NY court upholds firing of hedge fund officer

(NEWS) — Tue, 08 May 2012 11:24:51 -0700

New York's top court has upheld the firing of a hedge fund compliance officer who says he confronted its chief executive about improperly selling personal stock before doing the same for clients.

The Court of Appeals ruled 5-2 in rejecting Joseph Sullivan's damages claim against Peconic Partners, Peconic Asset Management and fund President William Harnisch.

The majority says New York common law generally gives an employer the "unimpaired" right to fire an at-will employee, with a few exceptions. It says there is no exception for wrongful discharge of a hedge fund's compliance officer.

Dissenters say the court should expand an exception it has carved out for lawyers who get fired for insisting on professional ethics. They say the majority ruling "facilitates the perpetuation of frauds."

Alaska conspiracy trial scheduled in federal court

(NEWS) — Mon, 07 May 2012 11:25:00 -0700

Three Alaska men are scheduled to go on trial Monday in Anchorage on charges of plotting to kill government employees.

Fairbanks militia leader Schaeffer Cox of Fairbanks, Coleman Barney of North Pole and Lonnie Vernon of Salcha were arrested 14 months ago and also face weapons charges.

The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports the arrests followed an FBI investigation of Cox that began in 2010.

Cox has described himself as a sovereign citizen.

The FBI classifies the sovereign citizen movement as domestic terrorism movement known for clogging the court system with fraudulent liens and lawsuits.

Cox ran for state House in the Republican primary in 2008. In 2009 he started a gun rights organization, the Second Amendment Taskforce, which staged large rallies in Fairbanks.

Probation charge dropped against tanned NJ mom

(NEWS) — Mon, 07 May 2012 11:24:00 -0700

Court officials say the New Jersey mom accused of taking her then-5-year-old daughter into a tanning booth is no longer on probation in a separate case.

Patricia Krentcil is free on $2,500 bond on the child endangerment charge.

The arrest in Nutley got the attention of authorities in Camden County. That's where Krentcil was sentenced to five years' probation in 1999 for credit card theft, forgery and theft for writing bad checks. In 2001, a bench warrant was issued for her failure to appear at a probation hearing.

Court officials in Camden County on Friday say her probation had been terminated and she would not be required to appear in court.

Krentcil is due back in court next month in the tanning case. She says she never took her daughter into a booth.

Court to decide if deportation ruling retroactive

(NEWS) — Tue, 01 May 2012 10:07:12 -0700

The Supreme Court will decide whether to apply retroactively its 2010 decision that immigrants have a right to be told that a guilty plea could lead to their deportation.

The high court on Monday agreed to hear an appeal from Roselva Chaidez, who was in the process of being deported when the court made that March 2010 decision.

Chaidez pleaded guilty to fraud in 2004 after falsely claiming to be a passenger in a car wreck. Authorities started deportation procedures while she was applying for U.S. citizenship in 2007.

Her lawyer never told her that her fraud conviction may lead to her deportation. Chaidez says she should be able to take advantage of the Supreme Court decision that cemented that principle.

Chinese court seeking to mediate iPad dispute

(NEWS) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 09:14:29 -0700

A Chinese court is mediating between Apple Inc. and the Chinese company challenging its right to use the iPad trademark, seeking to get the companies to settle an awkward standoff over the issue.

The Guangdong High Court in southern China, is seeking to arrange a settlement, said Ma Dongxiao, a lawyer for Proview Electronics Co. The court on Feb. 29 began hearing Apple's appeal of lower court ruling that favored Proview in the trademark dispute.

"It is likely that we will settle out of court. The Guangdong High Court is helping to arrange it and the court also expects to do so," Ma said Monday.

China has sought to showcase its determination to protect trademarks and other intellectual property, but with hundreds of thousands employed in the assembly of Apple's iPhones and iPads is unlikely to want to disrupt the company's production and marketing in China.