Overlawyered.com May 6-June 1

[Walter Olson]

http://www.overlawyered.com

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LIST MOVE REMINDER

Just a reminder: early last month we moved the Overlawyered announcement
list from Topica over to Google Groups. The changeover seems to have gone
pretty smoothly, but we encourage feedback or suggestions about any
problems the move may have caused: email editor at [overlawyered - dot -
com]. Thanks for bearing with us!

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New since the last update:

* Detroit jury votes $10.6 million to woman made ill by co-worker's
perfume (May 25)

* Spanish regulators demand that company execs file regular reports
identifying their mistresses and paramours, as safeguard against insider
trading (May 17)

* Meet Clarence Stowers, who found employee's severed finger and refused
to return it to owner -- why give up good evidence? (May 9)

* Ted reports from London: smart cars and escalator speeds (May 16); hot
cocoa temperatures (May 24); and hot tea ditto (May 31)

* Claim: depiction of elephant-god Ganesh on beer label is hate crime
against Hindus (May 13)

* Readers weigh in on laminated glass, a factor in recent megaverdict
against Ford (May 13 & 16); judge refuses to overturn verdict despite
alleged lawyer-juror romantic relationship (May 29)

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HINT about finding stories: most stories mentioned have scrolled down and
off the front page of Overlawyered. Instead, they can be found via the
archives page(s), such as (for May entries):

http://www.overlawyered.com/archives/2005_05.html

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* Digital evidence in Wendy's case (May 16, May 18)

* An army of busybodies, from both political parties (May 13)

* When is sex negligent? (May 18)

* British medical journal calls for ban on long, pointy kitchen knives
(May 27)

* Disabled docs demanding more time on medical boards, lighter patient
schedules (May 22)

* Batch of reader letters on the death penalty, fen-phen fraud, gamblers
suing casinos, pharmacists' rights (May 11)

* Financier Ronald Perelman wins $1.4 billion in suit against Morgan
Stanley (May 18)

* Religious litigation and one-way fee shifting (May 31)

* Crustless PB&J follow-up (May 31); patent troll-be-gone? (May 9)

* Trying to rate charter air services' safety? Prepare to get sued (May 12)

* Study finds retaining lawyer linked to slower recovery from injury (May 20)

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If you're not keeping up with Point of Law, the Manhattan Institute website
on litigation, you're missing daily commentaries from Walter Olson, Ted
Frank and others on dozens of hot topics in the law, including asbestos,
medical malpractice, law of the workplace, corporate governance,
international law and much more. Not to mention humor and outrage. Check it
out today: http://www.pointoflaw.com/ .

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* Enter land with forbidden vehicle, then your survivors can sue (May 27)

* Dog kills cat, cat's owner awarded $45,000 (May 10)

* Harvard law prof vs. kids' art studio in court (May 6)

* Defensive medicine? Yes, there's tons of it (Jun. 1); his patient lived
-- so she sued him (May 10); lots of new medical posts at Point of Law (May 25)

* NYT unfairly assails Janice Rogers Brown on harassment ruling (May 30)

* I hereby waive my rights to sue over the inherent risks of
cookie-decorating... (May 8)

* Updates: Title IX and staggered sports schedules (May 7); Mississippi
fen-phen (May 8); S.F. plan to regulate blogs is dead (May 20); gasoline
underpricing (May 21); feds' tobacco suit (May 22); alienation-of-affection
laws (May 22);

* What? You mean the city doesn't have to pay for that drunk driver's
injury to his passenger? (May 24)

* ADA filing mills arrive in Sacramento (May 31)

* Court is asked: can you stop them beaming rays at my head? (Jun. 1)

* Fraudulent flora: Calif. officials say endangered flower was planted on
purpose by someone who wanted to stop development project (May 25)

* They call it estoppel: court says man can't argue two sides of same case
in successive proceedings to extract maximum cash (May 24)

* 2004's most bizarre employment lawsuits (May 12)

* * * * * * * Now in paperback! * * * * * * * * * *

Our editor's book The Rule of Lawyers, on mass tort litigation from guns to
asbestos to fast food, is now available in paperback with a newly written
afterword. Robert Lenzner in Forbes.com calls the book "a truly gripping
read about tort lawyers...a brilliant expose of the way courts are being
overwhelmed by mass tort actions." Order from Amazon (cut and paste URL if
necessary):

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0312331193/overlawyerecomam/002-0147859-7732817

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* No joy in DOJ-ville: Arthur Andersen conviction overturned (Jun. 1)

* Swim club wins big assumption-of-risk case, and other news of UK
recreation (May 22)

* Researchers surprised at rate at which preschoolers get expelled;
liability fears are one factor (May 18)

* Russian court: astrologer can sue NASA over its plans to bombard a comet
(May 19)

* Great moments in law firms' email boilerplate (May 9, May 17)

* Federal prosecutors probe silica/asbestos fraud (May 19)

* Opportunities for guestbloggers (May 12); blogosphere comings and goings
(Jun. 1)

* All sorts of food from bread to almonds to prune juice contain small
amounts of naturally occurring carcinogen -- so Calif. officials say all
should carry warning labels (May 26)

* Plus: Phila. judges bearing checks; students' dance performance; parody
in The Onion; lawyer's $300K "success bonus" in divorce mediation; "South
Park Conservatives"; Grand Rounds XXXVI; federalism and consistency; Evan
Schaeffer; bankruptcy forum-shopping; Mother's Day family-law-horror
special; bogus criminal charges; church and state; Norwegian employees'
porn-surfing; prosecuted over hospital infections?; "Brand Name Bullies";
and more.

http://www.overlawyered.com

[Walter Olson]