Return to main website

Jury finds racism in deputy’s case;

October 17, 2008

Black supervisors in the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department were acting out of racism when they called a group of Latino deputies the “Mexican Mafia” and disciplined a member, jurors found Thursday.

Angel Jaimes, a 19-year veteran of the department, was harassed because of his Mexican origin by his supervisors, who, according to testimony, said the station “was run by Mexicans and they were going to change that,” the panel concluded.

Read full article LexisOne

Big Wave of Layoffs Hits Heller

Today is the last day for most of the remaining Heller Ehrman staff, a source confirmed on Thursday.

Affected employees were notified by a Thursday morning e-mail, which was obtained by The Recorder and which was widely posted on the Internet. The e-mail from the dissolution committee was largely the same as an e-mail sent out last Friday, when at least 100 employees were laid off. While it is unclear how many employees are being laid off today, employees in the firm estimate the number to be in the hundreds.

The e-mail said that staff would receive health insurance through the end of the month, but it is unclear whether insurance for current or former employees will continue beyond that point.

Read full story Law.com

US cutbacks continue as Chicago duo cut 80 jobs

The US legal market faced another round of job cuts this week as Chicago duo Katten Muchin Rosenman and Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal laid off more than 40 associates, reports The National Law Journal.

Katten this week confirmed the loss of 21 associates and counsel “across multiple offices and practices,” firm spokeswoman Tasneem Goodman said. No adjustments are being made to the first-year associate class and no legal staff members were laid off, she said.

“This measure was taken to further improve the firm’s efficiency, to allow for the continued growth of its associates and to ensure the firm’s long-term success,” Goodman said in the statement. “The firm’s financial performance remains strong despite the current economic downturn.”

Read full story Legal Week

Renzi Legal Battle

Representative Rick Renzi is facing extortion charges, among other things. I’m sure many of you have heard about this. Renzi’s legal team is arguing an interesting separation of powers concept. AZ Central article has the story:

“FBI wiretapped Renzi; lawyers challenge legality”
by Dennis Wagner – Oct. 17, 2008, The Arizona Republic

U.S. Rep. Rick Renzi was wiretapped by one of his former aides during a federal investigation into a land deal that led to the third-term Arizona congressman’s indictment on extortion and other charges.

The role of that congressional staffer and others is disclosed in a motion filed by Renzi’s attorneys, who seek to have much of the government’s evidence thrown out because they say the FBI violated constitutional shields protecting lawmakers from interference in their official actions.

The U.S. District Court motion says Joanne Keene, Renzi’s former legislative director, cooperated with the FBI by secretly recording phone conversations with her ex-boss concerning the land transaction.

Read Full Article AZ Central