All bets are off at Betcha.com, a Seattle-based online bookmaker that couldn't skirt the state's gambling laws by making it optional for losing bettors to pay off wagers.

In a unanimous ruling Thursday, the Washington state Supreme Court said Betcha.com qualified as an illegal bookie because it arranged bets and took a percentage of the action as a fee.

Since that definition of professional gambling fits the company's activities, justices said they didn't have to decide whether optional payments by bettors would allow Betcha.com to technically escape the state's gambling restrictions.

"Under the statutory definition of bookmaking, it is immaterial whether or not Betcha users were engaged in gambling activity," Justice Tom Chambers wrote for the court.

In a blog post, Betcha.com founder Nicholas Jenkins said the court's reasoning "didn't pass the giggle test."

"Never in a million years did I expect an opinion like this one," Jenkins wrote. "The court's error is so obvious that I wonder if a single justice even cracked our brief, let alone the Revised Code of Washington."

Washington state allows some forms of non-tribal gambling, including cardrooms that offer poker, blackjack and other games with relatively low stakes. Online gambling and bookmaking fees, however, are specifically outlawed in the state. Internet gambling also is illegal on the federal level.

A federal appeals court has ruled against the Baltimore Ravens and the National Football league in a copyright dispute over the team's original logo.

A divided three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond ruled Thursday that the commercial use of the "Flying B" logo in old game films infringes on amateur artist Frederick Bouchat's copyright.

The panel sent the case back to federal court in Baltimore to determine whether an injunction should be issued.

However, the court says the Ravens can use the logo in a team history display at their headquarters.

A jury ruled in 1998 that the Ravens stole the logo idea from Bouchat, but refused to award damages. The logo was used from 1996 through 1998.

A federal appeals court has denied former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy's request to be released from prison on bond.

The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta turned down Scrushy's request late Tuesday.

Scrushy has served almost three years of a more than six year term for bribery and other charges. He was convicted along with former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman in 2006 in a government corruption case. The court had denied an earlier request from Scrushy that he be released from prison, saying he was a flight risk.

Scrushy had renewed the request in July, saying he is broke and does not have the means to flee.

Tully Rinckey PLLC is pleased to announce that partner Steven L. Herrick has been selected as a 2010 New York Super Lawyer.  Herrick, who also serves as the firm’s Director of Legal Services in Washington, D.C., was recognized for his work in the area of business and corporate law. 

Super Lawyers selects attorneys using a rigorous, multiphase process.  Peer nominations and evaluations are combined with third party research.  Each candidate is evaluated on twelve indicators of peer recognition and professional achievement.  That means that Herrick was hand-picked by his colleagues as an attorney who is well respected in the legal community.

“It’s an honor to be included on this prestigious list,” says Herrick.  “It’s hard enough to find a good lawyer.  This recognition is verification that people who need legal representation have come to the right place.”

Only five-percent of attorneys in Upstate New York are named to the list.  The publication is intended to serve as a guide for consumers researching legal counsel.  There is no connection between advertising dollars and being published on the list.  In fact, Super Lawyers maintains a strict separation between the selection process and advertising. 

With thirty years of experience in all facets of litigation, Steven L. Herrick, Esq., provides representation to clients across a broad spectrum of employment-related matters, corporate and commercial law.  Mr. Herrick is admitted to practice in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal, District of Columbia and Second Circuits and the United States District Courts for Northern, Southern and Eastern Districts of New York.

Supporters of a voter initiative that could help bring cheaper prescription drugs to North Dakota are hoping a legal technicality won't keep them from getting the issue placed on the ballot.

At issue is a state law that requires most pharmacies to have a pharmacist as their majority owner. Those who want it repealed say the change will allow large retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Walgreen Co. to sell cheaper prescription drugs from their own store pharmacies. Opponents fear the measure could drive rural pharmacies out of business.

North Dakota is the only state in the nation with such a law, according to industry officials.

It's not certain whether the voter initiative will land on the ballot. Petitions in support of the measure were circulated without a list of the proposal's sponsors, an apparent violation of the requirements in the state constitution.

An attorney representing the supporters asked the state's Supreme Court on Wednesday to overlook what he called an honest mistake.

A New Jersey man who was a chemist for a suburban Chicago-based paint company has pleaded guilty to stealing trade secrets.

Federal prosecutors say 54-year-old David Yen Lee of Jersey City, N.J., pleaded guilty Wednesday. They say he admits to stealing formulas and information that was valued at up to $20 million. He formerly was a technical director at Valspar Corp.

Prosecutors say Lee stole the information from Valspar as he was preparing to work for a competitor in China. Lee formerly lived in Arlington Heights. Federal officials say he stole secret formulas for paints and coatings from Valspar's offices in Wheeling.