The Inspector General of the Department of Defense released its long-awaited final report Exposure to Sodium Dichromate at Qarmat Alli Iraq in 2003: Part II Evaluation of Army and Contractor Actions Report No. SPO-2011-009 (September 28, 2011). Here is the current report: Part II Qarmat Ali FINAL Report Sept… Continue Reading →
I had the pleasure of watching my dear friend and colleague Maureen Leonard argue Paul v. Providence in the Oregon Supreme Court today. She did a fabulous job of articulating our position, both in her briefing and at oral argument. The Oregon Supreme Court was not at full strength. Continue Reading →
Ten years after the 9/11 tragedy, I am thinking today of the first responders and veterans who volunteered for service. They did so understanding the dangers and the risks, and they did so as a matter of duty and conscience. In answering the call, they put themselves in harm’s way. Continue Reading →
Last night’s HBO premier of Hot Coffee, The Movie provided a great summary of all the ways in which the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, large foreign corporations, and political operatives have banded together to end the right to trial by jury. Filmmaker Susan Saladoff did a masterful job of… Continue Reading →
HBO premiers Hot Coffee, The Movie tonight. The documentary is Oregon attorney Susan Saladoff’s labor of love. Susan put aside her law practice to will this film into being. She is a force of nature. Susan makes no bones about her point of view. Like me, she is… Continue Reading →
Via Twitter, the law blog world and a few local lists, I’ve spent the better part of a week thinking about lawyer advertising. First thing: I am biased. I believe that the law is a profession. As such, our clients come first, the justice system next, and we come third. Continue Reading →
In today’s Oregonian, Julie Sullivan (aka “the one-woman wrecking crew”) reports here on emerging details of KBR’s request for a taxpayer bailout. Short version is that as revealed by depositions taken in our Oregon Army National Guard toxic injury case, Bixby v. KBR, KBR… Continue Reading →
Good to see that the Senate is set to pass S. 510, a bill that would help regulate food producers. By way of background, we’ve had a lot of outbreaks of food-related disease due to unsafe and unregulated food producers. The problem is exacerbated by the rise… Continue Reading →
In today’s Oregonian, Julie Sullivan reports here about a document provided to the soldiers in discovery that is one of those classic smoking guns. In our case, Bixby v. KBR, KBR and Halliburton claim that they didn’t know about the sodium dichromate until late July or August, they claim… Continue Reading →
Yesterday, we filed an updated complaint in Bixby v. KBR. Here’s a copy Bixby Fourth amended complaint. The new complaint adds Halliburton defendants. For those interested, here’s what happened. The legal team representing the sick veterans made Freedom of Information Act requests to the U.S. Army. It took a… Continue Reading →