In Laufer v. Arpan LLC, No.20-14846 (11th Cir. Mar. 29, 2022), the Eleventh Circuit issues a court opinion and three concurring opinions – 68 total pages – holding that a plaintiff who attempted to access a hotel website had Article III standing to bring a claim under the public accommodations provisions of the ADA, TitleContinue reading “Eleventh Circuit Panel Splits Three Ways on Article III Standing to Challenge Supposedly Inaccessible Hotel Website Under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act”
Monthly Archives: March 2022
Absolute Legislative Immunity Bars Federal Action Against N.H. State Legislature to Institute Procedures for Remote Voting During COVID Pandemic
In Cushing v. Packard, No. 21-1177 (1st Cir. Mar. 25, 2022), the en banc First Circuit – dividing 3-2 – holds that federal common-law legislative immunity bars an Americans with Disability Act (ADA) and Rehabilitation Act action to order the New Hampshire House of Representatives (House) to institute remote voting for medically vulnerable state representativesContinue reading “Absolute Legislative Immunity Bars Federal Action Against N.H. State Legislature to Institute Procedures for Remote Voting During COVID Pandemic”
Referral of Lawyer to Disciplinary Committee Is Not an Appealable Final Judgment, Holds D.C. Circuit
In Wisconsin Voters Alliance v. Harris, No. 21-5056 (D.C. Cir. Mar. 22, 2022), the D.C. Circuit holds that a district court judge’s decision to refer a lawyer to a bar disciplinary committee for misconduct was not a final judgment subject to appeal under 28 U.S.C. § 1291. “To call the underlying action in this caseContinue reading “Referral of Lawyer to Disciplinary Committee Is Not an Appealable Final Judgment, Holds D.C. Circuit”
Second Circuit Holds That Younger Abstention Does Not Apply to State Probate Court Order Concerning the Validity of a Lien
In Cavanaugh v. Geballe, No.21-571 (2d Cir. Mar. 17, 2022), the Second Circuit holds that the district court erred by abstaining under the doctrine established in Younger v. Harris, 401 U.S. 37 (1971), from hearing a due process challenge to a statutory lien on plaintiff’s inheritance and grandmother’s estate. The panel holds that a stateContinue reading “Second Circuit Holds That Younger Abstention Does Not Apply to State Probate Court Order Concerning the Validity of a Lien”
Split Eleventh Circuit Panel Holds That 28 U.S.C. § 1453(c)(1) Grants No Appellate Jurisdiction Over Remand to State Court Under CAFA If the District Court Grants It Sua Sponte
In Ruhlen, et al. v. Holiday Haven Homeowners, Inc., No. 21-90022 (11th Cir. Mar 10, 2022), owing to a quirk in the statutory language, a 2-1 panel holds that 28 U.S.C. § 1453(c)(1) – which ordinarily allows a U.S. Court of Appeals to hear an appeal “from an order of a district court granting orContinue reading “Split Eleventh Circuit Panel Holds That 28 U.S.C. § 1453(c)(1) Grants No Appellate Jurisdiction Over Remand to State Court Under CAFA If the District Court Grants It Sua Sponte”
Fifth Circuit Orders Hearing Into Whether Criminal Defendant Was Denied Sixth Amendment Rights When Her Lawyer Also Represented “Government’s Star Witness” Against Her
In United States v. Sheperd, No. 19-20073 (5th Cir. Mar. 8, 2022), the Fifth Circuit remands a case for a hearing about whether the defendant’s Sixth Amendment rights were violated when “her pretrial lawyer—who represented her until days before trial—also represented one of the Government’s star witnesses.” “Ann Sheperd owned and operated a home-health agency.Continue reading “Fifth Circuit Orders Hearing Into Whether Criminal Defendant Was Denied Sixth Amendment Rights When Her Lawyer Also Represented “Government’s Star Witness” Against Her”
Injunctive Order in State-Court Action Removed to Federal Court Not Immediately Appealable Under 28 U.S.C. § 1292(a)(1), Holds Sixth Circuit
In Schuler v. Adams, No. 21-1613 (6th Cir. Mar. 7, 2022), the Sixth Circuit faces the novel question of whether a preliminary injunction entered in a state-court action before it is removed to federal court can be immediately appealed under 28 U.S.C. § 1292(a)(1). The panel dismisses the appeal, holding that it has “jurisdiction onlyContinue reading “Injunctive Order in State-Court Action Removed to Federal Court Not Immediately Appealable Under 28 U.S.C. § 1292(a)(1), Holds Sixth Circuit”
District Court Has No Discretion to Vacate a Partial Verdict Because It Is Supposedly “Irreconcilably Inconsistent” With A Hung Jury on Another Count, Holds Fourth Circuit
In Jordan v. Large, No. 19-7855 (4th Cir. Mar. 4, 2022), the Fourth Circuit holds that the district court erred when it vacated a partial verdict in favor of a prisoner-plaintiff because it was supposedly “irreconcilably inconsistent” with the jury’s inability to reach a verdict on another count. Plaintiff, “a prisoner in Red Onion StateContinue reading “District Court Has No Discretion to Vacate a Partial Verdict Because It Is Supposedly “Irreconcilably Inconsistent” With A Hung Jury on Another Count, Holds Fourth Circuit”
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