News from February 2022
Santa Barbara not liable for drowning death of paddle-boarder who couldn't swim
VENTURA, Calif. (Legal Newsline) – It wasn’t Santa Barbara’s fault that a 30-year-old man who couldn’t swim drowned in its harbor because he was participating in a hazardous recreational activity, a California appeals court has ruled.
Parkour class ends in lawsuit over broken wrist
LOWELL, Mass. (Legal Newsline) - Hosting a parkour class for 50-somethings has resulted in a lawsuit against a Massachusetts company.
Lawyer sues over butter-flavored pretzels over 'enzyme-modified butterfat'
CHICAGO (Legal Newsline) - Pretzels called "butter snaps" do not contain enough real butter to warrant that moniker, a new class action lawsuit alleges.
Morrisey leads group of AGs opposing Biden's WOTUS replacement plan
CHARLESTON — West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey is leading a 24-state coalition to support farmers and landowners by urging the Biden administration to reject its proposed replacement of the Trump-era Waters of the United States (“WOTUS”) rule.
FOIA Lawsuit: EPA failing to turn over docs on high level Biden appointees
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - A federal government watchdog has sued the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) alleging that it is wrongfully withholding records it is entitled to review under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
Husch Blackwell's Brenton Elected to Wisconsin Hospice & Palliative Care Association Board of Directors
Husch Blackwell's Brenton Elected to Wisconsin Hospice & Palliative Care Association Board of Directors.
Lawmaker wants to shine light on potential conflicts of interest in audit of Interior ethics office
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - Congressman Bruce Westerman (R-ARK) is calling for an audit of the Department of Interior’s ethics office involving appointees who have appearances of conflicts of interest based on previous work affiliations.
Congress to explore reforming mass tort bankruptcy process at hearing Tuesday
WASHINGTON (Legal Newsline) - Congress is taking the wrong approach in suggesting bankruptcy laws being used to resolve major mass tort cases need to be changed, according to the American Tort Reform Association (ATRA).
Judge ignores objectors, awards $180 million in fees to Flint water lawyers
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (Legal Newsline) - Ignoring objectors who said private lawyers were claiming too much of a $625 million settlement to be paid almost entirely by Michigan taxpayers, a federal judge awarded some $180 million in fees to plaintiff attorneys in the Flint lead pollution litigation.
Florida court won't let COVID patient use ivermectin
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Legal Newsline) – A Florida appeals court recently refused to allow ivermectin to be a part of the treatment of a man suffering from COVID-19 with grim survival chances.
Questions remain in case of first-grader who was told to walk home from school and got lost
INDIANAPOLIS (Legal Newsline) – Parents of a boy who was sent on a dangerous odyssey rather than put on a school bus home have a second chance to sue their school district.
Special Magistrate schedules virtual conference for legislative districting
Special Magistrate Alan M. Wilner has issued an order for a virtual scheduling conference related to the 2022 Legislative Districting of the State.
University goes after possibly defamatory reviews with lawsuit against Arkansas man
MAGNOLIA, Ark. (Legal Newsline) - A California university is going all the way to Arkansas to sue someone who left bad reviews online.
NFL and Fanatics accused of conspiracy to dominate marketplace, raise prices on merchandise
SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) - The NFL is facing a lawsuit that alleges its teams and Fanatics, Inc., conspired to dominate the market for merchandise and drove up the cost of T-shirts, hats and jerseys.
James G. Durham named director at Maryland Thurgood Marshall State Law Library
Maryland Thurgood Marshall State Law Library has appointed James G. Durham as its new director, effective February 9, 2022.
Alaska Supreme Court rejects climate suit over state's oil policy
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Legal Newsline) - The Alaska Supreme Court rejected a lawsuit claiming the state’s young residents had a constitutional right to block oil and gas development in the state in order to reduce human-induced global warming, saying the elected branches, not the courts, were the place to decide energy policy.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers win lawsuit over traffic accident in Louisiana
BATON ROUGE, La. (Legal Newsline) - The Tampa Bay Buccaneers football team isn’t liable for an accident caused by an off-duty motorcycle policeman who collided with a sheriff’s deputy while escorting team buses to the airport, the Louisiana Supreme Court ruled, overturning lower court decisions that could have exposed the NFL team to damages.
Camera in bathroom has Banana Republic in trouble
SALEM, Ore. (Legal Newsline) - Banana Republic can be sued for hiring a worker who placed a secret camera in an employee restroom, an Oregon appeals court ruled, reversing a trial court’s decision that damages for emotional distress are available only if there was physical contact with the plaintiff.
Talc lawyers fed Reuters confidential documents, Johnson & Johnson says
TRENTON, N.J. (Legal Newsline) - Johnson & Johnson has asked a federal bankruptcy judge to block Reuters from publishing details of internal documents it says a plaintiff lawyer gave the news service in violation of a court confidentiality order.
Emilie Ninan Named '2022 Woman of the Year' by the National Diversity Council
Emilie Ninan Named '2022 Woman of the Year' by the National Diversity Council.