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Court hearing gay marriage arguments from 4 states
Legal Topics |
2014/08/06 18:09
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A federal appeals court was set to hear arguments Wednesday in six gay marriage fights from four states — Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee - in the biggest such session on the issue so far.
Three judges of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati will consider arguments that pit states' rights and traditional, conservative values against what plaintiffs' attorneys say is a fundamental right to marry under the U.S. Constitution. Large demonstrations are expected outside the courthouse by both opponents and supporters.
Michigan's and Kentucky's cases stem from rulings striking down each state's gay marriage bans. Ohio's case deals only with the state's recognition of out-of-state gay marriages, while Tennessee's is narrowly focused on the rights of three same-sex couples.
Attorneys on both sides in the Michigan and Ohio cases will go first and get a half-hour each to make their cases. Kentucky and Tennessee will follow, with 15 minutes for each side from both states.
A handful of people were at the courthouse Wednesday before it opened to reserve a seat in an overflow room for the hearing, including Frank Colasonti Jr., 61, of Birmingham, Michigan, who said he camped outside the building overnight.
Colasonti said he and his partner of 26 years married this year in Michigan, before a court order halted marriages pending the state's appeal. |
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Insurance Litigation Law Firm Clark & Fox Launches New Website
Attorney News |
2014/08/01 20:44
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John M. Clark, Michael Fox, Georgia S. Foerstner and Erin Nulty are pleased to announce the formation and opening of Clark & Fox (www.clarkfoxlaw.com) , a law firm solely serving and representing the insurance industry. Patrick J Reilly, III and Megan Foster join them as associates, and Scott Patterson as Of Counsel. Clark & Fox brings over 80 years of collective experience in representing and servicing the insurance industry, including doing so in complex liability defense matters, reinsurance/coverage cases and investigating and prosecuting insurance fraud for state and local law enforcement. All of the attorneys also have its extensive and intimate knowledge of the London insurance market. Founders John M. Clark and Michael Fox both participated in the Secondee Counsel Program with Lloyd’s of London syndicates serving as in-house counsel.
"I am thrilled to start a company with these attorneys and staff,” says co-founder, President and CEO John M. Clark. "The strong insurance background of attorneys and staff demonstrate a penchant for helping insurance companies of all sizes both domestically and internationally with all of their needs. We truly appreciate and understand through all of our experience the insurance industry’s unique needs and we can assist and partner with them to achieve their goals in an efficient and cost effective manner."
Although its main offices will be based in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, the firm will have a national presence with offices also located in New York City, Cleveland Ohio and Maryland\Washington DC. The firm will be solely focused on representing and servicing the insurance industry. The firm provides practical and efficient solutions to the legal issues faced by insurance carriers of all sizes in today's complex and fast-paced litigation friendly environment.
Whether the need is for Clark & Fox team to represent an insured in a complex liability manner or provide counseling and advice on a complicated reinsurance or insurance coverage issue, our experience and expertise in insurance leveraged with our state of the art technology allows us to be flexible to meet our clients needs. We partner with our clients and leverage our industry knowledge, contacts and technology to provide effective and business oriented counseling in ways that often go beyond traditional legal advice. In addition, we are also there if our clients need us to vigorously defend and represent their interests in complex and contentious litigation.
Its co-founder, President and Chief Executive Officer, John M. Clark, will lead the firm. Georgia S. Foerstner, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the firm's attorneys and staff.
For more information about Clark & Fox please visit www.clarkfoxlaw.com. Also, you may contact any of the partners as follows:
John M. Clark jclark@clarkfoxlaw.com or 856-288-2403
Michael Fox at mfox@clarkfoxlaw.com or 856-345-0374
Georgia S. Foerstner at gfoerstner@clarkfoxlaw.com or 856-345-0377
Erin Nulty enulty@clarkfoxlaw.com or 856-432-1570
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German court receives suit against EU bank union
Legal Topics |
2014/07/29 21:00
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A group of German professors has filed a complaint to the country's highest court against the European Union's plans to create a so-called banking union, a central part of the effort to make the continent's financial system more resilient.
The Federal Constitutional Court said Monday it had received the complaint. It wasn't clear when the court might rule; verdicts on previous attempts to block measures meant to stem Europe's debt crisis took at least several months.
The group behind the complaint says the banking union "has no legal basis in the European treaties."
It objects to handing the European Central Bank direct supervision of the eurozone's biggest lenders with binding powers over national authorities, and opposes plans for a separate authority with the power to dissolve or restructure failing banks. |
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Brown appoints legal affairs aide to appeals court
Legal Topics |
2014/07/29 20:59
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Gov. Jerry Brown has named a senior aide to become an associate justice on the Sacramento-based Third District Court of Appeal.
Brown announced the appointment of Jonathan Renner on Friday.
The 44-year-old Democrat from Sacramento has been Brown's legal affairs secretary since 2011.
He was senior assistant attorney general at the California Department of Justice from 2009 to 2010, when Brown was the state's attorney general. Renner previously held other high-ranking positions within the attorney general's office.
The appointment requires confirmation by the Commission on Judicial Appointments. It includes the current attorney general, Kamala Harris, and Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye ("TAWNY canTILL SOCK-a-OO-ay").
If confirmed, Renner will begin his term Jan. 5. He would fill the vacancy created when Cantil-Sakauye moved to the California Supreme Court. |
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Montana court sends wind farm clash to California
Legal Topics |
2014/07/22 20:52
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A dispute over a Montana wind farm's potential to harm nearby nesting eagles and other birds should be heard in California, the Montana Supreme Court said Friday, in an opinion that deals a legal setback to the project's developers.
The legal row over the Rim Rock wind farm near Cut Bank began last year, when San Diego Gas & Electric accused developer NaturEner of concealing the possibility that eagles and other birds could be harmed by the 126-turbine project.
NaturEner, whose parent company is based in Spain, filed a competing lawsuit in Montana. Its attorneys alleged SDG&E was trying to get out of an unfavorable contract and using the eagle issue as an excuse.
The Rim Rock wind farm is near an area with seven golden eagle nests and Montana's densest concentration of ferruginous hawks. Under federal law, a take permit is required for activities that could injure, kill or otherwise harm protected birds such as eagles.
SDG&E alleges federal officials recommended to NaturEner that the wind farm needed such a permit. NaturEner has denied the claim.
Montana District Judge Brenda Gilbert ruled in May that the case should be heard in Montana because of Rim Rock's importance to the economies of Glacier and Toole counties. She also issued an injunction requiring the utility to pay NaturEner nearly $2 million a month. |
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German court: chronically ill could grow marijuana
Areas of Focus |
2014/07/22 20:52
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Some Germans may soon be able to grow their own marijuana to relieve chronic pain after a ruling from a court in Cologne.
The Cologne administrative court ruled Tuesday in favor of three plaintiffs who had sued for the right to grow marijuana for therapeutic purposes, sending the cases back to the government agency responsible for approving medical marijuana products.
The court says the three demonstrated they could not combat their pain any other way and could not afford to purchase medical marijuana, which is permitted in Germany but not usually covered by the country's health insurance system.
The court also stipulated that allowing marijuana cultivation should depend upon a "thorough and individual" examination of each case, and rejected two other claims. |
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Apple wins EU court case on store design trademark
Legal Business |
2014/07/11 18:05
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The European Union's highest court says Apple's characteristic retail store layout may be registered as a trademark.
The Court of Justice on Thursday overturned a decision by German patent authorities which last year rejected an application to grant copyright protection to Apple's store design — parallel lines of big tables with electronic gadgets spread out on them under a high ceiling.
The Luxembourg-based EU Court said a design pattern like Apple's "may constitute a trademark provided that it is capable of distinguishing the goods or services of one undertaking" from others.
The case will go back for a final decision to Germany's highest patent court which had sought the EU judges' advice.
Apple Inc. successfully registered its store layout as a trademark in the United States in 2010. |
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