Subscribe to all posts by Kirk Jenkins
For the final day of our profile of retiring California Chief Justice Ronald M. George, we offer our own subjective list of the Chief Justice’s most notable opinions. If anyone has a nomination for a favorite case that belongs on this list – and there are many important opinions that aren’t here – explain in the … Continue Reading
In the first two posts of this series, we’ve reviewed Chief Justice George’s career prior to his judicial service, and his early years as a Judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court and a Justice of the Court of Appeals. Today, we turn to a review of the Chief’s more than eighteen years on the California Supreme … Continue Reading
Yesterday, in the first post of this series, we considered Chief Justice George’s career prior to his elevation to the bench. Today, we continue with the Chief’s service on the trial bench and the California Court of Appeal. The Chief Justice was appointed to the Los Angeles Municipal Court on April 20, 1972 by Governor Ronald … Continue Reading
On January 3, 2011, the twenty-seventh Chief Justice of California, Ronald M. George, will conclude over thirty-eight years of service on the California bench. To mark the retirement of this great California jurist, we begin a four part profile on state’s third longest-serving Chief Justice. Born in March 1940, Chief Justice George graduated from Beverly Hills … Continue Reading
In the first three weeks of November, we’ve already seen two major decisions on the economic loss rule from two state Supreme Courts. The economic loss rule provides in most states that a plaintiff cannot sue in tort for disappointed commercial expectations, regardless of whether he had a contractual agreement with the defendants. On November 4, a … Continue Reading
This afternoon, the Illinois Supreme Court published its Call of the Docket for the November term, and the Court will hear oral argument in fifteen civil cases. The cases, with the issue or issues presented in each, are: November 10: General Motors Corp. v. Pappas, No. 108893 – (1) Does the 2005 amendment to the Property … Continue Reading
In Illinois, as in many states, a defendant can’t include settled defendants on the verdict form, seeking an apportionment of fault. So is there a way to make a settled defendant’s conduct admissible? Last week, the Illinois Supreme Court answered "yes." Ready v. United/Goedecke Services arose from the death a construction worker in an accident … Continue Reading
The Illinois Supreme Court announced this afternoon that on the morning of Thursday, October 21, it will file opinions in four civil cases: J. P. Morgan Chase Bank, N.A. v. Earth Foods, Inc., No. 107682 — Does Section 1 of the Sureties Act, 740 ILCS 155/1, also apply to guarantors? In re Estate of … Continue Reading
Last week, the Illinois Supreme Court allowed petitions for leave to appeal in eight new civil cases. They are: Sheffler v. Commonwealth Edison Co., 399 Ill.App.3d 51 (1st Dist., 2010), which involves the question of whether a complaint seeking injunctive and damages relief in connection with defendant’s alleged failure to give priority, in restoring power after … Continue Reading
An insurance policy required that the insured "immediately record the specifics of the claim" and "see to it that we receive written notice of the claim . . . as soon as practicable." The insured waited 27 months before giving its insurer written notice of a defamation suit. The Appellate Court held that the insured … Continue Reading
Last week, the Illinois Supreme Court filed opinions resolving four new civil cases: Hubble v. Bi-State Development Agency of the Illinois-Missouri Metropolitan District, [pdf] No. 109137 — In a personal injury action, the Court held that the Bi-State Development Agency, which was created by an interstate compact between Illinois and Missouri, is a "local public … Continue Reading
The members of the Illinois Supreme Court have selected Supreme Court Justice Thomas L. Kilbride as the new Chief Justice. Justice Kilbride will begin his term on October 26, 2010, following the retirement of Chief Justice Thomas Fitzgerald. Justice Kilbride received his law degree from Antioch School of Law in Washington, D.C. in 1981. He practiced law … Continue Reading
The beginning of the Illinois Supreme Court’s September docket was overshadowed this week by a surprise announcement from Chief Justice Thomas R. Fitzgerald. Chief Justice Fitzgerald told his colleagues that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, and would retire from the Court effective October 25, 2010, rather than running for a full ten-year term. Chief … Continue Reading
The Illinois Supreme Court has announced its oral argument calendar [pdf] for the upcoming September term, and it contains just one civil case. On September 22, 2010, the Court will hear argument in Hossfeld v. Illinois State Board of Elections, No. 109725. Hossfeld involves the question of whether the appellant was a qualified primary voter for … Continue Reading
It’s almost become traditional wisdom over the past ten years: for the day-to-day work of the courts and the practicing bar, law reviews matter less than ever before. Chief Justice Roberts recently characterized legal scholarship as not “particularly helpful” in deciding cases. Judge Harry Edwards of the D.C. Circuit has been a critic of the state of … Continue Reading
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has named Associate Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye of the California Court of Appeal as his choice to replace the retiring Hon. Ronald M. George as Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court. Governor Schwarzenegger praised Justice Cantil-Sakauye’s record in announcing the nomination: Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye has a distinguished history of public service and understands … Continue Reading
Snow and ice are a fact of life in Chicago during the winter months. So what duties of care do government agencies, individuals and businesses have in relation to dealing with winter conditions? The Illinois Supreme Court addressed this important issue late last week in Krywin v. The Chicago Transit Authority [pdf]. Illinois has long followed the … Continue Reading
California Chief Justice Ronald M. George has announced today that he will be retiring from the Court, effective January 2, 2011. We will have a profile of this great California jurist soon.… Continue Reading
The Illinois Supreme Court announced yesterday afternoon that it will release two opinions [pdf] on the morning of Thursday, July 15th, including one civil case: No. 108888, Krywin v. Chicago Transit Authority, which presents the issue of whether the “natural accumulations rule,” which provides that a business owner generally has no duty to take precautions … Continue Reading
In late March, I blogged on an important new case from the Tenth Circuit reaffirming the economic loss rule. Last week, the Indiana Supreme Court handed down a major decision in a construction case, reaffirming this important principle of business law. According to the economic loss rule, where a plaintiff has suffered merely economic loss – … Continue Reading
Earlier this week, we discussed “advice and consent.” Can Senators legitimately ask a Supreme Court nominee about a hot button issue and expect a direct answer? Do Senators have the right to vote up or down on a particular nominee for purely political reasons? Now we turn from the question of what the confirmation process should … Continue Reading
Supreme Court confirmation hearings have come in for a lot of criticism in recent years. They’ve been called a “Kabuki Dance” and a process which has “take[n] on an air of vacuity and farce.” Amid all the discussion of whether or not nominees have become more evasive recently – a subject we’ll address later in the … Continue Reading
It’s been a busy summer at the Circuits for decisions applying the antitrust state action immunity. First up, as we reported three weeks ago, was the Ninth Circuit’s affirmance of the dismissal in Shames v. California Travel and Tourism Commission, [pdf] in which the plaintiffs alleged the California Travel and Tourism Commission had colluded with the rental … Continue Reading
It’s no secret to those of us who’ve been defending antitrust cases for a number of years that economic expert witnesses are a more important part of the defense team than ever before. Triers of fact often must evaluate complex economic analyses of the competitive effect of sophisticated business strategies. According to Judge Richard Posner of the … Continue Reading
