Legal Humour News - February 25, 2008

Hello and welcome to this week's installment of Legal Humour News. Our newsletter contains an eclectic collection of humourous and often bizarre news stories having a slant in the world of the law.

Here is this week's serving of amusing legal stories. Enjoy Marcel's most recent blawg, A Tale of Two Benjies, about a man who woke up one day to find $5.8 million in his bank account, decided to spend the money, was charged for doing so, and then claimed the bank was estopped from asserting that he stole the money.

And please visit our vast Legal Humour Collection. For example you'll learn about the apparent conflict of interest when the mortgagor and the mortgagee are the same people, when you read Me and Me and My RRSP.

And please go out of your way to give us your Comments and/or your Legal Humour Moments.  You all have always wanted to contribute to the world of legal humour and here is your opportunity. Worst case scenario -- we’ll sue you. 

Odd or Amusing Legal Stories from the Past Week:

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1 - See You In Court!

"Naked Cowboy" Sues M&Ms Maker
New York City street performer "The Naked Cowboy" is suing Mars Inc. for $6 million over the use of his trademark look -- white underwear, cowboy boots and a hat -- by a blue M&M candy on a Times Square billboard. The billboards feature a scantily clad blue M&M with a guitar alongside views of New York including street scenes and the Statue of Liberty.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/oukoe_uk_newyork_nakedcowboy  

Judge Marries Couple After Sentencing Groom
It wasn't a typical Valentine's Day wedding in West Virginia. For one thing, the groom was in handcuffs. Kevin and Misty exchanged vows just minutes after Kevin was sentenced to five to 18 years in prison for second-degree robbery. Circuit Judge James Mazzone performed the wedding after sentencing Kevin. He declined the groom's request to have the handcuffs removed during the ceremony.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2008/02/15/4849168-ap.html

Fla. Lawyer Charged With Assault Over Handshake
A lawyer has been charged with assault for shaking a federal prosecutor’s hand so hard, authorities said, that it injured her shoulder.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2008/02/11/4839970-ap.html

South Korean Man Gets Merit After Losing Hair In Army
A 26-year-old South Korean man has been granted a national merit entitling him to government subsidies after he went bald during his "stressful" army service. A court in Suwon, 50 kilometres south of Seoul, recently ruled in favour of a petition by the army reserve, known as Mr. Kwon, to get a "person-of-national-merit" status.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080224/od_afp/lifestyleskoreahairmilitaryoffbeat

Tenant Sued Because Her Smoking Makes Building 'Stink'
A couple in a famed New York apartment building that has been home to the likes of Babe Ruth, Jack Dempsey, Igor Stravinsky, and Angelina Jolie are suing a neighbour over her heavy smoking.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2008/02/11/4839958-ap.html

2 - Crime and Punishment

Cops Give Burglary Suspect A Coffee
It's not often the long arm of the law treats a burglary suspect to a coffee. Especially after he was accused of ramming a police patrol car. But an hour later, shivering and surrendering to Port Hope, Ontario officers who brought in a dog to track him, the suspect was so polite. And apologetic. And cold. Before taking him to Cobourg to be checked for injuries from the collision and hypothermia, the oficer sprung for a "double-double" at the nearby Tim Hortons -- but no doughnuts.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2008/02/23/4870881-sun.html

That's It For Today. You Guys Gotta Walk
A driver who apparently took her work rules very seriously abandoned a bus full of former prisoners along a highway in Texas because her hours for the day were over. Police said the bus was chartered from Greyhound Bus Lines Inc. The driver pulled over in front of a convenience store around 4 p.m. and told the passengers her allotted driving time was up and another driver was on the way.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/odd_bus_parolees

Couple Buys Girl Scout Cookies With Fake $100 Bill
A pair of con artists ripped off a Girl Scout group in Colorado when they exchanged a fake $100 bill for cookies.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2008/02/19/4859163-ap.html

Mich. Man Accused Of Stealing 217 Cases Of Stuffing Mix
This stuffing was hot, but not in the roasted turkey sense. Police have arrested a 32-year-old man they accuse of stealing 217 cases of Pepperidge Farm stuffing mix.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2008/02/19/4859159-ap.html

"Girl" At School Was 39-Year-Old Man
A Japanese man was arrested for trespassing this week after turning up at a high school dressed in a girl's uniform and a long wig.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/japan_schoolgirl_dc

3 - Politics, Law, and Governance

Vancouver Sex Trade Group Wins Co-Op Status
A group of Canadian sex trade workers hoping to set up a legal "co-op" brothel in time for the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver say they have won approval to incorporate themselves. The provincial government's designation of the group as a business co-operative is the first step in what organizers say will create a safer working environment for sex trade workers in the Pacific Coast city.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/oukoe_uk_olympics_vancouver_brothel

Montreal Irish Pub Owners: Language Cops Have Backed Off
The owners of a Montreal pub threatened with fines by Quebec's language police because of signs inside the establishment say the matter has been resolved. McKibbin's Irish Pub had been told by the Office quebecois de la langue francaise that it would face fines if it didn't take down the antique English-language signs that make up much of the bar's decor.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2008/02/18/4857225-cp.html

A Price To Pay In Mexico For Backing Out At The Altar
Mexican brides and grooms who get cold feet before walking down the aisle will have to pay their significant other for the inconvenience, if a proposal by a local congressman is adopted.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080222/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_mexico_weddings

4 - And Now for Something Completely Different

In Japan, Laughter To Be Measured By 'aH'
Japanese professor Yoji Kimura believes laughter is a weapon that in healthy doses can end the world's wars. The only problem is finding a way to measure it. And so the expert on communications has invented a machine to chart out laughter -- and a new unit of "aH" to calculate it.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/lifestylejapantechnologylaughteroffbeat

Dial-A-Marriage, Eh!
Long-distance telephone marriages can be dialled up under sharia law and then used to sponsor loved ones into Canada, Muslim leaders say. Two Muslim leaders say telephone marriages are permissible under Islamic law and require two witnesses and imams in Canada and abroad to conduct the vows, which may have the bride in Pakistan and the groom in Toronto. Once completed, a marriage certificate is obtained abroad legitimately in Muslim countries and can be used by the groom for sponsoring his new wife to Canada.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/WeirdNews/2008/02/16/4852355-sun.html

Win A Free Divorce At W.Va. Radio Station
A Charleston radio station is observing Valentine’s Day with a reminder that Cupid sometimes misses his mark. WKLC-FM, better known as Rock 105, is giving away a free divorce.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/MediaNews/2008/02/13/4844812-ap.html 

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