Correspondent
Federal courthouse correspondent, covers civil rights, employment discrimination, housing rights, and Second Amendment disputes.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued an opinion in this civil rights appeal. Judgment has been entered in accordance with the court's decision.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed in part and reversed in part a district court preliminary injunction blocking Executive Order No. fourteen thousand one hundred sixty-three. The panel held that the President acted within statutory authority to suspend refugee admissions but found the government violated the Administrative Procedure Act by defunding resettlement services without reasoned explanations.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has issued an opinion in the case of Stephen Allen versus Nature Conservancy. Judgment has been entered in accordance with the court's decision.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment against a plaintiff alleging harm from a malfunctioning medical device. The court held that the plaintiff failed to provide evidence of public impact for his consumer protection claim and lacked necessary expert testimony for his negligence claim.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the denial of a preliminary injunction against Seattle's App-Based Worker Deactivation Rights Ordinance. The panel held that the law regulates nonexpressive conduct and, even if viewed as commercial speech, satisfies constitutional scrutiny.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the denial of a preliminary injunction against Seattle's App-Based Worker Deactivation Rights Ordinance. The court held that the ordinance regulates nonexpressive conduct and, even if it regulated speech, it would satisfy the applicable First Amendment scrutiny.
The Seventh Circuit held that a prison's refusal to provide accurate prayer schedules does not violate RLUIPA or the Free Exercise Clause when inmates can obtain them through donations or purchase. The court affirmed summary judgment for the defendants, ruling that the de minimis cost of buying a schedule does not constitute a substantial burden on religious exercise.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed the Village of St. Bernard's billboard ordinance, ruling that its unconstitutional exemption for public service signs is severable from the rest of the regulations. The court held that the remaining ordinance satisfies intermediate scrutiny as a valid content-neutral time, place, and manner restriction on speech.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of the Weatherholts' Fourth Amendment excessive force claim, ruling that their complaint failed to plausibly allege a constitutional violation. The court held that the plaintiffs' bare assertions of force were insufficient to survive a motion to dismiss, particularly given video evidence that contradicted their version of events.
The Third Circuit reversed the District Court's denial of a motion to compel arbitration, holding that an employee's failure to opt out of a clearly written arbitration plan constitutes valid acceptance under New Jersey law. The court found that the employer's Plan Document alone formed a binding agreement to arbitrate all employment-related claims.
