The Revenge of Wen Jiabao - By John Garnaut | Foreign Policy

Australian John Garnaut on the dethronement of Bo Xilai - the CP leader in Chongqing. - GWC
The Revenge of Wen Jiabao - By John Garnaut | Foreign Policy: 

"If Premier Wen Jiabao is "China's best actor," as his critics allege, he saved his finest performance for last. After three hours of eloquent and emotional answers in his final news conference at the National People's Congress annual meeting this month, Wen uttered his public political masterstroke, reopening debate on one of the most tumultuous events in the Chinese Communist Party's history and hammering the final nail in the coffin of his great rival, the now-deposed Chongqing Communist Party boss Bo Xilai. And in striking down Bo, Wen got his revenge on a family that had opposed him and his mentor countless times in the past."

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Give claimants in BP oil spill an option: An editorial | NOLA.com

Give claimants in BP oil spill an option: An editorial | NOLA.com:
The Times Picayune - Editorial

 "The first report of payments issued by the incoming BP oil spill claims administrator showed that some payments have resumed, and that's the good news. In his first two weeks, attorney Patrick Juneau issued almost $27 million in payments to 1,096 claimants.
BP fund administrator Kenneth Feinberg, left, was officially replaced by Patrick Juneau.
The bad news is that most of the claimants -- 619 of them -- received only 60 percent of final offers made by previous administrator Kenneth Feinberg. They were not given the option of accepting the full offer from Mr. Feinberg.
Under a court settlement reached by plaintiff lawyers and BP, Mr. Juneau will make new offers to these claimants and to anyone else who had received a previous offer but had not accepted it before Feb. 26. The claimants will then be able to choose whether to receive the remaining 40 percent of what Mr. Feinberg offered or the new proposal under terms set by the court "

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Should the Saints Worry About Legal Trouble? - Jake Simpson - Entertainment - The Atlantic

Should the Saints Worry About Legal Trouble? - Jake Simpson - Entertainment - The Atlantic: "Last week, the NFL announced harsh penalties against the New Orleans Saints for their so-called "bounty program" organized by former defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, a system that provided cash incentives for injuring opposing players. The league suspended Williams, head coach Sean Payton, general manager Mickey Loomis, and an assistant coach for a year and docked the team $500,000 and two second-round draft picks.

The punishment, which some felt was hypocritically draconian, seemed to bring an end to the fallout from the bounty program. But plaintiffs' attorneys and at least one U.S. Senator may feel differently, opening the door for potential lawsuits against the team and its personnel.

"There's always the possibility of litigation," said Gabe Feldman, sports law professor at Tulane University Law School. "The real question is the likelihood of success.""

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Conoco Settles Bohai Bay Oil Spill in China - Economic Observer News

Oil Spill Compensation Earmarked - Economic Observer News- China business, politics, law, and social issues:

 "Two months after it was announced that China's Ministry of Agriculture had reached an agreement with U.S. oil major ConocoPhillips and the China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) in relation to compensation for the environmental damage caused by last year's Bohai Bay spill, the EO has learned more details of how the compensation scheme will operate.
According to the details of the package that was announced in late January, a total of RMB 1 billion yuan will be paid as compensation to settle public and private claims of potentially affected fishermen.
The EO has learned that Liaoning Province will receive more than 300 million yuan of the funds and that two counties in Hebei province – Laoting and Changli - will also receive more than 300 million yuan each."

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A Framework for Analyzing Attorney Liability Under Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5 by Gary Bishop :: SSRN

Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 § 10(b), 15 U.S.C. § 78j(b) provides, in pertinent part that "It shall be unlawful for any person, directly or indirectly. . (b) To use or employ, in connection with the purchase or sale of any security registered on a national securities exchange or any security not so registered, . . any manipulative or deceptive device ."


In Central Bank of Denver, N.A. v. First Interstate Bank of Denver, N.A., 511 U.S. 164, 177, 191 (1994) the Supreme Court rejected the notion of aiding and abetting liability in a private action under the federal securities laws.  Thus lawyers, accountants, banks, and mutual fund investment advisers are civilly liable under section only when their conduct satisfies the requirements for primary liability.  That is - just being a facilitator of a fraud, absent knowing participation in the fraud - will not be actionable under the Act.  But just where should the line be drawn? New England Law School law professor Gary Bishop argues that

“an interpretation of the liability standard under section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5 that requires an allegedly false or misleading statement to be attributed to the maker and that narrowly defines the maker of the statement as the person with ultimate authority over it is consistent with the deterrence of fraud and complete disclosure of information in the securities markets."

- GWC

A Framework for Analyzing Attorney Liability Under Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5 by Gary Bishop :: SSRN:
by Gary Bishop
Absract
This article analyzes recent developments in the law of secondary party liability under the general antifraud provision of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, section 10(b), and its corresponding Securities and Exchange Commission rule, Rule 10b-5. The article focuses on a specific type of secondary party, securities lawyers, who make their living representing securities issuers and face a myriad of challenges in doing so. Among those challenges are defrauded investors seeking recovery of their losses from both the issuer of the failed investment securities and from the lawyers who represent the issuer. These securities fraud actions against lawyers raise serious questions about the proper scope of liability under the federal securities laws. The recent developments discussed in the article indicate that the standard for secondary party liability is increasingly becoming one that attorneys acting in the traditional role of adviser and draftsperson to securities issuers will not satisfy.

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Louisiana Oystermen Still Struggling Two Years After Oil Spill | USA | English

Louisiana Oystermen Still Struggling Two Years After Oil Spill | USA | English: "Almost two years ago an explosion on an offshore drilling rig killed 11 men and sent 4.9 million barrels of oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico. The result was the worst environmental disaster in United States history.  Of all the local businesses affected by the spill, Louisiana's once-flourishing oyster industry is probably in the worst condition.  Oysters are still scarce and consumers are still afraid to eat them."
Video HERE
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Adrienne Rich - feminist poet - dies at 82

Adrienne Rich, Influential Feminist Poet, Dies at 82 - NYTimes.com:
"I am here, the mermaid whose dark hair
streams black, the merman in his armored body
We circle silently about the wreck
we dive into the hold. ...
We are, I am, you are
by cowardice or courage
the one who find our way
back to the scene
carrying a knife, a camera
a book of myths
in which
our names do not appear."


I used the phrase Diving Into the Wreck as the lead in the title of my recent article about the BP Gulf Oil Spill.  Although the exploration of the law of compensation has nothing to do with the exploration of identity that made Adrienne Rich's 1974 title poem so powerful, I used the phrase to pay tribute to her, the author of one of the most evocative poems I have ever read. - GWC

Goldman Sachs Denies Claims It Led to Copper River’s Demise - NYTimes.com

Goldman Sachs Denies Claims It Led to Copper River’s Demise - NYTimes.com:by Thor Swift
 "Just before the financial crisis began in September 2008, a prominent hedge fund appeared well positioned to take advantage of any turmoil in the markets. That fund, Copper River Partners, had made sizable bets months earlier against companies whose stocks it expected to suffer.
Marc Cohodes worked at his hedge fund for 25 years, and its short bets on the stock market in 2008 had seemed well positioned to profit.
Within weeks, however, Copper River, once a successful $1.5 billion hedge fund, was out of business, having unexpectedly absorbed losses on the very bets it thought would be profitable. While the market turmoil contributed to its problems, Marc Cohodes, head of Copper River, says that a significant force behind the failure was Goldman Sachs, which for years had been the firm’s broker."
Transcript of Depositions in Case

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How a short sale works

 

Great graphic from the Times

Law School Debt Loads Overwhelm Many - Brian Tamanaha

Balkinization:
by Brian Tamanaha
Thousands of 2011 law graduates across the country will not earn enough to manage the debt they incurred to obtain their law degree. 
The average indebtedness figures for 2011 law graduates are stunning. Last year, 4 law schools had graduates with average debt exceeding $135,000. This year 17 law schools are above $135,000. Last year the highest average debt among graduates was $145,621 (Cal. Western); this year the highest average debt is $165,178 (John Marshall). Below are the 20 schools with the highest average law school debt among graduates (these figures do not include undergraduate debt).
John Marshall Chicago $165,178
California Western $153,145
Thomas Jefferson $153,006
American $151,318
New York Law School $146,230
Phoenix $145,357
Southwestern $142,606
Catholic (DC) $142,222
Northwestern $139,101
Pace University $139,007
Whittier $138,961
Atlanta's John Marshall $138,819
Pacific (McGeorge) $138,267
St. Thomas (FL) $137,721
Univ. San Francisco $137,234
Vermont Law School $136,089
Golden Gate $135,645
Florida Coastal $134,355
Stetson $133,082
Syracuse $132,993
When will law schools decide that they cannot continue to inflict ever increasing levels of unmanageable debt on their students? At the very least, the admissions offices at law schools across the country should explicitly warn students that anyone who expects to incur law school debt above $100,000 will likely suffer financial distress upon graduation unless they land a NLJ 250 job or a public service job that qualifies for reduced loan payments--and admitted students should be told that relatively few graduates get these jobs. Unfortunately, we cannot count on law schools to provide this message--which, if effective, would result in some schools closing their doors for lack of enough paying students.  

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