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Plus, Environmental, Criminal, and Employment Class Action Matters Torrey Hills Cmty. Coalition v. City of San Diego, No. D055579, concerned a challenge to the trial court’s denial of a petition for a writ of mandate challenging a city’s approval of a development project consisting of 484 condominium units and 4,000 square feet of retail space. In affirming, the court held that the trial court properly dismissed the entire petition for writ relief because it did not serve the summons on defendant within the 90-day period set forth in Gov....

Two Penn State administrators face charges in connection with the Jerry Sandusky scandal. The former assistant coach – for many years head coach Joe Paterno’s right-hand-man – is charged with sexually abusing eight boys over 15 years. At least one of the alleged incidents took place in a Penn State locker room in 2002. A staffer reported it to Joe Paterno, who told athletic director Tim Curley – but Curley did not tell authorities....

When a person is arrested for a serious crime in California, the law now definitely allows for officers to not only fingerprint and photograph the arrestee as part of the booking process, it also allows for a DNA cheek swab to be taken as well. Even though there are clearly privacy concerns with taking a DNA sample from an arrestee, in 2004, the California electorate approved a proposition that required felony arrestees, and convicts, to provide law enforcement a DNA sample....

Former NBA player Kenneth Ray “Kenny” Williams has been sentenced to nine months in prison for failing to pay more than $660,000 in child support. Williams, 44, a former forward for the Indiana Pacers, wound up in a North Carolina federal court after dodging his support obligations since the 1990s. His tragic family law tale is a reminder that failure to pay child support can land you in jail – and it hurts everyone involved....

You graduated law school, passed the bar, and now you’re ready to go. In one state, at least. But if you want to handle a case or advise a client across state lines, you’ll soon hit a wall. Lawyers can’t work where they’re not admitted. For an out-of-state attorney to be allowed to practice across borders, they have to jump through significant hoops, sometimes even retaking the bar exam. Is it time for a borderless legal market?...

Indiana’s Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) has lost a court battle over denying an “0INK” license plate, but the state may still choose to appeal. Greenfield, Indiana, police Officer Rodney Vawter had his “0INK” vanity plate revoked when the BMV determined it was “offensive or misleading.” But a judge ruled last week that the BMV was biased and inconsistent with applying its own standards, reports The Associated Press. So what’s the big deal with “0INK”?...

Decision of the PTO and the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (Board) rejecting claims in petitioner’s application to reissue a patent, involving a device for maintaining hot food, is reversed and remanded where: 1) anticipation cannot be found, as a matter of law, if any claimed element or limitation is not present in the reference; 2) Board was incorrect in holding that a claim was indefinite and a written description requirement was not met as such conclusion was unsupported by substantial evidence....

Juvenile court order terminating parental rights is reversed where no opportunity to reunify was ever afforded to the child’s mother, nor did she have an opportunity to challenge a request to deny her services. Read In re T.M., No. C059898 in PDF Read In re T.M., No. C059898 in HTML Appellate InformationAPPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Sacramento County, Dean L. Petersen, Juvenile Court Referee. Reversed with directions....

‘It’s Good Being First.’ Delaware’s slogan turns out to be true – again. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the hottest spot on the map for new lawyers is Delaware. The report shows that the first state in the union is also the highest paying for lawyers based on cost-of-living adjusted salaries. The magic number is $132,446 annually. Delaware law firms do not necessarily pay as well as big firms in New York and other states....

In Lucent Technologies (Lucent) patent infringement action against Microsoft, district court’s judgment against Microsoft is affirmed in part and vacated and remanded in part where: 1) district court’s denial of Microsoft’s motion for judgment as a matter of law (JMOL) for non-infringement is affirmed as the evidence reasonably permitted the jury to have decided that Microsoft did not prove by clear and convincing evidence that the claims would have been obvious; 2) district court’s denial of Microsoft’s motion for JMOL that it did not induce infringement of the patent at issue is affirmed; and 3) district court’s denial of Microsoft’s JMOL regarding the jury’s $358 million damages award is vacated and remanded for a new trial on damages as it was not supported by substantial evidence and was against the clear weight of the evidence....

Looking for an interesting legal niche? Daniel Balsam found his long before he went to law school. In 2002 Balsam was working as a marketer and became frustrated with the spam emails he constantly received. So did he complain to his friends? Write letters to his senator? Switch to Gmail? No, instead, Balsam started a website called Danhatesspam.com, went to law school, got his law degree and now sues spammers for a living....

California Gov. Jerry Brown signed 11 crime bills aimed at lowering fines and punishments for juveniles and other offenders. Most of the legislation helps young people charged with crimes, including one bill that limits counties and cities from collecting fees from families with children in juvenile detention. Parents and guardians will no longer be charged for juvenile hall expenses, such as housing, food, drugs, tests and transportation. Lawmakers said juvenile penalties and fines have mostly affected low-income and minority families....

On the heels of Friday’s NFL court hearing in front of the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, it appears as though there may be a 2011 NFL season after all. Well, a shortened one at least. As part of the league’s contingency plan, it’s been reported that an 8-game season may be in the works. It would even include a Super Bowl. The NFL court case has seen a lot of action in the last few days, with a panel of 8th Circuit judges indicating that it already knows how it will decide if the parties fail to settle, reports USA Today....

Just over a year after receiving his law license, Texas criminal defense attorney Maverick Ray – his real name – is representing a client in a capital murder case. One year out of school, what were you doing? Yeah, that’s what I thought. Ray, a 2012 graduate of South Texas College of Law in Houston, is the lead attorney for Howard Wayne Lewis, who was indicted by a grand jury for the 2013 murder of his infant son....

“It’s as if one spouse walks in the door and says to his or her spouse, ‘I’m leaving you. I’ve found someone who loves me more. And oh, by the way, I’ll still be living with you while we build our dream house together.’” That was Raiders CEO Amy Trask, responding to news that the City of Oakland will be filing an antitrust lawsuit against Raiders ownership and the National Football League, claiming that the league and other team owners colluded to move the franchise to Las Vegas....

Yes kids, there is no Santa Claus. And Rick Ross, despite his various boasts, is not actually “Rick Ross.” Nor is he “Larry Hoover,” “Big Meech,” or any other real-life drug dealers whom he emulates in his quest to push more platinum albums. Hate the player, not the game. Just don’t sue the player for misappropriation of your identity, even if his entire career is based off of your real-life exploits....

Ted Cruz is a polarizing figure, misunderstood by many, but a profile of the conservative Texas senator from his Harvard Law School days paints a clear portrait of someone we all know: the gunner. From raising his hand constantly in class, to setting his eyes on a Supreme Court clerkship before school even started, his path seemed to be that of the gunner – one who is destined to either do great things, or become the impotent small-town prosecutor that presses for decades in prison for jaywalking....

Until a startup is required to disclose compensation details, it’s hard to know how much general counsel make there. But according to reports, in-house counsel salaries are going up in 2017. And in Silicon Valley, the startups are putting it out there. Julie Brush, writing for the Recorder, says the market has picked up for general counsel in the San Francisco Bay Area. She says the base salary is $250,000 to $300,000....

In an action wherein plaintiff-insurer sought a declaration that defendant’s underlying claims involving unsolicited faxes were not covered by policies as “advertising injury” or “property damage,” summary judgment in favor of defendant is affirmed where the claims asserted in the Illinois actions were not covered by the State Farm policies. Also, defendant’s appeal from an order denying its motion to quash service of the complaint is rejected as such as order not is not appealable where, as here, the party contesting jurisdiction enters a general appearance and litigates the merits....

Elon Musk gets public applause for being a futurist, but in some ways his company seems backwards. According to a complaint filed by the National Labor Relations Board, Tesla keeps workers from talking about union activities, employee safety, and other issues by pressuring them and requiring confidentiality agreements. For a company that has been accused of exploiting cheap labor and overworking employees before, it is not a good look. As one Tesla factory worker reportedly said, “Everything feels like the future but us....