The Houston Chronicle is reporting that, when the government finished putting on its evidence, the lawyer for Harris County Commissioner Jerry Eversole asked U.S. District Judge David Hittner to acquit his client, but the judge refused.  Eversole’s lawyer, Rusty Hardin, then rested without calling any witnesses, for the first time in Hardin’s career, according to reports.

Read more at http://ncmlegal.com/news

John O’Quinn requested a protective order today in defense of Howard K. Stern’s defamation lawsuit against him and The O’Quinn Law Firm in the Southern District of Florida Federal Court.

Counsel for Stern demanded practically everything but the kitchen sink in a financial discovery request. The list is long and includes requests for Federal and State tax returns dating back three years, financial records, property records, appraisals, deeds, mortgages, any personal property including cars, jewelry, boats etc.. whether it is still owned by Mr. O’Quinn or not and if so what it sold for. They also ask for any communications that may have occurred between the “Firm” and the IRS.

Customarily when there may be punitive damages involved in a civil suit, only current net worth should have to be produced according to a 2005 Florida Federal Court Decision. Another case in this memorandum is cited where O’Quinn believes that any financial disclosure should not have to be produced until 30 days before trial.

Stern’s attorney, Lin Wood disagrees saying there is no 30 day rule. He states there is approximately 90 days until trial and due to “lengths to which we have gone to get responses to substantive discovery”, he feels his requests are appropriate.

O’Quinn also asks that Howard K. Stern not be permitted to view any of the financial disclosure records whatever they may be. He cites two past actions attributed to Stern in other court cases in which he was in breach of confidentiality orders.

The first of those is substantiated by an affidavit from “Estate of J. Howard Marshall” attorney Rusty Hardin.

In 2001, Anna Nicole Smith brought an action in Texas probate court against the Estate of her late husband J. Howard Marshall and his son Pierce Marshall. Stern was not an admitted attorney to the case but sat at the counsel table. He is said to have taken a financial statement that was ruled protected and confidential and faxed it to a California bankruptcy court. Stern admitted taking the financial records but said he did not know it was “confidential”. He was repremanded by the judge in the case and told to sit with the rest of the audience for the remainder of the trial.

Mr Hardin also says that he read Stern’s deposition in Virgie Arthur’s (Anna Nicole Smith’s mother) defamation lawsuit against Stern in Houston Texas. In this deposition, Stern says he did not take the confidential document “off the…that table” even though in the transcript of the Texas Probate Judge reprimanding Stern, Stern says “I think I just got it from the [counsel's] table”. Hardin disagrees with that and attaches court testimony from that trial.

The second issue is of a confidentiality breach in the case of Howard K. Stern vs Rita Cosby in a New York Federal Court. The Judge in the case, Denny Chin had already issued a protective order concerning Ms. Cosby’s deposition. However, parts of the deposition ended up on artharris.com with Journalist Art Harris being a friend and supporter of Stern. Judge Chin then “chided” Sten’s attorney Lin Wood for the breaching of his order.

O’Quinn also asked for extra time to produce the records if ruled they must be released sooner rather than later because his accountants offices have been closed due to hurricane damage. Wood has disagreed with this request as well.

092508_Stern_vs_OQuinn_192.pdf
092508_Stern_vs_OQuinn_192-5.pdf
092508_Stern_vs_OQuinn_192-6.pdf
092508_Stern_vs_OQuinn_192-7.pdf
092508_Stern_vs_OQuinn_192-8.pdf
092508_Stern_vs_OQuinn_192-9.pdf

Judge Chin to Lin Wood

Stern_V_Cosby_protective_order_LinWood_slap.pdf

Stern_V_Cosby_protective_order_LinWood_slap1.pdf