Westchester Herald

Human Rights Commission Holds Annual Moot Court Competition

Local High Schools to Compete

White Plains, NY -- Once again, local high school students will be putting on their legal advocacy hats Tuesday and Wednesday, November 16 and 17, to compete in the Fourth Annual Moot Court Competition sponsored by the Westchester County Human Rights Commission.  

Stop The Pork Lawsuit Wins Round, Goes to Court of Appeals By Richard Cooper

This posting was first published Ground Report. Republished with express permission of Author Richard Cooper.

The Stop The Pork lawsuit to compel New York State government to end itscorporate welfare spending has won a round on appeal and will be able to be considered by New York's highest court, the Court of Appeals.  The plaintiffs contend that this loans and grants to corporations contravene the New York State Constitution.  Buffalo attorney James Ostrowski is arguing the case, and I am one of the plaintiffs.

I have written about this case previously:

groundreport.com/articles.php?id=2922303

News from Independent Counsel Judith S. Kaye

New York, NY, August 26, 2010 -- Judge  Judith S. Kaye,  Independent Counsel to the Office of the Attorney
General, today released her final report entitled, “ Kaye_8-26-10:Report of Investigation Into Events Arising from Gov David A Paterson's Acquisition of 2009 World Series Tickets."

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Ground Zero Workers’ Lawyers Give Speaker Silver’s Law Firm a Cut of Settlement Agreement Funds BY Hezi Aris

 New York, NY, August 24, 2010 -- There are nearly 10,000 ailing Ground Zero workers whose plight was brought before the courts by  the personal injury  lawpartnership firms of Worby Groner Edelman (Michael Edelman pictured), and Napoli Bern. Allegations today surfaced suggesting that the  firm disguised padding $220,000 in payments for lobbyist,  public relationsand medical reviews. Treating the $220,000 in fees as “expert costs”, the law firm of Sullivan Papain Block McGrath & Cannavo allege  the respective firms of Worby Groner Edelman, and  Napoli Bern, circumvented the $1.75 million in “common benefit costs” submitted by  the law firms of Worby Groner Edelman, and  Napoli Bern.

$251 Million Plus in Alleged Medicare False Billing Leads to Yonkers BY Hezi Aris

Additional Arrests, Charges, and Execution of Search Warrants Conducted in Miami; Baton Rouge, LA.; Brooklyn, NY; Detroit; and Houston, TX

Washington, DC, August 13, 2010 -- It was on July 16, 2010 the  United StatesAttorney's Office of the Eastern District of New York divulged  ninety-four people had been charged for their alleged participation in schemes to collectively submit more than $251 million in false claims to the Medicare program in the continuing operation of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force in Miami, Baton Rouge, Brooklyn, Detroit, and Houston. Making the announcement was Attorney General Eric Holder, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, FBI Director Robert S. Mueller, III, and Daniel R. Levinson, Inspector General of HHS. The operation announced was the largest federal  health care fraud takedown since Medicare Fraud Strike Force operations began in 2007.

California Judge Refuses to Stay Prop 8 Marriage Ruling

 San Francisco, CA, August 12, 2010 -- U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker today refused to stay his ruling in  Perry v. Schwarzenegger, in which he struck down Proposition 8 (Prop 8), the state marriage amendment defining marriage as the union of one woman and one man in the California Constitution. In November 2008, California voters amended their state constitution by passing Prop 8, and the CaliforniaSupreme Court upheld the marriage amendment. This current challenge is in federal court.