Daniel Fisher News
Teacher who posted 'F--- me I'm Irish' on Facebook loses lawsuit
TRENTON, N.J. (Legal Newsline) - A New Jersey law dubbed “Pass the Trash” allowed a school board to pass along information about a teacher who resigned amid an investigation into sexually suggestive social-media posts, an appeals court ruled, rejecting the teacher’s argument she was protected by a confidentiality clause.
Kentucky city can't tap insurance for $28M wrongful-conviction lawsuit
FRANKFORT, Ky. (Legal Newsline) - A Kentucky city can’t tap insurance policies for damages won by a man who spent 28 years in prison on a wrongful conviction for murder, since those policies were issued a decade after he was sent to jail, an appeals court ruled.
Rape claim on Facebook given heightened protection by court; Female justice warns it will lead to more
ST. PAUL, Minn. (Legal Newsline) - A woman who accused her former lover and dance instructor of rape in a widely read Facebook post was commenting on a matter of general public concern and is entitled to heightened protection against a defamation lawsuit, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled.
Oregon elementary school teachers can sue over abusive students
SALEM, Ore. (Legal Newsline) - A group of teachers who claim they were physically and sexually assaulted by elementary-school students can sue district officials for failing to come to their aid, an Oregon appeals court ruled, reversing a trial judge’s dismissal of claims.
Opioid judge: 'No reasonable observer' could think special master biased after 'reply all' incident
CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) - The judge overseeing thousands of municipal lawsuits against the opioid industry criticized pharmacy benefit managers who sought to disqualify his special master, saying their bias claims were unreasonable and based upon a privileged email they should have destroyed instead of citing it in a public court filing.
The Texas Pete-isn't-from-Texas lawsuit fizzles out after plaintiff's relationship with lawyer becomes issue
LOS ANGELES (Legal Newsline) - A serial plaintiff in class-action lawsuits has dropped out of at least two cases over claims defense lawyers have harassed him about ties to his lawyers, including an allegation he was involved in an “intermingled intimate relationship” with a former college roommate and his attorney.
Facebook faces suit over not putting insurance ads on some users' feeds
SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) - Most people would probably pay money not to be subjected to ads featuring quacking ducks and apron-clad insurance agents. But a California appeals court has decided Facebook must face a class action over claims it discriminates against users by allowing insurance companies to select their audience based on age and gender.
Oil companies say Maryland climate change suits reach beyond boundaries
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (Legal Newsline) - Oil companies sought to dismiss a pair of climate lawsuits by Maryland municipal governments, saying they seek money for global-warming emissions far outside state boundaries and are based in part upon corporate statements protected under free speech laws.
Ford not having much luck in Georgia; Supreme Court says lawsuit over old car design could proceed
ATLANTA (Legal Newsline) - Ford Motor Co. may have to defend itself against a lawsuit over a car design more than 10 years old after the Georgia Supreme Court ruled that the state’s statute of repose contains an exception for “reckless” conduct - the latest setback in what's becoming a series in the state's courts.
Opioid plaintiffs fight bias charge against case's special master who hit 'reply all' on email
CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) - Lawyers representing thousands of government plaintiffs in opioid litigation opposed a request by pharmacy benefit managers to disqualify the special master overseeing their cases, saying an email the PBMs cite as evidence of bias was protected by judicial privilege and merely reflects the judge’s personal thoughts anyway.
School district in trouble after bus never picks up student and she dies in car crash
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Legal Newsline) - A California school district may be on the hook for a car crash that took the life of a 16-year-old student who got in a car with a friend after her bus was late, an appeals court ruled.
'Tester' law firm loses another lawsuit over website access for the blind
SAN DIEGO (Legal Newsline) - A California appeals court rejected a lawsuit by serial plaintiffs who claimed a website discriminated against them by failing to provide proper access to the blind, ruling the Americans with Disabilities Act doesn’t cover websites.
Lawyers, guns and money: The anatomy of a mass tort
Tens of thousands of lawsuits have their origins in a man once arrested after firing a gun into the ceiling of his Yale University frat house and threatening a visitor, resulting in police discovering an illegal arsenal of weapons and explosives that earned him a one-year prison sentence.
No free-speech protection from lawsuit against 'Bling Empire' producers
LOS ANGELES (Legal Newsline) - California’s law allowing for the quick dismissal of lawsuits challenging free speech won’t protect the producers of “Bling Empire” from a lawsuit by Kelly Li, onetime star of the reality series.
Trump's 'Pakistani mystery man' can sue for defamation
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - A man whom President Donald Trump described as the `Pakistani mystery man’ at the center of conservative conspiracy theories about fraud and information leaks at the U.S. House of Representatives can sue the publisher of a book that accused him of a wide variety of crimes.
Lawsuit over 'running battle' with Duluth officials could be time-barred
ST. PAUL, Minn. (Legal Newsline) - A lawsuit claiming Duluth city officials retaliated against a property owner for exercising his right of free speech may be barred by the statute of limitations, the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled, reversing an appeals court that said the 20-year battle between the city and the property owner could be a “continuing violation.”
Mass. Supreme Court approves skin-shock therapy on mental-health patients
BOSTON (Legal Newsline) - The highest court in Massachusetts approved the continued use of controversial electric-shock treatments on mental-health patients, saying there was not enough evidence to overturn a 1987 consent decree authorizing the procedure.
'Paid' means check in hand, court rules in case of arbitration fees
SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) - A company whose check to the arbitrators arrived several days late can’t claim it “paid” its fees within a statutory deadline, a California appeals court ruled, reviving a former employee’s chances at pursuing her sexual-harassment claim in court.
Non-experts barred from testifying on 'ultra-rare' malaria death
ATLANTA (Legal Newsline) - A trial judge was correct to bar two physicians from testifying in a lawsuit over the death of a man who contracted an “ultra-rare” case of severe malaria after visiting Africa, a Georgia appeals court ruled, rejecting arguments the doctors could tell jurors the patient would have lived with different treatment.
Ohio Supreme Court to say if public nuisance applies to opioids
COLUMBUS, Ohio (Legal Newsline) - The federal Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has asked the Ohio Supreme Court to answer the central question behind a $650 million federal court judgment against Walgreens, CVS and Walmart over opioid claims: Does Ohio law allow “public nuisance” lawsuits based on the sale of legal products?