Magistrate Judge's Friendship With Lawyer Wipes Out Court Award

A magistrate judge's close relationship with a plaintiff's lead trial counsel warrants vacating a nearly $125 million award, a divided federal appeals court said. Then-US Magistrate Judge Kathleen Kay only disclosed that the daughter of the lead trial counsel for IFG Port Holdings was her law clerk, and didn't share the 'close, personal' friendship she had with that attorney, a US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit panel said Tuesday. Judge James Graves said in the majority opinion that the parties didn't 'knowingly consent' to a magistrate judge presiding over the litigation, as 'a party must actually know the ...