Long blamed for the kind of hospital secrecy about error that compromises patient safety, medical-malpractice lawsuits are actually becoming a source of valuable information about medical error.

Pursuant to an agreement that a New York federal judge approved in the last week of May, the former chairman of defunct law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf will pay more than $500,000.

In response to a challenge by abortion rights groups, a federal court in Arkansas has issued an injunction temporarily blocking a law that bans abortions at the 12^th week of pregnancy, according to the New York Times.