Most Unique Verdict: Judge Vacates Adoption So Couple Can Marry
A judged vacated the adoption of a gay man who, upon moving to Pennsylvania prior to its recognition of same sex marriage, took his lover as a son in order to gain legal rights. That's according to a recent article from 8 News Now, a CBS affiliate.
Upon request, Judge Gary B. Gilman of Bucks County Orphans' Court vacated Bill Novak’s adoption of his lover Norman MacArthur, who is only two years younger than him. The couple sough adoption in order to gain legal benefits related to inheritance tax liability, hospital visitation and other legal rights, but could not marry so long as they were still father and son.
The couple had moved from New York nearly 20 years ago where domestic partnerships were recognized and used the strategy to maintain a legal relationship after moving to Pennsylvania. The practice of using adoption to gain legal benefits is controversial as some same-sex couples view it as delegitimizing relationships. The couple’s attorney said the ruling could help other couples in the same situation.
Most International Verdict: Morsi Death Sentence Raises Red Flags in U.S., U.N.
Egypt's ousted president Mohamed Morsi has been sentenced to death alongside others in what is being described as a campaign to eradicate the Muslim Brotherhood. That's according to an article from Newsmax.
Morsi was one of more than 100 defendants sentenced to death for their part in a 2011 mass jailbreak, raising concerns in the international community. The verdict and Morsi have spawned a conversation about the appropriateness of commenting and interfering with a verdict levied by a sovereign nation as well as the controversial practice of mass trials and sentences.
U.S. State Department officials, legal experts and others have weighed in on the ruling, which comes during Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s apparent crackdown directed toward Morsi supporters. The Egyptian court will formally announce a decision on June 2 and will also rule on separate espionage case involving Morsi and others. An appeal is permitted under Egyptian law.
Most Taxing Verdict: Jury Awards Whopping $83M Over $1K Debt Collection Error
A Missouri jury awarded a woman $83 million from a credit agency that mistakenly tried to collect $1,000 from her. That's according to an article in Forbes.
Portfolio Recovery Associates LLC, a company that buys up debt, mistakenly came after Maria Guadalupe Mejia, whose name is similar to the actual target of the debt collection, and is now on the hook for a massive punitive payment.
“This outlandish verdict defies all common sense,” wrote a spokesman for the collection agency’s parent company Michael McKeon. “We hope and expect the judge will set aside this inappropriate award, and we plan to file motions to make that request formally in the near term. Any fair reading of the facts of this case makes plain that a verdict of this size is not justice by any means, and cannot stand.”
The Forbes piece also notes the IRS may be able to claim a large chunk of the settlement depending on how the damages are classified.
Most Manipulative Verdict: 5 Major Banks Fined Billions in Currency Manipulation Scandal
For four years, a group of traders known underground as “The Cartel” allegedly manipulated foreign currency exchange rates leading to $5.6 billion in fines. That's according to an article in Politico.
The five banks; Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland, Citigroup, JPMorganChase and UBS were said to be working together to influence the rates for paying customers and have already pled guilty, or will be shortly, on antitrust and manipulation charges.
New York state’s Department of Financial Services provided transcripts of conversations between traders including one that read: “Mess this up and sleep with one eye open at night,” referring to one trader on a one month trial participating in the scheme. The practices were said to take place between 2008 and 2012 with additional price misrepresentation at Barclay’s lasting until last year.
Most Silent Verdict: Tsarnaev Jury Mum After Death Sentence
The jurors in the trial of Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev have remained relatively quiet since electing to sentence him to capital punishment, according to a recent article in the Portland Press Herald.
The jurors may be reluctant to be in the spotlight to discuss a sentence that did not poll particularly well in Massachusetts, which does have a death penalty. Tsarnaev was tried in a federal court and sentenced to death under the nationwide statue. A clerk for Judge George O’Toole Jr., who heard the case, said it is unclear when the jurors’ names will be made public. The jurors’ names must be released at some point in accordance with federal law in order to ensure transparency.