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It’s probably safe to say that in March 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic forced so many of us to quickly transition to working from home full time, we didn’t expect to be continuing to do so a year and a half later. For many of us, the pandemic has significantly changed where and how we work, as well as how we handle stress. In September and October 2020, the American Bar Association surveyed more than 4,000 members – one of the most extensive surveys the organization has ever conducted....

If at first you don’t succeed, don’t try again? A pair of brothers, Daniel and David LaDeau, allegedly exchanged coded messages while David was in jail. The messages contained information on how to obtain and conceal child pornography. Police obtained a warrant and searched Daniel’s home, where they found USB flash drives containing child pornography. Daniel was charged with one count of possessing child pornography (18 U.S.C. § 2252A(a)(5)(A)), an offense which carried up to 10 years in prison....

District court’s conviction of defendant for knowingly and intentionally possessing with intent to distribute drugs and 120-month sentence is affirmed where: 1) there was no Speedy Trial Act violation as the district court did not err in construing the government’s motion to set a trial date as a motion to continue; and 2) district court did not clearly err in determining that the defendant was ineligible for safety-valve relief and in applying the enhanced sentence, as it found the defendant to be a leader or organizer of the crime....

Conviction of defendant for possession of crack cocaine with intent to distribute is affirmed where: 1) district court did not err in denying defendant’s motion for judgment of acquittal as there was sufficient evidence to support the jury’s verdict that he possessed the intent to distribute; 2) the district court did not abuse its discretion in denying defendant’s motion for a new trial as the admission of a cooperating witness’s written plea agreement as evidence of the witness’s credibility is left to the district court’s discretion; and 3) imposition of the mandatory minimum sentence did not violate defendant’s rights to due process and equal protection of the law....

In a child pornography prosecution, denial of defendant’s motion to dismiss the charges is affirmed where the crime of receiving child pornography codified at 18 U.S.C. section 2252A(a)(2)(A) does not include intent to distribute among its elements. Read US v. Olander, No. 08-30180 Appellate Information Argued and Submitted May 5, 2009 Filed July 15, 2009 Judges Opinion by Judge Fletcher Counsel For Appellant: Amy Baggio, Federal Public Defender’s Office, Portland, OR...

Bloomberg reports that a Walmart class action lawsuit brought has settled for $40 million for hourly workers of the big box chain who claim that Walmart’s upper management forced them to work off the clock, cut their breaks short, or did not grant them breaks at all. The lawsuit, which took place in a trial court in Woburn, MA (made famous by the book/movie A Civil Action) is one of 60 wage/hour lawsuits against the retailing giant....

While the thought of eating Seabiscuit is probably revolting to you, as evidenced by the general uproar surrounding the Ikea horse meat meatball scare, many people around the world eat horse meat. The U.S. was poised to export horse meat to other countries including China, Russia, and Mexico but now a twist of legal events has put the plan on hold, reports Reuters. Funding for the inspection of horse slaughter plants was banned in 2006, and continued until 2011, when Congress omitted language for the ban in a USDA funding bill, according to The New York Times....

1. Why Startups Should Never Rush to Launch 2. What to Include in a Startup Prenup 3. Can Your Former Job Sue You for Starting Your Startup? 4. 5 Standard Legal Documents Every Startup Needs 5. Does Your Startup Need a Legal Department? Related Resources: Find Business & Commercial Lawyers Near You (FindLaw’s Lawyer Directory) Top 5 Contract Tips for Your Startup (FindLaw’s Free Enterprise) How to Straighten Out Your Startup Financials (FindLaw’s Free Enterprise) What’s the Opposite of a Unicorn?...

Alaska filed suit against the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) for squashing plans to seismically search for oil and gas in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. In a complaint filed Friday in federal district court in Alaska, the Land of the Midnight Sun charged the DOI (and Sally Jewell in her official capacity as Secretary of the Interior) with improperly rejecting an oil and natural gas investigation plan in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), reports the Courthouse News Service....

In re: Kalikow, No. 08-5268, involved creditors’ appeal from the district court’s affirmance of the bankruptcy court’s order granting former debtors’ motion to reopen Chapter 11 proceedings, impose sanctions against creditors, and award costs and fees to debtors. The Second Circuit affirmed in part on the grounds that 1) proper service on creditors’ law firm constituted proper service on them; and 2) the district court did not err in concluding that the debtor’s Enforcement Motion did not seek a new injunction but, rather, sought to enforce an injunction already in place – one that was created by sections 1141 and 524 of the Bankruptcy Code and the express terms of the Plan and Confirmation Order....

When the Chicago Teachers Union strike started Monday, teachers no longer had to worry about getting arrested for lingering in areas where “disorderly conduct” was occurring. That’s because the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals had just enjoined a Chicago ordinance which criminalized a person’s refusal to leave a scene of disorderly conduct when asked by a police officer. In 2008, Plaintiff Buddy Bell protested Operation Iraqi Freedom on the corner of Dearborn Street and Jackson Boulevard in downtown Chicago....

Federal prosecutors might look past pot dispensaries in Colorado, but the “tax man never will.” This was the conclusion of Tenth Circuit Court Judge Neil Gorsuch who assumed a rather sympathetic tone when addressing the Colorado pot dispensaries. “Maybe we’re missing something,” he said. “Maybe a future party will show us what it is we’re missing.” What cases like this aren’t missing is a maddening inconsistency in spirit between state and federal law....

Kovacic v. Cuyahoga County Dep’t of Children & Family Serv., No. 08-4656, concerned a suit brought by plaintiff-mother on behalf of herself and her minor children claiming that her constitutional rights were violated when social workers, aided by police officers, entered her home by force and removed her children. In affirming the judgment of the district court in part, the court held that the district court correctly ruled that all of plaintiff’s claims are time barred....

The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals is looking to fill a vacancy for Bankruptcy Judge, according to an announcement on the Court’s website. Specifically, the court is looking for candidates to apply for the position of Federal Bankruptcy Judge for the Western District of Missouri. The position starts in January 2013, but applications are being accepted now. The judgeship is for a 14-year term. Interestingly, you don’t have to be a bankruptcy attorney to apply for this position....

Pennsylvanians upset about having to stay at home due to COVID-19 can get out their party hats, thanks to a decision by a federal judge. U.S. District Judge William Stickman IV, a Trump appointee, has ruled that Governor Tom Wolf’s emergency orders regarding the coronavirus violate residents’ rights under the First and Fourteenth Amendments. The decision overturns the state’s stay-at-home order, restrictions on gatherings, and closing of “non-life-sustaining” businesses. The mandatory mask order remains in place....

Even the ivory towers of the Ivy League are not immune from perverts. In his second appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, a former Wharton professor’s sentence, for charges related to child pornography, was affirmed, reports the University’s paper The Daily Pennsylvanian. Former Wharton professor Lawrence Scott Ward was arrested at Dulles International Airport, on August 27, 2006, after a routine check revealed that he possessed child pornography....

Walter Shuker had a complicated hip replacement surgery. It wasn’t just the total replacement of his hip that was complicated. It was the device – an apparatus comprised of a metal head, metal sleeve, a stem connecting the metal head to the thigh bone, a metal liner, etc. Together, the pieces created a “metal-on-metal articulation.” That’s where his post-operative pain began and a subsequent lawsuit emerged in Shuker v. Smith and Nephew....

Legend has it that the Persians invented the hookah many centuries ago. In that time, the design has changed little. The base holds water, the stem leads to a tobacco bowl, where tobacco and coals create smoke. A hose, connected near the base, uses suction to pull smoke from the tobacco, through the water, and back through the hose, where it is inhaled. Hookahs come in all shapes and sizes, from mini-hookahs (which look like massively oversized smokers’ pipes) to insanely elaborate works of art....

The makers of the brand name pharmaceuticals Lipitor and Effexor XR were dealt a significant loss in the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in a consolidated antitrust case appeal. Drug makers Pfizer and Ranbaxy, as well as their affiliates, plan to continue to fight this matter out. The In re: Lipitor Antitrust Litigation appeal overturned a district court’s dismissal of two separate complaints against each drug’s respective maker. The thrust of both cases involved reverse payment settlement agreements which were alleged to be anticompetitive and attempts at creating a monopoly....

Today was opening day at SCOTUS and the first case the Court heard oral arguments on was Madigan v. Levin. And in what might be the first upset of the season, this case may not even be decided at all. MORE COVERAGE: What Will the Fourth Amendment Mean After Fernandez? (Cal. Case Law) McCullen v. Coakley: Abortion Buffer Zone Case Before SCOTUS (1st Cir.) Galloway v. Town of Greece: Town Prayers and the Establishment of Religion (2nd Cir....