Law Times

Page 16 March 25, 2013 ��� Law TiMes u The u Bizarre Briefs InsIde story By Viola James MOM SUES MCDONALD���S AFTER SON EATS CONDOM CHICAGO ��� McDonald���s Corp. is facing a lawsuit over ���deviant activities��� at one of its restaurants after a child allegedly ate a used condom he found there. According to Reuters, Anishi Spencer filed the complaint against the fast-food restaurant chain in Cook County Circuit Court on behalf of herself and her sons, Jonathan Hines and Jacquel Hines. According to the complaint, Spencer and her sons were at a McDonald���s restaurant in Chicago���s south side on Feb. 4, 2012, when Jacquel, then two years old, picked up the condom from the floor and shortly thereafter coughed up a piece of it. Both boys required medical care and have suffered lasting injuries, pain, and discomfort, the complaint said. Spencer accused McDonald���s of negligence for failing to clean hazardous debris from the play area and failing to use appropriate security measures to help uncover ���deviant activities.��� The lawsuit seeks at least $50,000 of damages, according to Reuters. ���This is a very disgusting case,��� Jeffrey Deutschman, a lawyer for Spencer and her sons at Deutschman & Associates in Chicago, said in a phone interview. BAKERY SHUTTERED FOR SUGARY TREATS CLIFTON, N.J. ��� You���d think a bakery would be the last place authorities would crack down on for sugary treats. But in yet another lesson on why we should be skeptical of food labels, federal authorities have shut down a New Jersey bakery after finding sugar in its sugar-free goods and saturated fat in its fat-free treats. According to Reuters, Butterfly Bakery Inc. closed after a federal judge approved a permanent injunction against it. The bakery is facing accusations of unlawfully misbranding products as sugar free and fat free when they had as much as three times the amount of declared sugar and two times the amount of declared saturated fat, according to a Food and Drug Administration statement. SUBMARINE FIREBUG WANTED TO LEAVE WORK EARLY PORTSMOUTH, N.H. ��� A civilian painter who twice set fires on a U.S. navy nuclear submarine last year so that he could get out of work early is going to jail for 17 years. According to Reuters, Casey James Fury, 25, set two fires nearly a month apart that caused as much as $500 million in damages to the U.S.S. Miami attack submarine that was in the Portsmouth naval shipyard for maintenance. Prosecutors had requested a 20-year sentence after Fury pleaded guilty in November. Fury���s lawyer had argued for a 15-year sentence, reflecting his client���s extreme anxiety for which he was taking medication at the time. Fury, of Portsmouth, started the first fire on May 23 with a plastic bag filled with rags, igniting a blaze that burned for 12 hours and caused between $400 million and $500 million in damages and injured five people, prosecutors said. ���The fire easily could have been fatal,��� assistant U.S. attorney Darcie McElwee said at the sentencing hearing at the U.S. District Court in Portland, Maine. The fire endangered 50 workers who had been performing maintenance to the submarine and imperiled emergency responders, McElwee said. According to Reuters, Fury also pleaded guilty to setting a second fire on June 16, two days after his arrest on suspicion of drunk driving. That fire caused little damage. On June 19, he pulled a fire alarm, causing another evacuation of the sub. ���The second fire is especially troubling and displays a callous disregard for property and safety of others, after what he had seen in the first fire,��� Judge George Singal said. Fury confessed to setting the fires to create a reason for him to leave work early because he had no available sick or vacation time to claim. LT ���At last! The ministry has installed a state-of-the-art, digital data management system! Kids with iPhones!��� LAWYERS TAKE STAGE FOR CHARITY Lawyers��� International Food Enterprise (LIFE) will be hosting a night of live tunes, dinner, and charity at a fundraising event this spring. The event, Rock for LIFE, will feature lawyers taking to the stage at Lula Lounge on Dundas Street West in Toronto on May 2. Confirmed bands for the night include the Tokyo Giants, the One Shot Band, Oui.B.Jamon, Notorious Road, Jonathan Lisus and Quammie aka Greybeard. Lawyers Malcolm MacKillop and Jonathan Lisus founded LIFE to raise money and awareness about child poverty issues in Africa. Admission to the event is free, but donations accepted at the event will go to World Vision or the Stephen Lewis Foundation. See lifelawyers.ca for more information. 9 NEW PARTNERS AT NORTON ROSE Norton Rose Canada LLP has admitted nine of its lawyers into the partnership. The lawyers currently serve in six of the firm���s industry areas, including mining, financial institutions, pharmaceuticals, and technology. In Ontario, Karen Jensen of the Ottawa office and Anna Wilkinson of Toronto are two of the new partners. Others include Quebec���s PierreChristian Labeau, Dominic Dupoy, Andres Garin, and Marianne Plamondon. Ryan Keays and Allison Kuntz from the Calgary office are also on the list. Internationally, Sergio Casinelli from the Caracas office has also made it to the partnership. ���We are very proud of our new partners and are delighted to welcome them to the partnership,��� said John Coleman, managing partner of Norton Rose Canada. ���All are outstanding lawyers who have done an excellent job for our clients and made valuable contributions to the firm. ���Our partnership and clients will benefit enormously from the addition of these talented people. Congratulations to them all.��� MAZIN & ASSOCIATES ON THE MOVE Personal injury law firm Mazin & Associates Professional Corp. has moved into a new Toronto office. Founded by a former partner at Mazin Rooz Mazin, Mazin & Associates PC is moving to a new location under a new name, says firm founder Gary Mazin. The new address is at 5 Park Home Ave. in Toronto. The firm brands itself as a ���caring personal injury law firm handling all types of serious personal injury and accident cases.��� ���Our goal is always to fight for our clients��� rights, give them their day in court if required, and help them receive the maximum compensation that our legal system provides,��� the firm said in a press release. ���We have experience litigating claims in the Superior Court of Justice as well as arbitration hearings at the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO).��� POLL RESULTS The results of the last Law Times online poll are in. According to the poll, more than half of respondents, 55 per cent, believe the new national mobility agreement that opens Quebec���s doors to Ontario lawyers will make a difference to their practice. On March 11, Law Times reported on the agreement unanimously ratified by the Law Society of Upper Canada that would see Ontario lawyers able to practise in Quebec in any area of law they���re competent in. The agreement, once approved by Quebec, will eliminate barriers that limit lawyers from common law jurisdictions to practising in matters related to their own province, the Criminal Code, federal jurisdiction, and public international law. LT Get more online lawtimesnews.com ��� canadianlawyermag.com Fresh Canadian legal news and analysis every day Canadian Lawyer | Law Times | 4Students | InHouse | Legal Feeds www.lawtimesnews.com Visit Us Online 1-8-5X.indd 1 2/28/11 2:37:34 PM

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