Laura Boyce v. Rob Lowe
Another nanny countersues Rob Lowe and his wife, alleging Sheryl Lowe sexually harassed her by walking around naked and asking lewd questions about her sex life.
Ashley Dupré v. Joe Francis
"SpitzerGate" scandal call girl sues "Girls Gone Wild" creator for violating her publicity rights by using topless footage of her in a video and for deceptively marketing it.
Jane Doe v. Splash News
People magazine reporter files an invasion of privacy suit over hidden camera video taken in her hotel room that allegedly shows actor Heath Ledger using cocaine.
• Maker of Spanx underwear slaps the British firm Sexy Panties and Naughty Knickers with a lawsuit for selling lingerie bearing the acronym SPANK. "Defendants' use of the SPANK mark constitutes trademark infringement." Spanx, Inc. v. Sexy Panties and Naughty Knickers
• Plaintiff's lawyers say a jury's award of $305 million to Adidas may be a record in a trademark infringement case. The Portland, Ore., jury found Payless ShoeSource infringed on Adidas' trademark three-stripe logo and Superstar trade dress. Adidas America v Payless ShoeSource
• Children of a New York woman who died at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport after being arrested for disorderly conduct sue Phoenix police for wrongful death. Officers "subjected Carol [Gotbaum] to grossly excessive force" and were "deliberately, recklessly, and callously indifferent to [her] medical needs." Gotbaum v. City of Phoenix
• The publisher of Wikipedia attacks a "Wikilibel" suit filed by a literary agent who was described in a posting as "The Dumbest of the Twenty Worst" literary agents. The post "falls squarely within the protection" of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, it says in a motion to dismiss.
• Environmental groups challenge the Bush administration's decision to eliminate endangered species protections for the northern Rockies gray wolf "despite overwhelming evidence that the population is not biologically recovered and cannot withstand the excessive human-caused excessive mortality promoted under state management." Defenders of Wildlife v. Hall
• British Airways files a motion to dismiss a class action suit alleging it has recklessly lost passengers' luggage. "[C]ourts ... have repeatedly rejected plaintiffs’ contention that inadequate procedures for handling baggage constitute[ ] recklessness." Hutchinson v. British Airways
• San Francisco judge gives the Bush administration until May 15 to decide whether the polar bear should be listed as a threatened species because of global warming. "To allow Defendants more time would violate the ... congressional intent that time is of the essence in listing threatened species." Center for Biological Diversity v. Kempthorne
• New York appeals court upholds the New York City school board's ban on possession of cell phones by students. "[I]t cannot be denied that the use of cell phones for cheating, sexual harassment, prank calls and intimidation threatens order in the schools." Price v. New York City Bd. of Educ.
Priest Sued for Denouncing Critic of Sermons at Mass
An Illinois priest who failed to turn the other cheek after a parishioner criticized him now has to defend a “wrongful sermon” lawsuit for inviting the congregation to send his critic “to hell or another parish.”
Father Luis Alfredo Rios apparently forgot Jesus's message of nonretaliation in the Sermon from the Mount after parishioner Angel Llavona complained about the quality of his sermonizing. “I attended Mass on Sunday and I have seen poor homilies, but yesterday broke all records,” Llavona said in one of two messages left on Rios's voice mail.
Llavona, a high-school teacher, was in the congregation the following Sunday when Rios performed the Mass at St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Crystal Lake, Ill., and gave him something else to complain about.
“During the Mass, Rios said, 'I have a talked to a lawyer and he said this was OK,'” Llavona says in a complaint filed last week in McHenry County Circuit Court. The priest then allegedly played the two voice mails to the congregation, commenting,
This is the person in charge of religious education here last year. That's why it is no surprise to me we had the kind of religious education we had. That's why we didn't get altar boys.
What should we do, should we send him to hell or to another parish?
The suit seeks at least $50,000 in damages for breach of fiduciary duty, defamation and public disclosure of private facts. “Rios impugned Llavona's reputation as a teacher and as a good Catholic before his fellow parishioners,” it alleges.
The First Amendment precludes judges from inquiring into religious doctrine or belief and only a few courts have addressed "wrongful sermon" cases.
Allowing defamation and privacy claims to proceed against a Baptist clergyman, the Missouri Court of Appeals said in Hester v. Barnett, 723 S.W.2d 544 (1987), that
The use of the pulpit as the pretext for the practice of religion, but as the occasion for intentional defamation [ ] is neither justified by privilege nor protected by the free exercise clause.
In McNair v. Worldwide Church of God, 197 Cal.App.3d 363 (1987), a California appeals court found the plaintiff could “recover damages for defamatory remarks made during the course of a doctrinal explanation by a duly authorized minister” by meeting the heightened test of malice applied to public figure libel cases.
Unlike the defendant in Hester, however, Rios never accused Llavona of committing a crime. And as a New Mexico judge suggested in 2004 -- when he rejected a claim against a priest who denounced the deceased at a funeral -- threats of hellfire should not be unduly distressing to the devout.
“For thousands of years, churches have been making judgments against people,” the judge said. “Dante's Inferno has been talking about sending people to hell for many a year. People aren't shocked by it.”
You just can't get good help anymore -- or so actor Rob Lowe alleges in suing three former members of his household staff for "seek[ing] to capitalize on their positions for their own financial benefit and to the emotional and financial detriment of their employer[ ]."
Nannies Laura Boyce and Jessica Gibson and chef Paul Clements worked for Lowe and his wife at their Montecito, Calif., home. According to three lawsuits filed April 7 in Santa Barbara and Los Angeles counties (see link below), they have all breached confidentiality agreements by disclosing details of their employment and the Lowes' personal lives. Clements and Gibson allegedly even used their employer's home for sexual trysts and Gibson has allegedly threatened "to initiate litigation against the Lowes if they do not pay her $1.5 million."
Gibson quickly responded with a countersuit, alleging Rob Lowe sexually assaulted her and both he and his wife sexually harassed her.
Accepting his Golden Globe award last year, "Borat" star Sacha Baron Cohen joked, "Thank you to every American who has not sued me so far." With the addition of a Maryland driving instructor, 14 Americans -- and two Romanians -- now have (see link below).
The latest plaintiff, Michael Psenicska, says "Borat" producers duped him into giving the title character a driving lesson by telling him they were making a "legitimate documentary." He signed a release to appear in the film and was paid $500 for his appearance, but in a complaint filed in Manhattan, he is suing for rescission of the release and payment of "substantial compensation from defendants for the use of his likeness in the Borat film."
An African-American author who claimed that Penguin Group "segregated" her debut romance novel in bookstores appears to have settled her unusual discrimination suit against the publisher. more
No Sex, Please, on Menu at Philly Restaurant
Food and sex do not mix –- at least according to a Pennsylvania appeals court which ruled that “semi-public sexual activity” between patrons is not a "customary and incidental" form of entertainment at a restaurant. more
Taser Stuns Coroners with Death Reports Win
An Ohio judge has given medical examiners around the country a shock by ordering a coroner to remove any reference to Tasers in her autopsy reports on three men who died after police officers shot them with the stun guns. more
Santeria Priest Appeals Loss in Sacrifice Case
A Texas city has won the first round in what may be an extended legal battle over whether its ban on animal slaughter violates the First Amendment rights of a Santeria priest who practices the ritual sacrifice of goats. more
Killer's Kin Not Liable for Duping 'Unwitting Hosts'
The parents of a fugitive murderer are not liable for his deception of an Oregon man who unwittingly played host to him while he was on the run, the Minnesota Court of Appeals has ruled. more
Court Steps in Again to Help Dirty Dancer's Case
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals just won't let Rebecca Willis dance off into the sunset, again reviving the dirty dancer's suit against a North Carolina town that banned her from a nightspot seven years ago. more
Obese Inmate's Suit over Weight Loss Has No Meat
An obese Arkansas jail inmate awaiting trial for capital murder is alleging an unusual injury in a prisoner rights suit –- jail meals are so low in calories that he has lost more than 100 pounds in eight months. more
Reed v. Tony Yayo Subject: "Gangsta" Rap Document: Complaint
Cusick v. Southwest Airlines Subject: Plane Inspections Document: Complaint
John Lott v. Steven Levitt Subject: Defamation Document: Brief on Appeal
