Lex Levity Archive

Man Bites Dog…Dog Awestruck

October 1st, 2009. By Hunter West

Be warned. This story has teeth. 

What would be your reaction when you see a much larger and stronger dog (and a breed that carries the perception of being vicious) attacking a smaller, meeker dog? 

A: Scream.

B: Call the SPCA, or the Police

C: Attempt to pull them apart and stop the attack

D: Nothing

For a man from Saskatoon, a city located in Western Canada, there needed to be one more letter to that stack noted above. 

E: Bite Dog.

As in, give him a piece of his own medicine. 

Doggonit, if it didn’t work too.

Here’s the story, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Early in September Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Dog Bite
Posted in Lex Levity, Personal Injury | 3 Comments »

Alfred Rava, Manhattan may need you

September 28th, 2009. By AbiK

All’s been relatively quiet on the Alfred Rava front. Only a bit of a hub-bub over his threatening ski resort Squaw Valley with a discrimination lawsuit because they were offering discounts to furloughed California state employees. Rava doesn’t like it when good-hearted folks try to do something good for those in perhaps a less fortunate situation. Case in point, the Mother’s Day breast cancer awareness promotion with the Oakland A’s.

At any rate, I was scanning this Sunday’s papers and as I was looking at all the super-processed and newfangled foods that had special deals in the weekly FSI coupon section, my eye caught a Dunkin Donuts ad. I don’t go to Dunkin Donuts. Ever. But none the less, there was this little parenthetical phrase on the DD coupons. This is what the one for “99¢ for any two (2) donuts” said: “($1.19 in Manhattan)”. Cough up another 20¢ for those “two (2)” donuts it you live—or just shop for your doughnuts—in the asphalt jungle.

(I would’ve included a pic of the actual coupon, but there in the small type it also said, “Internet distribution strictly prohibited” and well, this being a legal site and all, I didn’t want to risk anyone mass producing DD coupons. But the pic above is the lead promo folks in the NYC area saw this weekend in the paper.)

But that’s when I thought of him. That beacon of light in an unjust world—Alfred Rava. Here’s something he oughta be sinking his teeth into next. Why should New Yorkers—heck, we’re not even talking all boroughs—only “Manhattan”—not be included in the 99¢ deal? Isn’t that some form of discrimination?

Tags: Alfred Rava, Dunkin Donuts
Posted in Lex Levity | No Comments »

Paris Hilton Gets Some Action…Class Included

September 17th, 2009. By LucyC

Paris‘ work ethic (?) has got her into trouble yet again—this time it could end up costing her some bucks. Well, hang on, let’s not get carried away here…

 

Paris, (I feel like I know her well enough to address her by her first name) is facing a potential $34 million class action lawsuit brought by Mediastar, an event marketing company, after failing to honor her contract and show up for several promotional events in Europe. You know, cocktails in Germany with the adopted son of Hungarian royal Frederic Prinz von Anhalt , that kind of thing.

 

Paris, for her part, is claiming that she was mislead, that the venue in Germany at which she was supposed to appear is a strip club not a “night club”. Well, that definition is totally subjective for a start. Not to mention her attitude does seem a little hypocritical, given her own her foray into adult entertainment, which, if memory serves correct, she also claimed to not have known about in advance…

 

According to media reports, Michael Marx, who organised the events in Germany, told the German newspaper Bild, “Mediastar is not alone with the lawsuit. Paris Hilton also pulled out of appearances in Italy, postponed flights, threw the whole programme over. …After examination of all the facts and contracts it (suit) can even become more than 23 million Euros ($34 million).” To put that in terms even Paris can understand, that’s roughly 57,000 pairs of Manolo’s! (ok, the low-end ones at about $600 a pop…) 

 

But I have to wonder—lawsuit aside—who really ended up getting the most PR out of all of this? If you believe the old marketing adage—”there’s no such thing as bad publicity”—it would seem that Paris has trumped her “clients”, again; has proven that bad behavior does pay, big time, again; and therefore seems to have truly mastered the media universe. 

 

Oh, and let’s not forget she is creating opportunities for PR flacks, journalists and lawyers in a tough economic climate…

Tags: Paris Hilton
Posted in Lex Levity | No Comments »

Paris Hilton finds her talent niche: litigious living

September 1st, 2009. By AbiK

Paris Hilton may not have found her talent niche yet, but she apparently knows how to work the systems—PR and courts, that is. You have to give her credit, she’s tried modeling, acting (tv, viral-release video, and film), singing, perfuming (is that a word?)…but it’s only been recently that she may have found her true calling: a litigious living.

Paris and the Law: Take One

Someone—namely some film investors—had the nerve to file a lawsuit against Paris alleging that she failed to promote her 2006 box office miss “Pledge This!”. See, the movie didn’t quite provide the hoped for ROI, so the investors kind of wanted some money back ($8.3 million, specifically). So they went after what they perceived to be the best target: Paris. Deep pockets? Check! Possible reason film sucked? Check! They figured, hey, easy way to recoup that investment. Unfortunately, U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno didn’t quite agree. He felt the lawsuit was based on speculation. Oh, she may have to cough up around $1 mill, but still…Paris is 1-0.

Paris and the Law: Take Two

Fast-forward to 2007 when Paris took the reins and went after Hallmark. Those creative types in Missouri played off some pop culture (Paris!) and created a greeting card with a cartoon image of a waitress on it. Ahh, but the cartoon had an actual image of Paris’ head superimposed on it, with the caption, “That’s hot”. Paris didn’t take it too kindly— Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Hallmark, Lex Levity, Paris Hilton
Posted in Lex Levity | 2 Comments »

Cheapest Law School Ever

August 4th, 2009. By AbiK

It won’t help you make partner, or even get admitted to the bar, but if a hankering for law has gotten under your skin, look no further than “Law School in a Box”, available at MentalFloss.com.

In addition to a textbook (96 pages long!), the “box” part of the learning system includes some Heroes of the Courtroom trading cards, You Be the Judge quiz cards, and a mini-bar exam (no, it doesn’t include any mini bottles of Bacardi for post-exam).

Should you pass the mini-bar, there’s even a diploma—with “real Latin words”! Lingua Latina vivit! But the greatest reward? Knowing that a mere $14.95 investment has kick-started a brilliant legal career. For those of you with higher aspirations, go get that second Master’s and pick up an MBA or an MD while you’re there—in this unstable economy, the more sheepskins you’ve got, well, it might not get you a job but it could give your ego a boost.

Tags: Lex Levity
Posted in Lex Levity | No Comments »