385 results for 'court:"9th Circuit"'.
J. Gould finds that the district court properly entered summary judgment in favor of a county after a company alleged an equal protection claim related to the county’s Covid-19 enforcement actions. The company alleged that it was receiving differential treatment. The treatment was not differential, rather the court simply had no other known violators. Affirmed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Gould, Filed On: June 26, 2023, Case #: 21-17105, Categories: Covid-19
J. Nelson finds that the district court improperly denied a Department of the Interior motion to dismiss an action alleging due process violations brought by a former Bureau of Land Management Law (BLM) Enforcement Ranger in Idaho. The ranger challenged adverse employment actions taken against him by the Department of the Interior and BLM officials. He sued defendants alleging a violation of his Fifth Amendment right to due process. The ranger had no claim for money damages and his claims arose in a different context than what the Court has recognized. Reversed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Nelson, Filed On: June 26, 2023, Case #: 22-35036, Categories: Constitution, Employment
J. Nguyen vacates defendant's sentence and remands for resentencing in a case in which defendant pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm. The lower court erred when it increased the offense level based on a finding that defendant's prior Montana conviction for partner or family member assault (PFMA) qualified as a crime of violence under the sentencing guidelines. PFMA's definition of “bodily injury” includes more conduct than the “use of physical force.” Because the court must determine whether PFMA categorically requires violent force and not whether defendant actually used it in his prior offense, PFMA is not a crime of violence under the sentencing guidelines. Vacated.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Nguyen , Filed On: June 26, 2023, Case #: 22-30050, Categories: Firearms, Sentencing
J. Nguyen grants a petition for review of a decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals. An immigrant's misrepresentations about his citizenship to police officers for the purpose of avoiding removal proceedings did not render him inadmissible and therefore ineligible for adjustment of status.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Nguyen, Filed On: June 26, 2023, Case #: 21-70431, Categories: Immigration
J. Nguyen finds that the district court improperly entered summary judgment in favor of the United States in an action brought by an individual who alleged that a Transportation Security Officer (TSO) sexually assaulted her during an airport security screening. TSOs fall under the Federal Tort Claims Act's “law enforcement proviso,” which waives sovereign immunity for torts such as assault and battery committed by “investigative or law enforcement officers of the United States Government.” Reversed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Nguyen, Filed On: June 26, 2023, Case #: 22-15402, Categories: Civil Rights, Immunity, Assault
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[Consolidated.] J. Spraker reverses the bankruptcy court's confirmation of a debtor's plan. A secured creditor that did not vote for the plan has shown the debtor's "unsupported optimism" does not establish a reasonable likelihood she could make plan payments. Reversed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Spraker, Filed On: June 23, 2023, Case #: CC-22-1246-SGF, Categories: Bankruptcy
J. Bumatay finds that the district court properly dismissed an action brought by plaintiffs from Louisiana and Indiana for a plane crash that occurred in Indiana. The pilot of the plane and the two passengers were killed instantly when the plane crashed shortly after takeoff. The lower court correctly held that it lacked personal jurisdiction. Affirmed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Bumatay, Filed On: June 23, 2023, Case #: 22-35099, Categories: Jurisdiction
J. Miller dismisses an immigrant's petition for review of a decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals. The immigrant sought cancellation of removal and adjustment of status. An immigration judge denied relief because of the immigrant's criminal record and the Board of Immigration Appeals affirmed. The panel concluded that it lacked jurisdiction.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Miller, Filed On: June 20, 2023, Case #: 20-72510, Categories: Immigration, Jurisdiction
J. Owens dismisses defendant's appeal from his conviction for abusive sexual contact of a child under age twelve. Defendant claimed that he was not informed that his plea could potentially lead to "subsequent civil commitment, community notification, and geographic restrictions on his residence and workplace." The panel held that defendant's plea was knowing and voluntary.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Owens, Filed On: June 20, 2023, Case #: 21-10320, Categories: Sex Offender, Plea, Commitment
J. Bress finds that the district court improperly denied qualified immunity to police detectives in an action alleging the detectives used excessive force when they pointed a gun at an individual and forcefully extracted him from a car, without identifying themselves as law enforcement officers. Reversed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Bress, Filed On: June 16, 2023, Case #: 21-16706, Categories: Civil Rights, Immunity
J. Graber finds that the district court improperly upheld an administrative law judge's denial of an individual's application for disability benefits under the Social Security Act. The ALJ materially mischaracterized the individual's functional capacity when posing a question to a vocational expert. Reversed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Graber, Filed On: June 15, 2023, Case #: 22-55504, Categories: Social Security, Experts
J. Fletcher finds that the district court properly denied preliminary injunctive relief to companies engaged in consumer debt collection in their action challenging Nevada Senate Bill 248 (SB 248), which requires debt collectors to provide written notification to debtors 60 days before taking any action to collect a medical debt. The companies alleged that S.B. 248 is unconstitutionally vague. The companies did not show a likelihood of success on the merits. Affirmed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Fletcher, Filed On: June 15, 2023, Case #: 22-15352, Categories: Constitution, Debt Collection
J. Wallace finds that the district court improperly entered a sentence after defendant pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a firearm. The lower court imposed a heightened base offense level based on the weapon's capacity of more than 15 rounds. Defendant contended that the district court committed error in finding that his magazine could accept more than 15 rounds of ammunition. Defendant was on probation and was subject to a search of a cellphone which contained pictures of defendant with the firearm in question. Police recovered neither the firearm nor the magazine. The enhancement had an extremely disproportionate impact on the sentence and the government did not physically produce or inspect the firearm. Reversed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Wallace, Filed On: June 14, 2023, Case #: 22-50064, Categories: Evidence, Firearms
J. Miller finds that the district court properly dismissed a matter brought by three environmental organizations against the United States Forest Service, challenging livestock grazing decisions in the Colville National Forest in Eastern Washington. The organizations claim that grazing decisions would lead to an increase in the number of wolf attacks on livestock, which in turn would cause the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to kill more wolves. The matter was properly dismissed because the organizations did not state an injury in fact. Affirmed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Miller , Filed On: June 14, 2023, Case #: 21-35936, Categories: Agriculture, Environment
J. Fletcher finds that the district court properly entered an order as part of a civil forfeiture suit brought by the United States against a $380 million arbitration award fund, the majority of which is held in the United Kingdom. The fund belongs to PetroSaudi Oil Services (Venezuela) Ltd., a Barbados based private oil company. PetroSaudi won the award in an arbitration proceeding against Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A., a Venezuelan state energy company. The Government sought forfeiture of the fund on the ground that it derived from proceeds of an illegal scheme to steal one billion dollars from the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund. The district court has jurisdiction over the arbitration award fund. Affirmed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Fletcher, Filed On: June 13, 2023, Case #: 21-56228, Categories: Arbitration, Energy
J. Gutierrez finds that the district court properly entered a sentence in a matter which required the panel to consider an enhancement of a guidelines calculation if defendant possessed a dangerous weapon at the time of a felony drug offense. Enhancement was constitutional because "it clearly comports with a history and tradition of regulating the possession of firearms during the commission of felonies involving a risk of violence." Affirmed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Gutierrez, Filed On: June 13, 2023, Case #: 22-30141, Categories: Constitution, Drug Offender, Firearms
J. Clifton finds that the district court properly dismissed Religious Freedom and Restoration Act (RFRA) claims challenging Executive Orders 14,042 and 14,043 which mandated Covid-19 vaccination with medical and religious exemptions. The RFRA claims were correctly dismissed for lack of jurisdiction and on sovereign immunity grounds. However, the matter is remanded to the district court with instructions to vacate the portion of the orders addressing all non-RFRA claims. Affirmed in part.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Clifton , Filed On: June 13, 2023, Case #: 22-35474, Categories: Immunity, Jurisdiction, Covid-19
J. Vratil finds that the district court improperly imposed a civil penalty of more than $1.7 million against an individual in a Securities and Exchange Commission’s civil enforcement action against the individual and his attorney for violations of federal securities laws. The individual identified genuine issues of material fact on two additional factors that the district court considered in imposing the civil penalty including the degree of his scienter and his recognition of the wrongful nature of his conduct. Reversed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Vratil, Filed On: June 13, 2023, Case #: 21-55859, Categories: Securities
J. Graber finds that the district court properly dismissed a harassment claim brought by an individual who alleged that when he was a first-year student-athlete at the University of Arizona, his teammates subjected him to frequent “sexual and homophobic bullying” because they perceived him to be gay. The student claimed that the University was deliberately indifferent to his claims of sexual harassment and that they retaliated against him in violation of Title IX. However, the court vacated the portion of the district court’s order denying leave to amend. Affirmed in part.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Graber, Filed On: June 13, 2023, Case #: 22-15714, Categories: Education
J. Smith finds that the district court improperly reversed a bankruptcy court’s order requiring a standing Chapter 13 trustee to return her percentage fee when a case was dismissed prior to confirmation. The Ninth Circuit joined the Tenth Circuit in holding that a trustee is not entitled to a percentage fee of plan payments as compensation for work in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy matter. Reversed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Smith, Filed On: June 12, 2023, Case #: 22-35216, Categories: Bankruptcy
J. Gould finds that the district court properly dismissed an individual's action alleging that The Procter & Gamble Company violated California consumer protection laws by labeling some of its products with the words “Nature Fusion” in bold, capitalized text, with an image of an avocado on a green leaf. The individual relied heavily on a consumer survey commissioned by his counsel. The survey was not particularly instructive or helpful in deciding the matter as survey participants did not have access to the back label of the products. The omission "undermined the extent to which the panel could fairly rely on the survey results as being instructive of how the 'reasonable consumer' understood the phrase 'Nature Fusion.'" Affirmed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Gould, Filed On: June 9, 2023, Case #: 22-15080, Categories: Consumer Law
J. Tallman finds that the district court properly denied defendant's federal petition for a writ of habeas corpus in a case in which defendant was sentenced to death for a murder in 1979. Defendant claimed that he is intellectually disabled and therefore cannot constitutionally be executed. Under a three prong test, defendant did not establish that he suffered from significantly sub-average intellectual functioning. Affirmed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Tallman, Filed On: June 9, 2023, Case #: 20-99012, Categories: Death Penalty, Habeas, Murder
J. Bade finds that the district court properly dismissed a claim for lack of jurisdiction in which two defendants filed habeas corpus petitions claiming that their incarceration during the Covid-19 pandemic violated the Eighth Amendment and sought release from custody. The petitions were not proper petitions for habeas relief and the court was not required to convert those habeas petitions into civil rights actions. Affirmed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Bade, Filed On: June 8, 2023, Case #: 21-55175, Categories: Constitution, Habeas, Civil Rights
J. VanDyke denies a petition for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ dismissal of their appeal of an immigration judge’s denial of asylum and related relief. The immigrant claimed that she was afraid to return to Guatemala because a woman had attempted to rob her after she withdrew money from a bank. The immigrant did not show how the agency made an error in concluding that her proposed social group comprised of “Guatemalan families that lack an immediate family male protector” was not cognizable.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: VanDyke, Filed On: June 7, 2023, Case #: 19-72024, Categories: Immigration
J. Koh finds that the district court improperly granted a U.S. Government motion to dismiss in a case in which an individual sought a declaration that his mother’s status as a non-citizen national, which she attained after the individual's birth, qualified him to be a non-citizen national of the United States. The individual's mother’s non-citizen national status extends back to her birth and, as a result, also qualifies the individual for non-citizen national status. Reversed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Koh, Filed On: June 7, 2023, Case #: 22-35233, Categories: Immigration
J. Lee finds that the district court improperly awarded attorney fees to class members’ counsel in a copyright action concerning music composition. Copyright holders of musical compositions and ended up recovering a little over $50,000 for the class members while the attorneys requested $6 million in legal fees to which the court authorized $1.7 million in legal fees, more than thirty times the amount that the class received. The Ninth Circuit commented that "this case will likely make the average person shake her head in disbelief." The panel wrote that the class received a "measly" amount and "obtained no meaningful injunctive or nonmonetary relief." Reversed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Lee, Filed On: June 7, 2023, Case #: 22-15162, Categories: Copyright
J. McKeown finds that the district court erred in dismissing a Title VII sexual harassment claim against an apparel maker for failure to state a claim. Eight former employees claim that the company permitted its managers and employees to routinely play “sexually graphic, violently misogynistic” music throughout its warehouse. The Ninth Circuit aligned with other circuit courts which held that "music with sexually derogatory and violent content, played constantly and publicly throughout the workplace, can foster a hostile or abusive environment and thus constitute discrimination because of sex." Vacated.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: McKeown, Filed On: June 7, 2023, Case #: 21-17138, Categories: Employment
J. McKeown finds that the district court properly entered judgment on a copyright action brought by a real estate photography studio concerning the online display of its photos by an online real estate marketplace. Thousands of copyrighted photos on the real estate marketplace's site come from the professional real estate photography studio. The 2,700 photos used were not part of a compilation, therefore each individual photo constituted an infringement. Affirmed.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: McKeown, Filed On: June 7, 2023, Case #: 22-35147, Categories: Copyright
J. Gilman grants an immigrant's petition for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ dismissal of his appeal of an immigration judge’s determination that his asylum application had been abandoned because it was not timely filed. The Immigration Judge's rejection of the opportunity to file a relief application deprived the immigrant of a full and fair opportunity to be heard.
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Gilman, Filed On: June 7, 2023, Case #: 21-298, Categories: Immigration
J. Bybee grants a petition for review of a decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals that concluded that an immigrant's convictions for attempting to elude a police vehicle were crimes involving moral turpitude. The Board did not address substantive changes the Washington Legislature involving driving a vehicle in a "reckless manner."
Court: 9th Circuit, Judge: Bybee, Filed On: June 7, 2023, Case #: 21-584, Categories: Immigration, Vehicle