Civil Procedure

Clerk’s office defies federal judge’s order to issue same-sex marriage licenses

Setting the stage for a showdown, a county clerk in Rowan County, Kentucky, has apparently defied a federal judge’s Wednesday order to begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples despite her personal religious objections. Clerk Kim Davis filed an appeal and plans to seek a stay of the trial court’s…

Aug 13, 2015 2:55 PM CDT

‘Gossip Girl’ actress in custody battle can’t keep kids in US, New York judge rules

A New York judge on Tuesday ordered actress Kelly Rutherford to return her children to Monaco, where their father has been living after his U.S. visa was revoked. Judge Ellen Frances Gesmer ruled after scolding the Gossip Girl star for failing to bring the children, ages 8 and 6, to…

Aug 12, 2015 9:12 AM CDT

Associate’s detective work helps get case moved from New York to California

An associate who checked out a company’s purported place of business has helped win the transfer of a federal patent case from New York to California. The plaintiff, Israel-based IXI Mobile, had claimed it had a subsidiary in New York City with a principal place of business at the Chrysler…

Aug 10, 2015 12:53 PM CDT

Federal judge in Minnesota kicks ‘Deflategate’ case back to NYC counterpart

Competing lawsuits by the National Football League and Tom Brady and the NFL Player’s Association over “Deflategate” penalties will be decided by a federal court in Manhattan. The NFL beat Brady and the player’s union to the courthouse, filing a declaratory judgment action in federal court in Manhattan on Tuesday,…

Jul 31, 2015 11:30 AM CDT

Facebook lacks standing to challenge subpoenas of users’ info in disability case, appeals court says

A New York appeals court has sided with prosecutors in a closely watched Manhattan case, finding that Facebook lacked standing to challenge subpoenas requiring the social media company to turn over all information in the accounts of 381 people. Only the individuals in question can challenge the subpoenas, but reportedly…

Jul 22, 2015 10:05 AM CDT

7th Circuit criticizes lawyer for raising too many issues on appeal

A federal appeals court is criticizing an Indianapolis lawyer for filing an appeal that raises too many issues and “conveys the impression of ‘dictated but not read.’ ” The decision (PDF) by the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that lawyer Ronald Weldy filed the appeal too late…

Jul 7, 2015 5:45 AM CDT

Suit claiming Widener law school used misleading job stats can’t proceed as class action, judge says

A federal judge in New Jersey has refused to certify a class action in a suit that claims Widener University School of Law posted misleading job statistics. In his decision (PDF), U.S. District Judge William Walls of Newark cited two reasons why the case could not proceed as a class…

Jul 6, 2015 12:17 PM CDT

Posner dissent criticizes penalties for ‘harmless procedural bobbles’ by lawyers

A dissent by Judge Richard Posner is questioning whether it does any good to punish litigants for “harmless procedural bobbles” by their lawyers. Posner dissented in a decision (PDF) last week by the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which tossed a suit seeking enforcement of a settlement agreement.…

Jun 29, 2015 5:45 AM CDT

9th Circuit boots judge, revives news media case over late access to court civil complaint filings

For the second time, a federal appeals court has reversed a trial court judge’s decision to dismiss a news organization’s First Amendment suit over delayed access to civil complaint filings at a California courthouse. And this time the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has also assigned another U.S. District…

Jun 25, 2015 12:45 PM CDT

Top state court to hear case of lawyers accused of asking paralegal to ‘friend’ litigant on Facebook

The New Jersey Supreme Court has agreed to consider whether legal discipline officials have jurisdiction in an ethics case accusing two lawyers of directing their paralegal to friend a litigant on Facebook. The lawyers, John Robertelli and Gabriel Adamo, claim the Office of Attorney Ethics had no jurisdiction to charge…

Jun 25, 2015 5:45 AM CDT

Top Texas court OKs same-sex divorce, says state AG lacked standing

Siding with a trial court judge and against the state attorney general, the Texas Supreme Court on Friday upheld the divorce of a same-sex couple who married in Massachusetts. However, the 5-3 decision (PDF) by the state’s top court focused on civil procedure rather than constitutional law. The supreme court…

Jun 22, 2015 10:30 AM CDT

Judge plans to go into ‘uncharted legal territory’ to stop Macy’s from collecting shoplifting fines

A Massachusetts judge says he thinks an appeals court needs to decide whether Macy’s can collect $500 fines from suspected shoplifters, and he has a plan to make it happen. Judge Douglas Stoddart of Natick said he had twice ordered the department store to stop collecting the fines, but the…

Jun 11, 2015 5:45 AM CDT

Supreme Court to consider class certification when each plaintiff is deemed average

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to consider whether a class action for unpaid overtime can be certified when it uses statistics that presume each plaintiff is identical to the average. The case is an appeal of a $5.8 million judgment by Tyson Foods that contends a class action…

Jun 9, 2015 11:58 AM CDT

Warring parties in Robin Williams estate case make progress, with mediator’s help

The widow and three adult children of actor Robin Williams are still at odds over the ownership of some of his personal belongings and the money needed to maintain his widow’s home. But, with the help of a mediator, they have resolved issues concerning a number of other items, so…

Jun 1, 2015 4:30 PM CDT

9th Circuit: In ERISA case where appeal period ended on a Saturday, filing deadline becomes Monday

Saying that a rule often applied to court filing deadlines also makes sense in administrative ERISA matters, a federal appeals court Thursday revived a former FedEx worker’s disability benefits case. Because a 180-day period for Andre LeGras to appeal the termination of his benefits ended on a Saturday, the mailbox…

May 28, 2015 4:30 PM CDT