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Strauss-Kahn has March court date in US
Lawyer Blog News |
2012/02/23 15:38
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A New York court has scheduled a hearing on a lawsuit filed by the woman who accused former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn of sexually assaulting her in a Manhattan hotel.
Prosecutors dropped criminal charges against Strauss-Kahn last year, but his accuser has demanded damages in civil court.
The March 15 hearing will deal with issues that must be resolved before a trial, which has yet to be scheduled.
Strauss-Kahn wants the lawsuit dismissed because he says he had diplomatic immunity. He isn't required to attend the March court session.
The hotel maid who says she was attacked and forcibly sodomized by Strauss-Kahn is Nafissatou Diallo (na-fee-SAH'-too dee-AH'-loh). Her lawyer, Kenneth Thompson, says she is "looking forward to her day in court and can't wait to get to trial." |
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Apple defends use of iPad name in Chinese court
Business Law Info |
2012/02/22 17:39
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Apple defended its right to use the iPad trademark in China in a heated court hearing Wednesday that pitted the electronics giant against a struggling company that denies it sold the mainland China rights to the tablet's name.
Shenzhen Proview Technology's lawyer Xie Xianghui argued that the sale of the iPad trademark to Apple Inc. by Proview's Taiwan affiliate in 2009 was invalid.
"Apple has no right to sell iPads under that name," Xie said. Apple countered that Proview violated the sales contract by failing to transfer the trademark rights in mainland China.
It also contends that the Chinese LCD maker has not marketed or sold its own "IPAD," or Internet Personal Access Device for years, thus possibly invalidating its claim to the trademark.
The hearing adjourned after a fractious four-hour session which saw the judge repeatedly admonishing both sides to observe proper court protocol as they argued across the courtroom. No date was announced for a judgment or further hearings.
Proview is suing to stop Apple selling the iPad in China under that name. It has also asked commercial authorities in many cities to stop sales of the device. So far, iPads have been pulled from shelves in some Chinese cities but there has been no sign of action at the national level. |
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Gay marriage on hold in California
Court Feed News |
2012/02/22 17:39
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Same-sex marriage was on hold in California after opponents petitioned a federal appeals court Tuesday to review a split decision by three of its judges that struck down a voter-approved measure that limited marriage to a man and woman.
Lawyers for the religious and legal groups asked the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to rehear the 2-1 decision that declared the ban, known as Proposition 8, to be a violation of the civil rights of gay and lesbian Californians.
If they had not sought reconsideration, the three judges could have ordered the ruling to take effect in another seven days, clearing the way for same-sex marriages to resume in the state.
Instead, same-sex marriages will remain on hold at least until the 9th Circuit decides to accept or reject the rehearing petition. The court does not face a deadline for doing so.
"This gives the entire 9th Circuit a chance to correct this anomalous decision by just two judges overturning the vote of seven million Californians," said Andy Pugno, general counsel for the Protect Marriage coalition.
Legal experts said supporters of the ban could be exhausting all their options before trying to take the case to the Supreme Court. Some experts said the 9th Circuit does not often reverse the decisions of member judges. |
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Court says police cannot be sued over warrant
Lawyer Blog News |
2012/02/22 17:38
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The Supreme Court said Wednesday that California police officers cannot be sued because they used a warrant that may have been defective to search a woman's house.
The high court threw out the lawsuit against Los Angeles County Sheriff's Detective Curt Messerschmidt and other police officials, who were being sued personally by Augusta Millender for the search on her house and confiscation of her shotgun.
Police were looking for her foster son, Jerry Ray Bowen, who had recently shot at his ex-girlfriend with a black sawed-off shotgun. She told police that he may be at his foster mother's house, so Messerschmidt got a warrant to look for any weapons on the property and gang-related material, since Bowen was supposed to be a member of the Mona Park Crips and the Dodge Park Crips. The detective had his supervisors approve the warrant before submitting to the district attorney and a judge, who also approved the warrant. |
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Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP Files Class Action
Class Action News |
2012/02/22 12:39
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Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP today announced that a class action has been commenced in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on behalf of purchasers of BioSante Pharmaceuticals, Inc. securities during the period between February 8, 2010 and December 15, 2011.
If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than 60 days from February 6, 2012. If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests, please contact plaintiff’s counsel, Darren Robbins of Robbins Geller at 800/449-4900 or 619/231-1058, or via e-mail at djr@rgrdlaw.com. If you are a member of this class, you can view a copy of the complaint as filed or join this class action online at http://www.rgrdlaw.com/cases/biosante/. Any member of the putative class may move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff through counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member.
The complaint charges BioSante and its Chief Executive Officer with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. BioSante is a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing products for female sexual health and oncology.
The complaint alleges that during the Class Period, defendants issued materially false and misleading statements regarding the commercial viability, effectiveness, and market potential for LibiGel, a drug designed to improve the sex drive of women suffering from female sexual dysfunction, and specifically hypoactive sexual desire disorder (“HSDD”). Defendants boasted about LibiGel’s efficacy over placebo in clinical trials, and provided supposedly concrete “data” regarding the drug’s “statistically significant” effect on increasing the “number of satisfying sexual events” for women suffering from HSDD. As a result of these false statements, BioSante’s stock traded at artificially inflated prices during the Class Period, reaching a high of $3.81 on July 12, 2011.
On December 14, 2011, BioSante issued a press release disclosing for the first time to investors that LibiGel failed to yield positive results in large-scale efficacy tests designed by the Company. According to the clinical trial results, women treated with LibiGel did not experience a statistically significant increase in either total satisfying sexual encounters or sexual desire. In fact, in the double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, LibiGel did not fare significantly better than the placebo. On this news, BioSante’s stock collapsed $1.64 per share to close at $0.48 per share on December 15, 2011, a one-day decline of 77% on volume of nearly 50 million shares.
According to the complaint, the true facts, which were known by the defendants but concealed from the investing public during the Class Period, were as follows: (a) LibiGel’s efficacy was well short of that required to obtain FDA approval; and (b) LibiGel failed to yield statistically superior results to placebo.
Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of all purchasers of BioSante securities during the Class Period (the “Class”). The plaintiff is represented by Robbins Geller, which has expertise in prosecuting investor class actions and extensive experience in actions involving financial fraud.
Robbins Geller, a 180-lawyer firm with offices in San Diego, San Francisco, New York, Boca Raton, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and Atlanta, is active in major litigations pending in federal and state courts throughout the United States and has taken a leading role in many important actions on behalf of defrauded investors, consumers, and companies, as well as victims of human rights violations.
www.rgrdlaw.com |
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Law Firm Brower Piven Announces Investigation
Law Firm News |
2012/02/21 17:57
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The law firm of Brower Piven, A Professional Corporation, has commenced an investigation into possible breaches of fiduciary duty to current shareholders of CH Energy Group, Inc. and other violations of state law by the board of directors of CH Energy Group relating to the proposed acquisition of the company by Fortis Inc. The firm's investigation seeks to determine, among other things, whether the board breached its fiduciary duties by failing to maximize shareholder value.
On February 21, 2012, Fortis announced that it had entered into an agreement providing for Fortis to acquire CH Energy Group for $1.5 billion. Under the terms of the merger agreement, CH Energy Group shareholders will receive $65.00 for each share of CH Energy Group common stock held. However, according to Yahoo! Finance, at least one analyst has set a high price target of $69.00 per share.
If you currently own shares of CH Energy Group and would like to learn more about the investigation being conducted by Brower Piven, you may email or call Brower Piven, who will, without obligation or cost to you, attempt to answer your questions.
www.browerpiven.com |
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