State Bar Slaps Gage With Petition

In a stunning display of intestinal fortitude, the State Bar filed a petition with our Supremes seeking to suspend Noel Gage's law license. From the RJ:

If previous disciplinary procedures are an indication, Gage could be disallowed from the practice of law for more than a year as the investigation unfolds.

The Nevada Supreme Court generally approves such recommendations.

We happened to get our sweaty little palms on a copy of the petition (Part 1; Part 2). To be honest, tl;dr.

We did, however, find one interesting document during our skim. It appears that criminal defense heavyweight William Terry may be representing Gage in his proceedings. (Bill's reputation is much better than his website). If that's true, we hope bar counsel Rob Bare is ready to rumble.

If you find yourself a little heavy on the billables today, take a look at the petition an tell us if you find anything interesting.

(LVRJ; Thanks, Tipsters!)

UPDATE:

Our apologies to those of you who were offended by our previous accompanying photograph. Our mandatory 12 hours of blogger sensitivity training taught us that photographs of domestic violence, even from old black and white movies, are not acceptable.

Marshal Law

There seems to be a little conflict brewing at the RJC between the marshals who man the security checkpoints and the marshals in charge of keeping the judges and courtrooms safe. Apparently, while both are paid equally, the judicial marshals get some extra perks.

From LV Legal News:

In recent months, according to marshals who work for the administration, as many as a dozen of the roughly 40 marshals assigned to judges and justices of the peace have gotten into the habit of leaving well before their daily shifts end. This usually occurs after the jurists shut down their courtrooms for the day.

Maybe we can get the judicial marshals to open up the south entrance after their judges leave for the day. Win-win!

(LV Legal News; Thanks Tipster!)

Judicial Doppelgangers

Cadish - Lisa Simpson

Wall - McLovin'

Herndon - Steve Jobs

Bonaventure - Penn Jillette

Friday Open Thread

Happy Friday everyone!

Word on the street is that Judge Abbatangelo got remarried last night. Congratulations to the happy couple! Here's hoping this one goes better than the last one.

What's Up With LoBellos and Taxes?

Charles C. LoBello (again, not that LoBello) joins Mark Lobello as the second LoBello to be indicted by a federal grand jury for tax evasion. From the LV Sun:

According to the indictment, LoBello had more than $900,000 in unreported taxable income from his law practice from 2001 to 2005. He allegedly failed to file his tax return for 2001 and filed materially false corporate and personal income tax returns for 2002 through 2005.

[U.S. Attorney Daniel] Bogden said LoBello is accused of providing incomplete income information to his tax preparer and used personal checking accounts to hide large legal fee checks.

It's official, two out of the three LoBellos licensed as attorneys in Nevada cheat on their taxes. Congratulations, Michele, for being the last LoBello standing (and for bearing an uncanny resemblance to Carmela Soprano).

Charlie is scheduled to appear in court on July 9th.

(LV Sun; Thanks, Tipsters!)

Fine, Fine, Fine.

Teva Pharmaceuticals and Baxter International, the most recent companies to find themselves on the losing end of Bob Eglet's jury-whooping stick, have filed a Motion for Stay and a Renewed Motion for Judgment as a Matter of Law or, In the Alternative, For New Trial.

Both motions will be heard on July 12, 2010, along with Eglet's Motion for Attorney's Fees and Interest (you know ... just for good measure).

From the RJ:

[Defense counsel Mark] Tully in court papers asked district Judge Jessie Walsh to reduce the award to a “single digit” ratio over the $5 million compensatory award the jury granted. He argued the U.S. Supreme Court has said any punitive damages awards in excess of four times the compensatory award “might be close to the line of constitutional impropriety.”

Eglet disagreed, saying the defendants misrepresented how the jury arrived at the figure. When properly calculated, he argued, the ratio is 27 times for Teva and 11 times for Baxter.

Which is still more than four, but Nevada law exempts product liability judgments from a cap on damages ... so we'll see how this plays out.

Teva/Baxter also threw out some boilerplate accusations, apparently forgetting where they were practicing law:

The defendants and critics of the jury award question the relationship between Eglet’s law firm, Mainor Eglet Cottle, and Walsh. Records show that firm and its attorneys contributed $40,000 to her 2008 judicial campaign. Eglet said the contributions are a “red herring” designed to discredit “a fine judge.”

Fine, fine judge. Fine fine fine fine fine fine fine ... 500 million times over.

Regarding the manufacturer of the offending drug, propofol (incidentally, one of the drugs that killed Michael Jackson), Teva has decided to take its ball and go home. From the Chicago Tribune:

The drug is hard to manufacture and the company gets little or no profit from it, said Denise Bradley, a spokeswoman for Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.

Oh, and there's the fact that Teva is facing almost 250 lawsuits connected to the drug.

(LVRJ; Chicago Tribune; Case No. A571172; Thanks, Tipsters!)

Friday Open Thread

Sorry for the slow week, folks. Let us know if there's a particular topic you'd like to discuss.

Otherwise, just talk amongst yourselves and we'll post when something comes across the wire.

D.A. to Dr. Needles: "Faker!"

After finally indicting Dr. Dipak Desai for the 2008 hepatitis C outbreak he caused, the D.A. is now calling him out on that convenient "stroke" he had back in 2008, just as the shit was hitting the fan. [Punny!]

From the LVRJ:

“It is the state’s belief and position that defendant Desai is malingering and does not possess the level of impairment which might prevent him from understanding and participating in his defense,” Chief Deputy District Attorney Mike Staudaher wrote in his motion. “Defendant Desai has continually tried to hide behind a curtain of mental and physical impairment so he can avoid facing consequences of his actions.”

Staudaher is requesting all medical records related to the strokes Desai claims to have had, and he wants to choose the physician who would conduct Desai’s independent medical evaluation.

The D.A. also had an interesting account of a little "rope-a-dope" Desai pulled on a fellow colleague just as the scandal was going down:

The prosecutor said Desai asked a partner in the now-closed Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada, Dr. Eladio Carrera, to read a prepared statement at a Feb. 27, 2008, news conference responding to the outbreak. Carrera has since testified under grant of immunity before the grand jury that indicted Desai.

“Dr. Desai told Dr. Carrera that, although he was the medical director and CEO of the clinic, his cardiologist would not allow Dr. Desai to read the prepared statement,” Staudaher wrote. “Dr. Carrera believed that Dr. Desai was being disingenuous and that Dr. Desai looked ‘hale and hardy.’” Staudaher added: “Dr. Carrera did not want to be the lone doctor reading the prepared statement and insisted that Dr. Desai stand by Dr. Carrera as he delivered the statement. Dr. Desai agreed, but just before they were to go to the press conference, Dr. Desai conveniently developed an illness, which prevented him from attending.”

"Syke!" Seems this isn't the first time Desai has hid behind an "ailment" to avoid trouble.

If Dr. Carrera had any stones he would have gotten up there and pinned everything on Desai at the press conference. Of course, if he had any brains he would not have been working for him in the first place.

(LVRJ)

What's your weapon of choice?

In light of the iPhone hoopla going on lately (and a few slow news days on the legal gossip front), we're wondering which piece of technology our readership uses to stay connected.

Blackberry, iPhone, or other?

We'd like to know which you use, why you use it, and whether you could get through your day without it.

Friday Open Thread

Happy Friday everyone!

Please join us at 6:00 PM for our "Gin with Juice" party at Courthouse Grill if our Supreme Court sets him free this morning. Drinks are on O.J.!

Musical Chairs

Word on the street is that Kirk Lenhard may be leaving Jones Vargas to join Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, and he may be taking some talent with him (reports vary from 2 associates to 6 other shareholders).

That's all we've got ... help us fill in the blanks if you know anything.

Primary Results Open Thread

As we write this, the votes are still being counted ... and it's waaaaay past our bedtime.

Check the results here in the morning and let us know your thoughts!

Dr. Needles Finally Indicted

A Clark County grand jury indicted Dr. Dipak Desai and two others in connection with the 2008 Hepititus hepatitis C outbreak that formed the basis for Bob Eglet's $500 million + verdict last month. From the LV Sun:

The 28-count criminal indictment unsealed today against the three includes charges of racketeering, performance of an act in reckless disregard of persons or property, criminal neglect of patients, insurance fraud, theft and obtaining money under false pretenses. All are felonies.

Deputy District Attorney Michael Staudaher wanted Desai to be held in jail without bail until next week, when the court could determine what his assets are and how much bail would be appropriate. Staudaher claimed that that Desai has at least $30 million in assets and has bragged that he could gain access to as much as $180 million. The prosecutor said Desai received an $881,000 tax refund for 2008 and had enough cash to pay his bankruptcy lawyer $250,000.

Dr. Needles attorney, Richard Wright, claimed that his client's assets were tied up in bankruptcy and he will need time to request bail from the bankruptcy court or from his relatives. Judge Cadish compromised:

Judge Elissa Cadish ordered that Desai surrender himself [Friday] and be placed on house arrest until he can arrange to post $1 million bail. If he is unable to arrange bail by the close of business Monday, he will be taken to the Clark County Detention Center.

Cadish also made Desai surrender his passport.

The other two charged in the Indictment were Desai’s employees, identified as Ronald Ernest Lakeman and Keith H. Mathahs. Cadish set bail for them at $500,000 each.

(LV Sun; Indictment; LVRJ)

***UPDATE***

Well, maybe not all of his assets were tied up in bankruptcy. The RJ is reporting that Desai submitted a cashier's check in the amount of $1 Million at 4:00 P.M. to secure his freedom while he awaits trial. As of 4:00 P.M., Lakeman and Mathahs had not yet posted their bail or turned themselves in.

Friday Open Thread

Happy Friday Everyone!

Open wide ... it's time for your weekly dose of open thread.

Gage Sentenced to Probation

After coping a plea back in February, Medical Mafia member Noel Gage was sentenced to probation yesterday. U.S. District Court Judge Quackenbush seemed to pity Gage, calling him "a good man who made a serious mistake."

We wonder if the judge was talking about the "obstructing justice" mistake, or the (allegedly) "paying off doctors" mistake. Maybe it was the "going to law school" mistake.

Quackenbush imposed probation, stating that 72-year-old Gage would "'suffer" from the terms of his probation, likely facing suspension of his law license. Gage went down swinging though, from the RJ:

Since the inception of the case, Gage has maintained that he did nothing unethical or illegal. Had he sued Thalgott and Kabins, rather than Burkhead, the lawyer said after Thursday's hearing, "Melodie Simon would have gotten a big goose egg" and been responsible for the opposing parties' costs and attorney fees.

"If I had to do it over again -- but for the wrongful prosecution -- I would have sued the same people, if I wanted to obtain the best result for my client," Gage told the Review-Journal.

Awwww. That Gage, always looking out for the interests of his clients. Now, State Bar, please take that man's law license.

(LVRJ)

Will The Real "The Defenders" Please Stand Up?

In case there was any doubt that the new CBS bromance "The Defenders" was actually based on local law firm Cristalli and Saggese, here is photo evidence from the RJ.

Michael and Marc (a.k.a. Nick Morelli and Pete Kaczmarekare) are apparently doing their press tour promoting the show, appearing with Marc's celebrity counterpart Jerry O'Connell on the Mark & Mercedes Show on Mix 94.1 yesterday morning.

The RJ article is full of wonderful quotes from the happy couple ... who are not letting their newfound celebrity go to their heads at all. From the RJ:

"The Defenders" is not "loosely" based on the real life legal exploits of Cristalli and Saggese.

"Loosely is the wrong term," Saggese said. "The show is closely based on what we do."

Oh, for sure! As we are all well aware, being an attorney is extremely exciting work ... people would love to watch what we actually do all day long. If only there were a single (possibly hyphenated) word to describe Marc and his arrogance. Something to do with a feminine hygiene product ...

But, as Michael readily admits, the show isn't exactly like their real lives:

Cristalli's character, for example, is separated from his wife in the show, but the couple are "very much in love" in real life.

Owe! I think I just tore that muscle that rolls your eyes back into your head.

Oh, and it turns out that question we raised in our last post wasn't so stupid after all:

Saggese said he and his partner intend to capitalize on the exposure provided by the show. "This is an opportunity of the rarest order," he said. "We plan on advertising. It would be foolish if we just sat by."

We've had some interesting analysis in the comments about the trademark implications involved with using the name "The Defenders" in Las Vegas. Does it get any more interesting if Cristalli and Saggese actually start advertising their firm as The Defenders?

Good thing Rick isn't the litigious type.

(LVRJ; Mix 94.1; Thanks Tipsters!)

Clinton ... O'Connor ... Glass?

District Court Judge Jackie Glass' name appeared recently in a New York appellate court opinion. The mention, a quote from a pro se brief written by inmate Val Thomas, was quite flattering:

There is no dispute that defendant timely requested the right to defend himself. His written application expressed a desire to proceed pro se based on displeasure with his assigned attorneys for their unwillingness to acknowledge that defendant was "the legitimate King of the United States" as well as "Almighty God." He stated that he was displeased with his attorneys' refusal to assert his purported absolute immunity under the treaty known as "The General Agreement to End World War III," which had been "ratified by the United States and every other country that existed in 1998." Defendant previously had referred to himself, and wanted to be addressed as, "General Val Thomas, Commander-in-Chief of the North American Union Army" of the "Second American Civil War." In urging his competency to represent himself, he related that he was born on May 19, 1963, which was "one of the only two days in our lifetimes in which the Earth spun backwards, with the sun rising in the West and setting in the East." According to defendant, such phenomenon served to verify that he was, as noted previously, "Almighty God." He did, however, request standby counsel in his application and indicated a willingness to accept for that role one of the following three individuals: "Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton; retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor; or Nevada State District Judge Jacqueline Glass." These quotes from defendant are by no means exhaustive of his various claims about himself throughout the record.

Pretty nice to be mentioned in the same sentence as Sandra Day O'Connor and Hillary Clinton ... even if it was by a man who believes the earth spun backwards on his birthday.

Judge Glass handles competency court hearings for the Eighth Judicial District; we're guessing Val was one of her previous "contacts."

(Leagle.com)