Police officers are entitled to immunity for conducting a search under a broad search warrant, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled. The warrant authorized a search for gang-related materials and all guns, though police were investigating a shooting involving a sawed-off shotgun used in a domestic dispute, according to the majority opinion (PDF) by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. The suspect, Jerry Ray Bowen, was accused of firing five shots at his ex-girlfriend as she sped away in her car. Bowen was allegedly enraged because the girlfriend had asked police to accompany her so she could retrieve her belongings. Police weren’t there at the crucial time, however,…

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Police officers are entitled to immunity for conducting a search under a broad search warrant, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled. The warrant authorized a search for gang-related materials and all guns, though police were investigating a shooting involving a sawed-off shotgun used in a domestic dispute, according to the majority opinion (PDF) by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. The suspect, Jerry Ray Bowen, was accused of firing five shots at his ex-girlfriend as she sped away in her car. Bowen was allegedly enraged because the girlfriend had asked police to accompany her so she could retrieve her belongings. Police weren’t there at the crucial time, however,…

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The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled against the state of Montana after diving into a riverbed rights dispute. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote the opinion (PDF) for a unanimous court favoring a company that operates hydroelectric dams on three rivers in the state: the Missouri, the Madison and Clark Fork. Montana had asserted it owned the disputed riverbeds, entitling it to at least $41 million in rent from the company, PPL Montana. The energy company had been paying rent to the federal government. The Montana Supreme Court had granted summary judgment to the state, but the U.S. Supreme Court reversed…

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The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled against the state of Montana after diving into a riverbed rights dispute. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote the opinion (PDF) for a unanimous court favoring a company that operates hydroelectric dams on three rivers in the state: the Missouri, the Madison and Clark Fork. Montana had asserted it owned the disputed riverbeds, entitling it to at least $41 million in rent from the company, PPL Montana. The energy company had been paying rent to the federal government. The Montana Supreme Court had granted summary judgment to the state, but the U.S. Supreme Court reversed in an opinion that…

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If you’d like to thwart Google’s plans to combine your online browsing history with data gathered from the company’s other products, the Electronic Frontier Foundation is offering some help. Google plans to begin combining your data into a single cauldron on March 1. On that date, the search engine will combine your Web history with information gathered from products such as YouTube and Google Plus to create advertising and targeted reminders. The information can reveal sensitive information such as your interests, sexual orientation, religion and health concerns, EFF says. EFF is offering step-by-step instructions on how to delete your Web…

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A law professor at Chapman University in California who was known for gay rights advocacy died Friday in a fall from a six-story parking structure in Irvine. Mary Katherine Baird Darmer was 47. A spokesperson for the Orange County Coroner’s office said the death was a suicide, the Orange County Register reports. Darmer, who taught criminal procedure, was known for her opposition to discrimination based on gender and sexual orientation. In online comments, her students remembered her as a caring person who was both a mentor and excellent teacher. After receiving her her law degree from Columbia University, Darmer clerked…

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City officials in San Antonio have created an animal court to crack down on pet owners accused of acting irresponsibly. The court may be unique in the United States, the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) reports. The court hears cases that weren’t getting much attention in municipal courts, as prosecutors target pet owners over dog bites, stray animals and failure to register and vaccinate their furry friends. But some critics say the city is wasting money prosecuting small offenses, the story says. In its first 10 months of existence, the court has collected more than $250,000 in fines. According to…

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Legal fees for former executives of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have totaled $109 million since 2004, and taxpayers are advancing the money. A report by the inspector general of the Federal Housing Finance Agency says contracts calling for payment of the fees could have been repudiated when Fannie and Freddie were taken over in 2008, the New York Times reports. The agreements remain, however. Though the contracts provide that the legal fees must be repaid if courts rule against the executives, it’s unlikely they would be able to repay such large amounts, the Times says. Fees for just three…

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A New York state lawyer who became separated from his hiking party on Mount Marcy in the Adirondacks has been rescued after spending nearly 20 hours near the summit. Stephen Mastaitis, 58, was airlifted to a hospital Tuesday morning and is in good condition, report the Albany Times Union, the Press-Republican and Lake Placid News. The search for Mastaitis had been called off more than eight hours earlier because of severe weather conditions. The wind chill during his overnight stay on the mountain was near 20 below, the Press-Republican says. Rescuers were able to determine Mastaitis’ location based on cellphone…

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A federal judge has dismissed a lawyer’s suit against two ex-girlfriends that claims their online statements about him interfered with his legal career. Matthew Couloute Jr. had sued former roller derby queen Stacey Blitsch and another ex for their posts about him at liarscheatersrus.com. The online rants had claimed Couloute is a cheating “scum” who dumped his girlfriends. Last Friday, U.S. District Judge Harold Baer tossed the case, ruling that the women’s statements were opinion and “clearly hyperbolic,” report the New York Daily News and the New York Post. Couloutte plans to appeal. He told the Daily News that the…

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A law professor is calling for cheaper, practice-oriented law schools in an upcoming book that chronicles the oversupply of newly minted lawyers. The book, by Brian Tamanaha, a law professor at Washington University in St. Louis, has some statistics to illustrate, the New York Times reports at its Opinionator blog. Law schools produce 45,000 new graduates each year, Tamanaha writes, but only 25,000 job openings are projected each year through 2018. The blog summarizes Tamanaha’s arguments in his book, Failing Law Schools. Despite the dearth of jobs for law grads, many people don’t obtain the legal services they need, Tamanaha…

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The Fastcase award-winning mobile legal research application is now synchronized with the Fastcase bar association member benefit along with accounts for law firms and law schools.  Until now, the systems have been separate, so favorites and search history on the phone stayed on the phone while desktop history stayed on the desktop.  Now, with Fastcase [...]

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We live in a world in which computer attacks via the Internet are routine, and many law firms are both particularly inviting targets and especially vulnerable. So determining whether outside counsel has sufficient computer safeguards is a question business clients should routinely ask, according to Corporate Counsel. One expert says 80 major law firms were hacked last year, Bloomberg reports. And in a recent Forbes column, another expert tells a chilling tale of two partners from an unidentified law firm who visit him for advice after discovering that all of their client files have been obtained by China-based hackers. The…

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In a United Kingdom first, the High Court there has agreed to allow a hard-to-locate individual to be served via Facebook in a civil case. Fabio de Biase has been granted 14 days to respond--much more than the norm--to be sure he has enough time to check his Facebook account, reports the Am Law Daily. His former employer, broker TFS Derivatives, is a defendant in a suit brought by investment manager AKO Capital, which claims it has been significantly overcharged. TFS hopes to force de Biase, a derivatives negotiator who managed the relationship between the two companies, to pay a…

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Struck on the head when a heavy piece of camera equipment fell on him as he was attending a music festival with his girlfriend, a Texas lawyer went to the emergency room, got stitched up and initially thought he had simply suffered a flesh wound. Then, a few days after the March 19, 2011 accident, Patrick Fagerberg, now 42, began having difficulty speaking even in short sentences. His emotions change, too, he and his girlfriend say; he was distant with her and made some impulsive decisions that obviously weren't good choices, they tell Texas Lawyer. A well-known figure in Austin…

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A Japanese couple who ran a restaurant in California can be deported because of guilty pleas in a tax case involving underreported corporate income, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled. Akio Kawashima and his wife, Fusako Kawashima, were ordered deported after Akio pleaded guilty to making a false tax return and Fusako pleaded guilty to aiding and assisting preparation of the return. The loss to the government exceeded $10,000. Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the majority opinion (PDF). He said the crimes qualified as an aggravated felony under a provision of the deportation law triggering removal for crimes involving fraud or deceit…

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The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled against a Michigan inmate who contended he should have received a Miranda warning before being interrogated in a prison conference room about sexual conduct with a 12-year-old boy. The court ruled in a 6-3 opinion (PDF) against inmate Randall Lee Fields, who confessed to molestation while incarcerated on a disorderly misconduct charge. The dissenters were Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Stephen G. Breyer. Fields was told he was free to leave the conference room during the interrogation that lasted between five and seven hours, but he was not given a Miranda warning,…

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The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled against a Michigan inmate who contended he should have received a Miranda warning before being interrogated in a prison conference room about sexual conduct with a 12-year-old boy. The court ruled in a 6-3 opinion (PDF) against inmate Randall Lee Fields, who confessed to molestation while incarcerated on a disorderly misconduct charge. The dissenters were Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Stephen G. Breyer. Fields was told he was free to leave the conference room during the interrogation that lasted between five and seven hours, but he was not given a Miranda warning, according to the majority opinion by Justice…

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The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a challenge to race-conscious admissions policies used by the University of Texas. The case is “another election-year blockbuster,” CNN reports. Apparently, the story says, “healthcare reform, illegal immigration crackdowns, voting rights, and TV indecency were not enough” for the high court. The plaintiff, Abigail Fisher, was refused admission under University of Texas policies that determine the bulk of admissions by class rank, and then fill the remaining spots based on academics, personal achievement and race. The New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Texas admissions policy and refused to…

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The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a challenge to race-conscious admissions policies used by the University of Texas. The case is “another election-year blockbuster,” CNN reports. Apparently, the story says, “healthcare reform, illegal immigration crackdowns, voting rights, and TV indecency were not enough” for the high court. The plaintiff, Abigail Fisher, was refused admission under University of Texas policies that determine the bulk of admissions by class rank, and then fill the remaining spots based on academics, personal achievement and race. The New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Texas admissions policy and refused to grant…

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