59 results for 'judge:"Dever"'.
J. Dever grants the U.S. Department of Commerce’s motion to dismiss antitrust and tort claims brought by a former patent examiner. The examiner alleges that the department, her former employer, was unfair in its performance reviews and removed credit for the work she did for it, thereby damaging her career. However, her claims must by dismissed for lack of subject matter jurisdiction because the department retains sovereign immunity.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: April 22, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv495, NOS: Antitrust - Other Suits, Categories: Antitrust, Tort, Immunity
J. Dever denies an electric company’s motion for judgment on the pleadings for breach of contract allegations it brought against its insurance firm after the company’s owner crashed his boat into another, killing three people. The owner, who was not engaged in business while driving his boat intoxicated, was not covered in this case because the insurance only applies to his business endeavors. For the same reason, the estates of the three people who died fail in their attempt to sue the firm for damages and funeral expenses.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: April 22, 2024, Case #: 7:22cv78, NOS: Insurance - Contract, Categories: Insurance, Contract
J. Devers dismisses a motorcycle dealer as a party to this suit and affirms the other parties’ claim that the dealer was fraudulently added. A couple bought a motorcycle elsewhere and noticed it was leaking oil, then took it to the dealer for repair. After a successful repair, the couple crashed when part of the braking system failed, killing the wife and causing serious injury to the husband. The other parties argue the husband and his wife’s executrix added the dealer to foil diversity jurisdiction because they could not claim negligence against the dealer. They then tried to remand the suit, but as they are found to have fraudulently added the dealer, and because diversity jurisdiction still exists, the dealer is dismissed and the motion to remand is denied.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: April 15, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv591, NOS: Personal Injury - Product Liability - Torts - Personal Injury, Categories: Fraud, Product Liability, Jurisdiction
J. Dever grants a hospice care company’s motion to dismiss False Claims Act (FCA) allegations brought by a former home hospice case manager. The manager claims the company committed Medicare fraud by falsely reporting hospice patients’ medical conditions in order to recertify them. However, as this is a qui tam claim and other managers already initiated similar actions previously, the FCA’s first-to-file rule applies and the manager’s suit is barred.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: April 10, 2024, Case #: 7:20cv90, NOS: False Claims Act - Torts - Personal Injury, Categories: Fraud, Health Care, Medicare
J. Dever dismisses with prejudice a former police chief’s motion to amend his complaint against a municipality and certain of its staff members, alleging they discriminated against him because he is Hispanic and blind in one eye. For instance, the town manager allegedly micromanaged the chief and made racist comments to him, such as “[you] should learn to dance the salsa.” The chief also cites not having been given a pay increase at the same time as others in similar positions, although he previously fought this and succeeded. He also claims constructive discharge based on his negative experiences, but the behavior of the manager and others does not rise to the level of discrimination under the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: April 9, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv446, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Equal Protection, Employment Discrimination, Employment Retaliation
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J. Dever grants in part a ticket booking firm’s motion to dismiss allegations of breach of contract and fraudulent inducement, among others, brought by the organizer of the Voices of America Country Music Festival. The organizer claims that the firm created over 5,000 duplicate tickets and over 1,800 duplicate parking passes, valued at over $1.4 million total. This is a clear breach of contract, but the firm presents sufficient evidence that its errors were unintentional, so all other claims are dismissed.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: April 9, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv676, NOS: Other Contract - Contract, Categories: Fraud, Trade, Contract
J. Dever grants a recycling processor’s motion to dismiss three out of four race discrimination allegations brought by a former recycling truck driver. The driver, a Black man, witnessed the processor’s supervisor randomly shooting a gun at trees, trash and other things at the facility and making racist comments, such as that he would “shoot any nigger, I don’t give a fuck,” in addition to using another slur at work. Later, the driver’s direct supervisor said he was being terminated for “poor job performance,” although previously he'd been rated as doing an excellent job. Then, the processor claimed the driver abandoned his job. The driver claims the processor’s supervisor recommended he be fired to the driver’s direct supervisor, but he provides only speculation about this. However, his claim of a racially hostile work environment will proceed.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: April 9, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv601, NOS: Employment - Civil Rights, Categories: Employment, Employment Discrimination, Employment Retaliation
J. Dever partially grants a bitcoin investment firm's motion to dismiss counterclaims of conversion, breach of contract and bad faith brought by a partner of the firm. The partner alleges the firm opened an account with a cryptocurrency trading platform where he could store personal investments worth over $220,000, then the firm blocked his access. The firm claims the platform blocked the partner, but the partner presents sufficient evidence that the firm is responsible for having changed his password without his consent. The conversion claim survives, but all other claims are dismissed.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: April 5, 2024, Case #: 5:22cv 503, NOS: Other Fraud - Torts - Personal Property, Categories: Fraud, Trade, Conversion
J. Dever partially denies the North Carolina Department of Corrections’ motion to dismiss ADA violation allegations brought by a former employee. The employee previously sued the state’s department of public safety, her technical employer and also party to this suit, after it allegedly wrongfully terminated her. Three years later, a judge ruled the department must reinstate the employee, provide her with reasonable accommodation and back pay or benefits. The department rehired her but did not provide anything else, then fired her again two months later. The employee has provided sufficient evidence of ADA discrimination to proceed.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: April 4, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv673, NOS: Amer w/Disabilities-Employment - Civil Rights, Categories: Ada / Rehabilitation Act, Employment, Employment Discrimination
J. Dever partially grants the North Carolina Green Party’s motion for attorney’s fees and costs in ongoing litigation against the state’s board of elections after it initially failed to qualify the party and allow candidates to run in the 2022 election. The North Carolina Democratic Party and affiliates became intervenors for the board. The party correctly accuses them of frivolously hampering its efforts to get the required number of signatures for its candidates to run and is awarded partial fees and costs based on this action alone.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: April 2, 2024, Case #: 5:22cv276, NOS: Voting - Civil Rights, Categories: Elections, Government, Attorney Fees
J. Dever grants a female student’s motion to transfer litigation from North Carolina to Louisiana in a suit she brought against a male student for sexual assault. Both students attended Tulane University in Louisiana at the time of the alleged assault, although the male student now resides in North Carolina. After the female student initiated litigation against the male student, he counter-sued for defamation and also sued Tulane for breach of contract as he was dismissed from the university one month before graduation. Weighing all factors in the case, the litigation involving the female student will be transferred to Louisiana where the suit against Tulane is already taking place.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: March 28, 2024, Case #: 5:22cv500, NOS: Assault, Libel, & Slander - Torts - Personal Injury, Categories: Education, Defamation, Assault
J. Dever grants in part a municipality and a litany of its employees’ motions to dismiss allegations of sex discrimination and ADA violations brought by a former police detective who also served on a county board of education. Most claims are dismissed for failure to state a claim, but a few survive. During his time on the board, the detective accused a male school employee of sexual harassment of two female employees, while he was allegedly involved in a sexual affair with someone else. The detective claims sex discrimination by his supervisor because he was calling out sexual harassment against two women. But his own conduct and his claims that the police department was disorganized and out of control are what led to his termination. Also, the detective has not plausibly argued that his anxiety and depression are disabilities that compromised his ability to work.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: March 28, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv349, NOS: Employment - Civil Rights, Categories: Employment, Employment Discrimination, Employment Retaliation
J. Dever grants North Carolina State University’s motion to dismiss allegations of disability discrimination brought by a Ph.D. candidate who claims the university did not accommodate his ADHD, depression and anxiety diagnoses. He requested multiple leaves of absence during his program to attend mental health appointments, which the university afforded him. An advisor gave a research assistantship to a different student because the candidate was “a liability.” However, the candidate’s hostile work environment and failure to accommodate claims are not sufficient or time-barred under the ADA.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: March 19, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv331, NOS: Amer w/Disabilities-Employment - Civil Rights, Categories: Civil Rights, Education, Employment Discrimination
J. Dever grants an adult film production company’s motion for leave to serve a third-party subpoena on an internet provider to access the identity of one of the provider’s subscribers. The company shows good cause to engage in early discovery, but given the nature of the content, the subscriber will be allowed to be heard before their identity is revealed.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: March 18, 2024, Case #: 5:24cv111, NOS: Copyrights - Property Rights, Categories: Copyright, Discovery, Technology
J. Dever grants partial summary judgment to the daughter of a deceased military colonel who qualifies as the colonel’s legal representative under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act. The federal government fails to sufficiently claim that there is a genuine triable issue about whether the daughter qualifies as a legal representative, and, thereby, has the right to sue under the Act.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: February 27, 2024, Case #: 7:23cv897, NOS: Other Personal Injury - Torts - Personal Injury, Categories: Environment, Government, Tort
J. Dever grants a police officer’s motion to dismiss due process and state law tort claims brought by the husband of a woman who died after the officer crashed into her car. The husband argues that the investigator who arrived on the scene, seeing the officer as a fellow law enforcement official, systematically tampered with evidence and evaded the husband’s questions. However, state law prohibits a private citizen to challenge the criminal investigation of another person.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: February 21, 2024, Case #: 5:22cv381, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Civil Rights, Vehicle, Police Misconduct
J. Dever partially grants two sister insurance companies’ motions to dismiss allegations of telephone consumer protection law violations brought by a cell phone owner. The owner received multiple calls from the companies even after she requested them to stop. However, the owner fails to present enough information about the calls, including the dates of the calls and which company made them, so se fails to state a claim.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: February 12, 2024, Case #: 7:23cv1081, NOS: Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) - Other Suits, Categories: Consumer Law, Technology
J. Dever grants Walmart’s motion to dismiss allegations of race discrimination brought a driver employed by Walmart after another employee crashed into his truck, causing $5,000 in damage. The driver, a Black man, claims that because Walmart did not require the employee, a white man, to pay the damages, Walmart favored the employee based on race. However, the driver’s allegations are not sufficient for a Title VII claim.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: February 8, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv226, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Civil Rights, Employment, Employment Discrimination
J. Dever denies an engineering firm and associated individuals their motion for a partial dismissal of an alleged breach of fiduciary duty brought by the firm’s former president, who claims the owners mismanaged stock and ERISA funds for personal benefit. Although the former president did not hold that position at the time of this filing, he was still a member of the firm’s stock plan, so he has standing to bring the claim.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: February 6, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv324, NOS: Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) - Labor, Categories: Erisa, Trade, Fiduciary Duty
J. Dever grants a police detective’s motion to dismiss allegations of malicious prosecution brought by the nephew of an elderly woman who acted as her power of attorney. The nephew had access to and certain control over the woman’s bank account, which she had granted him. He went on vacation to Thailand and could not return as planned due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Shortly after, the woman passed away and Wells Fargo locked her account until her nephew could prove his power of attorney, which he could not do until he returned to the U.S. Suspecting foul play, the detective arrested the nephew accusing him of exploitation. Although this was not the case, the detective had just cause, so the nephew’s claim fails.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: February 5, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv466, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Malicious Prosecution, Elder Abuse, Banking / Lending
J. Dever denies a homeowner couple’s motion for summary judgment after Hurricane Florence damaged their house, causing water damage that a contractor valued over $240,000. State Farm covered only $66,000 of their claim because the existence of vapor barriers within the walls could have caused further damage after the hurricane ended, which State Farm claims its policy does not cover. The couple argues the policy should cover all damage including that sustained as a result of the vapor barriers, thus, there is an unresolved issue of material facts.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: February 2, 2024, Case #: 4:21cv146, NOS: Insurance - Contract, Categories: Insurance, Property, Contract
J. Dever denies two voters from a majority-Black Senate district in northeast North Carolina their motion for an extraordinary, mandatory preliminary injunction, which they claim is necessary to then establish a racially gerrymandered district in order to abide by the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The voters allege that the General Assembly violated the Act precisely because it did not engage in race-based district creation, disadvantaging Black voters in majority-white state. However, as the 2024 elections are already under way, the two voters fail to show that the Voting Rights Act needs this injunction to initiate race-based grouping of voters, and doing so would likely confuse voters and create chaos that could compromise election integrity.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: January 26, 2024, Case #: 4:23cv193, NOS: Voting - Civil Rights, Categories: Civil Rights, Elections, Government
J. Dever grants the City of Raleigh’s motion to dismiss the amended complaint of a former training and development analyst who brought allegations of sexual harassment, gender discrimination and retaliation against it. The analyst claims that her male supervisor stared at and touched her breasts and made inappropriate comments such as, “You’re buttering the wrong bread. I’m the one you need to talk to if you want to get what you need.” The analyst complained to human resources, and even though an investigation found her claims to be true, she was fired. She filed for her right to sue with the EEOC too late, however, and it was time-barred, so she cannot proceed.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: January 22, 2024, Case #: 2:23cv49, NOS: Other Civil Rights - Civil Rights, Categories: Employment, Employment Discrimination, Employment Retaliation
J. Dever denies a former Butterball turkey worker’s motion for equitable tolling in this suit he brought against Butterball for its failure to pay overtime wages. The worker claims the court delayed its rulings on Butterball’s motions to dismiss, but as the court timely ruled on those motions, he fails to prove that these circumstances were extraordinary. Also, the worker has not identified the class of his coworkers who would benefit from the relief sought.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: January 10, 2024, Case #: 5:20cv585, NOS: Fair Labor Standards Act - Labor, Categories: Employment, Class Action, Labor
J. Dever denies a consumer’s motions to amend her complaint and extension of time to file after she sued a slew of credit reporting agencies for allegedly failing to provide full disclosure in their reports of her credit. The consumer alleges the agencies violated fair credit reporting law by not providing her with sufficient information. However, she fails to specify what information she was not provided and does not claim the agencies reported any incorrect information. Her claims are not sufficient to state a claim for relief.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: January 9, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv406, NOS: Consumer Credit - Other Suits, Categories: Commerce, Consumer Law
J. Dever partially grants a school board’s motion to dismiss allegations of civil rights violations brought by a former assistant principal. The assistant principal, a white man, argues that he was subject to systematic racial harassment and race and sex discrimination, specifically by the school’s superintendent, as evidenced by things like not promoting him and not providing him functioning equipment when testing students. The assistant principal’s retaliation claims against the board and superintendent survive as he was able to prove he engaged in protected activity and leave just before he was suspended without pay, then fired. However, his discrimination claims fail because his comparisons of treatment between himself and Black employees were not sufficient.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: January 8, 2024, Case #: 2:23cv30, NOS: Employment - Civil Rights, Categories: Employment, Employment Discrimination, Employment Retaliation
J. Dever denies a Spectrum customer’s motions to amend and for extension of time after the communications company opposed her motions to amend following the customer’s complaints about her Wi-Fi service. The customer, a “notorious pro se litigant,” argues that her internet service was not adequate and that she should not have to pay for it. Her claims are insufficient for breach of contract on the federal level, and the case is remanded for her state claims.
Court: USDC Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge: Dever, Filed On: January 8, 2024, Case #: 5:23cv408, NOS: Other Contract - Contract, Categories: Communications, Contract, Technology