Free Newsletter
Bar challenges may reach U.S. high court
A Michigan lawyer failed last month in her challenge to the requirement that she join the State Bar of Michigan and pay dues supporting advocacy activities with which she disagreed. The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in Taylor v. Buchanan, on July 15 found that two U.S. Supreme Court cases were right on point […]
4th Circuit: Many paths to same-sex Title VII claim
The 4th U.S. Court of Appeals has revived a worker’s claim of same-sex sexual harassment, joining five sister circuits in holding that such plaintiffs aren’t limited to the three distinct evidentiary options outlined in a U.S. Supreme Court decision from 1998. Chazz Roberts was hired as a “dive tender,” or diver’s assistant, by Glenn Industrial […]
Discovery, American style, could become global export
An international legal dispute that began with a fire at a Boeing plant in South Carolina is now headed to the U.S. Supreme Court, and it could end up significantly changing the way that companies that do business internationally resolve their disputes, not just in the United States, but across the globe. Servotronics, an American […]
U.S. justices urged to address law for vulnerable witnesses
The conviction of a Northern Virginia father for the murder of his wife presents an opportunity for the U.S. Supreme Court to clarify the law on remote testimony by child witnesses, the father’s lawyer argues. The lawyer contends Virginia and other states are denying the rights of defendants to confront opposing witnesses, even when, as […]
Title VII gay bias claim goes forward
A June decision by the U.S. Supreme Court has opened courthouse doors for a lawsuit filed by a Staunton man who says he was fired for being homosexual. The federal justices ruled June 15 that Title VII covers discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Following that decision, a judge in Harrisonburg federal court on […]
Pirate ship copyright dispute sails before Supreme Court
By Correy Stephenson BridgeTower Media Newswires A sunken pirate ship off the coast of North Carolina that triggered a copyright dispute with implications for state sovereign immunity will be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1996, the Queen Anne’s Revenge was discovered off the coast of North Carolina. Originally a French ship, Blackbeard captured […]
Virginia legislature lacks standing to challenge redistricting decision
After the Virginia Attorney General elected to not appeal a lower court decision holding certain redistricting violated the Equal Protection clause because it was based on race, members of Virginia’s House of Delegates took up the appeal. However, the court dismissed their appeal, holding they lacked standing. Background In 2011, after the 2010 census, Virginia […]
Virginia ban on uranium mining upheld
A company that wants to mine raw uranium in Virginia, but cannot because of a Virginia ban on uranium mining, failed to persuade the court that Virginia’s ban was preempted by the Atomic Energy Act, or AEA. Background Virginia Uranium Inc. wants to mine raw uranium ore from a site near Coles Hill, Virginia, but […]
SCOTUS: Second trial didn’t violate Double Jeopardy, preclusion
A defendant who agrees to have the charges against him considered in two trials cannot later argue successfully that the second trial offends the Fifth Amendment. Background This case began when police dredged up a safe full of guns from a Virginia river. Paul Garrison, the safe’s owner, had reported it stolen from his home. […]
SCOTUS: Warrantless vehicle searches limited within curtilage
The automobile exception to the Fourth Amendment does not permit a police officer, uninvited and without a warrant, to enter the curtilage of a home in order to search a vehicle parked therein. Background Albemarle Police Officer McCall saw the driver of an orange and black motorcycle with an extended frame commit a traffic infraction. […]
Appeals court: pardons render resentencing hearing moot
RICHMOND (AP) A federal appeals court says a man who received two partial pardons from Virginia governors is not entitled to further judicial review. Travion Blount was initially sentenced to six life terms for his role in a 2006 Norfolk house-party robbery he committed when he was 15 years old. But then-Gov. Bob McDonnell issued […]
Supreme Court sends Virginia transgender bathroom rights case back to appeals court
WASHINGTON (AP) The Supreme Court is returning a transgender teen’s case to a lower court without reaching a decision. The justices said Monday they have opted not to decide whether federal anti-discrimination law gives high school senior Gavin Grimm the right to use the boys’ bathroom in his Virginia school. The case had been scheduled for […]
Verdicts & Settlements
- Jury reaches defense verdict in $4M med mal action
- Dental hygienist tripped, fractured right wrist, foot — $190,000 settlement
- Couple contracted Hepatitis A after dining at restaurant — $5.5M settlement
- Elderly man suffers hip fracture after attack by neighbor’s dog — $350,000 settlement
- Motorcyclist injured when vehicle abruptly changed lanes — $300,000 verdict
- Passenger ejected from car in high-speed chase crash — $685,000 settlement
- Defense verdict reached in fraud suit
- 8-year-old killed in crash involving tractor-trailer — $1,100,000 settlement
- Plaintiff conceived child after vasectomy — $250,000 settlement
- Delay in diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy led to surgery — $283,432.18 settlement
- Golfer stepped in sinkhole, fractured ankle — $442,000 verdict
- Jury sides with woman injured in rear-end collision — $300,000 verdict
Viewpoint
- The promise and peril of artificial intelligence in patent law
- Keys to becoming an unfrazzled lawyer
- Confused about federal COVID-19 emergencies ending? You’re not alone
- Generative AI in law: New survey of lawyer perspectives and plans
- Four misconceptions about appeals
- Font choice exposes fabricated document
- USPTO launches first-time filer expedited exam pilot program
- In times of crisis, the ‘tug of war’ is over
- The ever-evolving Fourth Circuit
- Federal protections for pregnant, nursing employees coming
- It’s time for employers to embrace the ‘Big Quit’ and adapt
- Tell the whole truth? I’ll do better than that
Polls
Loading ...