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Leading the NewsAdministration "wants to be prepared for any eventuality" in oil spill.AFP (5/6) reports Homeland Security Secretary Napolitano "sought Thursday to soothe worries over a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, saying she did not want to 'predict Armageddon.'" Speaking at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi, Napolitano told reporters, "The possibility remains that the BP oil spill could turn into an unprecedented environmental disaster. The possibility also remains that it will be somewhat less." She added that the Administration "wants to be prepared for any eventuality." Regarding BP's use of a containment dome to contain the spill, Napolitano said, "I hope it works. It has not been used at that depth before, if it works that would be a major positive development," adding, "The best case scenario is that the oil never makes a landfall. The worst case scenario is that they lose control at the oil well itself." Lawmakers call for investigatory panel. Meanwhile, AFP (5/6) reports, Democratic Reps. Ed Markey and Lois Capps "introduced legislation Thursday calling for an independent commission to investigate the causes of a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and draw lessons for offshore drilling." The commission, "modeled on similar commissions set up after the Three Mile Island nuclear disaster and the space shuttle Challenger explosion," would have "the power to compel testimony from key players and the ability to hold hearings, including in the Gulf region." MMS shifted oversight to oil industry. In a front page story, the Wall Street Journal (5/7, A1, Gold, Power) reports under the headline "Oil Regulator Ceded Oversight To Drillers" that the Minerals Management Service has failed to write or implement safety regulations, instead shifting the responsibility to the oil industry over the past decade. A Journal examination of MMS records found several examples of when the agency indentified potential safety issues, but then either not requiring the issue to be followed up on or relying on the industry to come up with a solution. Containment dome lowered as crews fight spill on all fronts. NBC Nightly News (5/6, story 5, 2:10, Williams) reported, "In the Gulf of Mexico tonight, high drama, high stakes as crews there trying to do something that's never been done before to stop that massive oil spill from continuing to gush into the gulf." NBC later added, "Today with calm seas, crews ignited more controlled burns and the four-story containment dome arrived at the leak site. Preparations are now under way to lower it a mile down to the sea floor to cover one of the two remaining leaks. That leak is responsible for 85 percent of the oil flowing into the Gulf." Meanwhile, "Cleanup crews are getting help from hair salons across the country. ... The clippings are turned into booms to soak up the oil." Survivors recount oil rig blast. In a front-page story, the Washington Post (5/7, A1, Saslow, Fahrenthold) reports that "it would be two weeks before many of the men at the epicenter" of the Deepwater Horizon explosion "felt ready to talk about it. And when they did, they would describe the first moments simply in the terms of sensory terror: two deafening thuds, followed by chaos and confusion." Workers grabbed their "life vest and hard hat -- a habit instilled by the rig's weekly fire drills -- and ran out the door." Once outside the extent of the disaster became clear: "The deck, once as large as two football fields, now measured three-quarters of its original size, and some of it was on fire. Pieces of machinery were raining down from the derrick, 200 feet overhead." The next afternoon, as the search for missing workers continued, the oilmen onboard a rescue boat "had reached their own conclusion. They now numbered 115." Panel asked to consolidate potential oil spill class-actions. The AP (5/6) reported, "A federal judicial panel in Washington has been asked to consolidate at least 65 potential class action lawsuits claiming economic damage from the Gulf oil spill. Shrimpers, commercial fishermen, business and resort owners, charter boat captains and even would-be vacationers have filed lawsuits from Texas to Florida since the April 20 oil rig disaster. They seek damages possibly in the billions of dollars from BP PLC oil company, rig owner Transocean Ltd. and other companies. The companies won't comment." The National Law Journal (5/6, Baldas) reported, "The US Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation in Washington has received a motion to combine the claims into a single multidistrict case to be heard in New Orleans. On Thursday, a team of attorneys - led by the Becnel Law Firm in Reserve, La. - drafted a joint prosecution agreement, with plans to circulate it on Friday for plaintiffs' lawyers to sign. Meanwhile, defense firms are lining up for battle. 'Just as there are two sides to every story, there are two sides to every lawsuit. And be assured that the defendants will have their side,' said Donald E. Godwin, founding partner of Dallas-based Godwin Ronquillo, who is representing Halliburton Energy Services Inc. in the scores of lawsuits alleging economic and environmental damages." The New York Times (5/7, A19, Wald) discusses the details of the spill, commenting that "BP's liability bill is capped at $75 million and Transocean's probably at $65 million, but those caps could be lifted if the companies were found to have acted with gross negligence or to have broken rules that led to the spills." Local residents may never recover economically. Although BP CEO Tony Hayward "is promising to shoulder all cleanup costs and pay all legitimate claims from the deadly Gulf Coast oil rig accident," the Los Angeles Times (5/7, White) reports, "for those hit hard by the spill the relief could come too late to help them recover," noting that "it took nearly 20 years for more than 30,000 Alaskan fishing boat operators, property owners and others to be paid damages after the Exxon Valdez tanker accident in 1989." And while the $75 million damages cap under the Oil Pollution Act "seemed like a lot of money at the time." David Pettit, an attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council, said, "It never anticipated something of this scale, where there could be victims in five states."
Center For Constitutional LitigationMajor civil justice conference will focus on reforms, notice pleading rulings.The National Law Journal (5/6, Mauro) reports, "Corporate counsel almost unanimously agree that civil litigation is too expensive, while 90% say that it takes too long, according to a new survey conducted for a major judicial conference on civil justice that convenes next week. The conference...brings together key federal judges, lawyers, and academics to discuss the need to reform civil rules and practices," and will also focus on "the impact of recent Supreme Court decisions in Ashcroft v. Iqbal and Bell Atlantic v. Twombly." John Vail, "vice president of the Center for Constitutional Litigation, said that while some of the studies that will be presented at Duke are empirical, others, like the survey of corporate counsel, are not, and represent the desire of businesses to 'create a whole different set of rules for themselves.'" Vail added, "This conference is going to frame the discussion of civil justice for years to come." Civil Justice SystemCalifornian sues over sexual orientation discrimination.The New York Times (5/7, A19A, James) reports that in April 2008, Clay M. Greene's "partner of 25 years, Harold Scull, then 88, fell and was hospitalized. Sonoma County [CA] became involved, and the two men were separated into different nursing homes and prevented from seeing each other. Their belongings were sold at auction, and their cats were taken away." A lawsuit "Mr. Greene filed asserts that the men's wills and wishes were not honored and that their relationship was not treated equitably because they were a same-sex couple." Indian trust settlement stalled on attorney fee modifications.In continuing coverage, the American Lawyer (5/7, Baxter) reports, "Congressional approval of one of the largest class action settlements in US history is getting hung up on the issue of legal fees for plaintiffs lawyers. The $3.4 billion Indian trusts settlement agreed to in December could be scuttled if Congress doesn't approve the terms of the agreement by May 28." A move "by Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming to cap attorney fees in the case at $50 million" has "one of the plaintiffs lawyers who spent years litigating the matter crying foul." New Jersey appeals court says parent can sue ex for "poisoning relationship" with children.The New Jersey Law Journal (5/7, Gallagher) reports, "One parent can the other for allegedly poisoning his relationship with their children, an appeals court said Monday in the first New Jersey recognition of a cause of action for infliction of emotional distress for such conduct. A lower court had dismissed the claim as barred by the Heart Balm Statute, but the Appellate Division, in Segal v. Lynch, A-805-08, said the statute applies only to claims based on the loss of a marital or conjugal relationship." But "the court affirmed dismissal under the parens patriae doctrine, which allows courts to intervene when necessary to protect children." Justice Department sues Arkansas over ADA violations.The AP (5/6) reported, "The federal government accused Arkansas in a lawsuit Thursday of leaving people with severe mental or physical disabilities with no choice but to go into state institutions. The Justice Department lawsuit accused Arkansas of a 'systemic failure' that places people in institutions when the state should pursue less restrictive avenues for their care." Historically, "the statewide lawsuit is a rare step for the Justice Department, which under the Obama administration is making a priority of ensuring that the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 is enforced." Drug SafetyPCV virus DNA found in Merck's rotavirus vaccine.The Wall Street Journal (5/7, B2, Dooren) reports that on May 6, the Food and Drug Administration announced that DNA fragments of two different kinds of pig viruses, PCV1 and PCV2, had been found in the RotaTeq vaccine made by Merck & Co. to prevent gastrointestinal illness caused by the rotavirus. The FDA did not say if the use of vaccine should be discontinued, however. As it so happens, an FDA advisory panel is set to convene today to talk about GlaxoSmithKline's Rotarix vaccine, also used to prevent rotavirus in infants. The Journal points out that in March, traces of PCV-1 had been found in the Rotarix vaccine. As a result, the agency had asked physicians to discontinue use of Rotarix and use RotaTeq instead. Pfizer subsidiary wins retrial of lawsuit over hormone replacement drug.Bloomberg News (5/6, Feeley) reported that Pfizer's Pharmacia & Upjohn "unit won a re-trial of a Pennsylvania lawsuit over its menopause drugs that ended in a first jury's award of $1.5 million in damages, the company said." On May 5, "a Philadelphia judge...ruled lawyers for the plaintiff, Merle Simon, must ask another jury to consider whether" Pharmacia & Upjohn "hid the health risks of its Provera [medroxyprogesterone] hormone-replacement drug. In December, an appeals court reinstated Simon's original verdict after it was thrown out by the trial court, giving the judge the option of ordering a new trial." The case in question is Simon v. Wyeth, 040604229, Court of Common Pleas (Philadelphia). Employment/Workplace SafetyInitial MSHA investigation of West Virginia mine explosion will not be public.The AP (5/6) reported, "Federal regulators have decided not to convene a public hearing in the early stages of their investigation into the deadly explosion at a West Virginia coal mine. The announcement Thursday from the Mine Safety and Health Administration means officials will not have subpoena power to compel witnesses to testify during the initial part of the probe. It also means that family members of the 29 miners killed in the April 5 explosion won't be present for early interviews with mine workers and officials from Massey Energy Co., which owns the mine." Medical Errors/HealthcareVA limiting types of surgeries performed at five of its hospitals.The AP (5/7, Hefling) reports that "following a system-wide review prompted by surgical deaths at its southern Illinois hospital," the Veterans Affairs Department is "limiting the types of surgeries performed" at its hospitals in "Alexandria, La.; Beckley, W.Va.; Fayetteville, N.C.; Danville, Ill.; and Spokane, Wash." After noting that VA "will pick up the tab for patients who have surgeries performed elsewhere," the AP points out that Dr. Robert Petzel, VA's undersecretary of health, "said the review was part" of his agency's effort to "meet uncompromising standards of inpatient surgery." Illinois House unanimously passes measure to improve nursing home care.The Chicago Tribune (5/7, Garcia) reports, "House lawmakers unanimously approved legislation Thursday that would sharply raise the standards of care and safety in Illinois' troubled nursing homes. The measure was embraced by Democrats and Republicans alike, and was sent to the Senate on a 118-0 vote, where the plan is expected to be met with similar support." Notably, the "proposal would require nursing homes to increase staffing levels, meet higher standards before admitting patients with serious mental illness, and segregate the most dangerous residents in secure units where they would receive more intensive monitoring and treatment." The Tribune adds, "Overall, the bill is designed to move thousands of mentally disabled people out of the homes and into less costly and more effective community treatment programs." Former St. Vincent's physicians say hospital should continue to cover malpractice insurance.The Wall Street Journal (5/7, Sataline) reports that some physicians from the recently closed St. Vincent's Hospital in New York believe they may not be covered for malpractice insurance for services they provided while practicing at the hospital. The physicians argue that St. Vincent's should be legally required to continue to pay for the insurance. A number of the hospital's former physicians have employed a law firm to assist them in negotiating with St. Vincent's to rectify the situation. Andrew Bohmart, spokesman for the consortium of St. Vincent's physicians, said, "If we were sued and had no malpractice coverage, it would be a total professional and financial disaster." Questions emerge about care at Olive View-UCLA NICU.The Los Angeles Times (5/7, Hennessy-Fiske, Lin) reports that "serious questions have emerged about whether Olive View-UCLA Medical Center in Sylmar has continued treating critically ill babies long after state officials said the hospital lacked the doctors to do so properly and told the facility to transfer such high-risk patients." Since November of 2008, "Olive View has been required to transfer babies needing a ventilator for more than four hours to a hospital that could provide a higher level of care, according to California Department of Healthcare Services officials." But, "according to family members and medical records reviewed by The Times, Olive View treated at least two infants since January who spent well over a month on a ventilator." Product SafetyE. coli-contaminated romaine lettuce sickens 19 in several states.Bloomberg News (5/7, Peterson) reports, "An outbreak of 19 E. coli-related illnesses in Michigan, Ohio and New York may be linked to shredded romaine lettuce sold to grocery stores for use in salad bars and delis, US regulators said. The lettuce has been recalled by Freshway Foods, a closely held company based in Sidney, Ohio, the Food and Drug Administration said" on Thursday. To date, "12 of the 19 people with confirmed cases of E. coli have been hospitalized, including three with potentially life-threatening complications, the FDA said." The AP (5/7, Jalonick) reports, "College students at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Ohio State in Columbus and Daemen College in Amherst, NY, are among those affected, according to local health departments in those states." Meanwhile, the CDC "said it was looking at 10 other cases probably linked to the outbreak." Notably, the "lettuce was sold in Alabama, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin." CPSC investigating rashes linked to new Pampers diapers.The AP (5/6) reported, "Government safety officials are looking into a handful of reports of severe rashes caused by" new versions of Pampers Swaddlers and Cruisers diapers. The Consumer Product Safety Commission "started an investigation this week following complaints of babies and toddlers suffering severe and persistent diaper rashes and blisters that resemble chemical burns." Procter & Gamble "has shared all of its existing safety data with the agency, said company spokesman Bryan McCleary." Drop-side cribs recalled.The AP (5/6) reported, "About 170,000 drop-side cribs are being recalled after six infants were injured. The cribs recalled were manufactured in Italy, Latvia, Brazil, China and Vietnam and distributed nationwide between January 2000 and March 2010 under the names C&T International, Sorelle and Golden Baby." Concerns over unscrupulous investors in homes contaminated by Chinese drywall.The Tampa Tribune (5/6, Behnken) reported that "willing buyers" are now appearing for homes known to be contaminated with Chinese drywall. But renters "face problems with unscrupulous investors who take on tenants without fixing the drywall." Danna Fischer, legislative director for the National Low Income Housing Coalition, "said she's not aware of any laws that would require landlords to notify tenants of the bad drywall." She added, "I absolutely see the potential for these homes to be snapped up by investors and turned into rental properties." Reports say FDA lacks authority, resources to monitor food supply.The Dallas Morning News (5/7, Michaels) reports that "two watchdog reports presented to lawmakers Thursday" describe "a Food and Drug Administration that lacks the resources and authority to police the food supply despite major food-contamination scares over the past three years." Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said, "These two reports tell a story of an agency that is trying to keep the food supply safe but needs new authorities, more effective tools and increased funding to meet its obligations." The reports also indicate that the FDA "didn't take formal enforcement action against" the companies committing regulatory violations because of "the cumbersome process of pursuing such an action through US district court." Strickland testifies on new auto safety legislation.In a front-page article, the New York Times (5/7, A1, Maynard) reports, "Congress on Thursday began working on legislation that would impose far-reaching safety standards on the auto industry, including some steps that advocates have been seeking for years," in an effort that "looks to have support, at least for some features, in the Obama administration, both political parties and the industry itself." David L. Strickland, the administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, told the House subcommittee his agency wants to take "risks off the road as fast as we can" and "can wholeheartedly embrace" anything that helps that. Meanwhile, David McCurdy, president of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, "cautioned that lawmakers needed to balance the proposals against the needs of consumers and carmakers." Judge orders shareholders, Toyota to reach agreement on document disclosure in class-action.The National Law Journal (5/7, Bronstad) reports, "A federal judge in Los Angeles has declined a request by plaintiffs lawyers in a shareholder class action to force attorneys for Toyota Motor Corp. to turn over documents that were provided to Congress, which has been investigating vehicle recalls associated with sudden unintended acceleration defects. Instead, US District Judge Dale Fischer of the Central District of California on Monday ordered the parties to reach a discovery agreement on their own within a week." Also in the NewsVeterans donate $13M of class-action settlement to charity.The New York Daily News (4/27) reported, "A group of veterans" who received "a $20 million class-action settlement from the Department of Veterans Affairs over a massive identity-theft suit" are "donating about $13 million to the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund and the Fisher House Foundation, two New York-based charities that help families of fallen and wounded troops." Fisher House Foundation CEO Ken Fisher said, "When I first heard about it, it just really knocked me down. It's indicative of the kind of men and women they are." Plaintiff John Rowan, "a 64-year-old Air Force veteran from Middle Village, Queens," said, "The veterans are very glad to have done this." He added, "But the bottom line is, we had to make sure the VA doesn't do this again." California SC to rule on necessary disclosures by arbitrators who have been disciplined.The Recorder (5/7, Mckee) reports, "Fourteen years after being publicly censured by the California Supreme Court, retired Judge Norman Gordon was back - in name only - before the high court Thursday in a case that will decide how much disclosure is required from arbitrators who were disciplined when on the bench. The justices' questions indicated that arbitrators will [not need to] announce a censure that's on the public record." Gordon's censure "became an issue in 2007 after he was in the majority of a 2-1 vote rejecting a woman's medical malpractice claim while working as an arbitrator for his current employer, Judicate West. The peeved plaintiff, Susan Ossakow, searched the Internet afterward and discovered the censure, which noted Gordon had, among other things, made sexually suggestive remarks to and about female staffers." Report linking cancer, Camp Lejeune water contamination goes to Obama.The Jacksonville (NC) Daily News (5/7, Hodge) notes, "A report linking water contamination at Camp Lejeune to cancer in former base residents went to the desk of President Barack Obama this week." On Thursday, the "President's Cancer Panel released a 240-page analysis...urging the president to tighten regulations on environmental carcinogens and chemicals known to increase cancer risk." The report "contains a section dedicated to exposure to contaminants and other hazards from military sources," including Agent Orange. Richlands resident Jerry Ensminger, "a former Marine and full-time advocate for victims of contamination at Lejeune," said that "he believed the way to put a stop to repeated incidences of environmental contamination at military bases was to pass new laws offering greater protection to service members and their families." | |||
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