Goodman Firm Blawg

Public Dissemination of Private Health Information

If a newspaper runs an article and identifies a person in the story as HIV positive, has the newspaper violated that person's rights? There is freedom of speech, but there are also many state laws prohibiting the publication of such information. This article discusses a suit filed in Texas for $1.1 billion based upon these facts. The Texas Court of Appeals applied the state statute which makes it unlawful to publish health information based upon medical test results. The Appeals Court found no wrong was committed by the newspaper and focused on the fact no medical test results were ever reviewed by the paper- rather, it was simply publishing known true facts about the plaintiff. I tend to agree with the Plaintiff that the intention of the statute was to prevent exactly what occurred in the article... but the statute does specifically address the issue of dissemination of test results in order to have a claim.

Here Is One Civil "Liberty" I Don't Think I'll Be Needing

Civil Liberty

Scopes Monkey Trial...Only In Reverse

A legal showdown is taking place in Pennsylvania over a school's teaching of the concept of "intelligent design." The Plaintiffs are arguing this is simply a form of creationism that is being forced into the school curriculum and is against the Darwin teachings of evolution. "One Nation under Darwin..." just doesn't have the same ring to it that I prefer.

Let's just hope this trial is as heated as the famous Scopes Monkey Trial and that a new Clarence Darrow emerges from the squabble.

Rehnquist Was A Thug?

Fox News' Alan Colmes did a telephone interview with Harvard law professor, Alan Dershowitz regarding the passing of Chief Justice William Rehnquist. Here is a portion of that interview:

Colmes: Is there a precedent for what will be known as the Rehnquist court? How would you characterize that court, and are there precedents historically for that? The Warren court was called activist a couple of decades earlier.

Dershowitz: He was much more activist. And I think the Rehnquist court was never the Rehnquist court. He moved more toward the center as he became chief justice and as he had Scalia and Thomas on his right flank and of course most of the rest of the court in the center or on his left flank. It--the decisions of Justice Rehnquist are not taught in law schools as great decisions. He'll be remembered primarily for his votes rather than for the content or quality of his decisions. And it's consistent throughout his life. He started his career by being a kind of Republican thug who pushed and shoved to keep African-American and Hispanic voters from voting.

Sean Hannity: All right--

Dershowitz: He had a restrictive covenant in his own lease which precluded the sale to Jews.

Pretty harsh words, indeed!

D.C Sniper is Being Force Fed

The infamous DC sniper is staging a voluntary fasting in protest over his distaste for the food and handling of his legal affairs at his current correctional institution. The Courts have now ordered the prison to force feed and hydrate the inmate so he does not sustain any harm. This is being done for a prisoner who has already been sentenced to death??

Wisconsin's Supreme Court Strikes Down Caps on Pain and Suffering Awards

In the rush for "tort reform" Wisconsin passed legislation which placed caps (maximum amounts) which an injured person could recover for non-economic (commonly called pain and suffering) damages in a medical malpractice lawsuit. Mississippi also passed similar legislation. The proponents of these caps said that medical malpractice insurance premiums were sky-rocketing due to large personal injury jury verdicts. Well, now that the dust has settled, experts agree that damage award caps have no relationship to insurance premiums. The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled and found that the caps violated due process rules since there was no connection between caps and premiums.

Let Congress Decide If It Is Acting Constitutionally? "Yeah, That's The Ticket!"

What would you say if our elected "leaders" in Washington were proposing a law that would allow them to overrule a Supreme Court decision that says Congress acted unconstitutionally? Crazy? Not so fast....For example, let's say this legislation passes and then Congress passes a law that all guns must be turned in to your local police precinct- that law would go to the Supreme Court were it would be struck down as violating the Constitution. Well, under this proposed legislation, Congress could overturn the Supreme Court's decision and off our guns would go. If this still sounds crazy, then keep an eye on proposed legislation H.R. 3070, laughingly called the Congressional Accountability for Judicial Activism Act of 2005'......

Being a former New Orleans admiralty lawyer, this caught my eye

The US Supreme Court recently dabbled in maritime law and ruled on a disability suit brought by passengers against Norwegian Cruise Lines. The Court applied the Americans with Disabilities Act to foreign flag vessels, requiring them to make cruise ships more accessible to the handicapped. The Court did stop short of requiring a full retrofit of existing vessels- a move that would have cost the cruise lines big $$$.

Jail Time or Church Time?

Here is a short article describing a Kentucky Judge's recent attempts at alternative sentencing. The Judge gives guilty offenders the option of taking jail time or church attendance. This has raised some eyebrows, and of course, the ACLU has given a comment on the issue. I guess it would speak poorly of the Kentucky churches if jail time was the popular choice of those convicted.

Mississippians Can Now Have Wine Shipped From Other States

The US Supreme Court gave some muscle to the commerce clause and struck down the laws of many states that prohibit purchasing wine directly from the out-of-state vitners and having the wine shipped to the buyers home. Mississippi is one such state that has an Alcohol and Beverage Control Board that buys the wine for the state. All re-sellers of wine in Mississippi had to buy inventory from the ABC. This has apprently now changed, and we Mississippians can peruse wine.com and order whichever wines we wish.