Every decision we've summarized from United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
The Fifth Circuit dismissed an appeal because the defendant's valid plea agreement waiver barred him from challenging the constitutionality of his conviction. Consequently, the court declined to address the defendant's Second Amendment challenge to the federal firearms statute.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed Jason Paul Till's within-guidelines sentence for attempted production of child pornography, finding no procedural or substantive error in the district court's sentencing decision. The court also rejected Till's claim that the prosecutor made improper comments during the sentencing hearing.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed a district court ruling allowing a breach of contract dispute between joint venture partners to proceed without joining the joint venture entity itself. The court held that the joint venture was not an indispensable party and that one partner's retention of settlement funds violated the joint venture agreement.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for the FBI, ruling that a FOIA request for email header metadata was moot because the agency had already provided the requested recipient information. The court further held that the Freedom of Information Act does not require federal agencies to create new records to generate metadata that is not already stored in a separate, retrievable format.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the sentences of a defendant convicted of drug conspiracy and supervised release violations, rejecting his claim that the district court relied on impermissible self-serving statements. The court held that the probation officer's conservative drug quantity calculation was supported by corroborating evidence and that the district court did not violate the Supreme Court's recent Esteras ruling.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for Union Pacific Railroad Company in a personal injury case involving a minor injured on railroad tracks. The court held that the danger of a moving train and the specific risk of slack action were open and obvious under Texas law, negating any duty to warn or protect the child.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of CenterPoint Energy, finding that the plaintiff failed to provide evidence of causation for his retaliation claims or evidence of defamatory statements. The court further held that the plaintiff forfeited challenges to the denial of his motions because he failed to adequately brief those specific issues.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of a motion to vacate an arbitration award in an employment discrimination dispute. The court held that the appellant's arguments regarding arbitrator misconduct and procedural errors were forfeited because his pro se brief failed to provide specific factual support or legal analysis for his claims.
The Fifth Circuit granted the Federal Public Defender's motion to withdraw from representing Juan Andres Macharigui-Duran after finding no nonfrivolous issues for appeal. The court dismissed the defendant's criminal appeal following a review of the record and the Anders brief.
The Fifth Circuit granted the Federal Public Defender's motion to withdraw from representing Oscar Adrian Gonzalez, finding no nonfrivolous issues for appeal. The court dismissed the criminal appeal after reviewing the record and the defendant's response.