In Sherrod v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., No. 21-3428 (6th Cir. May 29, 2024), the Sixth Circuit dismisses an appeal of a wrongful death claim against Wal-Mart—presenting truly bizarre facts—where the panel finds that it should not have been certified
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Ninth Circuit Holds That It Had Jurisdiction Under Collateral-Order Doctrine to Review Sanction Against U.S. Attorney
In United States v. Cloud, No. 22-30044 (9th Cir. May 21, 2024), the Ninth Circuit holds that even before entry of a conviction against the criminal defendant, the United States could appeal a district court order, under the collateral-order,…
Party Waived Argument By Not Citing the Correct Circuit Authority in the District Court, Holds Split Eighth Circuit Panel
In Meinen v. Bi-State Development Agency, No. 231242 (8th Cir. May 16, 2024), a 2-1 Eighth Circuit panel held that the party’s failure to cite a favorable Eighth Circuit case in the district court thereby forfeited an legal argument…
Session Replay Code Embedded in Retail Website Did Not Constitute “Purposeful Availment” of State Where Customer Was Located, Holds First Circuit
In Rosenthal v. Bloomingdales.com, LLC, No. 23-1683 (1st Cir. May 9, 2024), a First Circuit panel holds that the inclusion of a session replay provider (SRP) on a commercial website hosted out of state, which allegedly permitted surveillance of…
County Cop’s Hot Pursuit of Suspect Across State Line Was “Purposeful Availment” for Personal Jurisdiction Purposes, Holds Eighth Circuit
In a terse five-page opinion, an Eighth Circuit panel in Wade v. Pottawattamie Cnty. No. 23-1059 (8th Cir. May 7, 2024), reverses a decision that dismissed, on personal jurisdiction grounds, a lawsuit against an Iowa county in a personal…
Defendant’s “Strategic Decision” to Withhold Challenge to Diversity Jurisdiction for Fifteen Months Warrants $62,556 Attorney’s Fee Sanction Under Court’s Inherent Powers
In J.C. Penney Corporation, Inc. v. Oxford Mall, LLC, No. 22-12461 (11th Cir. May 1, 2024), the Eleventh Circuit affirms in full an attorney’s fee sanction, awarded against a defendant that was found to have withheld information for fifteen…
Denial of Anti-SLAPP Motion to Dismiss Not Appealable Under Collateral-Order Doctrine Holds Tenth Circuit, Noting Split in Circuits
In Coomer v. Make Your Life Epic LLC, No. 23-1109 (10th Cir. Apr. 23, 2024), the Tenth Circuit dismissed an attempted appeal of an order denying a “special motion to dismiss” under a state anti-SLAPP statue, holding that it…
A Presidential Pardon Does Not Mean That a Prior Conviction Is Not a “Bad Act” Under Fed. R. Evid. 404(b), Holds D.C. Circuit
In United States v. Benton, No. 23-3028 (D.C. Cir. Apr. 19, 2024), while affirming the conviction of a political consultant for felonies stemming from an unlawful contribution and related campaign-finance filings, the panel holds (among other things) that the…
En Banc Fifth Circuit Divides 8-8 on Transfer of SpaceX Lawsuit Against NLRB from Texas to California, With the Dissent Accusing NLRB Counsel of “Improper Conduct”
In a published order, In re Space Exploration Technologies, No. 24-40103 (5th Cir. April 17, 2024), the Fifth Circuit denies en banc rehearing of a 2-1 panel order denying mandamus to vacate a district court’s decision under 28 U.S.C.…
Ninth Circuit Nixes “Super Snap Removals” to Circumvent the Forum Defendant Rule, 28 U.S.C. § 1441(b)(2)
In Casola v. Dexcom, Inc., No. 23-55403 (9th Cir. Apr. 10, 2024), the Ninth Circuit rejects a California corporation’s attempt to avoid the forum-defendant rule by filing removal petitions in federal court under 28 U.S.C. § 1441(a) even before…