January 12, 2009

• Sorry, Illinois trial lawyers, but there's just no point pretending that med-mal insurance rates have no relationship to payout caps [Miller, Maryland Personal Injury]
• Marquette lawprof Paul Secunda departs Workplace Prof Blog, Profs. Bales, Hirsch & McCormick will remain [his farewell]
• In New York, at least, "Cigarette Manufacturers Not Liable for Not Making All Cigarettes 'Light'" [Volokh]
• Dewey deserve that much, cont'd: Judge Chin cuts Dewey & LeBoeuf request of $100,000/day fees for representing receiver in WexTrust insolvency [WSJ Law Blog; earlier; see also]
• Policies "stacked" like cordwood for maximum $-combustion: California appeals court sticks insurers with "continuous trigger" exposure in noted Stringfellow Acid Pits environmental saga [Decs & Excs]
• Lance McMillian, Atlanta-John Marshall, proposes new test for determining whether suit was filed with "nuisance settlement" intent [SSRN; via Beck & Herrmann, who also comment on other recent academic papers including Gideon Parchomovsky/Alex Stein "Torts and Innovation"]