Susan Webber Wright

President Clinton's legal troubles may not be over: In Little Rock, Ark., U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright said she is prepared to consider whether he should be found in contempt of court for his testimony about Monica S. Lewinsky in Paula Corbin Jones' sexual harassment lawsuit. Wright said she waited to address the issue because of the impeachment trial and because Jones' case was before an appeals court. It was settled out of court in December for $850,000.

President Clinton's legal troubles may not be over: In Little Rock, Ark., U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright said she is prepared to consider whether he should be found in contempt of court for his testimony about Monica S. Lewinsky in Paula Corbin Jones' sexual harassment lawsuit. Wright said she waited to address the issue because of the impeachment trial and because Jones' case was before an appeals court. It was settled out of court in December for $850,000.

Susan Webber Wright, the Little Rock, Ark., federal judge who threw out Paula Corbin Jones' sexual harassment lawsuit, often shares folksy details of her life with lawyers and jurors in her courtroom. While some starchy lawyers frown on that practice, those familiar with Wright say that her style only illustrates her self-confidence and independence--two qualities that helped propel this Republican appointee to issue a ruling that was cause for celebration in the Democratic White House.

Before she dismissed Paula Corbin Jones' sexual harassment suit against the president, the federal judge in the case did her best to promote a settlement, even offering to personally persuade the former Arkansas clerk that she "would have a difficult time winning her case," according to court documents released Monday. U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright is just one of several people, including some of her own lawyers, who have urged Jones to settle the four-year-old case--to no avail.

A federal judge threw out Paula Corbin Jones' sexual harassment lawsuit against President Clinton on Wednesday, citing a lack of substantive proof that Jones was sexually assaulted or harassed in her job--a ruling the White House hailed as "vindication" for Clinton. Jones' attorneys quickly announced their intention to file an appeal. The decision by U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright did not conclude whether Clinton had made an improper sexual advance toward Jones.

Before she dismissed Paula Corbin Jones' sexual harassment suit against the president, the federal judge in the case did her best to promote a settlement, even offering to personally persuade the former Arkansas clerk that she "would have a difficult time winning her case," according to court documents released Monday. U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright is just one of several people, including some of her own lawyers, who have urged Jones to settle the four-year-old case--to no avail.

It was the legal equivalent of the playground basketball rule: No harm, no foul. Then-Gov. Clinton was "certainly boorish and offensive" if a former state government clerk in Arkansas named Paula Corbin Jones has testified truthfully, and his alleged sexual proposition to her in 1991 indeed was "an odious one," U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright said.

Susan McDougal asked a federal judge in Little Rock to delay her Whitewater trial in Arkansas while she stands trial on embezzlement charges in Los Angeles. President Clinton's former business partner is scheduled for trial Sept. 28. She is accused of criminal contempt and obstruction of justice for refusing to testify before a grand jury that investigated the Arkansas business deals of Clinton and Hillary Rodham Clinton.

A federal judge said she plans to set a trial date in Paula Corbin Jones' sexual-harassment lawsuit against President Clinton during a hearing later this month. U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright said in a court order that the trial will be scheduled in her Little Rock, Ark., courtroom. Jones has accused Clinton of pressuring her to perform a sex act with him at a Little Rock hotel in May 1991 while he was governor of Arkansas and she was a state employee.

Re "Refreshing Ruling Blows Away the 'Is, Is' Smoke," Opinion, April 18: Despite the point raised by Suzanne Garment that the content of the 32-page opinion speaks to the boorish conduct of President Clinton, the fact remains that Judge Susan Webber Wright had no legal right to issue the opinion. Period. It is unfortunate that Garment sees the situation as a legal ambiguity, when in reality, Justice Wright has abused her authority. President Clinton's behavior was obnoxious, but even a first-year law student can see and appreciate the blatant misuse of the power to impose sanctions.

It was the legal equivalent of the playground basketball rule: No harm, no foul. Then-Gov. Clinton was "certainly boorish and offensive" if a former state government clerk in Arkansas named Paula Corbin Jones has testified truthfully, and his alleged sexual proposition to her in 1991 indeed was "an odious one," U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright said.

A federal judge threw out Paula Corbin Jones' sexual harassment lawsuit against President Clinton on Wednesday, citing a lack of substantive proof that Jones was sexually assaulted or harassed in her job--a ruling the White House hailed as "vindication" for Clinton. Jones' attorneys quickly announced their intention to file an appeal. The decision by U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright did not conclude whether Clinton had made an improper sexual advance toward Jones.

Susan Webber Wright, the Little Rock, Ark., federal judge who threw out Paula Corbin Jones' sexual harassment lawsuit, often shares folksy details of her life with lawyers and jurors in her courtroom. While some starchy lawyers frown on that practice, those familiar with Wright say that her style only illustrates her self-confidence and independence--two qualities that helped propel this Republican appointee to issue a ruling that was cause for celebration in the Democratic White House.

A federal judge let Paula Corbin Jones' lawyers withdraw from her sexual-harassment lawsuit against President Clinton but ordered that the case stay on course for a trial in May. "All deadlines shall remain in place," U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright said in an order that let Joseph Cammarata and Gilbert K. Davis quit as Jones' lawyers. New attorneys for Jones have yet to emerge.

The lead law firm for Paula Jones said in Little Rock, Ark., that it will not appeal a federal judge's order awarding it $79,999 from President Clinton for costs incurred because of his false testimony about his relationship with Monica S. Lewinsky. The decision by Dallas-based Rader, Campbell, Fisher & Pyke all but wraps up Jones' dispute with Clinton.