Doctor has no liability for patient’s auto accident 
Published: May 15, 2013
Tags: automobile accident, duty of care, negligence
A doctor treating a patient for an inoperable brain tumor did not owe a duty of care to a third party injured when the patient suffered a grand mal seizure while driving, Massachusetts’ highest court has ruled in affirming summary judgment.
ERISA doesn’t completely preempt suit over pension rights
Published: May 15, 2013
Tags: breach of contract, ERISA, preemption, supplemental executive retirement plan
A tortious interference suit over contractual obligations arising under a pension plan was not completely preempted by ERISA, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in reversing a dismissal.
Hearsay rule didn’t bar admission of cellphone records
Published: May 15, 2013
Tags: business records exception, cellphone records, evidence, hearsay
A call spreadsheet evidencing a robbery defendant’s cellphone communications was admissible at trial under the business records exception to the hearsay rule, the California Court of Appeal has ruled in affirming a conviction.
Electronic filing error didn’t doom motion, appeal
Published: May 14, 2013
Tags: electronic filing, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
An appeal in a medical malpractice case wasn’t rendered untimely by the plaintiffs’ failure to electronically file a critical motion in the trial court under the correct docket number, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled.
Employer didn’t violate ADA by demanding mental exam
Published: May 14, 2013
Tags: ADA, AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT, medical examination, mental fitness exam
An employer didn’t violate the Americans with Disabilities Act when it required an employee to undergo a mental examination after he made threatening comments at work, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in affirming judgment.
Juvenile’s parole restrictions not ‘cruel and unusual’
Published: May 14, 2013
Tags: cruel and unusual punishment, Eighth Amendment, juvenile sentencing, parole
The Eighth Amendment’s prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment did not require the deletion of parole restrictions on consecutive sentences that cumulatively exceeded a juvenile defendant’s life expectancy, the Louisiana Supreme Court has ruled in reversing judgment.
Plaintiffs had capacity to sue U.S. for flight controller’s negligence
Published: May 14, 2013
Tags: airplane crash, choice of law, Federal Tort Claims Act, FTCA, wrongful death
The mother and adult daughter of the victim of an airplane crash had the capacity to sue the federal government for the alleged negligence of a flight controller, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in reversing a dismissal.
N.Y. attorney wrests $130M verdict from jaws of defeat
By:
Pat Murphy
Published: May 14, 2013
Tags: birth injuries, cerebral palsy, medical malpractice
New York defense attorneys were having a good laugh back in 2009. The snickering was over the story of a well-known medical malpractice lawyer who lost his case after turning down an $8 million settlement offer.
But no one’s laughing now.
Calif. judge tosses $6.5M verdict in first Actos trial
Published: May 14, 2013
Tags: Actos, design defect, expert testimony, failure to warn, product liability, Takeda Pharmaceuticals
A California judge has thrown out a $6.5 million product liability verdict against Takeda Pharmaceuticals, deciding that a key expert witness should not have been allowed to testify that the diabetes drug Actos was the cause of a man’s bladder cancer.
BANKRUPTCY
Published: May 13, 2013
Tags: bankruptcy discharge, breach of fiduciary duty, defalcation, trusts and estates
Proof of malicious intent is not required to prevent the bankruptcy discharge of a debt that arose from a trustee’s self-dealing.
See “Court clarifies bankruptcy discharge standard for fiduciaries”
U.S. Supreme Court. Bullock v. BankChampaign, No. 11-1518. May
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