A tax preparer and his firm, accused of claiming millions of dollars in false deductions for clients, have been permanently barred from preparing federal tax returns, the U.S. Department of Justice reported Wednesday. ...more

May 28, 2009

In what may be the largest ever employment law case, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals plans to rehear an appeal filed by Wal-Mart challenging a ruling by a U.S. District Court judge in California certifying a class action of roughly 1.5 million female Wal-Mart employees. The underlying lawsuit asserts claims against Wal-Mart for violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The lawsuit, brought initially by six female employees, alleges that women employed in Wal-Mart stores are paid less than men in comparable positions despite having higher performance ratings and greater seniority. The lawsuit also alleges that women employees received fewer, and waited longer for, promotions to in-store management positions. ...more

February 27, 2009

A New York judge has set bail at $5 million for a Florida hedge fund manager accused of ripping off as much as $350 million from investors. ...more

February 25, 2009

Debi Joy Olson freely admits she stalked her ex-husband across the country, then stabbed him to death last summer at a Davenport mall. ...more

January 26, 2009

There's an opening in Tampa for a federal magistrate judge. U.S. Magistrate Mary Scriven recently was elevated to district court judge. ...more

January 19, 2009

A lawyer sleeping in court may be "inexcusable," according to a federal appeals court, but it's no excuse for the client. ...more

December 31, 2008

LAS VEGAS - A broken O.J. Simpson was sentenced Friday to as many as 33 years in prison for a hotel armed robbery after a judge rejected his apology and said, "It was much more than stupidity." The 61-year-old football Hall of Famer stood shackled and stone-faced as Judge Jackie Glass rattled off the punishment. Moments before, Simpson made a rambling, five-minute plea for leniency, simultaneously apologizing for the holdup as a foolish mistake and trying to justify his actions. ...more

December 5, 2008

A federal judge has struck down the heart of a law that would have banned state universities from organizing academic research trips to Cuba, calling it unconstitutional. ...more

August 30, 2008

Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, pleaded not guilty Thursday to federal charges of making false statements about more than $250,000 in renovations to his Anchorage-area home and was granted an unusually early trial date after requesting the chance to win acquittal before this fall's election. ...more

August 1, 2008

How many trailers are involved? The Federal Emergency Management Agency says 25,162 trailers are occupied in Louisiana, 10,362 in Mississippi. The trailers were made by several companies. Some were made specially for FEMA. ...more

February 15, 2008