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Judges often look quite serious, wearing dark robes and wielding justice. But they don’t always dispense justice. Sometimes the roles are reversed. Like when a drunken Pennsylvania judge, sans robe and gavel, was found naked and wrapped in a bed sheet in a Cumberland County hotel. Douglas Gummo, a magistrate judge in Huntingdon County, has charged with harassment, disorderly conduct and public drunkenness, WJAC-TV reports. Police said they were called to the Radisson Penn Harris hotel in Camp Hill on April 1 after getting a call from another judge....

Here’s something to add to your list of things not to do. Break into a house, get drunk, get locked inside and call 911 for help. That’s just what 44-year-old John Finch did, according to New Castle County police. But just how drunk do you have to be to get stuck inside a house? Naturally, there is more to the story. John Finch, also known as the “drunk burglar,” had broken into the 81-year-old victim’s home before in April, prompting the homeowner to install locks that required a key, even from the inside, according to New Castle County police....

The Federal Circuit Court of Appeals stands poised with its finger potentially over the big red button that would potentially invalidate some 13,500 continuation patents filed with the USPTO – with 13,500 being a conservative number. If the court rules in favor of defendant HTC, right or wrong, it could spell a tidal wave of litigation over continued patents whose applications were filed the same day as the original parent application....

Last year, the Federal Circuit gave us that warm-and-fuzzy feeling. You know the feeling – it’s the one you get at the end of the movie where the good guy wins. That feeling. Robert MacLean was a federal air marshal. Shortly after learning of a hijacking plot, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) decided to pull air marshals off of certain flights. If that sounds like an idiotic response to you, you’re simpatico with MacLean, who first complained to his supervisors, then leaked the plan to MSNBC....

A Florida family with a life-sized replica of the TARDIS time machine from the sci-fi TV series “Doctor Who” has been ordered by their homeowners’ association to move the phone booth-style structure off of their driveway. The members of the Moder family are huge fans of the cult-favorite British series, reports Tampa’s WFTS-TV – so much so that LeeAnn Moder’s father spent about $1,000 on wood to build the replica TARDIS (which stands for Time and Relative Dimension in Space) for the couple’s wedding....

Sharon Prost joined the Federal Circuit in 2001 and began service as Chief Judge when Judge Randall Rader stepped down as Chief in 2014. Some of Prost’s most important opinions involve smart phone patent infringement litigation, including her dissent in Apple v. Motorola. Prost also is one of the few circuit court judges who is more famous as a litigant than judge. After working for years in the federal government and putting herself through school at nights, an early ’90s custody battle made her famous as a working mother being penalized for trying to balance home life and career....

Famed conservative jurist Robert Bork died Wednesday. The former lawyer, federal judge, solicitor general, and academic was 85 years old. To most, Bork was perhaps best known for what he didn’t accomplish: He never made it onto the U.S. Supreme Court. However, as an attorney and legal theorist, Bork contributed much to the modern-day conservative movement, and beyond. Here are just three ways that Robert Bork’s legacy will live on, especially for lawyers:...

John McLaughlin was one of those TV personalities that stood the test of time. The man maintained a constant news media presence for over 30 years, hosting one of the most celebrated, and balanced, talk-news programs in modern history, The McLaughlin Group. Sadly, he passed last year, leaving behind an estate worth litigating over. And while the litigation may have resulted in frustration and delay for his heirs, for the general public, the Memorandum Opinion and Order resolving the matter is pure nostalgic gold as it was written as if the TV personality had come back to life to pen it himself....

Yet another BigLaw firm is going down. Howrey has announced plans to dissolve. Yoss LLP, one of South Florida’s largest law firms, is also closing. Which brings up an interesting question: If your BigLaw firm is going under, you should do what’s best for yourself. But what is best for yourself in such a difficult situation? A few useful points from am Am Law article after interviewing attorneys from firms that sank:...

With one of Major League Baseball’s highest payrolls, two losing seasons in a row, and low turnout at home games, the New York Mets are already facing financial troubles. Add to this the recently filed lawsuit by the Bernie Madoff Trustee against Mets owners, Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz, and the future of the franchise may be in question. To the owners of the Mets, Madoff was more than a friend; he was a financial windfall....

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court agreed to hear three cases, consolidated into one argument, on the issue of EPA regulation of electric utilities. Michigan v. EPA, Utility Air Regulatory Group v. EPA, and National Mining Association v. EPA all seek to address whether it was unreasonable for the EPA to refuse to consider cost when determining whether to regulate air pollutants emitted by electric utilities under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act....

A California judge has dismissed a lawsuit alleging FIFA, the U.S. Soccer Federation, and other governing bodies failed to adequately reduce the risk of concussions and other head injuries. According to U.S. District Judge Phyllis Hamilton, the plaintiffs, seven soccer players, failed to demonstrate any existing or imminent injuries or any link to the organizations named in the lawsuit. While the claims against FIFA were dismissed with prejudice (meaning they can’t be brought again), the judge allowed the plaintiffs to amend their claims against other governing bodies if they could provide additional evidence of injuries....

The path to murder starts with a wrong turn, a twist in one life that ends another. Far too many people follow it – even successful people like lawyers and law students. Kenneil Cole, a young legal assistant, went down that path. He was upward bound when he took that fateful turn. It happened somewhere between the first and eleventh time he pulled the trigger on his roommate. ‘How Life Works’ Until that moment, Cole was on a fast-track to success....

It looks as if all the protesting, pushing and even hunger strikes were worth it. U.S. News and World Report’s Law School Rankings has agreed to, if not glass-like transparency, at least to shine a brighter light on unemployment statistics from law schools in their rankings. While there will be no change in how the rankings themselves are calculated, there will be more data on job market and employment statistics for soon-to-be J....

Petition for review of a Merit Systems Protection Board finding that the Social Security Administration did not willfully violate plaintiff’s veterans’ preference rights is dismissed for lack of jurisdiction where the agency and the Board have yet to reach any final determination as to whether plaintiff would or would not have been hired in a properly reconstructed selection process, and thus, the decision of the Board on appeal is not a final order or final decision for purposes of 28 U....

Ana Gloria Garcia Gutierrez was just getting to know the local wildlife when she went manatee riding on Tuesday. The animals mate in the warm water off the coast of Florida but when Gutierrez saw them she went in the water to get a close look. Other Florida beachgoers snapped a photo of her taking a ride with one of the creatures and when the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office saw it they went looking for Gutierrez....

It’s a tough legal job market out there, and you might be tempted to do some crazy, overzealous things with your resume. We live in a melting pot – or haven’t you heard? Language skills are more coveted than ever, especially Spanish and Mandarin, depending on where you live. If you took a Russian class 10 years ago, though, you’d best leave that off your resume. Someone is going to find out, and it’s probably going to be at the interview stage, where you’re presumed to have the qualifications necessary for the job....

It was a two-fer at embattled Arizona Summit Law School. Two former professors sued the law school for breach of their employment contracts, but a federal appeals court affirmed the dismissal of their case. It was the second win this year for the school, which has been embroiled in litigation with both faculty and students. The complaints expose, however, an ugly underbelly at the struggling law school. It is one of three for-profit law schools run by InfiLaw Systems, which is reportedly trying to unload them in the midst of controversy....

David Letterman once said, “I drink way too much coffee. But if it weren’t for coffee, I’d have no identifiable personality whatsoever.” The caffeine-loving comedian is one of the millions of Americans addicted to the delicious beverage that comes in an array of permutations ranging from lattes, cappuccinos, iced coffee, and espresso, to name a few. I, for one, consider my morning cup of coffee part of my daily vitamin routine....

The Sexually Violent Predators Act (SVPA) authorizes California to identify prisoners who suffer from mental disorders that predispose them to commit violent sexual crimes, and to confine and treat them until they no longer threaten society. The confinement process requires multiple prisoner evaluations from the Department of Mental Health (DMH). So what happens when the state extends a potential SVPA-eligible prisoner’s incarceration beyond his release date because it didn’t have adequate staff to complete the SVPA evaluations?...