Settlement reached in Santana Row fire
A confidential settlement has been reached between the corporate developers of Santana Row and more than two dozen tenants in an apartment complex south of the development who lost their homes when embers from the devastating 2002 fire blew across a freeway and torched their buildings.
San Jose attorney Jeffrey Janoff, who represented 19 families who lived in the Moorpark Apartments in the lawsuit against Federal Realty Investment Trust, could not disclose the terms of the March 8 settlement. But he said a Superior Court judge agreed the settlement was "in good faith."
Attorney Jeffrey David Janoff Named To Million Dollar Advocates Forum
The Million Dollar Advocates Forum is please to announce that attorney Jeffrey David Janoff of San Jose CA has been certified as a member.
The Million Dollar Advocates Forum is recognized as one of the most prestigious groups of trial lawyers in the United States. Membership is limited to attorneys who have won million and multi-million dollar verdicts, awards and settlements. The organization was founded in 1993 and there are approximately 3000 members located throughout the country. Fewer than 1% of U.S. lawyers are members. Forum membership acknowledges excellence in advocacy, and provides members with a national network of experienced colleagues for professional referral and information exchange in major cases. Members must have acted as principal counsel in at least one case in which their client has received a verdict, award or settlement in the amount of one million dollars or more. Please see our website (below) for further details concerning membership qualifications.
Hockey player named in suit over dog attack
A 2003 dog attack that killed a Norwich terrier puppy and injured its 66-year-old owner may land Sharks defenseman Mike Rathje in a San Jose courtroom next month. A civil suit filed by Sara Whitlock contends Rathje and his wife, Shayna, are responsible for damage caused by their 95-pound American bulldog, Max, after he escaped from the family's back yard next to Los Alamitos Creek Trail. Whitlock had just arrived at the park to walk Banjo, her 15-pound, 10-month-old puppy.
A settlement conference is scheduled for Aug. 10 and, if no agreement is reached, a trial could begin five days later.
Ex-pupil sues school district
An 18-year-old man who claims he was molested in 1998 by a teacher at Ocala Middle School has sued the Alum Rock Union Elementary School District, charging that it was negligent in hiring and supervising the teacher.
The plaintiff, who recently turned 18, was a special-education seventh-grader in 1998. His attorney said that the former student felt confident he could pursue the case now that he is an adult and wanted to do so before the statute of limitations ran out. The suit claims that former teacher Marc Kardos fondled the student outside one of the buildings on campus.
Guided by D.C. parent chapter, one grassroots group raises $100,000 in its first year
California citizens are slowly but surely entering the fray on the increasingly popular issue of tort reform. So far in California, three tort-reform groups have emerged from a movement that originated in Texas.
Although the California groups each use the name Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse, each is a separate entity with no formal ties to others. Currently, the CALA groups are located in the Los Angeles area, Modesto and Redding. Members in each describe their organization as part of a grassroots movement to educate the public about the evils of frivolous lawsuits.
