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Archive for the ‘Ethics’ Category

Louisiana judge suspended for demeaning manner during domestic abuse hearing.

Posted in Ethics, Family Law, tagged on July 8, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

Judge Timothy C. Ellender, a Terrebonne Parish judge, was suspended by the Louisiana Supreme Court after his treatment of Eula Warren during a protective order hearing.  Ellender stated, “Heat, big smoke, but no fire. Dismissed,” and told Warren, “You want a divorce, get a divorce. You’re not getting a [temporary restraining order]. See y’all later.”  [...]

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Supreme Court tosses West Virginia justice from hearing lawsuit involving a major contributor to the justice’s election campaign.

Posted in Constitutional Law, Ethics, tagged on June 8, 2009 | 2 Comments »

The case of Caperton v. A.T. Massey Coal from the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals has gotten a lot of attention, even from this blog (click here for details).  The case was appealed to the United States Supreme Court over concerns regarding whether Justice Brent D. Benjamin should have recused from hearing the case [...]

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Arkansas lawyer questioned regarding missing settlement proceeds.

Posted in Criminal Law, Ethics, tagged on May 11, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

Gene Cauley, an Arkansas attorney, was one of the lead plaintiff’s attorneys in a securities lawsuit against BISYS Group, Inc., an insurance company, that Cauley alleged inflated its stock value by issuing false and misleading press releases and financial filings.  The parties settled the lawsuit in 2006 for $65.8 million.  Cauley was the sole signatory [...]

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Ten ways judges can raise concerns about their impartiality.

Posted in Ethics, tagged on April 2, 2009 | 1 Comment »

Preside over a case in which one of the parties contributed to your judicial campaign (full story) Swear at a party or a party’s attorney (full story) Sentence criminal defendants to attend a probation program you own or control (full story) Physically intervene when a party starts beating up a witness or opposing party (this [...]

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Eighth Circuit holds recusal necessary because trial court directed multiple profanities at plaintiffs.

Posted in Constitutional Law, Ethics, Practice & Procedure on March 25, 2009 | 1 Comment »

Sentis Group, Inc. v. Shell Oil Co., Nos. 07-2308/2573/3162. Plaintiffs in this case operated Shell gas stations and convenience stores under contracts that required Shell to reimburse plaintiffs for some of the costs of maintaining retail gas operations.  The case turned on how those costs were calculated.  Plaintiffs claimed that Shell misrepresented how those calculations [...]

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Supreme Court to hear oral arguments on conflicts caused by judicial campaign spending.

Posted in Constitutional Law, Ethics on March 2, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

The bounds of a judge’s authority has previously been discussed on this blog (potential conflict of interest relating to Judge Willard Proctor and Cycle Breakers), which noted that judges are generally allowed to decide for themselves if there is a conflict of interest.  There are a few bright-line rules, but the rest is gray area. [...]

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In Focus: The potential conflict of interest relating to Judge Willard Proctor and Cycle Breakers.

Posted in Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Ethics, In Focus on February 15, 2009 | 2 Comments »

I’ve heard about this controversy for some time and, honestly, have given it very little thought.  Recently, however, I read an article in the Arkansas Times, “Kid Gloves,” which caused me to consider the issues raised and, eventually, dismiss them.  To read the Arkansas Times article, click here.  The following is a summary of why [...]

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In Texas, reduced attorney rate is a political donation.

Posted in Constitutional Law, Ethics, Politics on January 29, 2009 | Leave a Comment »

Texas Supreme Court Justice Nathan Hecht publicly endorsed Harriet Miers’ nomination to the United States Supreme Court, which led to charges against him by the Texas Commission on Judicial Conduct.  Hecht’s attorneys, the Jackson Walker law firm, charged him a reduced rate for their representation.  Then, the Texas Ethics Commission fined Hecht $29,000 for the [...]

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