“Suit over Fulton strip searches can go forward; Seven former jail detainees may sue; court requires reasonable cause for such searches”: Bill Rankin of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution provides this news update about a ruling that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued today.
“The broader question this argument presents is whether, and if so when, a panel of this Court may vary from a specific holding of an earlier one based on the reasoning the Supreme Court used to reach a later decision on a different issue.” Eleventh Circuit Judge Ed Carnes issued a very interesting concurring opinion today addressing that question.
“Before us are cross-appeals arising from the reduction of a $30 million punitive damages verdict to $2 million.” So states the opinion that the majority on a divided three-judge Third Circuit panel issued today. The majority further reduced the punitive damages award to $750,000, while the dissent laments the difficulty in discerning the “spirit” of an appellate court’s mandate.
“Source: Vick will not admit to killing dogs or gambling on dog fights.” ESPN.com provides this news update.
“[A]s a matter of first impression, we must decide whether, or under what circumstances, appellate attorney’s fees are ‘costs on appeal’ that a district court may require an appellant to secure in a bond ordered under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 7”: A unanimous three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued this decision today.
The decision also addresses whether a district court may include in a Rule 7 bond appellate attorney’s fees that might be awarded by the court of appeals if that court holds that the appeal is frivolous under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 38.
“Federal Circuit Will Change Its Web Page Address and Domain Name Effective October 1, 2007”: The old web site provides the details here, while the new web site is not yet up and running.
Three-judge Eighth Circuit panel affirms federal district court’s rejection of claims that that Missouri law violates the Equal Protection Clause; Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990; and section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 by disqualifying persons under court-ordered guardianship from voting: You can access today’s ruling at this link.
Second Circuit affirms criminal conviction under federal Wild Bird Conservation Act of 1992 for illegally importing black sparrowhawks: You can access today’s ruling at this link.
“We hold that the actual-malice standard applies to Compuware’s breach of contract claim because the contract pertains solely to the publication of protected speech, the claim exclusively relies on arguments grounded in negligence and vague implied contractual duties, and the plaintiff has not suffered a contractual injury but complains only of reputational or defamation-type harm.” A lawsuit that plaintiff Compuware Corporation filed against defendant Moody’s Investors Services Inc. produced this interesting ruling today by a partially divided three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. The dissenting opinion begins, “The extension of First Amendment tort law principles to contract cases is unwarranted and entirely unprecedented, except for a lone bankruptcy court case.”
The Associated Press is reporting: Now available online are articles headlined “Court Clears Way for Whole Foods Merger” and “Court to Rehear Enemy Combatant Case.”
“Killer’s Voluntary Death Sentence Upheld”: In news from Kentucky, The Associated Press reports that “The state Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously upheld the death sentence of a convicted child murderer who wants to be put to death.”
You can access today’s ruling of the Supreme Court of Kentucky at this link.
“Nacchio remains free pending appeal; Former Qwest CEO wins ruling to remain free pending appeal”: This article appears today in The Denver Post.
The Rocky Mountain News reports today that “Unfettered Nacchio is a free man for now.”
And The Associated Press provides a report headlined “Court: Nacchio Can Remain Free on Bond.”
“Padilla sues US officials over confinement; Despite his conviction on terror conspiracy charges, his lawyers say he suffered ‘psychological abuse’ during military detention”: Warren Richey will have this article Friday in The Christian Science Monitor.
And online at Reason, Jacob Sullum has essays entitled “The Disappearing Dirty Bomber: Jose Padilla’s trial was not so swift, and neither was he” and “The Terrorist Trainee, the Terrorist’s Lawyer, and the Pizza Guy.”
“Viewing Child Porn on Computer Enough For Possession”: The Legal Intelligencer provides this news update reporting on a ruling that a divided en banc panel of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania issued today in Commonwealth v. Diodoro.
The original three-judge panel ruling in the Diodoro case was a subject of the December 4, 2006 installment — headlined “Just Looking: Should Internet Ignorance Be a Defense to Child Porn Charges?” — of my “On Appeal” column for law.com.
Programming note: A busy day out of the office (my son and I will be heading here momentarily) means that new posts won’t appear until sometime later today.