A California appeals court ruled in favor of octuplets mother Nadya Suleman Friday, denying a call for an independent guardian to monitor her children's finances.

The 4th District Court of Appeal in Santa Ana called the petition an "unprecedented, meritless effort by a stranger" and directed an Orange County probate court to vacate its order for an investigation into the family's finances.

Paul Petersen, an advocate for children in the entertainment industry, argued that Suleman's children were vulnerable and that an independent guardian should be appointed to look after their financial interests.

The appeals court said the probate judge erred because Petersen failed to show that Suleman was engaging in financial misconduct.

Suleman gave birth to octuplets on Jan. 26, 2009. The medical curiosity of their delivery turned to public outrage when it was learned that the single, unemployed mother had been caring for her six other children with the help of food stamps and Social Security disability payments for three of the youngsters.

A former emergency room doctor who deliberately braked in front of two bicyclists, causing them to crash and suffer serious injuries in the road rage incident, was sentenced Friday to five years in prison.

Christopher Thomas Thompson, 60, was sentenced in Los Angeles County Superior Court. He was in tears as he apologized to the victims.

"The physical and mental scars are my fault," he said, telling them that he has recurring nightmares about one of the cyclists crashing through the windshield of his car.

But Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Scott Millington said he was concerned about a lack of remorse. The defendant was apologetic today, but remarks he made soon after the crash indicated otherwise, the judge said.

Thompson, who worked at Beverly Hospital in Montebello, has been jailed since he was convicted in November of assault with a deadly weapon, battery with serious bodily injury, reckless driving and mayhem.

Prosecutors say he had argued with the two cyclists before suddenly slamming on his brakes in front of them on Mandeville Canyon Road on July 4, 2008, causing them to crash and suffer serious injuries. One cyclist who went through the car window suffered broken teeth, cuts and had to have his nose reattached. The other cyclist suffered a separated shoulder after crashing to the pavement.

A Swiss court ruled that the nation's top financial regulator acted in an "unlawful" manner when it forced UBS AG to release client data to U.S. authorities, reigniting a debate over bank-secrecy practices.

The decision, if upheld, could complicate efforts to extract client data by tax authorities in other countries. Private bankers have argued that whittling away Switzerland's banking-privacy laws has led to withdrawals by wealthy individuals.

Nearly one year ago, Finma, the Swiss financial-services regulator, ordered UBS to hand over details on nearly 300 accounts to U.S. authorities in order to settle a tax dispute. The regulator said it had to move quickly because, according to Swiss officials, U.S. authorities were threatening to indict the bank over the tax issue.

Finma argued that a potential indictment was a "clear and present" danger that UBS might not survive. Moreover, Finma added, UBS already had admitted to aiding tax fraud through hidden offshore accounts. The court disagreed, saying Finma had exceeded its authority and should have referred the matter to the government. The government backed Finma's move last February.

In a case from northeast Ohio's Summit County, the court ruled 5-2 Wednesday that owners may be sued both under the state's dog bite law and for more general negligence.

The decision is a victory for the family of a 12-year-old girl who was mauled by a dog and was hurt on the head.

A trial judge had allowed the girl's mother to sue the owners only under the dog bite statute, limiting the money award in the case. The jury awarded compensatory damages of $5,000 for the girl's medical bills and other costs.

The Supreme Court says the mother should also have been allowed to pursue a negligence claim and possible punitive damages.

The American Trucking Associations filed its final response brief with the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles seeking a summary judgment in its challenge to certain aspects of the Port of Los Angeles clean-truck concession requirements.

ATA charges that certain aspects of the port’s concession requirements violate the federal pre-emption provision that bars state and local entities from regulating motor carrier rates, routes and services.

The Port of Los Angeles is attempting to use its concession requirements to revoke a motor carrier’s authority to provide drayage service in the harbor, ATA stated. ATA also noted that the neighboring Port of Long Beach resolved this issue by replacing its clean-truck plan’s concession requirements with a registration agreement.

The U.S. District Court is scheduled to hear the ATA motion and the port’s cross motion for summary judgment on Jan. 11, with a decision expected shortly thereafter. A trial is scheduled for mid-March.

Roman Polanski will be returning to the courtroom for an overdue hearing for his criminal case later this week. The case could be resolved quickly, the appeals court has suggested, if Roman’s attorneys agree to sentencing in absentia — without Roman physically in court — or Roman drops his opposition to being extradited to the United States. Superior Court spokesman Allan Parachini said Judge Peter Espinoza will hold a hearing for Roman’s case on Wednesday, the Associated Press reports.

Roman is currently under house arrest at his Swiss chalet after he was arrested in late September on a fugitive warrant.

He was accused of raping a 13-year-old girl during a 1977 modeling shoot and was indicted on six felony counts and pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of unlawful sexual intercourse. Roman fled to France the day before his sentencing in 1978 after spending 42 days in a California prison for psychiatric evaluation.