Florida

Florida governor suspends ‘woke’ elected prosecutor, citing pledges on transgender care, abortion

Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday he was suspending the elected state attorney in Hillsborough County, Florida, for “woke” positions on abortion and transgender medical care.

Aug 5, 2022 10:30 AM CDT

Smoker can sue tobacco company for consumer fraud, even though she didn’t use its products, state supreme court says

A smoker can sue the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. for misrepresenting the health hazards of cigarettes, even though she smoked brands made by other companies, a Nevada Supreme Court panel has ruled.

Aug 4, 2022 10:47 AM CDT

Clergy members contend Florida abortion law violates their religious freedom; 5 suits are filed

Seven clergy members have filed five lawsuits in Florida contending that the state’s abortion restrictions burden their religious beliefs, speech and conduct.

Aug 2, 2022 3:17 PM CDT

Weekly Briefs: Go-between sentenced in law prof’s murder; $4.25B opioid settlement announced

Convicted go-between gets life sentence in law prof’s murder Katherine Magbanua was sentenced Friday to life in prison without parole for acting as the go-between in the murder of Florida State University law professor Dan Markel. She also received two consecutive 30-year sentences. Magbanua’s lawyer, Tara Kawass, said her client…

Jul 29, 2022 2:35 PM CDT

Mistrial declared in estate-planning malpractice suit against Nelson Mullins after jurors can’t agree

A judge in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, has declared a mistrial in a malpractice lawsuit alleging that an estate-planning lawyer at Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough failed to ensure that a wealthy couple’s five children each shared equally in trust money.

Jul 26, 2022 1:27 PM CDT

Progressive prosecutors are encountering pushback

When Alvin Bragg Jr. ran for district attorney of New York County last year, he broadly promised to decline prosecuting some defendants arrested for low-level crimes, prioritize treatment for mental illness and drug abuse, and to end the use of cash bail.

Jul 21, 2022 3:50 PM CDT

Weekly Briefs: Old arrest warrant found in Emmett Till case; former White House counsel subpoenaed

Emmett Till’s family seeks arrest after warrant found Researchers have found an unserved 1955 arrest warrant in the basement of a Mississippi courthouse that accuses Carolyn Bryant Donham in the kidnapping of 14-year-old Emmett Till, who was lynched after the white woman accused the Black teenager of making improper advances.…

Jul 1, 2022 1:35 PM CDT

Litigation over abortion bans begins at state level; judges block laws in 5 states

Updated: Supporters of abortion rights are taking their battle to state courts after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade on Friday.

Jun 28, 2022 10:43 AM CDT

Kagan joins majority as Supreme Court allows state to recoup Medicaid costs from injury settlement

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Monday that a state’s Medicaid program can seek reimbursement from lawsuit settlement payments allocated for the future care of accident victims.

Jun 6, 2022 10:57 AM CDT

Kagan and 3 conservative justices dissent as Supreme Court blocks Texas restrictions on social media

The U.S. Supreme Court voted 5-4 on Tuesday to temporarily block a Texas law that bans large social media companies from restricting posts based on viewpoint.

Jun 1, 2022 10:29 AM CDT

Uvalde, Texas, police had no legal duty to act, experts say; Supreme Court precedent cited

Updated: Police in Uvalde, Texas, are unlikely to face civil liability for failing to rush in to confront shooter Salvador Ramos, 18, at Robb Elementary School last week, experts told several publications.

Jun 1, 2022 8:41 AM CDT

Prosecutors gain another conviction in murder of law prof Dan Markel; what was the key evidence?

The woman accused of acting as a go-between in the murder of a Florida State University law professor was convicted Friday, after jurors deliberated for about eight hours.

May 31, 2022 10:55 AM CDT

11th Circuit rules against lawyer disbarred for failing to comply with mental health requirements of conditional bar admission

A federal appeals court has ruled against a Florida lawyer who challenged her disbarment for failing to comply with mental health requirements of her conditional admission to the bar.

May 27, 2022 9:34 AM CDT

House reverses course on renaming federal courthouse to honor Black judge

The U.S. House of Representatives reversed course last week and voted to rename a federal courthouse in Tallahassee, Florida, after the first Black judge on the Florida Supreme Court.

May 25, 2022 8:58 AM CDT

Florida law banning social media censorship is likely unconstitutional, 11th Circuit says

A federal appeals court on Monday blocked parts of a Florida law that prevent social media companies from banning political candidates, deprioritizing political messages or censoring content by journalistic enterprises.

May 24, 2022 8:55 AM CDT