Eigth Circuit: United States of America v. U.S. Bank National Association

Property

Under state law, a substantial delay in recordation of a successor deed can preclude a finding that a lien interest perfected against the earlier deed attaches with no loss of priority to the second instrument.

Dissent - state would apply equitable principles.


United States of America  v.  U.S. Bank National Association

Eighth Circuit: James Coterel v. Dorel Juvenile Group, Inc.

FRCP

In products-liability action, general verdict form prevents plaintiffs from establishing that improperly admitted evidence was dispositive.


James Coterel  v.  Dorel Juvenile Group, Inc.

Eighth Circuit: United States v. Torris Boyd

Sentencing

No error in denial of crack/cocaine resentencing because of rules infractions and the nature of the initial offenses.

United States  v.  Torris Boyd

Eighth Circuit: Stuart Day v. Celadon Trucking Services, Inc

Employment, Class Actions

Sale of business under an asset pruchase agreement does not bar a finding that the business is a going concern for purposes of the WARN Act.

Sale created a presumption of continued employment.

Movant on motion to de-certify class carried burden of establishing good reason.

Predominance presumptive when the penalty is statutory.

Burden-shifting in damages phase permissible, given purposes of the Act.


Stuart Day  v.  Celadon Trucking Services, Inc

Eighth Circuit: United States v. Warnell Reid

Sentencing

No error in allowing government to add evidence to the record on remand, so long as it was available at the initial sentencing.

No error in court's, for purposes of sentencing, accepting PSR determination that rifle could hold a large magazine, so long as the determination doesn't establish an element of the offense itself.

Sentence received while in prison counted for a freestanding sentence for purposes of subsequent sentence.

Sufficient evidence for enhancements, substantively reasonable.




United States  v.  Warnell Reid

Eighth Circuit: United States v. Walter Combs

Crim, Entrapment

Presenting opportunity to rob a drug operation was insufficient entrapment under Due Process, no entrapment instruction justified for the narcotics crime, given eagerness to do the job.


United States  v.  Walter Combs

Third Circuit: Jane Doe v. Alan Hesketh

FRCP, Statutory Construction, Estoppel

Dismissal of claim without prejudice for lack of personal jurisdiction is appealable under the general appeals statute is appropriate where the plaintiff proceeds to file in other jurisdictions rather than amend the claim.

Statute allows recovery against violation of a predicate statute, even where full recovery has been made on a claim based in the predicate statute.

Victim is not in sufficient privity with government to estop a subsequent claim for damages based on an earlier restitution proceeding.



 Jane Doe v. Alan Hesketh

First Circuit: Pacific Indemnity Company v. Deming

Contracts, Property (a bit)

Under state law, a condo rule requiring purchase of insurance with a waiver of subrogation does not effectuate the waiver where the purchased policy merely permits an ex ante waiver of subrogation against a specific claim.


Pacific Indemnity Company v. Deming

First Circuit: Hoover, III v. Harrington

Bankruptcy

Sufficient notice of conversion proceedings where the proceedings are adjourned, and the court informs the participants that the matter is turning to conversion.

Speculative testimony as to future income does not bar a finding of no reasonable likelihood of rehabilitation.

Where little or nothing can be raised from the liquidation of the estate, the claim must be riaed in the proceeding -- otherwise waived.


Hoover, III v. Harrington

First Circuit: Young v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.

Contracts


Breach claim not properly raised, since appeal doesn't contest waiver of damages.

On consumer protection statute claim, demand letter sent to one lender cannot be applied to both, and the claims raised by the letter do not rise above negligence.  Economic injury not established.


Young v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.

First Circuit: Thomas v. Lynch

Immigration, Administrative, Statutory Construction

Statute requires that the minor have taken an affirmative act to begin lawful residency after the naturalization of the parent.


Thomas v. Lynch

Seventh Circuit: USA v. Leslie J. Woods

Crim. Jurisdiction

A court retains jurisdiction over deft when deft is charged as minor but attains majority during the pendency of the proceedings.

No abuse of discretion in court's decision to try deft as an adult for crime committed five years ago, given continued misbehavior and lack of state rehabilitation facilities.

USA v.   Leslie J. Woods

Seventh Circuit: Katrell Morris v. USA

Habeas, AEDPA, Attempt, ACCA

Habeas grant for challenge to ACCA residual clause predicate.  Although an unpublished decision of the Circuit has held the crime to be a valid predicate under another clause, it insufficiently considered the state's law of attempt.

Concur: Attempt as predicate should only require the attempt at an act that would itself satisfy all the elements.


Katrell Morris v.   USA

Seventh Circuit: James Todd v. Kess Roberson

Habeas, Ineffective Assistance

Denial of ineffective assistance Habeas based on claim that deft's counsel had guaranteed a ten year sentence, as the deft stated in court that no deal had been made, and there was no showing that deft would have otherwise gone to trial.

James Todd v.   Kess Roberson

Seventh Circuit: Richard Bell v. Cameron Taylor

FRCP, Res Judicata, Copyright

Where complaint states that deft used one of plaintiff's photos on a website, but in fact deft used another, deft is not required in the response to point out the error.

No error in denial of leave to amend.

Res judicata correctly barred the subsequent suit.

Copyright holder's stated price of photo insufficient to prove damages.

No error in denial of discovery, declaratory judgment.

Richard Bell v.   Cameron Taylor

Fifth Circuit: Thomas Howell v. Town of Ball, et al

FRCP, S1983, First Amendment, FCA

Appeals court does not have jurisdiction over cross-appeal relating to a non-dismissed claim when hearing an interlocutory appeal on the dismissed claims.

Local police officer's cooperation with federal anti-corruption probe was outside of normal duties, so the firing was potentially in response to protected conduct, but the right was not clearly established at the time.

Non-final decisionmakers not liable for retaliation claim under S1983, but municipal liability claim here presents a genuine issue of material fact.

Amendment to FCA removing "employee" language was to allow contractors to file claims, not non-employees generally.

Thomas Howell v. Town of Ball, et al

Fifth Circuit: Richard Houten, Jr., et al v. City of Fort Worth

Statutory Construction


Reduction of pension benefits expected but as yet unearned does not violate provision in state constitution prohibiting reduction of pension benefits.

Opinion to the contrary by the state AG would be accorded only persuasive value by the state's highest court.


Richard Houten, Jr., et al v. City of Fort Worth

Second Circuit: United States v. Garavito-Garcia

International Law, Crim, Conspiracy, Double Jeopardy

Treaty language requiring release within thirty days if not extradited did not create a private right for the deft - the right belongs to the state party.  Comity requires that US courts recognize the decision by the state party declining to uphold the claim.

Sufficient evidence, given taped conversations.

Court's supplemental "mere presence" instruction was a correct statement of the law of conspiracy.

Indictment not duplicitous, as one count requires providing assistance to a group that commits a terrorist act, and another requires providing assistance to a group listed as a terrorist organization.


United States v. Garavito-Garcia

DC Circuit: Central United Life Insurance v. Sylvia Burwell

ACA, Administrative

Agency rulemaking was an illicit amendment of the terms of the Act itself.

Central United Life Insurance v. Sylvia Burwell

DC Circuit: State of West Virginia v. HHS

Standing, ACA

State doesn't suffer cognizable injury-in-fact when federal government declines to exercise a statutorily-compelled primary function, leaving the state to decide whether it should exercise its secondary function.

State of West Virginia v. HHS