Topic
Every decision we've filed under Civil.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the denial of qualified immunity for a police officer who fatally shot an unarmed individual. The court held that viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the plaintiffs, a reasonable jury could find the use of deadly force violated clearly established law.
The Sixth Circuit denied a petition for review of a BIA decision rejecting an asylum claim because the petitioner failed to prove her abuse was motivated by her membership in a protected social group. The court held that the harm suffered was the result of private crimes rather than persecution on account of her identity as an indigenous Mayan Quiche woman.
The D.C. Circuit dismissed Indiana's appeal of a district court order remanding a Medicaid dispute to HHS because the remand order was not a final decision under 28 U.S.C. § 1291. The court held that the order left the core dispute unresolved for further agency proceedings, and no exceptions to the finality rule applied.
The Sixth Circuit dismissed the officers' interlocutory appeal for lack of jurisdiction because they refused to accept the plaintiff's version of genuinely disputed facts regarding the level of resistance. The court held that without a factual concession or clear video evidence resolving the dispute, appellate review of qualified immunity denials in excessive-force cases is barred.
The Eleventh Circuit held that a plaintiff is entitled to equitable tolling of the 90-day statutory filing period for a Title VII claim when an extraordinary circumstance, such as a hurricane, delays delivery of a complaint despite the plaintiff's reasonable diligence. The court vacated the district court's dismissal and remanded the case for further proceedings.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a security guard's FLSA overtime claim, ruling that his complaint failed to plausibly allege he was not completely relieved of duty during meal periods. The court further held that the district court properly denied leave to amend because the plaintiff could not cure the pleading deficiencies given the specific facts he alleged.
The Sixth Circuit denied a petition for review regarding a withholding of removal claim, holding that the Board of Immigration Appeals' decision was supported by substantial evidence. The court found that police intervention in past attacks against the petitioner served as affirmative proof that Honduras has not abandoned its efforts to protect citizens from gang violence.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed a district court's grant of summary judgment to an employer, holding that a signed termination release validly barred an employee's discrimination claims. The court found the release was executed knowingly and voluntarily because the employee received adequate time to review the document and consult counsel.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the district court's award of attorneys' fees to a relator under the False Claims Act, rejecting a defense based on the relator's unrelated prior misconduct. The court held that the unclean hands doctrine does not apply when the relator's past crimes have no immediate relation to the specific qui tam suit at issue.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a pro se prisoner's Eighth Amendment Bivens claim, ruling that courts must interpret pleadings based on the specific causes of action asserted rather than rewriting them as alternative theories. The court also upheld the denial of the prisoner's request for appointed counsel, finding the argument waived due to a failure to object to the magistrate judge's order within the required timeframe.