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Appeals court upholds sentence in Ponzi scheme
Court Watch | 2011/09/15 22:10
A federal appeals court has upheld the 30-year prison sentence for a man convicted of operating what prosecutors called the largest Ponzi scheme in Louisiana's history.

In a 15-page opinion issued Friday, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the sentence for Matthew Pizzolato, of Tickfaw.

Pizzolato also was ordered to make over $15 million in restitution to the 165 victims he defrauded. He had offices in Baton Rouge, Covington, Hammond and Lake Charles and advertised investment services under several company names, including Gulf Region Guaranty Inc.

Prosecutors said he promised high rates of return and claimed investors' money was protected against losses, but made risky investments they didn't authorize, gave away millions to friends and family and spent much of the money on luxury items for himself.


Guilty plea for Va. man in $318K Social Security fraud
Law Center | 2011/09/09 08:39
A Bristol man has pleaded guilty to stealing Social Security benefits and making false statements in an attempt to hide the thefts.

Seventy-one-year-old David Ross entered the plea Thursday in federal court in Abingdon.

Ross faces a sentence of up to 65 years in prison on all counts.

Federal prosecutors say Ross admitted stealing more than $318,000 in benefits that had been intended for his mother, who died in 1971. He told the Social Security Administration that his mother died in December 2010.


Court: Samsung can't sell tablet in Germany
Headline News | 2011/09/09 08:39
A German court rules that Samsung Electronics's Galaxy Tab cannot be sold in Germany because it violated patents of rival Apple's iPad2.

A Duesseldorf state court said Friday it would not allow Samsung, based in Seoul, South Korea, to market its Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Germany because it too closely resembles the iPad2.

Already in August, the court had ruled in favor of Apple, based in Cupertino, California, forcing Samsung to withdraw its tablet from the market.

Samsung challenged the ban. The companies are involved in a series of legal disputes in countries around the world over allegations that each copies the other's technology.


W.Va. lawyer nominated to federal appeals court
Lawyer News | 2011/09/09 08:38
President Barack Obama has nominated Hamlin native Stephanie Dawn Thacker as a judge on the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Thacker has been a partner in the Charleston law firm of Guthrie amp; Thomas since 2006.

Before that she spent seven years with the U.S. Department of Justice. Her work as a trial attorney there focused on prosecution and training in connection with child pornography and sexual exploitation, sex trafficking, obscenity and other offenses.

She also served as an assistant federal prosecutor and worked for the state attorney general's office.

The U.S. Senate must now consider Thacker's nomination to the Richmond, Va.-based court. The seat became vacant after the March death of Judge Blane Michael.

The 15-member court covers North Carolina, South Carolina, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia.


Court tosses Sivak's death sentence
Law Firm News | 2011/09/08 09:20
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed the death sentence of an Idaho man convicted of brutally slaying a former coworker because the state allowed a jailhouse informant to lie on the witness stand.

Lacey Mark Sivak was sentenced to death for the 1981 murder of Dixie Wilson at the Baird Oil gas station in Garden City. In a ruling handed down Wednesday, the appellate court said that while Sivak's murder conviction was appropriate, the outcome of his sentencing hearing might have been different if prosecutors hadn't knowingly presented the testimony of an inmate who lied on the stand.

Still, the appellate court said state attorneys may decide to hold a new sentencing hearing if they still want to seek the death penalty for Sivak's crimes.


Wal-Mart Uses Class Action Against Netflix
Headline News | 2011/09/07 09:19
Wal-Mart is using its failed class action lawsuit with Netflix to attract new users to its video streaming service, Vudu.

A federal court in California agreed late last week to allow Wal-Mart to pay $27.5 million to 40 million Netflix subscribers. The kicker? They can make the payment in the form of gift cards for Walmart.com. As a result, this also gives Wal-Mart access to Netflix's customer database.

The class action suit came in response to a dinner meeting in 2005, where the CEOs of Netflix and Wal-Mart allegedly agreed to share the DVD market. According to consumer advocates, under the pact, Wal-Mart agreed not to rent DVDs if Netflix promised not to sell them. Class action suits were filed against both companies in 2009, claiming that this agreement violated antitrust laws.

While Wal-Mart decided to settle the case, Netflix is still fighting the allegations, claiming the suit has no merit.

Wal-Mart's settlement, which still has to be finalized in February 2012, comes as the discount giant is in the process of aggressively promoting its Vudu service, which it acquired in February 2010. At the same time, Netflix is in dire need of an image cleanup, following several unfriendly consumer moves, including a recent price hike and the falling out of its Liberty Starz deal.


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