Guilty.
I am loving guest-blogger South Florida Lawyer. Great stuff below...
Thanks.
The SDFLA Blog is dedicated to providing news and notes regarding federal practice in the Southern District of Florida. The New Times calls the blog "the definitive source on South Florida's federal court system." All tips on court happenings are welcome and will remain anonymous. Please email David Markus at dmarkus@markuslaw.com
Thursday, February 19, 2009
New Plea Agreement Policy Becomes Effective Tomorrow
SFL here, still muckin' around this joint while David tries another big case.
Boy I feel like a dinosaur thinking back to the days when the clerk's office was not automated, and you had to actually walk over to Court to pull a docket or see an administrative order.
Now the clerk can just imprint them directly into the microchip transmitter located behind your retina, saving a lot of time and also something they used to have a long time ago called "trees."
Wait a minute -- that upgrade is set to launch in 2010.
I guess in 09 they're still using old fashioned emails, and I got one earlier today from the clerk that said this:
Administrative Order 2009-2, effective February 20, 2009, provides in part:Hmm, I have to think this is a good thing, right?
ORDERED AND ADJUDGED that as of February 20, 2009, the Southern District of Florida's current policy of providing limited electronic access to plea agreements is rescinded. All plea agreements filed on or after February 20, 2009 will be public documents, with full remote access available to all members of the public and the bar, unless the Court has entered an Order in advance directing the sealing or otherwise restricting a plea agreement.
Please visit the Southern District of Florida web page at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov for the full text of Administrative Order 2009-2.
Guest Blogging At David's Place.
Hi folks, SFL here.
David was kind enough to lend me the keys to his soapbox for a few days because, as you may have heard, he's busy doing IMPORTANT LEGAL STUFF.
In fact, here's a taste of what the big man has been up to this week:
Good luck David!
In other SD FL news, all you machers can see if you made the list. No, not the Madoff investment list, but the list of 19,000 offshore UBS bank accounts of American investors who may have been trying to avoid US taxes:
Ok ok I know it's not Shakespeare, and I'll see if I can punch it up a bit, but I did promise myself -- out of my deep respect for David -- not to "work blue."
Boy, now I know how Bob Saget feels.
Have a good day everybody!
David was kind enough to lend me the keys to his soapbox for a few days because, as you may have heard, he's busy doing IMPORTANT LEGAL STUFF.
In fact, here's a taste of what the big man has been up to this week:
The guiding principle of the medical profession is often stated as "First, do no harm."Geez, all I do is move around money.
But according to federal prosecutor Sean Cronin, Dr. Ali Shaygan operated by a different four-word motto, "Mo' money. Mo' money," with deadly consequences.
Making his opening statement Wednesday to a Miami federal jury, Cronin called Shaygan a drug dealer who sold prescriptions for dangerous narcotics to boost his income.
One of Shaygan's patients, James "Brendan" Downey of West Palm Beach, died in June 2007 after overdosing on methadone prescribed by Shaygan, Cronin said.
Shaygan's attorney, David O. Markus, countered that the 37-year-old physician prescribed appropriate doses of medications to patients who claimed to be suffering from pain and other ailments.
"He had a legitimate medical reason for doing what he did," Markus said. "Because a patient passes away doesn't make the doctor a criminal."
Shaygan, who lives in Miami Beach, is charged with 141 counts of unlawful prescribing and causing Downey's death. If convicted, he faces more than 20 years behind bars.
Good luck David!
In other SD FL news, all you machers can see if you made the list. No, not the Madoff investment list, but the list of 19,000 offshore UBS bank accounts of American investors who may have been trying to avoid US taxes:
You can see the filing that was submitted to Judge Cohn here.The largest bank in Switzerland, UBS, agreed Wednesday to reveal the names of wealthy Americans whom the authorities suspect of using offshore accounts to evade taxes.
The change in policy is the result of UBS' admitted role in conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service. As part of the agreement, the bank will pay $780 million in damages, and also close all offshore accounts of its American clients.
Ok ok I know it's not Shakespeare, and I'll see if I can punch it up a bit, but I did promise myself -- out of my deep respect for David -- not to "work blue."
Boy, now I know how Bob Saget feels.
Have a good day everybody!
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Exhaustion
Trial the last two days from 8:30 am to 6:30pm. I'm tired...
Updates you probably know already:
Openings in the Liberty City 6 today.
Closings in the Joe Cool case and the jury is out.
Good news -- South Florida Lawyer has agreed to guest blog. THANK YOU!
Updates you probably know already:
Openings in the Liberty City 6 today.
Closings in the Joe Cool case and the jury is out.
Good news -- South Florida Lawyer has agreed to guest blog. THANK YOU!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Looking for part-time blogger!
I am trial, probably for the next 4-5 weeks. (Details here). Anyone interesting in helping out while I'm busy?
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