GlobalTort

GlobalTort

The Intersection Among Torts, Science, Corporate Law, Insurance & Bankruptcy

Times Change – Knowledge Was Not Always So Widely Available – The UT Southwestern Example

By Kirk Hartley on Posted in Science

As we “Google” data so easily, we forget that knowledge was not always so easy to acquire. An example arises from the history presented in an obituary/honoring article. It explains that as of 1951, UT Southwestern was located in the Shack shown in the picture below. According to the article, the school was transformed  under the leadership of  Dr. Donald W. Seldin. See an April 25, 2018 article from UT, titled: Dr. Donald W. Seldin, ‘intellectual father’ of UT Southwestern, dies at 97.

UT Southwestern Medical School as of 1951 – Photo from UT Southwestern article

 

 

Autism Spectrum, and “The truth about Hans Asperger’s Nazi collusion”

By Kirk Hartley on Posted in Offtopic, Science

A recent article provides a disturbing history as to the misuse of science in politics, by the Nazis, as to the disease we now tend to call autism spectrum disorder.  The open access article is dated May 8, 2018, from Nature, one of the world’s best journals of peer-reviewed science. It is: Baron-Cohen S. The truth about Hans Asperger’s Nazi collusion. Nature. 2018  May;557(7705):305-306. doi: 10.1038/d41586-018-05112-1. PubMed PMID: 29740126.



 


 












Nathan Schactman Asks: “P-Values: Pernicious or Perspicacious?”

 By Kirk Hartley on  Posted in Evidence, Litigation Industry, Science



Statistical analysis tools remain topics that are comfortable for relatively few lawyers. One of them is Nathan Schactman. In a new blog post, he critiques a newish law review article on the topic.Kingsley R. Browne, “Pernicious P-Values: Statistical Proof of Not Very Much,” 42 Univ. Dayton L. Rev. 113 (2017) .The critique is well-worth reading, in his post of May 12, 2018.














“Appointing Extremists”

 By Kirk Hartley on  Posted in Judges



“Appointing Extremists”


Michael A. Bailey Matthew Spitzer

American Law and Economics Review, Volume 20, Issue 1, 1 April 2018, Pages 105–137, https://doi.org/10.1093/aler/ahx020


Published: 02 November 2017


“Given their long tenure and broad powers, Supreme Court justices are among the most powerful actors in American politics. In this paper, we present a model of the nomination process that highlights the how uncertainty about a potential justice’s preferences can lead a president to prefer a nominee with extreme preferences. In certain cases, Senators may also prefer extreme nominees, leading to the nomination and confirmation of justices whose preferences seem to diverge from those of elected officials. While our focus in this paper is on the Supreme Court, the analysis extends in many ways to other multimember appointed bodies as well.”












“Product Liability in Markets for Vertically Differentiated Products”

 By Kirk Hartley on  Posted in Litigation Industry, Product Liability



Academic exploration of product liability as to product safety levels:


American Law and Economics Review, Volume 20, Issue 1, 1 April 2018, Pages 46–81, https://doi.org/10.1093/aler/ahx013


Published:   14 July 2017


The abstract explains:


“This article shows that shifting losses from consumers with heterogeneous harm levels to vertically differentiated duopolists increases product safety levels, while narrowing the degree of product differentiation. Our setup features observable (but possibly nonverifiable) product safety levels and firms subject to strict liability according to a parametric liability specification. Firms’ expected liability payments depend on both product safety and price levels which critically influences the repercussions of shifting losses to firms. From a social standpoint, shifting some losses to firms is always beneficial.”












The Seamy Side of Vaginal Mesh Litigation: “How Profiteers Lure Women Into Often-Unneeded Surgery”

 By Kirk Hartley on  Posted in Litigation Industry, Mass Tort Issues



Part of the seamy side of vaginal mesh litigation was reported in an April 14, 2018 article in the NYT. The article, “How Profiteers Lure Women Into Often-Unneeded Surgery,” describes some of the financing companies that operate alongside the mass tort claims involving vaginal mesh. There are some very real problems with vaginal mesh in some settings, but this article highlights instance where the financiers and doctors worsened a situation for profit.


The article is yet another example of why all courts hearing mass tort cases should force transparency on all sides, including insurers. Protective orders and secrecy may be convenient, but sunshine remains the best disinfectant, in my opinion.












“Hanged After a Trial He Couldn’t Understand, and Pardoned 136 Years Later”

 By Kirk Hartley on  Posted in Comparative Law, Uncategorized



“When Maolra Seoighe entered a Dublin courtroom to be tried for murder, his name was recorded as Myles Joyce.


The change was a translation from his native Irish, or Gaelic, into English — a language Mr. Joyce did not speak. So he couldn’t understand the words of the defense lawyer, the judge or the jury members who decided he was guilty in November 1882, and he was hanged the next month.


But evidence soon emerged suggesting that Mr. Joyce was innocent, just as he had been saying in Irish all along. Now, 136 years after his death, he has been officially pardoned.”


Quite the story, and there also is a book. See this April 6, 2018 NYT article for more specifics after the quote above.












“Delaware’s Retreat: Exploring Developing Fissures and Tectonic Shifts in Delaware Corporate Law”

 By Kirk Hartley on  Posted in Comparative Law, Corporate Law Relevant to Litigation, Delaware Law



For business lawyers, it’s helpful to keep in mind the big picture view of changes in Delaware corporate law. With that in mind, this post highlights a new article with a view of that sort. It’s available online at SSRN, as described and linked below. The article is related to a talk reviewing Delaware law.   News of the article arrived via a March 5, 2018 post by Francis Pileggi at his Delaware Corporate and Commercial Litigation Blog.


Delaware’s Retreat: Exploring Developing Fissures and Tectonic Shifts in Delaware Corporate Law

Vanderbilt Law Research Paper No. 18-17


65 Pages Posted: 22 Feb 2018 Last revised: 27 Feb 2018

James D. Cox

Duke University School of Law


Randall S. Thomas

Vanderbilt University – Law School; European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI)


Date Written: December 1, 2017