How Appealing



Wednesday, August 27, 2014

“Florida court fast-tracks key gay marriage case to state Supreme Court; In a somewhat unusual move, a Florida court directly referred a case involving the divorce of a same-sex couple to the state Supreme Court; The high court’s decision could make Florida the 20th state to legalize gay marriage”: Warren Richey of The Christian Science Monitor has this report.

Posted at 10:18 PM by Howard Bashman



“Checking In on the Town of Greece: The town set a new prayer policy, and — surprise, surprise — it doesn’t include atheists.” Dahlia Lithwick has this jurisprudence essay online at Slate.

Posted at 9:30 PM by Howard Bashman



“Court to FedEx: Your drivers are full time, entitled to benefits.” Bob Egelko of The San Francisco Chronicle has this news update.

Howard Mintz of The San Jose Mercury News has an update headlined “Lawsuit targeting FedEx-driver work conditions can proceed.”

Amanda Becker of Reuters reports that “U.S. court clears FedEx Ground drivers to pursue wage, benefit claims.”

Dave Jamieson of The Huffington Post reports that “Reagan Appointee ‘Unravels FedEx’s Business Model’ In Court Ruling.”

Today a unanimous three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued two related decisions in these cases, and you can access the rulings here and here.

Posted at 8:40 PM by Howard Bashman



“A bench slap portends trouble in paradise”: Last Friday at his “Hercules and the Umpire” blog, Senior U.S. District Judge Richard G. Kopf had a post that begins “This post is about politics within the federal judiciary. It also about pecking order within the hierarchy of the federal judiciary. While I don’t care a bit about the substantive issue, the dispute I am about describe is fascinating because it has the potential of setting up a battle of judicial titans and I am a voyeur.”

Posted at 8:02 PM by Howard Bashman



“Plebiscite appeal heard: 9th Circuit judges take on political status vote.” The Pacific Daily News of Guam has this report.

A photograph accompanying the article shows that Circuit Judge N. Randy Smith did his usual pre-argument courtroom meet-and-greet before the session began.

Posted at 7:58 PM by Howard Bashman



“Offerman appeals judgment in bat attack case”: The Associated Press has a report that begins, “Former major league baseball player Jose Offerman is appealing a federal court order that he pay $940,000 to a catcher injured during a minor league brawl in 2007.”

Late last month, The Connecticut Post reported on the verdict in an article headlined “Jury awards Bluefish catcher $940k in bat-attack trial.”

My earlier coverage of this matter — linking to an article about the plaintiff, who is now a practicing attorney — can be accessed here.

Posted at 1:27 PM by Howard Bashman



“Court rules records of threats against Kasich are not public”: The Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch has a news update that begins, “The Ohio Supreme Court ruled today that records of threats against Gov. John Kasich are not public records since they contain information that could threaten the safety of the governor.”

You can access today’s ruling of the Supreme Court of Ohio at this link.

Posted at 1:22 PM by Howard Bashman



“Democrats embrace ‘McCutcheon’ decision; New ‘jumbo’ joint fundraising committee follows liberals’ harsh criticism of Supreme Court ruling”: The Center for Public Integrity has this report.

Posted at 1:18 PM by Howard Bashman



“Court overturns convictions in Amish hair attacks”: The Associated Press has this report on a ruling that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued today.

Circuit Judge Jeffrey S. Sutton delivered the opinion for the majority on a divided three-judge panel.

U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus, Jr. (S.D. Ohio) (sitting by designation) begins his dissenting opinion as follows:

This is the first appellate case involving a religious hate crime under the Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009, 18 U.S.C. sec. 249. While I respect the majority’s efforts to construe a deceivingly simple, but actually complex, statute, I dissent. In my view, the majority has adopted an unduly restrictive interpretation of the statute.

You can access the dissenting opinion directly via this link.

Update: In other coverage, The Cleveland Plain Dealer has a news update headlined “Federal appeals court overturns Amish beard-cutting convictions, citing erroneous jury instructions.”

Posted at 12:03 PM by Howard Bashman



“U.S. District Judge Mark Fuller should resign”: Today’s edition of The Montgomery (Ala.) Advertiser contains an editorial that begins, “A federal judgeship exemplifies the concept of an office of public trust, perhaps more than any other. Federal judges wield great authority and exercise great influence in the judicial system — and they do so with the Constitution’s provision of a lifetime appointment.”

Posted at 10:04 AM by Howard Bashman



“Supreme Court may take up D.C. drug case; Civil liberties groups see judicial overreach”: Jim McElhatton of The Washington Times has this report.

Posted at 10:02 AM by Howard Bashman



“Cleveland’s ‘jock tax’ is legally justifiable, state tells Supreme Court”: The Cleveland Plain Dealer has this report.

You can view the State of Ohio’s amicus brief at this link, while the brief for appellant — former Chicago Bears linebacker Hunter T. Hillenmeyer — can be accessed here.

Posted at 9:57 AM by Howard Bashman



“In Boise, Justice Scalia calls Idaho water review ‘a great state triumph’; The state asserts its authority by securing water rights along with those of Indian tribes”: The Idaho Statesman has this report.

Posted at 8:24 AM by Howard Bashman