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A dog eats marijuana; a woman allegedly stabs her boyfriend. Ah, just another day in our favorite Sunshine State. A Florida woman accused of stabbing her boyfriend told authorities that the injuries occurred only after his dog swallowed her stash of pot. To bolster her defense, Shadae Scott, 26, of Dania Beach, also claimed her beau repeatedly walked into her knife, United Press International reports. What was she smoking? Oh wait, that’s right....

In case you weren’t aware of this, the amount of money you spend on your loved ones indicates how much you care. That rule isn’t just limited to Valentine’s Day. When selecting a gift for a significant other — whether it’s a cashmere sweater or an engagement ring — your purchasing power is publicly perceived as directly proportional to love. (Because that’s fair, right?) If this sounds totally cynical to you, just wait....

It’s not as catchy as dancing the hokey-pokey, but corporate attorneys increasingly put one foot in and one foot out in the legal marketplace. For in-house counsel, it’s about balancing the bottom line between outsourcing or insourcing legal work. On the other side of the dance, outside counsel have to bend with changing demands for legal services. The trend is toward insourcing core attorney work while outsourcing more legal tasks. As a result, lawyers are having to take a step back and reassess their skills....

A New York JetBlue flight attendant allegedly pulled off an exit that most people only get to dream of. After a rowdy incident with a passenger who refused his orders to stay seated after landing, Steven Slater, 39, allegedly went on a bit of a rampage. First taking to the address system, to swear at the passengers, then activating the emergency escape chute, sliding off the plane and running to his car, parked at Kennedy International Airport....

A Las Vegas judge handcuffed a public defender and seated her with inmates after she spoke over him in court. Assistant public defender Zohra Bakhtary had been arguing to keep her client out of jail when Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Conrad Hafen told her to “be quiet,” then had her cuffed when she continued to speak. While Bakhtary was cuffed, Hafen went on to finish hearing the case, sentencing the client to six months in jail....

A deadbeat dad who is behind on his child support got an unorthodox order from the judge: Stop procreating. Corey Curtis has nine children with six different women, and owes about $90,000 in unpaid child support and interest. It got so serious that Curtis was criminally charged with failure to pay child support. At a hearing, the judge complained that he couldn’t force Curtis to be sterilized. But there was another option that he could enforce....

One of my friends just got a last-minute offer from a top law school willing to admit him as a transfer student, thanks to credits he’d banked from a one-year program as an exchange student years ago. He’s weighing that against competitive offers from other schools, while waiting on at least one more school to make up its mind. There’s what, a week left until school starts? Crazy. Stressful. Exciting!...

As lawyers, we are often forced to go out on a limb and put ourselves out there for a client. Illinois attorney Reema Bajaj allegedly put herself out there for a whole other reason - prostitution. Bajaj, 25, was arrested for prostitution after investigators uncovered some e-mails sent between Bajaj and a suspect in an unrelated case. In the e-mails, Bajaj allegedly offered to perform a sexual act for $100, a Class A misdemeanor, reports the Daily Chronicle....

All the talk about the Emoluments Clause you’ve been hearing lately may be soon put to the test. A group of high-profile legal scholars filed a lawsuit yesterday, alleging that the Trump administration is in violation of this once-obscure constitutional provision. The Emoluments Clause, neighbor to the Nobility Clause, prohibits members of the government from receiving emoluments, or payments, from foreign governments. The Trump administration, with the president’s vast business holdings, is already in violation of that clause, according to the suit....

On the list of what-not-to-do-with-client-money, one Oregon attorney checked off the whole list. Pamela S. Hediger pleaded guilty in federal court to stealing money from her clients, not paying income taxes and other unlawful activity. She was ordered to pay $1.9 million in restitution, plus $471,399 in federal income taxes. But that’s not what made the headlines. It was the plastic surgery and the party band. Federal Charges The ABA Journal headlined it this way: “Lawyer stole money to pay for plastic surgery, overdue income taxes, party with Hawaiian band and more....

Conviction and sentence of defendant for first degree murder is affirmed as the jury’s true finding on the gang enhancement allegation is supported by substantial evidence and the trial court’s restitution fine is modified. Read People v. Vazquez, No. B213000 Filed October 13, 2009 Judges Opinion by Judge Yegan Counsel For Appellant: Susan K. Keiser For Appellee: Edmund G. Brown, Jr., Attorney General, Dane R. Gillette, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Pamela C....

During September, the D.C. Circuit has seen marriages increase, monuments tumble, and heard oral arguments on mandates. All of this while continuing the court’s incredible dry spell of published opinions that threatens to ruin September’s groove. So with the 21st night of September behind us, let’s remember the love and loss D.C. shared (i.e., an excuse to play Earth, Wind, and Fire’s “September”): D.C. Court Expands for Same-Sex Weddings The D....

A former University of Virginia undergrad who was allegedly sexually assaulted while a student has lost her suit against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Education for mishandling her complaints against the University. The plaintiff, suing as Jane Doe, had complained to the agencies that UVA’s failure to take action regarding severe sexual harassment and misconduct against her violated Title IX. The departments took no significant action on her complaints, Doe alleged, leading to her lawsuit....

Merit Systems Protection Board’s Decision Sustaining Petitioner’s Removal From His Position at the Defense Logistics Agency Affirmed Smiley v. Dep’t of Defense, 10-3039, concerned a challenge to a final decision by the Merit Systems Protection Board’s (Board) sustaining petitioner’s removal from the position of Supervisory Supply Technician at the Defense Logistics Agency’s New Cumberland, Pennsylvania facility. In affirming, the court held that a review of the record demonstrates that substantial evidence supports the Board’s decision sustaining petitioner’s removal....

Yesterday was a bad day for Bank of America (“BofA”). Forbes reports that in a regulatory filing, BofA noted that it was awaiting civil charges from the Department of Justice and the SEC. As if that wasn’t enough, the California Supreme Court also ruled against them. TGIF. At issue before the Supreme Court of California was the interplay between the federal Truth in Savings Act (“TISA”) and the California Unfair Competition Law (“UCL”)....

When you think of your child helping out at school, you think of a few common things: students clapping chalkboard erasers together, erasing lines on the blackboard, or cleaning up after art class. It’s a rare occurrence that a student’s “help” comes in the form of a teacher requesting that the student rub her feet. Apparently this shudder-inducing task is exactly what one teacher at the Batesburg Leesville Primary School in South Carolina asked of her students....

It came from the swamps of Florida. Then, it went shopping at Walmart. We are speaking here, of course of a large, black snake who happened to bite a customer while she, or it, was doing the family shopping at the Walmart Garden Center in Jacksonville, Florida. Showing the presence of mind that can only be found in a Florida resident, Ms. Jarrell shook her arm to detach her attacker. However, according to the Complaint, that only made the snake mad, causing it to wrap around her leg and tighten the grip of its fangs on her arm....

Many California lawyers make their living trying mesothelioma cases. One factor an asbestos lawyer should consider when reviewing a prospective client’s claim against a defunct asbestos-product manufacturer is the applicable corporate survival statute. Douglas G. Robinson, a California resident, died of mesothelioma in 2005. On November 1, 2006, Robinson’s wife, Carolyn, and their three children filed a complaint for wrongful death and survival. The lawsuit alleged that Robinson’s death was caused by his occupational exposure to asbestos....

Boston Celtics forward Glen “Big Baby” Davis’s game-winning shot last night was huge for the defending champs, tying their playoff series up, but for a father-son pair of Orlando Magic fans the shot was doubly painful. Yes, the AP reports that the father, Ernest Provetti, is furious at Big Baby Davis for “acting like a ‘raging animal with no regard for fans’ personal safety’” and he is demanding an apology. What prompted his fatherly outrage, and what was the result of the raging-animal-like behavior?...

After a coach was convicted of sexually abusing a 12-year-old player, a state appeals court said a youth soccer association must conduct criminal background checks on all coaches and other adults in its programs. The California Sixth District Court of Appeal, ruling in Doe v. United States Youth Soccer Association, said the organization has a duty to protect children by requiring criminal background checks. The appellate court reversed and remanded the case, which had been dismissed on demurrer....