138 results for 'filedAt:"2024-01-11"'.
J. Kennedy finds that the lower court improperly dismissed the couple's petition to adopt the child. The husband is related to the child's grandmother, making him a first cousin once removed, which falls within the purview of a related adoption under the Adoption Act. First cousins once removed are more closely related than second cousins, which are expressly permitted to petition for a related adoption. Reversed.
Court: Illinois Appellate Court, Judge: Kennedy, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 230275, Categories: Family Law
J. Casper denies in part a town administrator’s motion to dismiss complaints brought against her by a former town employee, who was fired for allegedly false allegations against her after she voiced opposition to the administrator’s proposed alterations to historic town hall infrastructure and furnishings. A statute protecting state officials from being sued for First Amendment violations does not protect the administrator because she was acting as a municipal official, not a state official, in her interactions with the former town employee.
Court: USDC Massachusetts, Judge: Casper, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 1:23cv10647, NOS: Civil Rights - Habeas Corpus, Categories: Employment, Municipal Law, Employment Retaliation
Per curiam, the appellate division finds that the lower court improperly denied the landlord's motion for a money judgment after the tenant failed to pay rent for April 2021 through February 2023. The landlord is entitled to $100,974 in damages. Reversed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Per curiam, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 00152, Categories: Landlord Tenant
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J. Tijerina finds that the lower court properly granted summary judgment to the oil field service company in this suit brought by a former oil field worker who was injured by a tool and subsequently given "light duty work" at the office. The worker, who was allegedly unable to appear for the office work due to a lack of transportation, contends that he was terminated in retaliation for filing a workers' compensation claim. However, the employer provided evidence that he had violated the company's attendance policy. Affirmed.
Court: Texas Courts of Appeals, Judge: Tijerina, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 13-23-00194-CV, Categories: Employment, Workers' Compensation
J. Baker finds the trial court improperly ruled in favor of a district attorney in a Public Information Act case in which the district attorney sought to withhold the names of impaneled grand jurors. Considering "the fact that grand jurors' names are necessarily made public during the grand-juror-selection process, that the default rule in the Code of Criminal Procedure that court proceedings are public, and that the presumption in the PIA that all information maintained or collected by governmental bodies is 'public information,'" grand jurors' names are not excepted from disclosure. Reversed.
Court: Texas Courts of Appeals, Judge: Baker, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 03-22-00238-CV, Categories: Government, Jury, Public Record
J. Choudhury affirms a magistrate judge’s order compelling the depositions of two New York State public health commissioners in a class action alleging the state’s health department and mental health office fail to provide certain mental health services to Medicaid-eligible children. The judge granted the motion after ruling the commissioners possess unique, firsthand knowledge regarding the claims and that information cannot be obtained through other means. The court finds the ruling without any clear error.
Court: USDC Eastern District of New York, Judge: Choudhury, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 2:22cv1791, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Health Care, Medicaid, Class Action
J. Powers finds that the lower court properly dismissed a paternal grandmother's request for visitation because the grandmother and mother recently fell out over trauma the child suffered from being bitten by the grandmother's dog; instead, the court recommends gradual reintroduction during the father's parenting time or through therapeutic contact. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Powers, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 535048, Categories: Family Law
J. Orme finds that the trial court should have applied the reasonable time rule to a divorce decree that awarded commercial property to a wife and an equity interest to the husband that was redeemable when the property is sold. Instead, the reasonable time the wife has for performance lasts until she ceases to operate a salon at the property. Reversed in part.
Court: Utah Court Of Appeals, Judge: Orme, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 20220090-CA, Categories: Family Law
J. Edelstein finds that while the testimony of the state's key witness contained some inconsistencies, including a claim he never touched any weapon used in defendant's crimes that was rebutted by DNA evidence found on a gun magazine, his identification of defendant as the shooter, both at trial and during a photo lineup, was sufficient to convict defendant of the majority of the shooting-related crimes with which he was charged. However, the grainy surveillance footage of the third shooting - the sole physical evidence presented by the prosecution - and the same witness's identification of defendant by his gait was insufficient to prove defendant committed that particular crime and all convictions related to it must be vacated. Reversed in part.
Court: Ohio Court Of Appeals, Judge: Edelstein, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 2024-Ohio-92, Categories: Evidence, Murder, Identification
J. Egan finds that the lower court properly dismissed the city's attempt to penalize a lender for failing to maintain a vacant residential "zombie" property awaiting foreclosure. Squatters continued to access the home, from which an "incredible stench" emanated, but the lender offered evidence of expenditures that had been made to secure the site, which met the requirements of real property law. Since a foreclosure sale occurred during pendency, the lender no longer remained obligated to maintain the property. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Egan, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 536057, Categories: Civil Procedure, Property, Foreclosure
J. Gonzalez finds that the lower court improperly ruled in a dispute over a labor and materials lien. A subcontractor claims it was not paid for the work it completed, leaving it to file a labor lien for labor without giving a pre-lien notice. This gives rise to the question of whether a pre-lien notice is required for labor liens under state law. Under the plain language of the statute and history from the legislature, a pre-lien notice is not required for cases such as this. Reversed.
Court: Washington Supreme Court, Judge: Gonzalez, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 101591-7, Categories: Construction, Contract
J. Shea grants, in part, the employer's motion to dismiss, ruling the employee who missed a month of work after she tested positive for Covid-19 cannot bring disability discrimination claims. The illness did not involve serious or prolonged symptoms that required accommodations upon her return or could otherwise be considered a disability. However, the temporal proximity between the employee's protected activity under the Family and Medical Leave Act and her termination immediately after returning to work is sufficient to allow the FMLA retaliation claim to proceed.
Court: USDC Connecticut, Judge: Shea, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 3:23cv123, NOS: Amer w/Disabilities-Employment - Civil Rights, Categories: Ada / Rehabilitation Act, Covid-19, Employment Discrimination
J. Ceresia finds that the lower court properly declined to permanently seal records related to a dispute between companies working to release lifesaving treatment for a rare childhood illness. The company seeking to manufacture the injectable drug contends trade secrets and other confidential information may be exposed prior to arbitration, while the developer of the drug pursued injunctive relief to continue the parties' master services agreement for production. However, the request to seal was overly broad and did not overcome the general presumption of open court access on a matter of public interest. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Ceresia, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: CV-23-0428, Categories: Arbitration, Contract, Injunction
J. Jacquot finds the trial court properly entered a verdict on both counts without finding that defendant acted with the proper culpable mental state with regard to the physical-injury element of the offenses. “The court found defendant guilty after hearing evidence that, to punish his three-year-old stepson for jumping on the bed, defendant hit the child hard enough to break his jaw, requiring the placement of three metal plates to repair it, as well as inflicting a separate injury to the child’s forehead.” Affirmed.
Court: Oregon Court of Appeals, Judge: Jacquot, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: A176421, Categories: Evidence, Assault, Child Victims
J. Alvord finds the trial court erroneously dismissed the company's tax assessment appeal as untimely. Although it was not received by the town's assessment office until two days after the February 20 deadline, the appeal was mailed on February 18 and arrived late only because of a holiday, which cannot be used as a filing deadline. Reversed.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Alvord, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: AC45863, Categories: Civil Procedure, Tax
J. Bright finds the trial court properly awarded the wife post-judgment interest on retirement funds paid by the husband for the entire three years and 10 months since the initial award. There was no evidence to support the husband's claim the funds were refused after an initial appeal, which rendered he and his attorneys solely responsible for the delay. Affirmed.
Court: Connecticut Court Of Appeals, Judge: Bright, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: AC45871, Categories: Family Law, Damages
J. Keough finds the victim's failure to remember the exact date on which she was raped by defendant does not render his conviction against the weight of the evidence. She testified it was at or near the time of her mother's death, which proved she was under the age of 13 at the time of the assault. Furthermore, defendant's confrontation rights were not violated when the trial court refused to allow him to cross-examine the victim about previous rape allegations made against other individuals. Although she gave conflicting testimony, it was likely that some sexual activity occurred and, therefore, Ohio's rape-shield law applied and excluded any cross-examination. Affirmed.
Court: Ohio Court Of Appeals, Judge: Keough, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 2024-Ohio-69, Categories: Confrontation, Sex Offender
J. Lynch finds that the lower court properly declined to renew claims seeking removal of an elevated highway on Buffalo's waterfront known as the "Skyway" because no new facts were presented to support renewal, and constitutional claims concerning the environmental review process had not been raised previously. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Lynch, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 536098, Categories: Civil Procedure, Environment
J. Horton finds that the lower court improperly entered judgment for the borrower on his claims for declaratory and injunctive relief against the bank, in which he sought the discharge of a mortgage after the bank had failed to properly provide him with notice of default under section 6111. After reconsideration of its analysis in Pushard, the court concludes that the lower court erred in "requiring the Bank to discharge the mortgage." Accordingly, the matter is remanded for entry of a judgment in favor of the lender. Vacated in part.
Court: Maine Supreme Court, Judge: Horton, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 2024ME2, Categories: Civil Procedure, Banking / Lending
J. Boomgaarden finds that the lower court improperly granted a request for a writ of review to challenge the suppression of drug evidence regarding defendant's misdemeanor possession charge. The state was eventually successful in getting the suppression order reversed, but did so using incorrect assertions that the review was of "great public import." There is nothing rare or unusual about this case that would have justified the writ, as the initial suppression of evidence was well grounded in the Fourth Amendment. Reversed.
Court: Wyoming Supreme Court, Judge: Boomgaarden, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: S-23-0063, Categories: Drug Offender, Evidence
J. McShan finds that the lower court properly dismissed sexual abuse claims brought under the Child Victims Act in which plaintiff alleged negligent hiring and retention of a social services caseworker subsequently convicted of sex crimes because evidence did not indicate the county knew or should have known the caseworker had a propensity to commit acts of sexual misconduct. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: McShan, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: CV-22-2059, Categories: Employment, Negligence
J. Lipman grants the parking lot owner's motion for summary judgment in this premises liability lawsuit stemming from an alleged trip and fall on an adjacent sidewalk. The record shows that the parking lot owner did not own the public sidewalk and did not make any repairs or modifications to the sidewalk. Under Tennessee law "municipalities are the proper defendants in factual scenarios" like the one alleged here. Also, a city sidewalk ordinance does not create a duty owed to the litigant.
Court: USDC Western District of Tennessee , Judge: Lipman, Filed On: January 11, 2024, Case #: 2:23cv2113, NOS: Other Personal Injury - Torts - Personal Injury, Categories: Tort, Premises Liability