The McLane Law Firm — with offices in Manchester, Portsmouth and Concord as well as Woburn, Mass. — announced the firm has absorbed the Colucci Norman Law Firm, of Beverly, Mass.

John Colucci, William Norman, Larry Plavnik, all corporate lawyers and Andrew Botti, a litigator, join McLane's business-focused firm of more than 90 attorneys, 44 of whom actively serve Massachusetts businesses in some capacity.

"Bringing the Colucci Norman team onboard delivers an opportunity for McLane to establish an immediate and trusted presence within the North Shore business community, a strategic goal we have been working towards for years," said Steven Burke, managing director of the firm's Woburn office.

The addition of these attorneys and associate support staff to McLane's Woburn, Massachusetts office necessitates the second office space expansion within a year at the TradeCenter.

"In a time when most Massachusetts firms are retracting, we're happy to be bucking the trend. McLane has seen a revenue increase of more than 40 percent over the past five years," Burke said. "It goes to show that the breadth and depth of McLane's legal expertise and the fee structure we offer is really taking hold."

A federal appeals court says Philadelphia's two major daily newspapers can deny creditors the right to use about $300 million owed them to bid at an upcoming bankruptcy auction.

Monday's split 2-1 decision upholds a lower court ruling in a bitter dispute for control of The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News.

The panel says the bankruptcy code "unambiguously permits" a debtor to craft any plan that gives lenders a clear equivalent of their secured interest. The opinion says lenders have no statutory right to bid with the company's IOUs.

An auction is set for next month.

A local ownership group — comprised of two current and one new investor — hopes to win the auction with a bid of $67 million in cash and real estate.

In January, 24-year-old Christina Coronado admitted she had stolen more than $30,000 from her former employer, Zimmerman Law Firm in Waco. She claimed the money was spent on her children and bills payments.

In April 2008, Coronado embezzled the money while handling the payments and deposits of the law firm. Police say when she was caught, she quit her job and claimed to be moving away.

Coronado is now on probation for the next 10 years and will be forced to pay back about $31,000.

Connecticut's Supreme Court has ruled in favor of a lawsuit that could lead to major changes in the state's education system and how it is funded.

The decision released Monday says the state constitution promises an education that prepares students for a job or higher education.

The Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education Funding had sued, saying achievement gaps between rich and poor towns showed some students are not receiving an adequate education to prepare them for jobs and adult life.

The decision could force a review of the state's 22-year-old formula for funding schools, which the group says has drastically hurt some towns and their students.

Two women who claimed they were forced to have gynecological exams and others strip-searched in city jails have settled a class-action lawsuit with the city for $33 million.

The suit was filed on behalf of people arrested on misdemeanor drug and weapons charges and strip-searched at Rikers Island and other jails.

Under the agreement, class members can receive between $1,800 and $2,900 each, depending on how many people respond. The plaintiffs who claimed they were forced into gynecological exams are entitled to $20,000 each for their alleged injury and suffering, according to the decision reached last week and finalized Monday.

The case included people arrested, but not convicted, between July 15, 1999 and Oct. 4, 2007. The court has already ruled that the practice violated the prisoners' constitutional rights.