Fourth Circuit Holds That Plaintiffs Should Have Submitted Prejudgment Interest Claim to Jury, Vacating $36 Million Interest Award Entered Post-Trial by District Court

In Gilliam v. Allen, No. 21-2313 (4th Cir. Mar. 8, 2023), while substantially affirming a $62 million compensatory damage verdict (and $13 million in punitive damages) for two plaintiffs who improperly served 31 years in prison, the Fourth Circuit tosses an extra $36 million post-judgment award of prejudgment interest by the district court, holding thatContinue reading “Fourth Circuit Holds That Plaintiffs Should Have Submitted Prejudgment Interest Claim to Jury, Vacating $36 Million Interest Award Entered Post-Trial by District Court”

Once District Court Enters Remand Order Under 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c), It Cannot Revisit That Decision Under Fed. R. Civ. P. 59, Holds Eighth Circuit

In Stone v. J&M Securities, LLC, No. 21-3422 (8th Cir. Dec. 19, 2022), the Eighth Circuit vacates an amended judgment entered in response to a motion for reconsideration under Fed. R. Civ. P 59(e). The panel holds that the order dismissing the plaintiffs’ state-law claims on the merits, though erroneous, could not be corrected post-judgmentContinue reading “Once District Court Enters Remand Order Under 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c), It Cannot Revisit That Decision Under Fed. R. Civ. P. 59, Holds Eighth Circuit”

Fifth Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment Where Plaintiff’s Lawyer Did Not Get an Electronic Notification of the Motion

In Rollins v. Home Depot USA, No. 20-50736 (5th Cir. Aug. 9, 2021), the Fifth Circuit affirms summary judgment in “a cautionary tale for every attorney who litigates in the era of e-filing.” The plaintiff’s lawyer missed the filing of a dispositive motion because “his computer’s email system placed that notification in a folder thatContinue reading “Fifth Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment Where Plaintiff’s Lawyer Did Not Get an Electronic Notification of the Motion”

First Circuit Holds That Bankruptcy Rules, Rather Than Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Govern Cases Proceeding Under 28 U.S.C. § 1334(b)

In Roy v. Canadian Pacific Railway Co., No.  17-1108 (1st Cir. June 2, 2021), the First Circuit decides an issue of first impression and holds that those cases proceeding in the district court as “related to” a pending bankruptcy proceeding, 28 U.S.C. § 1334(b), follow the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure rather than the FederalContinue reading “First Circuit Holds That Bankruptcy Rules, Rather Than Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Govern Cases Proceeding Under 28 U.S.C. § 1334(b)”

District Court Abused Discretion by Expanding Remedies on Rule 59(e) Post-Judgment Motion to Reconsider, Holds Fourth Circuit

In JTH Tax, Inc. v. Aime, No. 19-1746 (4th Cir. Jan. 4, 2021), the Fourth Circuit holds that the district court erred – on remand from an earlier appeal – in granting the winning plaintiff (1) additional compensatory damages on the grounds of newly discovered evidence, and (2) nominal damages. Aime operated nine tax franchisesContinue reading “District Court Abused Discretion by Expanding Remedies on Rule 59(e) Post-Judgment Motion to Reconsider, Holds Fourth Circuit”