For five years, Wells Fargo has fought to get the U.S. government to refund the bank $82 million in taxes. But a federal judge in Minnesota on Friday ruled that the underlying transaction was a "sham" transaction and a tax shelter, and disallowed any refund.

Wilmer withdrew from Mozilo's defense against SEC charges in December. With trial scheduled for next October, can Sullivan turn things around for the man who personifies the subprime crisis?

Eric Butler's lawyers argued that his clients were happy with the high returns on the risky subprime securities Butler bought for them, at least until the market crashed. But the jury apparently believed Butler's former colleague, who testified that he and Butler misled clients about their purchases. Plus: The new Manhattan U.S. attorney makes some moves.

A new report by a nonprofit dedicated to improving prosecutors' accountability focuses on wrongful murder convictions, and suggests a litany of reforms to reduce their chilling frequency.