight, both in the Navajo Nation, and throughout the U.S.



Baltimore Settles with Family of Freddie Gray

Gray’s family will receive $2.8 million during the 2015 fiscal year, which began in July, and $3.6 million next year. The settlement must still be approved by mayoral-controlled spending panel, which is expected on Wednesday. Gray died on April 19th while in police custody, a week after being arrested by Baltimore police. Six officers have been indicted and face a pre-trial hearing on Thursday.


Legal Facts: The Economic Loss Doctrine in Hawaii

Many are familiar with lawsuits when a car accident damages someone’s car while also causing medical expenses. But what happens if a product only causes economic loss by damaging itself instead of damaging other property? For instance, the generator in a $300,000 luxury motor home produces arcing which ignites engine oil and the resulting fire


AutoNation CEO: ‘Company will not Sell Recalled Vehicles’

In an industry that set a record for recalls in 2014, and with over 34.5 million vehicles recalled by the end of July, 2015, Jackson believes that dealers should take a more active role in protecting consumers. The CEO said, “If every time a vehicle, new or used, moves through the franchised automotive retail system, every recall is completed, then the completion rate on recalls in total, both how fast they get done and the percentage that get done, will increase significantly.”


The Anti-Trump: Mississippi’s Shy Truck-Driving Black Candidate for Governor

Gray has a remarkably simple and catchy theme. As he stated in a post-nomination interview, “People complain about our governor. I’m basically going to do the opposite of what he’s doing.” One resident of Terry, Gary Downing, who did not know Gray, said about his campaign strategy, “Can’t do no worse than what we’ve got.” Gray admits that his shyness keeps him from acting like most politicians, saying that he is hesitant to approach strangers because he is afraid to interrupt them. As proof that the man is the Democratic reincarnation of Calvin Coolidge, his CB radio handle is Silent Knight, because he listens more than he talks.



Louisiana, Missouri Exemplify America’s Public Defender Funding Crisis

Neither a state-level funding crisis, nor the restriction of public defender services are issues reserved for Louisiana and Missouri alone. Like Missouri, Florida’s Supreme Court ruled in 2013 that the state’s public defenders’ offices can apply to refuse appointments based on overwhelming caseloads. At the time, Miami’s public defenders were averaging about 400 felony cases apiece, including up to 50 cases set for trial per week. Lawmakers in Tennessee are considering a bill to repeal a law in place since 1992 that mandates that public defenders receive a 75 percent match of every dollar of increased funding for prosecutors in the state.


Judge Approves Settlement in Silicon Valley Wage Class-Action Case

The lawsuit depicts Jobs as the mastermind behind the agreement. One email cited by the plaintiffs from 2007 involves Jobs writing to Schmidt about poaching, saying “I would be very pleased if your recruiting department would stop doing this.” Schmidt forwarded the request down the chain of command, writing “I believe we have a policy of no recruiting from Apple and this is a direct inbound request. Can you get this stopped and let me know why this is happening? I will need to send a response back to Apple quickly so please let me know as soon as you can.”