89 results for 'judge:"Fitzgerald"'.
J. Fitzgerald finds that the trial court properly found in favor of the homeowners against the construction company for installing defective roof panels, which created shadowing from an irregular corrugation pattern and gave their home a striped, zebra-like look. The construction company claims that the trial court erred when it did not determine whether the alleged defect rendered the entire thing useless or if the defect just diminished the usefulness and value of the thing, but the applicable law did not require the trial court to make such a determination to render its judgment. Affirmed.
Court: Louisiana Court Of Appeal, Judge: Fitzgerald, Filed On: May 8, 2024, Case #: CA-23-668, Categories: Construction, Contract
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that the lower court properly held that the town had authority to permanently bar junkyards on four parcels zoned rural residential. Nonconforming uses generally may continue following zoning alterations in the event that pre-existing use had been legally permitted, but the property owner failed to demonstrate the town had awarded a license allowing the junkyard to operate, and selective enforcement did not occur. However, monetary penalties should be recalculated and reduced to $296,500. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: May 2, 2024, Case #: 535723, Categories: Zoning
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that defendant was properly denied reclassification after being designated a risk level three sex offender for raping two minors. Defendant, who had been held in civil confinement for violating parole, and who went back to prison after being convicted of an aggravated family offense, points to the fact that he was 62 years old, but he failed to demonstrate that he completed sex offender treatment. Meanwhile, defendant's lengthy criminal history accumulated other convictions. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: April 25, 2024, Case #: 535716, Categories: Sentencing, Sex Offender
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that an opinion should be vacated in dismissing an appeal on grounds that plaintiff, a roofer, had not been aggrieved by the workers' compensation board's decision that apportionment did not apply to his claims, as substantial evidence supported the rejection of apportionment percentages as set by a physician who reviewed plaintiff's medical records. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: April 18, 2024, Case #: 535730, Categories: Workers' Compensation
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J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that the lower court properly declined to dismiss claims brought against the owner of a ski resort after a teenager sustained injury on a black-diamond trail, which she chose to use when easier trails were closed. The resort cited the doctrine of assumption of risk, but questions of fact remain unresolved as to which trails had been open, which may have unreasonably enhanced risk. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: April 18, 2024, Case #: CV-23-1379, Categories: Negligence
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that the lower court properly found for a medical group in a cardiologist's breach of contract claims because the employment agreement contained a "termination for convenience" provision that permitted firing for no reason as long as six months' pay was provided. That he was not permitted to see patients during that six months did not violate the contract. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: April 11, 2024, Case #: CV-23-0988, Categories: Employment, Contract
J. Fitzgerald finds in favor of Mercedes-Benz USA against the consumer's complaint that it sold a defective used 2017 Mercedes-Benz C300 but did not honor its new vehicle limited warranty, which extends “to the original and each subsequent owner of a new Mercedes- Benz vehicle that any authorized Mercedes-Benz Center will make any repairs or replacements necessary to correct defects in material or workmanship, but not design, arising during the warranty period.” Part of the warranty does not apply because the consumer bought the vehicle from CarMax, not Mercedes-Benz, and the other obligations do not apply because Mercedes-Benz did not breach the warranty when it provided free repairs to address the malfunctioning ECO start/stop feature during the warranty period.
Court: USDC Central District of California, Judge: Fitzgerald, Filed On: April 9, 2024, Case #: 2:23cv3049, NOS: Other Contract - Contract, Categories: Vehicle, Warranty, Contract
J. Fitzgerald finds that the trial court erred in issuing a preliminary injunction that bars the former employee from competing with his former company. The noncompetition provision is not valid since it is ambiguous and overly broad. Also, the former employer failed to prove the "existence of legally protectable trade secrets and proprietary information." Reversed.
Court: Louisiana Court Of Appeal, Judge: Fitzgerald, Filed On: April 3, 2024, Case #: CA-23-615, Categories: Employment, Contract, Injunction
J. Fitzgerald finds that defendant was properly convicted of second degree murder for the shooting death of a victim during a drug buy. There was sufficient evidence of defendant's "specific intent to kill the victim," and this includes testimony from a witness, detective and the doctor who performed the autopsy of the victim. Affirmed.
Court: Louisiana Court Of Appeal, Judge: Fitzgerald, Filed On: March 27, 2024, Case #: KA-23-484, Categories: Evidence, Murder
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that the workers' compensation board properly denied benefits on grounds that a warehouse employee's injuries were not job-related. The employee contends she had been trampled by fellow workers as they attempted to board a city bus at end of shift, but the bus stop was not on the employer's property, nor was the bus operated for the employer's benefit or the employee's fare subsidized by the employer. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: March 21, 2024, Case #: CV-22-2154, Categories: Workers' Compensation
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that a civil service employee who worked as a vocational instructor at a state prison was properly held ineligible for benefits on grounds that he was not totally unemployed. The instructor, who followed a September-June academic year, previously worked optional summer employment before the Covid-19 pandemic, but the fact that classes were not held in the summer of 2020 did not render him eligible for regular or pandemic unemployment benefits since he continued full-time, salaried employment. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: March 21, 2024, Case #: CV-23-0541, Categories: Employment, Covid-19
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that the lower court properly found for an insurer sued by a policyholder for not covering all lost business income after a fire destroyed one building in an 11-building, 200-unit apartment complex and caused some tenants to vacate due to attendant inconveniences. The policy was unambiguous in stating that only losses caused directly by physical damage or destruction to the property qualified for lost business coverage. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: March 14, 2024, Case #: CV-22-2347, Categories: Insurance
J. Fitzgerald grants the trust default judgment for its complaint that the construction contractor did not submit monthly fringe benefit contributions for all hours worked by its employees. The trust shows through the trust agreements that the construction contractor had a duty to produce its records for audit, which it did not do, and that the trust had the authority to examine the construction contractor's payroll and business records to determine if the construction contractor abided by the terms of the trust agreements.
Court: USDC Central District of California, Judge: Fitzgerald, Filed On: March 8, 2024, Case #: 2:23cv4272, NOS: Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) - Labor, Categories: Erisa, Contract
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that the lower court properly dismissed personal injury claims brought after a delivery driver tripped and fell at a restaurant while trying to move a kayak paddle he saw on the floor because the paddle constituted an open, obvious obstacle that was not inherently dangerous. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: March 7, 2024, Case #: CV-22-2207, Categories: Premises Liability
[Consolidated.] J. Fitzgerald finds that the jury erred in its allocation of fault and the trial court improperly reduced damages awarded in an auto accident case stemming from an incident where a box truck rear-ended a police cruiser, seriously injuring a deputy sheriff. The nonparty background check company was erroneously added to the jury verdict form despite the defendant parties' pre-trial judicial confession as to liability for the crash. The issue in the verdict form led to an incorrect assessment of 200% liability, with the trial court then reducing the $5 million in damages by the 30% assessed to the background check company. Thus, the liability is amended to assign 75% to the truck driver and 25% to his employer, and the damages are restored to $5 million. Reversed in part.
Court: Louisiana Court Of Appeal, Judge: Fitzgerald, Filed On: March 6, 2024, Case #: CA-23-488, Categories: Civil Procedure, Damages, Negligence
J. Fitzgerald finds that defendant was properly convicted of second degree battery of an elderly newspaper deliveryman who had just dropped off a paper at the house of defendant's grandfather. The testimony of the victim and witnesses shows defendant's actions in attacking the victim were "objectively unreasonable" and that the victim was merely walking back to his vehicle prior to the confrontation with defendant. Affirmed.
Court: Louisiana Court Of Appeal, Judge: Fitzgerald, Filed On: March 6, 2024, Case #: KA-23-518, Categories: Evidence, Battery, Elder Abuse
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that the lower court improperly dismissed malpractice claims brought against an orthopedist and hospital after arthroscopic knee surgery led to a staph infection that ultimately required total knee replacement. The patient's medical expert raised triable issues of fact as to whether infection should have been suspected earlier and whether tests should have been performed to rule out the possibility. Reversed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: February 29, 2024, Case #: 535732, Categories: Experts, Medical Malpractice
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that defendant was properly convicted of attempted murder, attempted assault, robbery, burglary and weapon possession stemming from an altercation at a motel because the verdict was supported by testimony from the robbery victim, who had been shot in the leg in his motel room, and from codefendant, who struggled with the victim. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: February 29, 2024, Case #: 111647, Categories: Evidence, Firearms, Robbery
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that the lower court improperly intervened in a parental dispute over a child's religious upbringing. The parents, who have joint legal custody and share equal parenting time, were directed to attend coparenting counseling and to refrain from taking the child to religious services or instruction until they could overcome their differences. Since the consent order governing custody of their then-2-year-old made no reference to religion, the requirements constituted overreach.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: February 22, 2024, Case #: 535537, Categories: Family Law
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that the workers' compensation board properly rejected a widow's claim seeking death benefits on grounds that her husband's death was not job-related. Her husband, a mass-transit track inspector, died of cardiac arrest and a pulmonary embolism months after contracting Covid-19, but his widow failed to demonstrate the virus was prevalent in the workplace or that he had been infected by a coworker. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: February 15, 2024, Case #: CV-23-0309, Categories: Covid-19, Workers' Compensation
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that the unemployment insurance appeal board properly held that a hotel that contracted out its nightclub on weekends to party promoters constituted an employer liable for additional insurance contributions based on remuneration paid to a "bottle host" and other such employees who worked the parties. The hotel determined when the host worked, how much he was paid, and the commission he received on sales of bottled liquor. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: February 15, 2024, Case #: CV-23-0345, Categories: Employment
J. Fitzgerald Smith finds that the lower court properly entered judgment in favor of the family in a wrongful death suit, awarding them $42.5 million against the hospital after it failed to prevent a patient's baclofen withdrawal, despite being well-informed of his need for the drug ahead of his surgery. The jury reasonably found that a complete breakdown of communication between hospital departments led to to his organ failure from not receiving the drug he needed for his muscle spasms. Affirmed.
Court: Illinois Appellate Court, Judge: Fitzgerald Smith, Filed On: February 13, 2024, Case #: 230355, Categories: Damages, Wrongful Death
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that the lower court properly convicted defendant following his guilty plea to attempted promoting prison contraband. Defendant's claim that his plea was involuntary was not preserved for review, and his admission during the plea colloquy that he possessed a weapon, even if it was to defend himself against another inmate, did not trigger an exception to the preservation requirement. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: February 8, 2024, Case #: 112674, Categories: Weapons, Plea
J. Reynolds Fitzgerald finds that the workers' compensation board properly rescinded benefits awarded to a butcher for back, knee, and leg injuries for failure to demonstrate attachment to the labor market. The butcher prematurely argued that he should be granted a "permissible inference" to avoid demonstrating job search efforts on grounds that lost wages related to his degree of disability. Affirmed.
Court: New York Appellate Divisions, Judge: Reynolds Fitzgerald, Filed On: February 8, 2024, Case #: CV-23-0290, Categories: Civil Procedure, Workers' Compensation
J. Fitzgerald reverses in part a dismissal order regarding a law firm which obtained attorney fee awards and subsequent costs related to appeals against an estate trustee for bringing meritless claims against the firm. The firm alleged that the trustee failed to demand that the debtor turn over rents collected on two properties. The bankruptcy court erred in finding that the firm's breach of fiduciary duty claim was time-barred but was correct in finding that the trustee had quasi-judicial immunity.
Court: USDC Central District of California, Judge: Fitzgerald, Filed On: January 29, 2024, Case #: 2:22cv4450, NOS: Bankruptcy Appeal 28 USC 158 - Bankruptcy, Categories: Bankruptcy