California’s Unfair Competition Act has generated an enormous amount of litigation, and has long been a target of tort reform groups. Those reform efforts met with an important success in 2004, when the voters approved Proposition 64, finding that the statute had been “misused by some private attorneys” to file “frivolous lawsuits as a means of … Continue Reading
Demonstrating the potential significance and broad implications of the California Supreme Court’s deliberations in Loeffler v. Target Corporation, so far a total of nine amicus briefs have been filed on behalf of sixteen entities addressing the issue of whether a taxpayer can directly bring suit against a retailer who allegedly charged a sales tax on … Continue Reading
“What do I do with this case?” asked Justice Breyer in the final minutes of oral argument Monday morning in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez [pdf]. Justice Breyer’s question underscored the apparent confusion regarding what exactly was being challenged in the Christian Legal Society’s case against Hastings College of the Law. Despite the acknowledged importance of the … Continue Reading
This afternoon, the Illinois Supreme Court published its May docket for oral arguments, and the Court’s docket includes nine civil cases. The cases, with the issue or issues presented in each, are: May 13: Hurlbert v. Charles, No. 109041: “Under the Supreme Court’s decision in People v. Moore, 138 Ill.2d 162 (1990), does a finding of … Continue Reading
In an 8-1 decision (.pdf), the United States Supreme Court struck down recently enacted 18 U.S.C. 48 which forbids the distribution of images depicting cruelty to animals. In United States v. Stevens, the defendant had been convicted of distributing videotapes of pit bulls attacking other animals. Chief Justice Roberts, writing for the majority, held that the … Continue Reading
As part of Appellate Strategist’s ongoing evaluation of the “short list” of potential nominees to replace retiring Justice Stevens, we turn now to one of the nominees who was also on the short list to replace Justice Souter – Judge Kim McLane Wardlaw of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. Judge Wardlaw is a California … Continue Reading
Appellate Strategist has posted several times in the last week about names being discussed as possible nominees to replace retiring Justice John Paul Stevens. But a list of names, however important, says little about the nominees. We therefore begin our series of short profiles of those whose names top the list. We begin with Carlos Moreno, an Associate Justice … Continue Reading
Justice John Paul Stevens has been tagged by many as a “liberal.” Appellate Strategist does not propose to debate that general proposition here. Rather, it’s time to begin assessing what effect his absence might have on the growing body of Supreme Court jurisprudence that has been cutting back, a little at a time, on the blockbuster punitive … Continue Reading
As Appellate Strategist reported a week ago, when Justice John Paul Stevens announced his retirement, most Supreme Court observers believed that the "short list" contained three names: Solicitor General Elena Kagan, Judge Diane Wood and Judge Merrick Garland. But even as the White House is suggesting that a nominee will be named in early May, it … Continue Reading
Many states have enacted statutes automatically invalidating, under one set of circumstances or another, contracts which seem to require mandatory arbitration of disputes. In a 5-0 decision today (with two justices not participating), the Illinois Supreme Court cast such statutes in doubt, holding that two clauses of the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act were preempted by … Continue Reading
On April 9, the Texas Supreme Court granted petitions for review in the following cases: Offshore Specialty Fabricators v. Wellington Underwriting Associates. The case addresses whether an all-risk insurance policy covers weather stand-by charges incurred by the insured. XTO Energy Inc. v. Smith Production Inc. The case will determine whether joint operating agreements for oil … Continue Reading
Today, the Illinois Supreme Court affirmed a punitive damage award that had been drastically reduced by the trial judge, and cut still more by the intermediate appellate court, to slightly over $80,000, or 1:1. The State high court affirmed the punitives as reduced to 1:1. This may sound like just another case applying the Campbell … Continue Reading
In conference today (see list of actions), the Court granted review in Brown v. Mortensen, in which the Court of Appeal found that the Fair Credit Reporting Act preempted the restrictions imposed by the Confidentiality of Medical Information Act. See B & P 17200/Class Actions/Commercial update page. In addition, the Court also requested supplemental briefing … Continue Reading
CAPPING AT THREE. AB2740, a new version of an old bill pending in the California State Legislature, would cap the amount of punitive damages available in California to a flat three times the jury’s award of compensatory damages. AB2740 The previous version died in Committee. The new iteration (tacked onto a National Guard bill, of all … Continue Reading
Add yet another appellate opinion to the growing list of California courts that have cut punitive damage awards on constitutional excessiveness grounds. In this one, Amerigraphics, the jury awarded $3 million in punitive damages in an insurance bad faith case. The trial court cut that number to $1.7 million, but according to the California Court … Continue Reading
The Illinois Supreme Court announced this afternoon that it will release seven opinions [pdf] on the morning of Thursday, April 15th, including two civil cases: No. 106511, Carter v. SSC Odin Operating Company, LLC, which presents the issue of whether the clauses of the Illinois Nursing Home Care Act invalidating any contractual provision limiting a resident’s … Continue Reading
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, two new candidates have emerged as possible Supreme Court nominees to replace retiring Justice John Paul Stevens. Justice Carlos Moreno of the California Supreme Court began his career as a deputy city attorney in Los Angeles. Justice Moreno received his first two judicial nominations from Republican Governors George Deukmejian and Pete … Continue Reading
President Obama made a statement this afternoon, suggesting that he would nominate a replacement for retiring Justice John Paul Stevens within "weeks." In describing his ideal nominee, the President suggested that he would be looking for someone who agreed with Stevens’ spirited dissent in Citizens United v. FEC: I will seek someone in the coming weeks … Continue Reading
The New York Times and CNN are reporting that Justice John Paul Stevens will retire when the Court reaches the end of its term in June. The Appellate Strategist will post further information on the story as President Obama’s search for a successor shifts into high gear. UPDATE: The Supreme Court has posted a copy of Justice … Continue Reading
Within the past several weeks, Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens has dropped several hints that he might be about to announce his retirement. Even though nothing’s definite yet, the news media and the legal blogs are busy speculating about possible replacements. Here’s the roundup – both the “short list” and some of the long shots: … Continue Reading
Statistics show that the number of civil cases accepted for review by California’s highest court has varied dramatically in recent years, but by any count, the numbers are still small. According to a report released by the State’s Administrative Office of the Courts, for the year 2008, the California Supreme Court granted 6% of all … Continue Reading
The problem of coverage for the so-called "innocent insured" is a recurring one. The issue arises when there is more than one insured on the policy and one commits an act that would bar coverage. Does that act bar coverage for all, or only for the intentional actor? In California, this problem has reared its head … Continue Reading
Insurance brokers in Florida can now be liable to insurance companies which suffer a loss as a result of the broker’s own fraud or negligence in providing information in an application material to the issuance of a policy. An appellate court in Florida has issued an opinion applying section 552 of the Restatement (Second) of … Continue Reading
This afternoon, the Illinois Supreme Court allowed petitions for review in eight new civil cases. They are: Williams v. Board of Review, 395 Ill.App.3d 337 (1st Dist., 2009), which involves review of a decision by the Board of Review of the Department of Employment Security to deny a terminated employee’s application for a Federally-funded trade readjustment … Continue Reading
