Law Times

June 24, 2013

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Page 16 June 24, 2013 Law Times • u The u Bizarre Briefs InsIde story By Viola James DOCTOR CLEARED OVER EIGHT-MONTH ERECTION NEWARK, Del. — Living with an erection for eight months sounds difficult, but that doesn't mean you'll win a lawsuit over it. According to Reuters, a jury has cleared a doctor of negligence in a lawsuit filed by a Delaware truck driver who underwent a penile implant procedure and ended up with an erection that lasted eight months. "We're stunned," attorney Michael Heyden said as he left the New Castle County courthouse where his client Daniel Metzgar, 44, of Newark was suing urologist Thomas Desperito of Wilmington, Del. In April 2010, four months after the procedure, Metzgar experienced swelling and went to a hospital where he underwent testing. Before going to the hospital, Metzgar had been unable to reach Desperito. According to Reuters, the doctor's lawyer argued hospital staff who performed the tests were unfamiliar with penile implants and didn't have proper training to do them. Therefore, the results from the tests, including images showing swelling, didn't prove negligence. During the trial, Metzgar and his attorney described the frequent discomfort and daily embarrassment he experienced after the procedure. The issues included trouble riding a motorcycle, wearing normal clothes, and joining family social events. "I could hardly dance with an erection poking my partner," Metzgar told jurors at the start of the trial. The device was ultimately removed in 2010 after tubing punctured Metzgar's scrotum. He received a replacement implant from another doctor. WOMAN SUMMONS KING IN PATERNITY CASE BRUSSELS — The law should apply equally to everyone, but does that include having the king testify in court in a paternity dispute? According to Reuters, a woman who says she's the unrecognized daughter of Belgian King Albert II has summoned the monarch and two of his children to appear in a Brussels court in her bid to prove he's her father. Delphine Boel, a 45-year-old artist, has repeatedly stated she's the daughter of the king and has used this as a theme in some of her work. First reports about Boel's claims appeared in the Belgian media in the late 1990s. According to Reuters, the king has never made any official statement on the subject. The palace confirmed that the king, Crown Prince Philippe, and Princess Astrid had received a summons to appear in court but gave no further comment. There was no summons for the king's other son, Laurent. According to Belgian law, authorities can't compel the king to appear in court, which limits Boel's chances of succeeding with her case. CANADIAN COMPANY SCORES VIBRATOR VICTORY WASHINGTON —  A Canadian company has scored a victory in the vibrator wars. According to Reuters, couples in the United States looking to spice up their sex lives will have to do without certain adult toys after a U.S. trade panel ruled some companies are violating a patent held by a Canadian company for a two-armed vibrator. The U.S. International Trade Commission found that vibrator maker Lelo Inc., as well as distributors and a retailer, infringe on Standard Innovation Corp.'s patent for a two-armed vibrator that couples can use during intercourse. Standard Innovation, based in Ottawa, filed an infringement complaint against Lelo and a long list of other companies in early 2012. The ruling overturns a preliminary ruling by a judge who found the patent holder didn't have enough commercial activity in the United States to have standing to prevail at the commission. The full commission disagreed. LT "This model comes standard with the new InsurXtreem technology! Protects you from the reduced accident insurance payouts due to the minor injury guideline regulations." HONORARY DOCTORATES AWARDED The Law Society of Upper Canada presented honorary doctorates to Ontario Court Chief Justice Annemarie Bonkalo and former Ontario associate chief justice Dennis O'Connor last week. The LSUC presented the degrees during the call to the bar ceremony on June 21 at Roy Thomson Hall. The law society honoured Bonkalo "for her outstanding service to the profession and the judiciaAnnemarie Bonkalo ry, in particular, her sound judgment and understanding of law and the justice system." O'Connor, known for leading the Walkerton and Maher Arar inquiries, received the honour for his "exemplary career," the law society said. He joined the Ontario Court of Appeal in 1998 and later served as associate chief justice of Ontario until his retirement in 2012. SENIOR JUDGES APPOINTED The Ontario government has appointed three judges to senior roles at the Ontario Court of Justice. Justices Simon Armstrong, Timothy Lipson, and Sharon Nicklas will become regional senior judges with the court later this summer. Armstrong, a judge since 2003, will take up the role in the central east region, replacing Justice Gregory Regis, while Lipson, who has served on the Ontario Court bench since 2002, will fill a post vacated by Justice Faith Finnestad in Toronto. Nicklas, originally appointed a judge in 2007, takes the role in the central west region on Aug. 31 as she replaces Justice Kathryn Hawke. BLG, CLIENT NAMED VALUE CHAMPIONS A partnership that helped an inhouse legal team to reduce its external counsel costs by about a fifth has won international recognition. The Association of Corporate Counsel has named Healthcare Insurance Reciprocal of Canada and Borden Ladner Gervais LLP among its value champions for 2013. The pair are the only Canadian entities on the list announced last week that also features firms from the United States, Italy, Britain, and China. The savings have been "well north of 10 per cent and perhaps 15 to 20 per cent," says Michael Boyce, Healthcare Insurance Reciprocal of Canada's vice president of claims. "That's probably very conservative," adds John Morris, a partner at BLG. With the help of a consulting firm, the two companies introduced value-based pricing. Boyce says the change has led to increased efficiencies on both sides without adversely affecting the quality of the service provided. "It incentivized BLG to work harder and be more efficient and encouraged HIROC not to over use the services," he says. "We realized it's not sufficient just to get the law firm to change their practices," he adds, explaining how his company now has a completely paperless office, has reduced the "number of hands touching a file," and relies on phone calls instead of written letters. BLG was able to implement the fee structure partly through using paralegals. "That was [already] something we were doing to try to make sure that the right work was being done at the right level," says Morris. But entering into discussions with the company provided an impetus to go further. "A lot of the efficiencies have come through analyzing what we're doing, the client giving us the licence to ask how we can do the work in different ways," he adds. POLL RESULTS The results for the latest Law Times online poll are in. According to the poll, more than two-thirds of respondents believe the Ontario government got it right with its proposed law targeting strategic litigation against public participation. Seventy-seven per cent of poll respondents said they support the bill while the rest disagreed with it. The bill seeks to eliminate frivolous lawsuits aimed at intimidating members of the public who are vocal about matters of public interest. LT The title insurer that puts you front row, centre Putting the legal community front and centre has made us the #1 choice with Canadian lawyers for over a decade. Stewart Title does not support programs that reduce or eliminate the lawyer's role in real estate transactions. For more information call (888) 667-5151 or visit www.stewart.ca. Untitled-2 1 www.lawtimesnews.com 7/19/11 12:31:45 PM

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