John Doe A v. Penn State
First Penn State scandal lawsuit says Coach Jerry Sandusky sexually abused a boy more than 100 times and the abuse was enabled by the school's "negligent oversight."
Bradley v. Lohan
Former Betty Ford Center employee sues Lindsay Lohan for assault, alleging the actress threw a phone at her and yanked her wrist while refusing to be breathalzyed.
N.D. v. New York Post
Hotel maid allegedly raped by French politician sues the New York Post for falsely reporting that she is a prostitute who "routinely traded sex for money" with male guests.
Reinhart v. Mortenson
Two Montana residents allege the author of "Three Cups of Tea" "fabricated material about his activities and work in Pakistan and Afghanistan" to sell the book.
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LC_ExtraPoints

• Roommate referral website does not discriminate by allowing users to list their preferences for roommate characteristics. "Holding that the [Fair Housing Act] applies inside a home or apartment ... would be a serious invasion of privacy, autonomy and security."
Fair Housing Council v. Roommate.com

• Student alleges a prank involving a bottle rocket and another student's anus backfired, causing him to fall off the deck of a frat house.
Helmburg v. Alpha Tau Omega

• 5th Circuit reinstates a jury verdict finding a man employed by an engineering firm was sexually harassed by a male supervisor. "The text message 'I want cock' could be taken as an explicit sexual proposition." 
Cherry v. Shaw Coastal

• The ex-wife of a man who fatally shot himself with a gun he had stolen cannot sue the gun's owner for wrongful death. "We conclude that public policy dictates that [Charles] Milot's criminal conduct acts as a bar to recovery."
Ryan v. Hughes-Ortiz

• Pennsylvania woman alleges her former employer discriminated against her because she wore a fake penis to assist her in her female-to-male transition. "Plaintiff's use of the prosthetic device was concealed and in no way interfered with the ability of Plaintiff to do her job." Davis v. J&J Snack Foods

• Son of a woman charged with murdering her husband cannot use the proceeds from the victim's life insurance policy to fund his mother's criminal defense. "[A]llowing the distribution of these proceeds to a third party who has clear intentions to transfer part of these proceeds to her, undermines the principles underlying the Slayer’s Act and federal common law."
In Re: Estate of Michael Burkland

• Seattle judge says an actress cannot proceed anonymously in her suit against the IMDb.com website for publishing her age. "[W]hile Plaintiff may face public ridicule and embarrassment if she elects to go forward under her real name, the injury she fears is not severe enough to justify permitting her to proceed anonymously."
Doe v. Amazon.com

• Family of an 11-year-old girl who was crushed by a boulder of ice says forest ranger negligence caused her death. Rangers "did not warn users of the risk of harm associated with the dangerous, unstable snow and ice" at the Big Four Ice Caves in Snohomish County, Wash. Tam v. U.S.

• 3rd Circuit dismisses a breach of data security case against a payroll-processing company. "Appellants' allegations of an increased risk of identity theft as a result of the security breach are hypothetical, future injuries."
Reilly v. Ceridian Corp.

• Oregon judge denies First Amendment protections to a blogger. "Defendant cites no cases indicating that a self-proclaimed 'investigative blogger' is considered 'media' for the purposes of applying a negligence standard in a defamation claim."
Obsidian Finance v. Cox

• A transsexual who was fired from her government job while she was in the process of becoming a woman wins her sex discrimination suit. "[A] government agent violates the Equal Protection Clause’s prohibition of sex-based discrimination when he or she fires a transgender or transsexual employee because of his or her gender non-conformity."
Glenn v. Brumby

• New York man sues a Texas fertility clinic for wrongful insemination, alleging it failed to obtain his consent before using a sample of his sperm to impregnate his ex-girlfriend.
Pressil v. Advanced Fertility

• Nebraska judge rules that school officials may have illegally disciplined students for wearing t-shirts in honor of a slain friend suspected of gang membership. "[Q]uestions of fact remain whether Plaintiffs’ speech occurred in a context likely to provoke gang violence or other disruptions of school activities."
Kuhr v. Millard Public Sch. Dist.




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Britney Drops Appeal in Sex-Video Libel Case Print

Deborah Palfrey

The accused “Beltway Madam” appears to have learned a few legal lessons from the owner of a Florida escort agency who unsuccessfully sued clients after he was convicted of running a prostitution ring.

Deborah Jeane Palfrey didn't name any clients as defendants in the breach-of-contract suit she filed March 9, just a week after her indictment on charges of racketeering and money laundering. Instead, she is suing 15 women she employed as escorts, 14 of them so far unnamed.

Dr. Paula Neble and the Jane Doe defendants, the complaint says, entered into contracts with her to “provide solely legal services” to clients, but violated those agreements

by engaging in illegal sexual activities with customers of the escort service without the knowledge or consent of Plaintiff.

But a federal judge has temporarily stayed proceedings in the case until March 26, finding "reasonable grounds to believe that the purpose of the civil suit is to dissuade or discourage those defendants from testifying against [Palfrey] in [the] criminal action."

Palfrey, 50, has the same civil attorney -- Montgomery Blair Sibley of Rockville, Md. -- as the former owner of the Florence Dating Service in South Florida. Arthur “Big Pimpin' Pappy” Vanmoor sued six clients in January 2006, alleging that he contracted with them to provide only services of an “expressly legal nature” and was unaware of prostitution activities.

A judge summarily dismissed the case, finding under the doctrine of collateral estoppel that Vanmoor's criminal conviction in 2004 barred him from pursuing civil remedies.

“Necessary to that adjudication was a conclusion that Vanmoor hired women to work as prostitutes through the escort service and that he was aware of the illegal conduct occurring with customers of the escort service,” U.S. District Judge William P. Dimitrouleas wrote in his order. “Thus, Plaintiff cannot assert in this case that he was not engaged in or aware of such conduct.”

Palfrey hasn't been convicted of anything yet. And her contract evidence, at least, looks stronger than that of Vanmoor, who could only cite the the credit card authorization signed by clients, which said: "Cardholder states that this transaction is not for illegal activity.”

Palfrey attached to her suit a blank form headed "Conditions of Employment Agreement," which states that employment as an escort "expressly does not encompass in any way, shape or form any sexual act, favors or other behavior prohibited by law."

But the temporary stay on the case doesn't look good for Palfrey. If it remains in effect and the "Beltway Madam" is convicted of criminal charges, she would end up in the same legal basket as Vanmoor -- precluded under collateral estoppel from relitigating whether her employees engaged in prostitution without her knowledge or consent.

UPDATE ... On March 22, U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler ordered an indefinite stay on the civil case to prevent witness harassment and barred Palfrey from bringing any similar suits.

By Matthew Heller
3/16/07



With not much left of her reputation as a “married woman who is enjoying her life with husband and baby,” Britney Spears has dropped her appeal of the dismissal of her $20 million sex-tape defamation case against Us Weekly magazine.

The beleaguered teen idol had split from husband Kevin Federline and flashed her privates by the time she filed the appeal in January. And her public image hasn't exactly improved since then, what with the notorious head-shaving meltdown and admission to a Malibu rehab facility for an addiction problem.

Spears's high-powered attorney Marty Singer may now have a libel-proof client. He requested the voluntary dismissal of the appeal March 15 before he had even filed his opening brief.

The case is still active in Los Angeles Superior Court pending resolution of the defense's motion for attorney's fees. Us Weekly has been granted a delay in filing the motion -- which may indicate a settlement of the fees issue is in the works.

Spears alleged the magazine fabricated a story that a member of her entourage had obtained a copy of an "X-rated" tape containing "raunchy footage" of her with Federline.

The article, she claimed, was “very damaging to my career and reputation” because she wished to be seen as a "married woman who is enjoying her life with husband and baby.”

In November, a Beverly Hills judge didn't buy into the image makeover effort and granted the defense's anti-SLAPP motion to strike, noting that Spears herself had “put her modern sexuality squarely, and profitably, before the public eye.”

Tabloids are reporting in the latest Britney bulletins that she has been demanding special food in rehab and refusing to pick up after herself. "Britney has a seriously bad attitude problem," a source told Star magazine.

Other Britney Case Sources

By Matthew Heller
3/16/07


 
rc_insidestories
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    Jurors may have opened the door to a new trial in a Maryland school bullying case by saying they returned a verdict for the defense because they were afraid of setting a bad precedent for school systems throughout the country.
    Read more...
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  • Mortician Sued for Speaking Ill of the Dead

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  • Jury Finds No Harm to Boy From Wrongful Circumcision

    In a blow to supporters of male “genital integrity,” an Indiana jury has ruled that a doctor did not injure a boy by circumcising him when he was an infant even though his mother wanted him to be left intact.
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  • Guest Can Sue Motel 6 Over Attack by Woman's Pimp

    A guest who paid for sex with a prostitute at a Motel 6 did not assume the risk of being attacked several hours later by the prostitute's pimp, a Pennsylvania judge has ruled in an unusual premises liability lawsuit against the motel operator.
    Read more...
RC_OnFile

Marsh v. Air Tran Airways
Subject: Roaches on a plane
Document: Complaint

Classic Media v. J.G. Wentworth
Subject: "Lassie" copyright
Document: Complaint

Kardashian v. Old Navy
Subject: Publicity rights
Document: Complaint

McKee v. Laurion
Subject: Doctor defamation
Document: Opinion

Francis v. U.S.
Subject: Bear attack
Document: Decision

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RC_OnTrial

Doe v. Discovery Day Care
Court: Miami-Dade Circuit
Subject: Child molestation
Verdict: $3,000,000

Hoback v. City of Chattanooga
Court: USDC, E. Tenn.
Subject: PTSD discrimination
Verdict: $680,000

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RC_OnTheDocket

Brown v. Herbert
Date: 12/16/11
Court: USDC, Utah
Hearing: Motion to dismiss polygamy case

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