D.C. Circuit: The Second Most Important Court in America
4/5/22
By: Sun Choy
With the nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is in the spotlight once again. If confirmed, Judge Jackson will join Chief …
SCOTUS has granted certiorari in The Andy Warhol Foundation case
3/29/22
By: Patrick Eckler
The Supreme Court of the United States has granted certiorari in The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. v. Lynn Goldsmith, et al., on the following question: Whether a work of art is “transformative” when …
BREAKING – Supreme Court Severs Government-Debt Exception From TCPA
7/7/20
By: Matt Foree
Yesterday, the Supreme Court of the United States issued its decision in Barr vs American Association of Political Consultants, Inc. As we reported earlier here, this case deals with the constitutionality of the government-debt exception to …
Can Governments be Liable for Mass Shootings under the Constitution?
2/11/19
By: Phil Savrin
The recent tragedies of mass shootings have spawned litigation over the civil liabilities of state governments for failing to protect members of the public from harm, particularly when there were advance warning signs that police departments overlooked …
Federal Securities Laws: Has the 9th Circuit Gone Rogue Again?
2/4/19
By: John Goselin
On January 4, 2019, the United States Supreme Court decided to hear an appeal from the Ninth Circuit’s April 20, 2018 decision in Varjabedian v. Emulex Corporation, 888 F.3d 399 (9th Cir. 2018). The Supreme …
The Supreme Court Weighs in on Arbitrability, But Questions Remain
1/31/19
By: Ted Peters
As reflected in a prior article, the United States Supreme Court recently agreed to take another look at the issue of arbitrability. In the case of Henry Schein, Inc. v. Archer & White Sales, Inc., …
Yelp Can’t Be Ordered to Remove Defamatory Reviews by A California Lawyer’s Unhappy Former Clients
12/3/18
By: Frank Olah
On July 2, 2018, in Hassell v. Bird (2018) 5 Cal.5th 522, the California Supreme Court held that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 prohibits courts from ordering Yelp to remove defamatory consumer reviews …
Supreme Court Revisits Interplay Between First and Fourth Amendments
11/29/18
By: Wes Jackson
Imagine you commit a minor crime and an officer approaches you. The interaction goes south when you call the officer a “pig” and remind him that your tax dollars pay his salary. He then arrests you. Were …
Who’s Liable for Letting the Dogs Out?
10/23/18
By: Wes Jackson
“Cry ‘Havoc!,’ and let slip the dogs of war.”
William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar act 3, sc. 1.
Havoc indeed—in a case argued before the Georgia Supreme Court on October 10, two pit bulls slipped out of …
Employment Arbitration Agreements are Still Alive in California, At Least For Now
10/4/18
By: Rebecca Smith
As Freeman Mathis & Gary brought out in its August 24, 2018 Blog by attorney Dave Daniels, the California Senate had voted to approve Assembly Bill 3080 (“AB 3080”) intended to combat the use of mandatory …
Independent Contractor Or Employee?
9/20/18
By: Marshall Coyle
The California Supreme Court has established an “ABC test” that could make it extremely difficult for the state’s truckers to use independent contractors. In Dynamex Operations West Inc. v. Charles Lee, (Case S222732, April 30, 2018) the …
Are We Witnessing the End of Qualified Immunity?
9/19/18
By: Sun Choy
For many decades, qualified immunity has served as a powerful defense to end civil cases against public officials, including law enforcement officers for the alleged use of excessive force. Given the many high-profile deaths involving the use …