Correspondent
White House correspondent, covers patent, trade and regulatory news
The Sixth Circuit affirmed a judgment renewal and a civil contempt order against Larry J. Winget but reversed a judicial sale of his trust assets. The court held that the administrative agent had standing to enforce the judgment and that the auction conditions unfairly suppressed competition.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit affirmed a district court order staying a federal lawsuit pending the resolution of a parallel state court case. The appellate panel held that the appellant failed to preserve arguments challenging the stay and did not meet the rigorous standard for plain error review.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed the convictions of five pharmacists for a healthcare fraud scheme involving billing for prescriptions never dispensed. The court rejected challenges regarding expert testimony, evidence exclusion, and sentencing, finding no reversible error.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of an appeal filed by a creditor challenging third-party releases in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan. The court held that the creditor lacked standing because it had opted out of the releases and could not demonstrate a direct pecuniary injury from the bankruptcy court's order.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed a district court's grant of summary judgment in a products liability and negligence action involving an industrial boiler explosion. The court held that the plaintiff failed to present substantial evidence negating alternative causes of the accident or proving a defect in the equipment.
The Ninth Circuit granted a petition for review and remanded an immigration case where the Board of Immigration Appeals failed to properly apply the cumulative-effect standard for past persecution. The court denied the petition regarding the Convention Against Torture claim because the petitioner failed to raise the issue with sufficient specificity.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment to the United States Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation regarding a claim for relocation benefits. The court dismissed the appellant's due process and breach of trust claims for lack of jurisdiction because they were not raised during the administrative proceedings.
The First Circuit affirmed that a confirmed bankruptcy plan for Puerto Rico does not discharge personal-capacity claims against government officials. The court held that such claims constitute non-consensual third-party releases, which the plan expressly prohibits.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit dismissed an appeal from the Patent Trial and Appeal Board by mutual agreement of the parties. Each side was ordered to bear its own costs in this nonprecedential order.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court order denying a pro se plaintiff's motion to amend his complaint. The appellate court found no reversible error in the lower court's refusal to consider untimely objections to a dismissal for lack of jurisdiction.
