Employer can’t be forced to arbitrate class claims 
Published: May 1, 2012
Tags: arbitration, class actions, class arbitration
An employee who signed an arbitration agreement that neither authorized nor prohibited class arbitration can’t arbitrate her wage-and-hour disputes as part of a class, the California Court of Appeal has ruled.
Flood insurance claim preempted by federal law
Published: May 1, 2012
Tags: flood insurance, Hurricane Katrina, Liberty Mutual
A state law claim asserting that an insurer negligently represented a homeowner’s flood insurance coverage options and failed to offer a “preferred risk” policy is preempted by federal law, the 5th Circuit has ruled in reversing a U.S. District Court.
Police may be sued for releasing mentally ill detainee
Published: May 1, 2012
Tags: civil rights, qualified immunity, §1983
Police officers who arrested a woman who exhibited symptoms of a mental health disorder in a safe location but released her into a dangerous neighborhood may be sued under §1983, the 7th Circuit has ruled.
Court reporters’ suit against lawyers not barred by anti-SLAPP statute
Published: May 1, 2012
Tags: anti-SLAPP statute, breach of contract
A suit brought by court reporters against lawyers who protested court reporting fees on behalf of their clients is not barred under the state anti-SLAPP statute, the California Court of Appeal has ruled.
Confession not tainted by promising suspect he could go home
Published: April 30, 2012
Tags: confession, Miranda
Telling a suspect that he would be able to return home after questioning regardless of what he said did not render his confession inadmissible at trial, the Georgia Supreme Court has ruled in affirming the Court of Appeals.
County psychiatric hospital immune from suit
Published: April 30, 2012
Tags: assault, immunity, negligent hiring
A county psychiatric hospital can’t be sued by a patient who was involuntarily committed and then assaulted by another patient, the California Court of Appeal has ruled in affirming a summary judgment.
Post-petition home sale proceeds included in bankruptcy estate
Published: April 27, 2012
Tags: Chapter 7, homestead exemption
The proceeds from a couple’s post-petition sale of their homestead must be included in their bankruptcy estate, the 9th Circuit has ruled.
Non-compliant plan is exempt in bankruptcy
Published: April 27, 2012
Tags: Chapter 7, Internal Revenue Code, Keough retirement plan, retirement plan
A retirement plan that was not technically “tax qualified” under federal law is exempt from the taxpayer’s bankruptcy estate, the 10th Circuit has ruled in applying Utah law.
Father can sue for tortious interference with parental rights
Published: April 26, 2012
Tags: parental rights, tortious interference
A father whose child was adopted without his knowledge can sue for tortious interference with parental rights, the Virginia Supreme Court has ruled in answering a certified question from a U.S. District Court.
Collecting DNA from arrestee unconstitutional
Published: April 26, 2012
Tags: DNA, Fourth Amendment, search and seizure
Collecting a DNA sample from a man who was arrested for assault but not yet convicted violated the Fourth Amendment, Maryland’s highest court has ruled.
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