How Towns Can Enforce Rights and Recoup Against Polluters
While most of the environmental contamination cases we have handled for decades involve representing the injured residents of a community against a polluter, more recently, the municipality itself has sought out representation for the harm brought upon the entire town due to the polluted site. When a municipality allows industrial, commercial or retail uses within […]
Enriching Law Firm Culture through Equal Employment
One of my many roles at Locks Law Firm is that of Human Resources Director. Over the last 1-2 years, my responsibilities have grown in this department as I manage our benefits programs, launched a 401K and help manage day-to-day issues with our employees. Prior taking on this role, I worked in a so-called “bubble,” […]
The Perils of Off-Label Promotion in the Zofran Litigation
With more than 230 Zofran lawsuits consolidated in MDL 2657, the Zofran litigation provides an opportunity to reflect upon the dangers of “off label” marketing by pharmaceutical companies. By definition, “off label” is defined as an unapproved use of a medication that has not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). A […]
In Products Liability Cases, What Do Protective Orders Really Protect?
It is commonplace in products liability cases for defendants, generally large corporations, to seek confidentiality agreements and protective orders with regard to the production of documents they consider sensitive and do not want in the public domain. Although there are valid reasons for corporations to protect the public disclosure of certain information, sometimes the purpose […]
Monsanto’s Congressional Get Out of Jail Free Card
As the New York Times reported on February 29, federal lawmakers are ready to deal one of our country’s largest corporate polluters a Golden Ticket, a Get of Jail Free card to rival all others. Congress is letting Monsanto, the former manufacturer of over 1 billion pounds of the now banned chemical family of PCBs go […]
The Lady Did Not Have To Die
Locks Law Firm represents people in civil rights cases who have been injured by police or prison guards or other government officials. The civil rights case that affected me most deeply occurred in Jersey City, NJ. A woman who had mental health problems was threatening her husband with a knife. Her husband called the police […]
Mediation: Prepare for Trial, Win at Settlement
A colleague of mine, here at the Firm, is fond of quoting a line from the 1961 Inauguration of one of our Country’s greatest Presidents, John F. Kennedy: “Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.” While President Kennedy was referring to our foreign policy, his approach to our country’s adversaries can be […]
Invasions of Privacy
Newspapers around the country recently reported on the Erin Andrews trial in Nashville, Tennessee. Ms. Andrews, a famous sportscaster, had filed a lawsuit against a Nashville hotel and a stalker after she was secretly videotaped several times in 2008, and nude images of her had been distributed on the internet. Ms. Andrews’s stalker allegedly called […]
Falls and Pressure Ulcers: “Never Events” In Hospitals and Long-Term Care Facilities
They call them “Never Events” – events that can be prevented or avoided, such as a pressure ulcer (PU) or a fall. Simply, the hospital or Long Term Care (LTC) facility, by and through its staff, must have a game plan (known as a “Plan of care”) to prevent such occurrences. No two patients are […]
A Failed Legal Career: Who Is To Blame?
The New York Times recently reported on the pending San Diego trial of a law school graduate suing her alma mater for allegedly inflating its employment data to lure students to enroll; the first case of its kind to go to trial. Plaintiff, Anna Alaburda, graduated from Thomas Jefferson School of Law in 2008 and […]
The Continuing Trend Against the “Ascertainability” Requirement in Class Actions
Last week, the United States Supreme Court denied certification in Mullins v. Direct Digital, LLC, a Seventh Circuit case in which the Court refused to apply the Third Circuit’s ascertainability requirement onto Rule 23’s requirements for class certification, joining the growing number of jurisdictions to reject the doctrine. In Mullins, the Court addressed the requirement […]
Making a Murderer and “Facts”
Two months ago, I watched the entire season of “Making a Murderer” over the course of two days. I watched because the story is fascinating and because I have an affinity for the accent and approach to adversity found in the areas I have traveled from Milwaukee to Green Bay. I’ve spent a good amount […]