Please enjoy the latest version short circuita weekly feature from the Institute for Justice.
Dedicated readers will recall that just before the new year, the Nevada Supreme Court hold State constitutional search and seizure powers may be enforced through private damages actions, and limited immunity does not apply. (IJ filed a brief and participated in oral argument as amicus curiae, asking only for that outcome.) and short circuit audience It will be recalled that earlier last year, the Michigan Supreme Court came to a similar result, holding that its constitutional rights were also enforceable through damages actions. In a recent article, IJ’s Nick Sibilla diving Examining this robust state constitutional accountability stands in stark contrast to the constitutional claims of federal courts, which have met with qualified immunity buzz.
- When Barbra Streisand filed a $50 million lawsuit against a photographer for invasion of privacy, he posted a photo of her home, causing it to go viral and created”Streisand effect’, the phenomenon in which attempts to hide, delete, or censor information can lead to increased awareness of that information with unintended consequences. Some haven’t learned their lesson. see, for example, About: Tara A. DemetriadesNo. 20-2559 (second circuitJan. 18, 2023) (Motion to Deny Confidentiality of Attorney Disciplinary Matters).
- this third circuit A case where a law student won a huge victory for a self-proclaimed prisoner might seem to undercut the case for a license, but it’s an anecdote with no wider implications.
- Pro tip from third circuit: Try to live your life in such a way that an appeals court will never describe your “reputation for sanctionable conduct in courts across the country” as “well documented.” Instead, something like “unreasonable” or at least “unexpected and disappointing”.
- in fourth circuit Reaffirming the precedent of the 1970s is still instructive and binding, just like no matter what your niece says on TikTok, Creedence Clearwater Revival is still completely righteous.
- this fourth circuit A case where a law student won a huge victory for a self-proclaimed prisoner might seem to undercut the case for a license, but it’s an anecdote with no wider implications.
- What the wedding photography company shoots is not the wedding, but the suppliers who serve the wedding, such as florists. (The market is everywhere!) It filed an antitrust lawsuit (and defamation) against two traditional wedding photographers whose exclusivity claims ruled out some potential business. Texas court: A picture may be worth a thousand words, but this frivolous lawsuit is worth $41,518.75 in sanctions — and it bankrupted the company. Do you think attorneys who bring frivolous lawsuits are liable for malfeasance in bankruptcy proceedings? fifth circuit: I would.
- The Louisiana Public Service Commission is deeply displeased with certain rates submitted by a nuclear utility. One avenue for the Commission to challenge these rates is by filing a complaint with FERC. One of the complaints has been stagnant for six years; the other two have languished for more than four years. Fifth Circuit in Louisiana: Congress didn’t intend for the process to be like molasses. Please fulfill your obligations? fifth circuit: Looks like FERC may need to quit FERC-ing. The agency has 21 days to give us a meaningful explanation for its delay.
- Ask a friend (who happens to be an insurance company): Are the economic costs of state and local governments dealing with opioid overdispensing “because the body hurts”? sixth circuit: No.
- Curiosity killed the cat, but, sixth circuit Remind us that curiosity alone won’t get the cat on the third bar.
- St Anthony was not just the patron saint of lost property; he was also the patron saint of swineherds. He oversees one of the industry’s largest operations raising hogs in Scott County, Illinois. Neighbors accused the farm of negligently disposing of pig manure “causing foul and offensive odors and noxious fumes” plus “runoff of pig waste” and many other unclean things. They sued in state court. Two insurers defended the farm, but a third claimed it didn’t have to. San Antonio and the insurance defense lawyers come through, and the farm wins! The insurers then all sued each other in federal court. Can two insurance companies seek compensation from a third? Seventh Circuit: Better start praying.
- Both husband and wife were employees at a transmission plant in Kokomo, Indiana. Eventually, their employers noticed that the two were suspiciously overlapping during FMLA leave. They were investigated and then suspended before the husband sued, insisting everything was normal. Husband: My wife’s IBS bouts sometimes trigger my anxiety and other ailments. Wife: My IBS is sometimes triggered by stressful situations, like my husband’s medical condition. Seventh Circuit: The employer’s sincere suspicion that Jim and Della are abusing their FMLA leave is justified.
- Allegation: At a Black Lives Matter protest outside the Florissant, Missouri Police Department, police declared an unlawful assembly five times and ordered protesters to disband, even though the protesters had not committed the underlying crime of unlawful assembly. Protesters are suing the city for enforcing an unconstitutional and unwritten arbitrary policy. eighth circuit: Police can declare an unlawful assembly even if no crime has been committed. The complaint does not reasonably state the claim. Dissent: Protesters may be targeted.
- Agents tracked the suspected child pornographer to Bettendorf, Iowa, escorted him to a car, repeatedly told him he could leave at any time and refused to answer questions. He answered questions for more than ninety minutes, made an incriminating statement, agreed to a search of two mobile phones, and was eventually charged with possession and production of child pornography, convicted and sentenced to 50 years in prison. Man: I should have been Milanized before answering the agent’s question. eighth circuit: Unless you were not detained at the time. The verdict stands.
- Allegation: Officers from the St. Peters Police Department in Missouri created a text group about the ongoing Black Lives Matter protests. A police officer has shared a parody video criticizing the protests. Someone complained. The policeman was told he should resign. He did so, but then sued, arguing he was retaliated against in violation of the First Amendment. eighth circuit: The police shared this video as an ordinary citizen, and it addresses an issue of public concern. The case was not dismissed.
- One is about a brazen file: a California man who kidnapped a 12-year-old girl and shipped her to Las Vegas for prostitution. After his arrest, he entered into a plea deal to drop the most serious charges against him in exchange for two lesser criminal charges and compensation for the 12-year-old. After signing the agreement, he switched attorneys, with his new attorney arguing that the district court had no authority to enforce the compensation agreement. The district court reluctantly agreed. ninth circuit: Mandatory!
- California marijuana entrepreneur sues former business partner and others for RICO over mail and wire fraud. Is it RICO? ninth circuit: Luxurious! You cannot perform RICO against a business that is a federal crime.
- You might think that writing a short circuit is just done by calling the younger Abstain, but we still have to wrap up 40 pages tenth circuit Opinions on child sex trafficking.
- Florida man sentenced for conspiracy to possess, with intent to distribute, controlled substance. He was sentenced as a career criminal for a significantly extended sentence as it was his third “controlled substance offence”. or is it? The definition of “controlled substance offense” in the sentencing guidelines does not include unfinished offenses such as conspiracy, but the commentary to the definition does include them. Which one is binding on the sentencing court? eleventh circuit (en banc): now SCOTUS has revisited orr With respect, before we turn to comments, we have to find out that the rules are indeed ambiguous, and this one is pretty clear. Dissent: There is a case on SCOTUS that shows that this is not the case, and no matter what we think the courts will do with this issue today, it still binds us.
- Florida child porn lover cruises ‘mom blogs’ asking mums – we read the disgusting details so you don’t have to – to send him pornographic photos of their daughters. “It’s nothing but a joke! He’s nothing but a troll!” argued his lawyer. eleventh circuit: This thesis is borne out by the extensive amount of child pornography found on his personal computer.
- In en banc news, fifth circuit will reconsider its View Argues that the FDA did not, among other things, violate the doctrine of “accidental switch” (::sigh::seriously) when it entered marketing denial orders against two e-cigarette companies.
- In further plenary news, ninth circuit will reconsider its View The San Jose Unified School District has selectively enforced its nondiscrimination policy on religious student clubs, possibly in violation of the free exercise clause.
The Institute for Justice is now interviewing talented law students from across the country for our summer fellowship program, the Dave Kennedy Fellowship. Students live in Arlington, Miami, Austin, Tempe, and Seattle. The program provides law students with unparalleled professional opportunities to make substantial contributions to active and future strategic litigation in state and federal courts.During our summer, you will have the opportunity to work closely with IJ attorneys to develop litigation strategy and assist with the nuts and bolts of cutting-edge civil rights litigation, including drafting motions and briefs, drafting discovery requests, and preparing for hearings. Fellowship is a paid opportunity – offer $7,000 10-week course – usually lasts from the last week of May to early August. The application deadline is January 27 Offers will be made on a rolling basis.For more information, please visit www.ij.org/jobs.
