Daniel Fisher News
Law might protect officer who turned siren on right before fatal crash
DENVER (Legal Newsline) - A Colorado law providing immunity to police officers against most tort lawsuits may protect an officer who switched on his flashing lights and siren five seconds before T-boning a van in a highway intersection, killing the two men inside.
Parents can't sue over death of infant, but his estate can
DES MOINES, Iowa (Legal Newsline) - Parents who sued over the death of their infant child failed to file the proper administrative claims first, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled, but the estate of the child can continue with a $15 million lawsuit claiming a misplaced feeding tube caused the baby’s death.
Gym owners won sexual abuse lawsuit but must pay sanctions for contacting class members
CHICAGO (Legal Newsline) - A famous former volleyball coach who defeated a class action by parents who claimed he hid prior allegations of sexual abuse must pay $21,000 in sanctions for improperly contacting potential class members and urging them to opt out of the suit.
CalChamber loses bid to delay California data privacy regulations
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Legal Newsline) - California can begin enforcing data privacy regulations under a law voters passed in 2020, an appeals court ruled, rejecting arguments by the California Chamber of Commerce that there should be a one-year delay between the promulgation of new rules and when they can be enforced.
Teacher who faked fall gets demoted but keeps job
TRENTON, N.J. (Legal Newsline) - A teacher who was caught on video faking the circumstances of her fall down the stairs can be demoted but doesn’t have to lose her job, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled, restoring an arbitrator’s decision that an appeals court had vacated.
Medical malpractice, not 'wrongful birth' to blame for $35 million verdict
HARTFORD, Conn. (Legal Newsline) - It was medical malpractice, not “wrongful birth” that provided the grounds for a $35 million judgment against the State of Connecticut over a permanently disabled child born after his mother may have been infected with virus-tainted sperm.
Ex-NFL player can sue NCAA in Maryland over college injuries
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (Legal Newsline) - A former Rutgers University football player who went on to a career in the NFL can sue the NCAA in Maryland for brain injuries he says he suffered in college, an appeals court ruled, rejecting the NCAA’s argument it didn’t do anything to cause the plaintiff’s injuries in Maryland.
Mechanic's estate must pay for helicopter destroyed in fatal crash
INDIANAPOLIS (Legal Newsline) - In a decision hinging upon the ancient concept of bailment, an Indiana appeals court ruled the estate of a man killed in the crash of a helicopter he was working on must pay for the loss of the aircraft.
FAA still fighting lawsuit over test that rewarded bad science grades
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - The Federal Aviation Administration must defend itself against a long-running class action over a discarded test for air traffic controllers that gave higher scores to applicants who said science was their worst grade in high school than if they reported previous experience in an air-traffic related job.
Ohio worker can sue over hose that spewed sulfuric acid on him
LIMA, Ohio (Legal Newsline) - A worker can proceed with his lawsuit against Gates Corp. over an allegedly defective hose that ruptured and spewed sulfuric acid on him, an Ohio appeals court ruled, finding state product-liability law wasn’t preempted by federal law.
Black workers can sue Harley-Davidson over claims of nooses, racist graffiti at plant
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (Legal Newsline) - Claims that African-American workers were subjected to nooses, Confederate flags and racist graffiti at a Harley-Davidson factory are enough to allow a hostile workplace suit to proceed even if the plaintiffs never saw such things themselves, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled.
Iowa jurors now need an expert to explain cow management
DES MOINES, Iowa (Legal Newsline) - Iowa jurors no longer can be counted upon to understand the basics of livestock management, the state’s highest court ruled, affirming the dismissal of a lawsuit by a truck driver who was injured after his vehicle plowed into a loose cow.
ChatGPT's mistakes could cost N.Y. lawyer an $8K punishment
NEW YORK (Legal Newsline) - A lawyer who cited a nonexistent lawsuit dreamed up by ChatGPT not only had her client’s case dismissed, but may face disciplinary action and have to pay $8,000 in the other side’s legal bills.
Hospital can cry 'COVID' to defend itself from slip-and-fall case
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (Legal Newsline) - An Alabama hospital can claim immunity under a law protecting healthcare providers against any lawsuit that “arises from or is related to Coronavirus,” even if the claim is that a plaintiff fell on the walkway out of an infusion therapy center.
Adult injured at kids' playground cant sue, Nevada court says
LAS VEGAS (Legal Newsline) - A law protecting property owners against lawsuits stemming from “recreational activities” shields a Nevada city from a lawsuit filed by a woman who tripped over the edge of a protective mat under a children’s slide and broke her leg in multiple places.
Inmate who refused medicine can sue doctors for malpractice
INDIANAPOLIS (Legal Newsline) - A prison inmate who stopped taking prescription medicine after complaining about side effects can sue his doctors for malpractice and deliberate indifference for refusing to provide an alternate medication, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled, reversing a trial court’s dismissal of the prisoner’s lawsuit.
Law professor loses fight to be paid extra for grading papers
PORTLAND, Maine (Legal Newsline) - A lawyer who taught classes on banking and admiralty law at the University of Maine Law School on the side isn’t entitled to extra pay for the hours he spent preparing for class and grading papers because he was working for a fee, the state’s highest court ruled.
Wisconsin conservatives challenge liberal Supreme Court's explanation for redistricting
MADISON, Wis. (Legal Newsline) - Wisconsin conservatives are fighting the state Supreme Court’s attempt to redraw legislative voting districts after a liberal majority threw out existing maps over so-called “municipal islands” that have existed for decades and were upheld by the court as recently as 2022.
Meta argues New Mexico has no mental-health case against Facebook, Instagram
SANTA FE, N.M. (Legal Newsline) - Facebook owner Meta has moved to dismiss New Mexico’s lawsuit claiming the social-media giant has caused a public nuisance and even increased suicides by using algorithms and other tricks to hook children on its services and serve them pornographic content.
'No punt' football coach wins $200K in lawsuit over email criticizing his paperwork
COLUMBIA, S.C. (Legal Newsline) - A high school football coach who was demoted after adopting a disastrous “no punt” strategy can keep $200,000 a jury awarded him in a lawsuit over an email criticizing his paperwork skills, the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled.