Daniel Fisher News
Indiana man can't sue doctors for letting him kill his grandfather
INDIANAPOLIS (Legal Newsline) - An Indiana man who pled guilty to killing his grandfather can’t sue his doctors for letting him do it, the state’s highest court said, ruling for the first time on whether a criminal plea can block a subsequent civil lawsuit.
Florida lawyers get lesson on how to sue the dead
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Legal Newsline) - An absolute two-year limit on liability against the estate of a dead person doomed a lawsuit by women who were injured in an accident with a man driving a company car, the Florida Supreme Court ruled.
Expelled Yale student can sue accuser over sex-assault claims
HARTFORD, Conn. (Legal Newsline) - A student who was expelled from Yale University on sex-assault claims can sue his accuser for defamation because the school’s disciplinary committee lacked basic due-process protections, the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled.
Court: $15K enough for woman whose neighbor threatened her, called her the N-word
HARTFORD, Conn. (Legal Newsline) - A woman who endured years of racially motivated abuse by a neighbor isn’t entitled to more than $15,000 in damages for emotional distress, the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled, rejecting a state commission’s argument the award was too low.
Eddie Bauer to face lawsuit alleging list prices inflated at outlet
SALEM, Ore. (Legal Newsline) - A woman who paid $19.99 for a fleece zip at an Eddie Bauer outlet store can sue the company because it falsely said it was discounted 50% from the “list price” of $39.99, the Oregon Supreme Court ruled, rejecting arguments the plaintiff also had to show there was something wrong with the quality of the item.
Law lifting statute of limitations doesn't save 50-year-old sex assault case
NEW ORLEANS (Legal Newsline) - A Louisiana law that suspended the statute of limitations for childhood sex-assault plaintiffs didn’t help a man who sued the Catholic Church over abuse he says he suffered in the mid-1960s.
Justices: La. appeals court had no right to reduce sex-abuse verdict
NEW ORLEANS (Legal Newsline) - A Louisiana appeals court abused its discretion when it cut a jury verdict in a sexual assault case by 80%, the state Supreme Court ruled, citing evidence the mentally disabled child’s life was altered by the experience.
Building owner not liable for lung injuries blamed on 'Draynamite' cleaner
DES MOINES, Iowa (Legal Newsline) - A building owner isn’t responsible for an elderly woman’s lung injuries she blamed on a smelly drain cleaner called Draynamite, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled, citing a lack of scientific evidence.
Public nuisance ruling: Delaware can sue Monsanto over PCBs
WILMINGTON, Del. (Legal Newsline) - Delaware can sue Bayer AG unit Monsanto for contributing to PCB pollution, the state’s highest court ruled, reversing a lower-court decision holding the manufacturer of a product couldn’t be held liable for public nuisance.
South Carolina companies facing injury lawsuits can be liable for hiring wrong contractor
COLUMBIA, S.C. (Legal Newsline) - Answering for the first time the question of whether a company can be liable for hiring the wrong independent contractor, the South Carolina Supreme Court said “yes.”
YMCA can challenge North Carolina law reviving old sex-abuse claims
RALEIGH, N.C. (Legal Newsline) - A North Carolina appeals court had the power to allow a YMCA chapter to mount a constitutional challenge to a law that extended the statute of limitations for childhood sex-abuse victims, the state’s highest court ruled, rejecting arguments a strong dissent provided grounds to reverse the appeals court’s order.
No immunity for police who left dead man's genitals exposed during shootout
SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) - Ending a split among state appellate courts, the California Supreme Court ruled a law protecting police officers against claims of wrongful prosecution doesn’t immunize them against other claims, including one that officers had left the body of a man shot by police in the street with his genitals exposed.
Hospital sends woman photos of her stillborn child, will now face lawsuit
OKLAHOMA CITY (Legal Newsline) - A woman who sued over photographs of her stillborn child – including a pose with angel’s wings – that hospital employees gave her as part of a “bereavement program” has a valid claim for invasion of privacy, the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled.
3M to pay $12.5 billion to settle some PFAS cases, with plenty more to go
Water utilities across the nation agreed to settle claims over PFAS contamination against 3M for $12.5 billion, ending one phase of litigation that is likely to cost the manufacturer billions of dollars more.
LG may have to face vape-battery lawsuit in North Carolina
RALEIGH, N.C. (Legal Newsline) - The North Carolina Supreme Court reversed an appellate ruling dismissing a lawsuit against LG over batteries improperly installed in vape devices, citing a U.S. Supreme Court decision that broadened the jurisdiction of state courts over out-of-state defendants.
No new trial in $4M case of accident at car dealership after post-shift beers
AUSTIN, Texas (Legal Newsline) - There was no reason to order a new trial in a lawsuit over a beer-fueled accident involving car dealership employees that resulted in a $4 million verdict neither side was happy with, the Texas Supreme Court ruled.
Texas Supreme Court to jurors: Don't pick 'numbers out of a hat' when awarding emotional damages
AUSTIN, Texas (Legal Newsline) - Jurors can’t just pick “numbers out of a hat” to award emotional damages in wrongful-death cases and lawyers can’t use irrelevant comparisons to guide them, the Texas Supreme Court ruled, setting down for the first time guidelines on noneconomic damages for relatives of fatal accidents.
Iowa Supreme Court tosses $400K sexual harassment verdict, says Workers' Comp preempts it
DES MOINES, Iowa (Legal Newsline) - Iowa workers’ compensation law preempts lawsuits over sexual harassment at work, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled, throwing out a $400,000 jury verdict a telemarketing employee won over unwanted advances by her supervisors.
No justice for woman whose lawyers botched case then hid it from her until they couldn't be sued
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (Legal Newsline) - Lawyers don’t have to adhere to the fiduciary duties that apply to other professionals like doctors and investment advisors, the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled, upholding the dismissal of a malpractice suit against attorneys who missed a deadline for filing their client’s case but remained silent until it was too late for her to sue them over the error.
Appeal costs smoker $16 million award but at least she can recover legal fees
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Legal Newsline) - A woman who sued RJ Reynolds over the smoking-related death of her sister can recover legal fees for an appeal that ultimately cost her a $16 million punitive-damages award because her compensatory damages were still higher than a settlement offer RJR had rejected.