https://lawyerist.com/lawyer-threatens-stupid-lawsuit-stupid-rules-interpretation-stupid-entry-stupid-contest/
From above link a copy and paste about how Patricia D. Laub seems to
avoid malpractice suits while harming people like the one in this
article...and my mother, a s
deceased Holocaust survivor....
~!!!~ critical to this updated version is this part; "
In contrast to the hyperbole and/or blatant
self-promotion contained in the captions to the above two dioramas
(which were readily accepted into your contest), the
caption to the
diorama for Eileen Zell v. Frost Brown Todd was so fact-based that it
even cited the page numbers from the court pleadings from which those
facts were taken. In addition, it did not contain a single word of
criticism (or flattery) of any of the persons involved. Instead, based
on the pleadings, it objectively gave the background of a court case,
quoted a novel legal argument raised in one of the parties’ pleadings,
and explained the legal significance to all Ohio lawyers if the court
accepts that argument. In short, what was written would have been
suitable for a law-review article.
So, Mr. Rawles, let’s be honest with each other. The
only reason that this diorama has not been accepted into the ABA’s
contest (at least not yet) is that it illustrates a legal case involving
the touchy subject (touchy for lawyers, that is) of legal malpractice.
(And it also mentions a possible movement to extend the statute of
limitations for legal malpractice.) Thus, if the ABA decides to ban
this diorama — based on whatever pretext it chooses to invent —
the ABA
will be engaged in a blatant kind of self-interested political
censorship"
Not a single word of criticism, in Zel'ls diorama unlike much criticism in own posts.
Zell is credible.
I am but a wounded victim of Laub and Frost Brown Todd who gives not a
damn about being very critical to malfeasance and malpractice.
Lawyer Threatens Stupid Lawsuit Over Stupid Rule Interpretation for Stupid Entry in Stupid Contest
Res ipsa loquitur:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact Person:
Jonathan R. Zell
Attorney-at-Law
5953 Rock Hill Road
Columbus, OH 43213-2127
Lawyer threatens lawsuit over American Bar Association’s censorship of malpractice-themed Peeps® diorama
Columbus, OH. Jonathan Zell simply wanted to illustrate a
novel legal argument that his adversaries had made in a malpractice case
Zell had filed on behalf of his mother against the Ohio-based law firm
of Frost Brown Todd. (Eileen Zell v. Frost Brown Todd LLC, et al.. Case
No. 2:13-cv-0458, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Ohio,
Eastern Division.) So Zell entered the American Bar Assn’s (ABA’s)
“Peeps in Law 2014” contest by submitting a miniature scene (called a
“diorama”) made out of Peeps® (the animal-shaped marshmallow candies) depicting this argument.
In response, according to Zell, the national lawyers group “has
banned my diorama simply because it involves the touchy subject (that
is, touchy to lawyers) of legal malpractice.” So Zell now plans
to sue the ABA, claiming that, “to avoid embarrassing lawyers,” the ABA
is engaging in “a blatant kind of self-interested political censorship.”
In an e-mail to Zell, an ABA official claimed that Zell’s diorama was
not accepted because it was submitted by someone “personally involved”
in the legal case being depicted. But, because the contest deadline had
already passed, it was now too late for anyone else to submit this
diorama instead of Zell.
Zell wrote back to the ABA, pointing out that the contest rules say
nothing about “involved persons.” Also, the ABA had already accepted
and posted on its website similar dioramas from other “involved
persons.” But Zell received no response.
Zell’s diorama showed six lawyers sitting in a law firm’s office,
each of whom was holding up a sign stating “Not me.” This was intended
to depict the six Frost Brown Todd lawyers whom Zell’s mother has sued
for legal malpractice. As was explained in a caption accompanying the
diorama, the statute of limitations on legal malpractice does not begin
to run until after the client’s legal representation in the matter in
question has ended. This is designed to give the malpracticing lawyer
an opportunity to correct his or her mistake.
However, Frost Brown Todd recently filed a motion in court arguing
that, because its six lawyers had worked on Zell’s mother’s case
“successively,” the statute of limitations should be computed separately
“for each particular attorney.” If so, then Ohio’s one-year statute of
limitations on legal malpractice would have already expired on the
first five lawyers’ mistakes. Since the alleged harm had already
occurred before the sixth lawyer took over the case, Frost Brown Todd
then claimed that none of its lawyers or even the firm itself has any
liability.
Zell contends that, if Frost Brown Todd’s “novel legal argument” is
accepted by the court, it would “provid[e] a roadmap for Ohio’s
attorneys on how to defeat claims for legal malpractice committed during
trial litigation.” Calling it the “Hot Potato” strategy, Zell
described this roadmap as follows:
When one of the firm’s attorneys commits malpractice, reassign the case to another attorney. If the second attorney also commits malpractice,
then reassign the case to a third attorney, and so on. Then have the
final (non-malpracticing) attorney continue to represent the client on
appeal in the same matter until the statutes of limitations on the
previous attorneys’ legal malpractice expire.
The caption to Zell’s diorama concluded that a court decision
sanctioning the “Hot Potato” strategy would be so unfair to clients that
it might “provide the necessary impetus to get Ohio’s legislature to
extend what is now the shortest statute of limitations on legal
malpractice in the nation.”
So, although illustrated by a piece of artwork composed of
marshmallow candies, Zell’s mother’s case has the potential to be a
landmark legal ruling. On the other hand, Zell’s planned lawsuit
against the ABA seems like a lot of peeping about nothing.
The contest entries can be viewed at http://www.abajournal.com/gallery/peeps_2014. Viewers of the website can vote for their favorite diorama at http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/vote_for_your_favorite_2014_peeps_in_law_diorama.
ATTACHMENTS:
Photo of Zell’s Diorama
Close-up Photo of a Portion of Zell’s Diorama
The Caption to Zell’s Diorama
The ABA’s e-mail to Zell of 4/7/2014
Zell’s e-mail Reply to the ABA of 4/7/2014
Here’s the
3-page “caption” (pdf) that went with the diorama. Keep going if you want to read those emails for some reason.
——— Forwarded message ———-
From: Jonathan Zell
Date: Mon, Apr 7, 2014 at 10:27 PM
Subject: My next diorama will be to illustrate the upcoming case of “Jonathan Zell v. American Bar Association”
To: Lee Rawles
Dear Mr. Rawles,
Thank you for your e-mail pointing out that I had
submitted a diorama to the ABA’s “Peeps in Law 2014” contest
illustrating a legal case — Eileen Zell v. Frost Brown Todd — in which I
was “personally involved.”
The notice on your website of the “Peeps in Law 2014”
contest states in pertinent part: “Our rules are as follows: Create a
law-related diorama with Peeps….” Thus, as you know, nowhere in the
rules does it state that the person who submits the “law-related
diorama” may not be personally involved with the law-related matter
being illustrated.
Moreover, it would be a very strange rule indeed if it
sought to prevent the very persons who were the most knowledgeable about
a law-related subject from submitting a diorama about it. Lawyers and
law professors often write books and law-review articles about cases in
which they have been personally involved, especially as the attorney for
one of the parties.
For example, among the submissions to “Peeps in Law 2014”
that appear on your website are several dealing with famous U.S.
Supreme Court cases. Do you expect me to believe that the ABA would try
to prevent the attorneys who argued those cases before the high court
(or even the parties themselves) from submitting a diorama about those
cases? Of course not!
To give another example, consider “Peeps in Law 2014: The
Signing of the Constitution of the United Peeps of America.” Leaving
aside reality for the moment, if this diorama had been submitted by one
of the original signers of the document being depicted (the U.S.
Constitution), would the ABA have considered banning that diorama, too?
The answer is as ridiculous as the question, and shows that there is no
rationale reason to ban people from submitting dioramas concerning
legal cases in which they were personally involved.
In any event, if the ABA had such a published rule for
the “Peeps in Law 2014” contest, please be assured that the diorama
about the case of Eileen Zell v. Frost Brown Todd would have been
submitted by someone who was not personally involved with that case.
Accordingly, if you do decide to create such a rule after-the-fact, then
I respectfully request that you also provide an opportunity for an
uninvolved person to re-submit this and any dioramas that would be
excluded by the new rule.
This would include one or both of the following two other
dioramas submitted to the “Peeps in Law 2014” contest, which are
presently posted on your website:
TITLE: “Peeps in Law 2014: Uncomfortable Day In Court”
CAPTION: “Another Rendigs attorney’s deft legal skills put the
plaintiff in the hot seat.”
SUBMITTED BY: “Karen Eutsler and Cathy Everson of Rendigs, Fry, Kiely
& Dennis in Cincinnati”
Besides depicting their own law firm in their diorama, the submitters
turned their diorama into what was essentially an advertisement for
their firm.
Another submission to the “Peeps in Law 2014” contest
(which also appears on your website) was an even more blatant
advertisement for the submitter’s own law firm:
TITLE: “Committed couples before and after Windsor”
CAPTION: “The US Supreme Court Windsor decision and the
dominoes (states recognizing same-gender marriage)
that have fallen and will fall as a result, have permitted
many same-gender couples to be able to live as married
spouses…. I am a member of the American College of
Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) who does estate
planning for many committed couples of all types….”
SUBMITTED BY: “Rhonda H. Brink of Austin, Texas.”
In contrast to the hyperbole and/or blatant
self-promotion contained in the captions to the above two dioramas
(which were readily accepted into your contest), the caption to the
diorama for Eileen Zell v. Frost Brown Todd was so fact-based that it
even cited the page numbers from the court pleadings from which those
facts were taken. In addition, it did not contain a single word of
criticism (or flattery) of any of the persons involved. Instead, based
on the pleadings, it objectively gave the background of a court case,
quoted a novel legal argument raised in one of the parties’ pleadings,
and explained the legal significance to all Ohio lawyers if the court
accepts that argument. In short, what was written would have been
suitable for a law-review article.
So, Mr. Rawles, let’s be honest with each other. The
only reason that this diorama has not been accepted into the ABA’s
contest (at least not yet) is that it illustrates a legal case involving
the touchy subject (touchy for lawyers, that is) of legal malpractice.
(And it also mentions a possible movement to extend the statute of
limitations for legal malpractice.) Thus, if the ABA decides to ban
this diorama — based on whatever pretext it chooses to invent — the ABA
will be engaged in a blatant kind of self-interested political
censorship.
True, one of the many reasons that I submitted this
diorama to your contest was to try to publicize the case of Eileen Zell
v. Frost Brown Todd. Admittedly, that is my self-interest. However,
unlike the ABA’s motive to avoid embarrassing lawyers, my motive is an
entirely-proper one. Moreover, if the ABA does go ahead and ban this
diorama, the case of Eileen Zell v. Frost Brown Todd will receive even
greater publicity when I sue the ABA for (1) having changed the rules of
its contest after the submission deadline had expired and (2) doing so
in order to censor the embarrassing subject of legal malpractice.
So, if you must, go ahead and ban this diorama. But
realize that, after I sue the ABA, countless newspaper reporters,
cartoonists, and even some diorama artists are going to have a hay day
with the story of the lawyer who sued the American Bar Association for
trying to censor a Peeps diorama concerning the subject of legal
malpractice. The irony is fantastic! So please make my day.
Equally ironic is the caption submitted for “Peeps in Law
2014: The Mod Knight Special” (also posted on your website), which
names you in particular and anticipates our little dispute perfectly.
It states:
Well, if you’re posting on this website,
You’d best be careful what you write,
And you better keep on topic,
And don’t be pickin’ any fight,
Or you may meet the Moderators,
That’s when you’ll understand,
How things they don’t approve of vanish,
And you could be banned.
Don’t make the Moderators,
Slap a ban on you,
Don’t make the friendly Moderators,
Slap an everlasting ban on you
Now when you’re tapping out a comment,
And you ain’t bein’ P.C.,
You better jolly well consider,
The Comment Policy,
And if you get a snippy e-mail,
No matter what befalls,
Don’t try to argue your opinion,
Or you’re in trouble with Lee Rawles
Don’t make the Moderators,
Slap a ban on you,
Don’t make the friendly Moderators,
Slap an everlasting ban on you
Well, if you ask ‘What’s Moderatin’?”
That’s really hard to say,
Arbitrary and subjective,
It’s different day to day,
But when they send an admonition,
You’d better say ‘Yes, Dear,”
Or you may still be posting,
But it won’t be here.
Don’t make the Moderators,
Slap a ban on you,
Don’t make the friendly Moderators,
Slap an everlasting ban on you.
Sincerely,
Jonathan
Last updated October 4th, 2017.
_________________________________________________________________________
Poster's additions here;
From Zell's case which IMO is an example of how JUSTICE is easily
manipulated for the TOO BIG TO FAIL such as Frost Brown Todd when Mr
Zell Esq tried to relieve justice for his mother.
Patricia D. Laub Esq harmed my mother,who is deceased but can speak for
herself here; my son and me. I think the "D." in Laub's name stands for
Dillon yet I always picture another word when I see Patricia D. Laub
Esq.
Particularly LISTEN to my other's usage of the word FAMILY!....something
Patricia D. Laub Esq ignored as soon as my mother was in the grave.
