An attorney representing clients defrauded in a multimillion-dollar investment scam argued Monday that a Boston bank should have recognized misconduct by a former financial advisor who is currently serving 11 years in prison for money laundering and mail fraud. Plaintiffs are seeking damages against Sovereign Bank for breach of fiduciary duty in connection with the scam. The former advisor, Bradford C. Bleidt, admitted to defrauding 125 clients of $32.6 million from 2000 to 2004.

Federal regulators gave nearly a quarter of the nation’s nursing home the lowest possible rating, under a new ranking system unveiled Thursday. The new five-star system is determined by factors including staffing and the results of state inspections and aims to simplify for consumers the complicated process of evaluating nursing homes. Officials hope the new system will challenge providers of elderly care to improve patient service.

A former Wal-Mart employee has filed a lawsuit against the retail giant claiming that he was harassed and ultimately fired because of his religion and cultural background. In the lawsuit, the worker alleges that fellow stockroom workers made threats against the Arab- and Muslim-American and teased him about terrorists. The worker also claims he was dismissed after complaining about the alleged abuse. The lawsuit seeks compensatory and exemplary damages for lost wages, the value of fringe benefits and attorney fees.

A New York judge has dismissed a consolidated class action against PepsiCo over an alleged misrepresentation about the company’s Aqaufina bottled water. According to the lawsuit, Pepsi deceived customers about source of the water – bottled from public drinking supplies rather than from a pure stream. The judge agreed with defense counsel that the claims were pre-empted the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.

A District of Columbia appellate court has rejected an appeal for a new trial in a former judge’s highly publicized lawsuit over a pair of lost pants. A three-judge panel of the D.C. Court of Appeals held that Roy L. Pearson Jr. failed to show an that advertised satisfaction guarantee amounted to fraud. Pearson sought $54 million in damages against a local dry cleaner he claimed lost his pants

Walt Disney Co. was negligent for allowing the sale of a bassinets manufactured with a defective design, a lawsuit filed Wednesday claims. According to the lawsuit, filed by the family of a child who died in a Winnie the Pooh bassinet, Disney should have stopped the sale of products licensed to crib manufacturer Simplicity Inc. after other deaths were linked to the cribs. Courts have previously ruled that licensors can be held liable for a defective product, an attorney for the plaintiffs said.

Federal regulators announced Tuesday that a popular group of seizure medications must carry stronger warnings about an increased risk of suicide. The new language comes about a year after the Food and Drug Administration first announced that patients taking the drugs were more likely to commit suicide than those taking a placebo. Antiepileptic drugs affected by the new warnings include GlaxoSmithKline’s Lamictal, Johnson & Johnson’s Topamax and Pfizer’s Lyrica.

The family of an elderly woman who died after apparently wandering onto the roof of a Pittsburgh hospital has filed notice that they intend to purse a lawsuit against the facility. Rose Lee Diggs, 89, was found dead on the roof the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center wearing only a hospital gown and slippers in 23-degree weather. A police investigation into the incident is ongoing.

The family of a teenager killed by a driver involved in a high-speed chase with police has filed a lawsuit against a Kansas City-area city and its police department. According to the lawsuit, Independence and its police department violated the city’s pursuit policy and emergency personnel failed to properly assess the boy’s injuries. Christopher Cooper was killed by a driver traveling about 90 mph as he fled from police.

Ronson is suing the lawyer she hired to stop rumors circulating about her and Lindsay Lohan and he is suing back. The blogs love it.

Martin Garbus is a seasoned attorney from New York men Ronson at a beachside cafe in Santa Monica to discuss being her matter.

Impressing prospective clients is easy for Garbus, whose resume reads like a history of the late 20th century. From the pornography trial against Lenny Bruce to the publishing of the Pentagon Papers to the fatwa against Salman Rushdie, Garbus has handled some of the biggest civil liberties cases in the last five decades. He has dodged segregationists’ bullets in Mississippi, organized migrant workers with Cesar Chavez and helped craft the Czech Republic’s Constitution.

Samantha Ronson is a professional DJ recently thrust into the gossip blogosphere for her rumored romance with actress Lindsay Lohan. Ronson, 31, was enraged by some particularly nasty stories posted online about her relationship with Lohan and wanted to sue.

Ronson agreed to hire him at the rate of $750 an hour.

That first meeting is now a distant memory and the defamation suit meant to discourage scandal-mongering blogs has turned into a costly and humiliating fiasco that has provided more gossip fodder.

For months now, Ronson and Garbus have been locked in their own ugly legal battle: She is suing him for malpractice; he is countersuing to recover his fees.

Ronson, in her malpractice suit, she alleged that Garbus, despite his renown, bungled her case with sloppy work and then abandoned her when she wouldn’t pay a bill she found excessive.

Meanwhile, Garbus lays the blame at Ronson’s feet, saying she scuttled a sensible settlement.

Now the fight between this lawyer and this celebrity — he’s appeared before the Supreme Court; she appears in Us Weekly — threatens to expose information about Lohan and Ronson that bloggers could only dream about.

Garbus’ attorneys have identified Lohan as the most critical witness in the case besides the two litigants and have requested information concerning their relationship, finances, possible drug use and alleged rehab stays. In one measure of how far his defense plans to go, they have asked for copies of every text message and e-mail between the women over the last two years.

A trial is scheduled for May in Los Angeles.

Another wrinkle: A one-car crash: Lohan’s Mercedes-Benz versus some shrubs in Beverly Hills on May 26, 2007. Police reported finding a small amount of cocaine in her car. The actress eventually entered rehab and pleaded guilty to driving under the influence.