State animal law is preempted 
Published: January 23, 2012
Tags: Federal Meat Inspection Act, preemption
A state law that regulates what slaughterhouses must do with pigs that cannot walk is preempted by the Federal Meat Inspection Act, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled.
Insured needn’t prove tangible losses in bad faith suit
Published: January 20, 2012
Tags: bad faith, emotional distress, insurance
An insured suing for bad faith is not required to prove economic or physical injury in order to recover damages for emotional distress allegedly caused by the termination of her long-term care benefits, the Hawaii Supreme Court has ruled in answering a certified question from a U.S. District Court.
Legal malpractice claim abated upon client’s death
Published: January 20, 2012
Tags: estate planning, legal malpractice, workers' compensation
The estate of a client could not proceed with a legal malpractice lawsuit commenced by the client before her death, the Idaho Supreme Court has ruled in reversing judgment.
ABA weighs in on suit over lawyer’s immunity
Published: January 20, 2012
Tags: ABA, American Bar Association, qualified immunity
The American Bar Association has weighed in on a case pending before the U.S. Supreme Court over whether a lawyer in private practice hired by a city can claim qualified immunity from a civil rights lawsuit.
Mo. jury awards $1 million against financing company
By:
Correy Stephenson
Published: January 19, 2012
Tags: car title, consumer protection, unjust enrichment
In a case illustrative of a national problem, a Missouri car purchaser who did not receive title to her car and was told by the financing company to continue making payments recently received a $1 million verdict.
Federal courts can hear suits over ‘robo-calls’
Published: January 18, 2012
Tags: debt collection, TCPA, Telephone Consumer Protection Act
The Telephone Consumer Protection Act’s grant of permissive jurisdiction to state courts did not deprive a federal court of jurisdiction to hear the lawsuit of a plaintiff who claimed he was victimized by a debt collector’s use of an automated dialing system to place collection calls, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in a unanimous decision.
Class improperly certified in Honda brake system case
Published: January 18, 2012
Tags: Acura, class actions, consumer protection, honda
A nationwide class should not have been certified in a lawsuit alleging that Honda misrepresented the characteristics of a high-tech braking system installed in certain Acuras, the 9th Circuit has ruled in reversing judgment.
Supremes signal continuing preference for arbitration
By:
Correy Stephenson
Published: January 18, 2012
Tags: arbitration, Credit Repair Organizations Act, CROA, Federal Arbitration Act
The U.S. Supreme Court solidified its pro-arbitration stance in a recent decision interpreting the Credit Repair Organizations Act.
Justices to decide if government immune in Fair Credit Act case
Published: January 17, 2012
Tags: credit cards, Fair Credit Reporting Act, FCRA, sovereign immunity
The U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether the federal government has waived its sovereign immunity with respect to a claim for damages under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
Doctor wins $482 million patent infringement verdict
By:
Kimberly Atkins
Published: January 17, 2012
Tags: Johnson & Johnson, patent, patent infringement, stent, Top Ten Jury Verdicts, Top Ten Jury Verdicts of 2011
Plaintiff's attorney Paul Taskier
A Texas jury awarded $482 million to a radiologist on his claim that a medical stent manufacturer willfully infringed his patent.
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