Law And More

Post-Gender Era - But, Sanford Heisler Sharp Won't Be Out of Business

In some circles, the law firm Sanford Heisler Sharp's signature is the class action gender lawsuit against BigLaw.

A recent high-profile one has been "Tolton, et al. v. Jones Day." Here is a copy of the complaint.

However, if the post-gender era does come, Sanford has nothing to fear. A group or individual with power likely will always be treating unfairly those with less or no power. Lawsuits are in the cards.

Signs of a world without gender classifications seem to be taking shape. That includes language.

Berkeley, California has passed an ordinance banning all gender terms from the city code. Those terms range from "policewoman" to "manhole."

The popular book "Gender Outlaw" by Kate Bornstein envisions social norms which don't differentiate human beings according to the sex organs they were born with. There will be no male. There will be no female.

Increasingly the conventional notion of gender as male or female has broadened into a continuum understanding. On that continuum some human beings are at the points of being more or less male or female in attitudes and behavior.

So, there is no longer such a set notion of what's "female" or "male." On the popular network television series "Good Girls," Beth thinks strategically about criminal activity, like a man is expected to do. However, her deep love of her children would be considered a female trait. 

Also, and most importantly, with fertility rates plunging in developed economies, the female's reproductive role becomes less central to how the world operates. In The Atlantic, Derek Thompson chronicles how the future of cities - the main engine of economic growth - is childless. It might be conjected that the need for offspring could have resulted in a conspiracy to temper female career ambition. 

The time when human beings don't sort out anything based on the perception of gender could arrive sooner than traditionalists anticipate.

An unexpected consequence could be fewer serial killers. Many of those have been locked into sexual-identity distress. With that distress not taking hold any more, there would be no compulsion to kill and keep killing. If "Law & Order SVU" keeps being renewed for another season, it might feature a post-gender plot line. 

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"Edwin Hardeman" v. Monsanto, John Does" - Judge Downsizes Punitive Damages Award

On March 27th, the California jury in a Roundup trial awarded the plaintiff almost $75 million in punitive damages. That litigation had been "Edwin Hardeman v. Monsanto, John Does." Here is a copy of the complaint.

As The Recorder reports, U.S. District judge for the Northern District of California Vince Chhabria reduced that to $25.3 million. That represents a ratio of 4 times the compensatory damages. The earlier award represented 15 times the compensatory damages. The latter he assessed that as not constitutional.

However, he didn't toss the conviction, stating that Monsanto's behavior was "reprehensible." Monsanto, whose parent is Bayer, will continue to appeal the conviction. 

The plaintiff's lawyer is Jennifer Moore of the Moore Law Group. 

The reality that the judge maintained the conviction is a negative development for Bayer. It still faces thousands of lawsuits for allegedly causing non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

The amazing thing is this: Roundup is still being sold. On network television it continues to be advertised. Ironically, also on network television law firms are pitching for Roundup plaintiffs. 

After the "Hardeman' verdict, big box Costco made the decision to stop selling Roundup.

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"Ma"- Pain, Pre-Digital, Then a Crime Spree

Back in an Ohio high school, Sue Ann - who goes by nickname Ma - had been withdrawn and naive. She was also one of the few blacks. Of course, she craved to belong.

The mean kids set her up to give oral sex to popular Ben. Then, as a group almost like a Greek Chorus, they laughed about it. That was in person, in the high school corridor. Today it would be through Instagram. 

The film "Ma" chronicles how Sue Ann enacts revenge on those former classmates. That plot starts out with their children, whom she allows to party in her basement.

Bit by bit she becomes increasingly unstable and hostile. That ranges from murdering Ben and his girlfriend Mercedes to drugging and sewing the lips of a smart-mouthed teenager who told her she needed a man. 

Critics note that "Ma" could have been a great film. The plot line and acting don't take advantage of possibilities. But what resonates is the message that those years between childhood and becoming an actual adult are difficult. There are those, like Ma, who never shake off the pain. 

Some entrepreneur with a deep understanding of human nature can invent an app that allows teenagers to sort out in real time and all the time what's happening in their little lives. It would be voice-activated like Alexa, be a damn good listener, and provide sophisticated forms of compassion and guidance. In addition, it would be guaranteed for confidentiality. 

Another kind of help would be allowing students to bring their dogs to school. 

My own descent into hell began not in high school. It was in an all-woman's small Roman Catholic College, not far from where "Ma" is set. Here is that dark psychological drama.

Three years ago, I returned to the scene of the crime to try to sort out all that. I didn't expect it to work. But it did. Unfortunately, too many real-life therapists are unimaginative about what could and does heal. Apps could be lots more creative. 

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Workers' Rights - Tipping Point Could Be Amazon Prime Day Deals

Around the world, Amazon workers have become a symbol of the exploitative labor conditions associated with online shopping.

Some compare what's going down now to what was standard in the Industrial Age.

In his novels Charles Dickens captured the rawness of that shift from mom and pop home enterprises to the brutality of struggling to earn a living in factories. The factory has evolved into the fulfillment warehouse. The best of times for ecommerce might have become the worst of times for laborers.

Currently, in some regions those employees are protesting. Their plight went high profile through a 2015 article in The New York Times. Here is a copy of that expose.

Meanwhile Amazon is having its Prime Day Deals.

In solidarity with the workers, readers of publications posting on the deals are pushing back on those members of media. They range from Wired to The New York Times. Some of those publications have arrangement to receive commissions when shoppers click on the ads. Here are more details from BusinessInsider. 

The combination of worker protests and reader support of them could be the tipping point for better working conditions at Amazon. 

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Showtime's "The Loudest Voice in the Room," Episode 3 - Meme of Trust No One in Corporations

It's not unusual to resent one's boss.

But Roger Ailes' resentment of his - Rupert Murdoch - led him to dig up dirt on the boss' then wife - Wendi Deng Murdoch. The resulting piece was going to be published in the digital tabloid Gawker. But that never happened.

Such details of the Ailes-Murdoch conflict came out in Episode 3 of "The Loudest Voice in the Room." 

For viewers, the overall takeaway from Episode 3 might be that in corporate life no one is to be trusted. And no one can assume he or she is "safe."

The intrigue has layers and layers of deceit and manipulation. In the end, not even Ailes himself could count on job security. Subordinate Gretchen Carlson did him in. 

This notion of stealth moves brings the world back to when author of "The Loudest Voice in the Room" Gabriel Sherman first published the book.

It was then that Ailes' personal public relations representative Bob Dilenschneider spent $15K to place an ad in The New York Times Book Review section. It to promote a vanity biography of Ailes.

Likely the objective was to distract attention from Sherman's negative book. But, what happened was that the scheme backfired. And Sherman got plenty of unexpected publicity. That could go down in history as The Battle of the Books. Here are more details. 

No wonder so many smart people, of all generations, are opting for self-employment, including entrepreneurship.

Sure, there is the challenge of getting, holding, and scaling business. Also, no employer is ponying up the money for the health insurance. But there is more control over more of the moving parts and the people than when one is an employee. 

In addition, parents might be warning their offspring, especially daughters, to steer clear of pursuing careers in broadcast media. 

The ratings for this series haven't been too hot. However, some enterprising group could repackage it and bring it back in a more profitable way. That would give greater exposure of the myriad ways Ailes abused power. 

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"Homocidal Maniac" Scott Nelson Doesn't Get His Wish - Will Spend Life in Prison

Scott Nelson referred to himself in court, during the penalty phase of his trial, as a "homicidal maniac."

As such, he requested the death penalty. He had been convicted of first-degree murder in the case of nanny Jennifer Fulford. In September 2017 he has shown up at the residence of her employer to steal. To prevent a witness from identifying her he kidnapped and killed her.

Well, justice has prevailed. As Alberto Luperon reports in Law and Crime, Nelson didn't get his wish. He has been sentenced to life in prison.

Had Nelson received the death penalty, until the day he died, he could have been a type of celebrity. For instance, those against capital punishment could have advocated in the media for his life. Yes, journalists would have sought permission to interview Nelson. Criminologists could have initiated research projects. 

Now, Nelson is doomed to being NoWhereMan in prison. The odds are he will continue to be tormented by his thoughts, as is usual with troubled human beings. 

The legal system has prevented one more criminal from becoming a star.

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Jeffrey McIntyre, former Husch Blackwell Partner - What Could Play Out

Unlike many lawyers who self-destruct, Jeffry McIntyre sill has a license to practice law. He can start over in that line of work, if he chooses that path. 

The Wisconsin Supreme Court only reprimanded him. He had had guilty pleas for battery and a DUI. 

Unfortunately, though, as Law.com reports, he and the law firm where had been a partner - Husch Blackwell - have parted company. His profile is no longer on the website. 

The world might view McIntyre's situation as bleak.

But it's a different mindset in the rooms of recovery. Those are full of hope and one of the promises is that members will not regret the past or wish to shut the door on it.

After three DUIs, getting caught up in a physical altercation, and losing a big job, McIntrye could be willing to change. That's the first step toward a new life. 

Some day, McIntyre may get up before the recovery group and proudly tell his story. The past few years he could describe as his bottom. 

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Larry Nassar Trauma 2.0 - The Settlements

To those outside the law loop the concept of "settlements" conjures up visions of BigMoney. 

But, as Mary Pilon reports in Fortune, that isn't necessarily the reality. Moreover, in the aftermath of the Larry Nassar sex abuse criminal conviction, the settlement process for the victims often has been traumatic.

Some received low five-figures. Others high six-figures.

The way those kinds of settlements are done is almost barbaric. Factored in are what were the specific nature of the abuse and the documented harm done. In the Nassar process there was no systematic way to quantify the physical and emotional fallout from the horrific deeds.

When victims were making their statements in court after the Nassar conviction, the woman who set the ball rolling on nailing Nassar - Rachael Denhollander - asked a question which went viral: How much is a little girl worth?

 Now herself a lawyer she is among those advocating making the answers to the question less painful to the victims. The settlement process shouldn't make them victims again.

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Ben Crump Could Be the One to Stop Alleged Police Brutality Against Blacks

The way New York Magazine depicts Ben Crump is as the digital era's Martin Luther King who has a law degree. 

Crump has King's innate sense of showmanship and his selfless determination.

Also, through his legal background, Crump has already achieved justice for the families of black males such as Martin Lee Anderson and Trayvon Martin. 

But, Crump feels no satisfaction. Despite the headlines he helped create for his legal victims, he assesses that alleged police brutality against blacks hasn't stopped. That's his mission: stopping all that. 

Crump is an expert in how to get the right attention. Early in his law career he knew to bring into the loop publicity experts. Currently he has his own production company. 

Most importantly, like Detective Robert Goren from "Law & Order Criminal Intent," Crump focuses on the question. Recently, he knew exactly the question to ask of a black financial services executive who had allegedly been mistreated by a bank. Then that professional was arrested by the police and put in a jail cell. There he remained for hours before being allowed a phone call.

That question was: How did you feel?

It took a while for the executive to allow the answer to rise up from his soul.

Eventually, the response was: This is how it happens.

Crump could go down in history as the disruptor who didn't allow "it" to happen any more.

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The Roger Ailes Smirk - Was #MeToo Kicked Off by a Boy-Man?

Adolescent boys are practically delusional about where they can channel their sex drive.

They are also Masters of The Smirk. How many parents, even sophisticated ones, have barked out to their teenage sons: Wipe that smirk off your face.

Also, boys in those years between childhood and adult responsibility tend to be mean.

In addition, they frequently get into a pickle with the law.

As we watched Episode Two of Showtime's "The Loudest Voice in the Room" Sunday night, some of us had an ah-ha moment. Could the code about whom Roger Ails really was be broken by analyzing Ailes as a Boy-Man. The media tycoon with the smirk on his face.

Somehow Ailes might have missed that rite of passage which males undergo to leave boyish things behind. Yes, Ailes might well be a classic case of arrested development. Here is TV's summary of Episode Two. 

And, it was the play-out of that syndrome which might have kicked off #MeToo. Ailes died before any of the allegations of sexual misconduct at Fox could be proved in court. So, we will never know for certain if Ailes was the sexual predator he has been suspected to be. However the suspicions were enough for The Murdochs to oust him from Fox.

Meanwhile, this Showtime series, which re-interprets Ailes' rise and fall, could be affecting other careers. For instance, in Episode Two, Rupert Murdoch does not come across as the cunning fox he is usually portrayed as.

Here is speculation about losers and winners from Showtime's "The Loudest Voice in the Room." That programming, although not a ratings blockbuster, could havee long-term impacts on individual professional lives and media in America.

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