Topic
Every decision we've filed under Summary Judgment.
The Eleventh Circuit vacated a district court's grant of summary judgment in an Eighth Amendment deliberate-indifference case involving prison violence. The appellate court held that statistical evidence and specific facility conditions created a genuine dispute of material fact regarding a substantial risk of serious harm.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed a district court judgment granting summary judgment to Metropolitan Life Insurance Company in an ERISA long-term disability benefits dispute. The court held that the plaintiff failed to meet his burden of proving total disability under the plan terms and that the insurer conducted a full and fair review of his claim.
The Third Circuit reversed the dismissal of a cardiologist's defamation and retaliation claims against his university and hospital employers. The court held that the defendants' social media campaign and article retraction may have been motivated by actual malice and that the plaintiff's criticism of racial preferences constituted protected activity.
The Fifth Circuit dismissed an interlocutory appeal by Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections officials claiming qualified immunity. The court held that while it could review the legal question of authority under prior precedent, it lacked jurisdiction to resolve the factual disputes regarding the conditions of confinement.
The Fifth Circuit reversed a district court's grant of summary judgment in a Federal Tort Claims Act case involving a Customs and Border Protection agent. The appellate court held that a reasonable jury could find the agent was acting within the scope of his employment when he struck a plaintiff while retrieving donated supplies for his union.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed a summary judgment ruling in favor of MillerKnoll, Inc. in a dispute over the ownership of intellectual property rights to the Bubble Lamp design. The court held that the Nelson family authorized the company to own and use the intellectual property through a series of agreements and ratified that ownership by accepting royalty payments.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed the denial of summary judgment against police detectives and a prosecutor in a civil rights suit alleging a reckless investigation and evidence suppression. The court held that genuine disputes of material fact exist regarding whether the defendants violated clearly established law by ignoring exculpatory evidence and coercing witnesses.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed a district court's grant of summary judgment to four former employees of Wilbur-Ellis Company. The court held that the employer failed to provide sufficient evidence to support its claims of trade secret misappropriation, breach of duty of loyalty, and tortious interference.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment in a pro se civil rights action brought by an Arkansas inmate. The court held that the inmate failed to establish deliberate indifference to his serious medical needs or valid claims for failure to supervise.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed a district court order granting summary judgment against a California prisoner in a civil rights action. The appellate court held that the prisoner's claims were either time-barred or failed to exhaust administrative remedies under the Prison Litigation Reform Act.