Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Ex-governor's pardons go before Miss. high court

The Mississippi Supreme Court is set to hear arguments over whether ex-Gov. Haley Barbour legally pardoned 10 current and former inmates.

Among the inmates are four convicted murderers who served as trusties at the Governor's Mansion while Barbour was in office.

The Supreme Court is not expected to rule Thursday.

Barbour pardoned 198 people in his final days in office. Most were already out of prison, some for years or decades.

State Attorney General Jim Hood is challenging the legality of some of the pardons, saying some people didn't publish notifications as Hood says is required in Mississippi's Constitution.

Five of those pardoned are being held in jail on a temporary restraining order while the legal wrangling plays out.

Appeals court halts deportation of 7 immigrants

A federal appeals court has put the Obama administration's new immigration directive to the test by halting the deportation of seven immigrants alleged to be in the country illegally.

In a 2-1 ruling on Monday, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals demanded the Obama administration explain whether the immigrants can avoid deportation because of two memos released last year by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement director John Morton urging prosecutors to use "discretion" when deciding whether to pursue immigration cases.

Morton's initial memo in June said prosecutors should take into account such factors as U.S. military service, criminal records, family ties and length of stay in the country when deciding whether to start formal deportation proceedings against undocumented immigrants. He issued another in November explaining further how to implement the guidelines.

Since then, though, immigration advocates and lawyers have been complaining that prosecutors have been too slow to call off deportation proceedings of immigrants meeting the criteria. The advocates view the appeals court's rulings as a call to action.

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Las Vegas, Nevada Litigation Attorneys

Maier Gutierrez Ayon is a Las Vegas, Nevada based law firm committed to representing clients in the areas of personal injury, wrongful death, product liability, medical malpractice, business and real estate litigation, bankruptcy, and employment law.

Firm founders Jason Maier, Joseph Gutierrez and Luis Ayon began their careers at large law firms representing national and international clients in a variety of matters, including personal injury and product liability litigation, business and commercial litigation, contract disputes, real estate litigation, medical malpractice and pharmaceutical litigation, employment litigation, and bankruptcy. With this experience and a track record of success, Maier Gutierrez Ayon has the unique ability to provide you with the personal attention you deserve while offering the diverse, proven legal experience found in a large law firm.

Attorney advertisement. The material and information contained on these pages and on any pages linked from these pages is intended to provide general information only and not legal advice. You should consult with an attorney licensed to practice in your jurisdiction before relying upon any of the information presented here. You are advised that the acts of sending e-mail does not create an attorney-client relationship

Houston Class Actions Law Firm - The Salazar Law Firm, PLLC

A class action is a case brought against an entity whose actions have damaged a group of people in a similar way. A class proponent who has been injured may bring a class action on behalf of everyone who was harmed, with class members joining later on.

Class action lawsuits help to achieve justice not just for the individuals who bring such claims, but also for those who have suffered similar losses caused by a defendant's wrongdoing. Class actions are an important and valuable part of the legal system, providing for the fair and efficient resolution of legitimate claims of numerous parties by allowing the claims to be brought together into a single case against the defendant that allegedly caused the harm.

Closer: The Salazar Law firm knows and understand class action cases. Class actions claims are long and exhausting but their attorneys are proficient and professional and will support and guide their clients every step of the difficult process. Their experience over the years have given them extensive knowledge on class action matters. Their goal is to built strong lawsuits designed to get compensation for clients impacted by wrongdoings of businesses. Contact Salazar Law Firm for your free case evaluation and visit http://www.hurtinhouston.com for more information.

EU court: Web sites need not check for IP breaches

A European Union court ruled Thursday that social networking sites cannot be compelled to install general filters to prevent the illegal trading of music and other copyrighted material.

The decision is a victory for operators of social networking sites in the EU, but a setback for those who seek to protect copyrighted material from being distributed without payment or permission.

It also comes as protests are growing in Europe against ACTA, the proposed international Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, which is meant to protect intellectual property rights.

In Thursday's decision, the EU Court of Justice, which is based in Luxembourg, ruled that requiring general filters that would cover all the site's users would not sufficiently protect personal data or the freedom to receive and impart information.

SABAM, a Belgian company that represents authors, composers and music publishers, filed the lawsuit leading to Thursday's ruling. In it, the company objected to the practices of Netlog NV, a social networking site, saying users' profiles allowed protected works to be shared illegally.

Michael Gardner, head of the intellectual property practice at London law firm Wedlake Bell, called the ruling a further blow to copyright owners because it appears to rule out forcing operators of social network sites and Internet service providers — at their own expense — to impose blanket monitoring and filtering aimed at stopping infringements.

Rigrodsky & Long, P.A. Announces A Securities Fraud Class Action

Rigrodsky & Long, P.A. announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed in the United States District Court for the District of Kansas on behalf of purchasers the common stock of Collective Brands, Inc. between December 1, 2010 and May 24, 2011, inclusive, alleging violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 against the Company and certain of its officers and/or directors.

If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests, please contact Timothy J. MacFall, Esquire or Scott J. Farrell, Esquire of Rigrodsky & Long, P.A., 825 East Gate Boulevard, Suite 300, Garden City, New York 11530 at (888) 969-4242, by e-mail to info@rigrodskylong.com, or at: http://www.rigrodskylong.com/investigations/collective-brands-inc-pss.

Collective Brands was formed in 2007 when Payless ShoeSource acquired the Collective Brands Performance + Lifestyle Group (formerly the Stride Rite Corporation) and Collective Licensing International. The Complaint alleges that during the Class Period, Collective Brands and certain of the Company’s directors and/or officers made materially false and misleading statements concerning its business and financial results. Specifically, it is alleged that defendants concealed from the investing public problems concerning the Company’s inventory level for Payless; significantly lower sales at the Company’s flagship Payless stores than expected due to deteriorating customer demand; and that the Company was forced to mark down Payless’s inventory at significant discounts, which negatively affected the Company’s margins and financial results for its first quarter.

On May 24, 2011, the Company disclosed its financial results for its first fiscal quarter ended April 30, 2011. As alleged in the Complaint, the Company reported earnings of $26.4 million or $0.42 diluted earnings per share (“EPS”) for the first quarter, which was nearly 50% less than the $0.82 diluted EPS expected by analysts. The Company also reported that net sales declined 1.1% to $869.0 million, due in substantial part to the Company’s 7.4% comparable store sales decline in its Payless Domestic segment. As a result, the price of Collective Brands common stock dropped $3.06 per share to close at $15.31 per share on May 25, 2011, a decline of approximately 17% on heavy trading volume.

If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than March 26, 2012. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. In order to be appointed lead plaintiff, the Court must determine that the class member’s claim is typical of the claims of other class members, and that the class member will adequately represent the class. Your ability to share in any recovery is not, however, affected by the decision whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff. Any member of the proposed class may move the court to serve as lead plaintiff through counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member.

http://www.rigrodskylong.com

Teen pleads not guilty in Ohio Craigslist killings

An Ohio teen has pleaded not guilty to killing one man and attempting to kill a second in a deadly Craigslist robbery scheme that targeted older and single out-of-work men.

Brogan Rafferty, his ankles and wrists cuffed, made a brief appearance Friday in adult felony court in Akron on charges originally filed in Noble County, where the case unfolded.

Rafferty, dressed in a white T-shirt and orange jail pants, also has been charged with three counts of aggravated murder in juvenile court in Summit County. Prosecutors eventually hope to merge the cases in adult court in Akron.

A magistrate continued Rafferty's $1 million bond. His attorney says Rafferty cannot afford it.

A onetime mentor of Rafferty, 52-year-old Richard Beasley of Akron, has pleaded not guilty in the killings.