Legal Radar

Jury Ready to Listen to Testimony of Fiat CEO

A jury is all set and ready to hear out Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV CEO Sergio Marchionne’s testimony in a suit over a 4-year old boy who died in a burning Jeep. This renewed an inquiry of fuel tanks in older sport-utility vehicles that regulators linked to over 50 deaths.

Lawyers representing the boy’s family are suing Chrysler for wrongful death and plan to play video recording deposition of Marchionne sometime this Wednesday or Thursday. The manufacturer of Jeep, Chrysler, is now named FCA US LLC.

The trial, which began early this week in Georgia, comes after a huge U.S. vehicle recalls last year, and public investigation on faulty ignition switches at General Motors Co., and breakage of Takata Corp. air bags.

Jeep’s case may settle before jurors could hear depositions of Marchionne and other employees from Fiat Chrysler, thought it won’t be likely. Jurors looked briefly into Marchionne’s testimony on vehicle safety standards during the attorney opening statement earlier.

So far, Fiat Chrysler has curbed the scrutiny recall acquired by Takata and GM.

Jury Finds Robin Thicke and Pharrell Guilty of Copying “Blurred Lines” Song

Just recently, a jury gave Marvin Gaye’s children close to $7.4 million early this week after it was concluded that Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams copied their father’s song to compose “Blurred Lines.” The song was one of the hottest singles back in 2013.

Thicke and Williams have earned over $7 million each for the song.

Gaye’s children sued both singers for copyright infringement in 2013.

Williams said that Gaye’s music describes a song about his youth. But the Grammy winner testified saying he didn’t utilize any of it for “Blurred Lines.”

Both Thicke and Williams were accused of lying on the song creation process. Gaye’s children is said to be rewarded with millions of dollars if they found the song “Got to Give It Up” --- one of their father’s tracks --- to be infringed.

Williams also signed a document, which stated of not using work from other music artists and will be liable for damages if a copyright claim was successful.

Petraeus: Pleading Guilty to Misdemeanor

David Petraeus, an ex-director for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and a retired navy general, recently signed court papers that implicates him of being guilty to a misdemeanor charge of improperly handling classified data in exchange of a prosecutor recommendation to not serve prison time..

Petraeus, whose exemplary government intelligence and military career was tainted by an affair with Paula Broadwell, a biographer, subjected him to a lengthy investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as to whether or not he passed on any unauthorized classified details to her.

Based on the terms of the plea deal, prosecutors won’t be seeking jail time for Petraeus but will be recommended by a judge to carry out two years of probation. This was based on filed court documents early this week at the U.S. District Court in Charlotte, N.C.

Documents indicate Petraeus agreed to plead guilty to one count of unauthorized removal and possession of classified government material.

SC Shoots Down Prosecutors in Fisherman Case

In a recent court ruling this week, a court mentioned that prosecutors made the wrong move in applying the Sarbanes-Oxley corporate governance law to a fisherman suspected of eliminating evidence which involved taking in undersized fish.

When Congress deemed it criminal to destroying or covering up any object with any intention of obstructing a probe, it didn’t mean the law would be applicable to creatures of the sea, according to the court.

The Sarbanes-Oxley law, which was passed due to accounting issues on public-traded firms, prevents the destruction of business documents and records as evidence. It has no application on the fisherman’s claimed destruction of his catch.

The case involved John Yates, a Florida-based fisherman who was caught red-handed with a 72 grouper on what seemed to be smaller than the minimum standard size limit. Ignoring a wildlife officer, Yates instructed his fishing crew to toss the grouper and replace it with a bigger one. Yates faced 20 years of prison time for the destruction and concealing undersized fish that obstructed a federal probe.

M15 Agents Depicts Surveillance of Accused al Qaeda Operative

Four M15 agents appeared on the stand in disguise at a Brooklyn federal court early this week to describe their observation of a man accused of taking part in a plot to bomb targets in Denmark, New York City, and England.

Abid Naseer, 28 years of age, is fighting off charges of offering support to terrorists, conspiracy to give support, and conspiracy to creating a destructive weapon related to the plots.

The agents offered testimony on Naseer’s activity in March and April of 2009. They’ve described Naseer’s general movement in England.

All four agents were dressed in professional attire and sported glasses. Three of the four agents had beards.

The first agent who appeared on the stand was young-looking and looked slender. He identified himself with another alias: Officer 1661. He admitted of spying on Naseer for one whole month of 2009 as part of a covert operation called “Operation Pathway.” The operation involved keeping track of Naseer’s movements and whereabouts in Manchester, England.

Jury: Palestinian Authority Responsible for Attacks

A federal jury made the Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organization responsible for aiding in several terrorist attacks in Israel more than ten years ago. They were ordered to pay $218.5 million to the families of victims.

The decision early this week arrived on the second day of jury deliberations and after several weeks of testimony against the U.S.-based Palestinian political apparatus.

The trial began on a lawsuit filed in 2004 under the U.S. Anti-Terrorism Act, which lets American victims of international terrorism to find justice in a federal court.

The Manhattan federal court jury found that the Palestinian Authority as well as the PLO should be responsible for a number of attacks in Israel in the early 2000s, which killed over 30 individuals, and wounded hundreds of others.

Palestinian leader tried shooting down the lawsuit for years, saying the U.S. courts have no power on them. Instead, U.S. District Judge George Daniels pushed to resume trial.

Federal Charges Dropped Against George Zimmerman

Attorney General Eric Holder said early this week that the Justice Department won’t file federal charges against George Zimmerman, an ex-neighborhood watch volunteer, regarding the 2012 death of Treyvon Martin in Florida.

The acquittal of Zimmerman on Martin’s death, an unarmed black teen, triggered calls by numerous groups including ACLU, NAACP, and countless other to encourage legal action. It was expected that a federal investigation would end up facing plenty of obstacles.

To start the legal battle, federal prosecutors would need to prove that Zimmerman had the racial hatred and motivation when Martin was shot, according to legal experts.

Zimmerman, a Hispanic, shot Martin to death within a gated community in Florida. Prosecutors claimed Zimmerman was profiling Martin as a criminal and creating a physical struggle that led to the teen’s death. Defense attorneys objected by saying Martin was the primary aggressor, punching Zimmerman, scuffing him to the ground, and smashing his head on a walkway.

Obama to Appeal on Immigration Ruling

A decision by the federal judge to temporarily halt Obama’s immigration methods handed Republicans its first short-term victory, while leaving more than 4 million illegal immigrants out in the cold.

The Obama dministration indicated it would appeal on the recent ruling made by District Judge Andrew Hanen, a Republican from Brownsville, Texas. It halts immigration actions carried out by President Barack Obama, which has been challenged as unconstitutional in a suit filed by Texas and over a dozen other states.

Hanen said the Obama administration is in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act. Lawyers for immigration-rights groups indicated the issue is about whether the administration can fulfill a duty to post the policy for a certain period before issuing it.

The White House fiercely defected the president’s executive actions by saying that the congress and U.S. Supreme Court have federal officials who can create priorities regarding immigration laws.

Hanen made an order for parties to meet again in February 27 to talk about the current lawsuit.

Securities Class Action Restrained this Year

Attorneys for plaintiffs dodged a bullet in the previous year when the U.S. Supreme court spared a 100-year old case, which served as a legal pin in today’s investor class action suit.

Despite such victory, new reports indicated that securities class actions have lost a bit of firepower.

While numerous security class actions filed in the federal court moved only a bit last year, the filing size measured by shareholder losses were a lot smaller in 2014 compared to the year before, according to a report released this week by the Stanford Law School Securities Class Action Clearinghouse and by Cornerstone Research

What’s the reason behind the dip last year? One of them is the surge in the stock market last year, as indicated by Joseph A. Grundfest, a scholar from the Stanford Universities securities who helped set up the report.

The size of settlements in the previous year shrank, as reported by the NERA Economics Consulting on yearly trends regarding securities class actions. NERA, which recently revealed its report, observed that the average amount of settlement dipped by 38% to 61% last year compared to 2013, depending on the calculations done.

Palestinian Authority Facing Manhattan Trial

The Palestinian Authority and Palestinian Liberation Organization will be going on trial this week at a Manhattan federal court. The civil suit accuses them of carrying out terrorist acts in Israel.

The trial, which is expected to last up to 12 weeks, will concentrate on multiple shooting and bombing attacks in Jerusalem from 2001 to 2004. The suit, which is over 10 years old, was filed by more than 40 American victims and relatives who suffered in the attacks, which wounded hundreds and killed 33.

The suit was filed based on the Antiterrorism Act of 1990, a law that allows American victims of international terrorism to file a suit in federal court, accuses the Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian Liberation Organization, the governing and political representative of Palestinians, of planning the attacks.

The plaintiffs are looking to claim $1 billion in damages. If both Palestinian groups lose, such damages would be tripled, since such claims made were terrorist acts.

Both Palestinian groups attempted to squash the suit, saying U.S. courts have no jurisdiction over them.