Lawsuit filed in dispute over use of Santa Cruz surf club logo (San Jose Mercury News) A group of old-school surfers has filed a federal lawsuit accusing Santa Cruz resident Ryan Rittenhouse of trademark infringement, elder abuse and a host of other underhanded activities. [News Source]

State lawsuit claims Mackinac Bridge got bad paint job (The Grand Rapids Press) MACKINAW CITY, Mich. -- Big Mac got a bad paint job. That's the allegation in a $1 million lawsuit filed by the state agency that runs the Mackinac Bridge.... [News Source]

Lawsuit filed over in-custody death (The Cincinnati Enquirer) Ruby Sheffey has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit on behalf of her son, who died in police custody in early December after being shocked by Taser. [News Source]

Hotels Move Forward, Despite Lawsuit (MyNC.com) Plans for a Westin Hotel in Durham and an Aloft Hotel in Chapel Hill are moving forward despite a contentious lawsuit between Inland and the former top executives of Winston, the TBJ reports.  [News Source]

Merrill Lynch Settles Discrimination Lawsuit by U.S. (Update1) (Bloomberg) Dec. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Merrill Lynch & Co. agreed to pay $1.55 million to resolve a U.S. government lawsuit accusing the securities firm of discriminating against an Iranian Muslim vice president based on his national origin and religion. [News Source]

Dayton Seeking Settlement in Race Bias Lawsuit (WHIO-TV 7 Dayton) A spokesman says Dayton is seeking to resolve a potentially costly racial discrimination lawsuit over the hiring of police and firefighters. [News Source]

Merrill Lynch Settles Discrimination Lawsuit by U.S. (Update1) (Bloomberg) Dec. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Merrill Lynch & Co. agreed to pay $1.55 million to resolve a U.S. government lawsuit accusing the securities firm of discriminating against an Iranian Muslim vice president based on his national origin and religion. [News Source]

CNN – Lawsuit Seeks To Take ‘God’ Out Of Inaugural (WSB-TV 2 Atlanta) Some Atheists Want Barack Obama's Inauguration Ceremony To Leave Out References To God And Religion. In A Lawsuit, The Plaintiffs Demand The Words "So Help Me God" Not Be Added To The End Of The Oath Of Office. The Plaintiffs Say They Are Being Forced To Choose Between Not Watching The Inauguration Or Watching Endorsements Of "Purely Religious Notions."   [News Source]

Merrill settles Iranian Muslim bias lawsuit (Business Insurance) NEW YORK (Reuters)—Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. agreed to pay $1.55 million and improve employee training to settle a lawsuit that claimed discrimination in the firing of an analyst because he was an Iranian Muslim. [News Source]

JUICY SUITS: The Cops’ Version of Last Week’s Lawsuit (Willamette Week) Last week we reported on a federal lawsuit by a woman claiming she was beaten up by Portland police for little or no reason. Turns out the cops’ version of the story — as laid out in police reports [PDF] released Dec. 30 — paints quite a different version of events in their 2006 encounter with [...] [News Source]