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What exactly does a 13-year-old boy have to do to be considered a child abuser? In one case out of Tennessee, a teenager earned that undesirable designation after he pushed another kid’s penis and stuck his finger in the other kid’s butt. That’s certainly impolite behavior (and battery), but it’s not what comes to mind when we think of child abuse. If the aggressor, D.W., simply had a juvenile offense on his record, it wouldn’t follow him past age 18....

You want to keep an eye on your employees, but when does monitoring the workplace become invading their privacy? Generally speaking, employers have a good deal of leeway for when it comes to keeping tabs on employee conduct and communication, but there are legal limits to what they can watch and the kind of speech supervisors can restrain. Here are several of the biggest concerns employers face when monitoring employee behavior:...

In an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) action claiming that a county office discriminated against plaintiff-employee by reassigning her because of her disability and refusing to engage in the ADA’s “interactive process” after she had requested a reasonable accommodation, summary judgment for defendant is affirmed where: 1) there was no evidence that plaintiff’s supervisor reassigned her because her coworkers in the public service section complained about accommodations she received for her disability; and 2) plaintiff did not raise a triable issue on whether her disability substantially limited her in speaking, eating, seeing, sleeping, and thinking and concentrating....

In a case involving the expulsion of plaintiffs-employer and employees from a pension fund, district court’s judgment for defendant is affirmed where: 1) the court had jurisdiction over the wrongful expulsion claim under 29 U.S.C. section 185(a); 2) the court did not err in granting summary judgment in favor of defendants under the broad language of Article III section 1 of the Trust Agreement and defendant-Central States’ determination that it had the authority to expel plaintiffs was not contrary to the Labor Management Relations Act or ERISA; 3) the defendant’s expulsion of plaintiffs did not violate this circuit’s precedents; and 4) the court did not err in awarding attorney fees and litigation costs to defendant under the Trust Agreement....

In Chase Grp. Alliance LLC v. N.Y. Dep’t of Fin., No. 09-2327, an action claiming that plaintiffs’ right to due process was violated by liens placed upon their properties by the City of New York, the court affirmed the dismissal of the action where the complaint alleged that New York law afforded appellants a right to notice and access to a tribunal to assert their objections before the liens were imposed, and thus, appellants’ right to due process was not violated....

Courthouse News Service, an online news publication focused on civil litigation, has been doing a big favor for all of us whose jobs involve reading documents released by the courts: Getting clerks to hurry up and release them. The publication has filed lawsuits against court clerks in several jurisdictions over the last few years, alleging that delays in releasing newly filed complaints to the public and the press violate the First Amendment....

In Chavis v. Chappius, No. 07-2304, the court vacated denial of plaintiff-inmate’s motion to proceed in forma pauperis, holding that 1) a complaint and a subsequent appeal therefrom qualified as separate “strikes” if both are dismissed for reasons listed in 28 U.S.C. section 1915(g); 2) the district court abused its discretion in denying plaintiff’s motion for leave to amend his complaint; and 3) a plaintiff who satisfies section 1915(g)’s “imminent danger” exception may proceed in forma pauperis on all claims in her complaint....

It’s no secret that getting hired can often boil down to who you know, and if anyone you know matters. And whether someone you know “matters” generally translates to whether you’re well enough connected to that person that they will send umpteen billion billable hours worth of work to the law firm. In a recent filing in the Greg Craig criminal case, it was revealed that Paul Manafort’s daughter was hired by Craig’s former firm, Skadden, pretty much because they believed hiring her would result in Manafort sending millions worth of billable work to the firm....

Books and stocks paid well for justices of the U.S. Supreme Court last year, according to recent financial disclosures. Justice Neil Gorsuch received a $225,000 advance for a book due out in September. Chief Justice John Roberts cashed in $250,000 in AT&T stock. Like many people, the justices make money on the side to supplement their annual salaries. The big difference is that they have to disclose it all. Salaries Plus Benefits It’s not like the justices really need extra money....

Keeping tidy and organized is important for lawyers. So if you’ve been keeping up with our recent series on how to apply the KonMari method to your legal practice, you may have already organized your desk. But, if you’re anything like most lawyers, finding the time to do your whole office, or even just your client list, can be daunting, and costly. Fortunately, you can start small with just your desk, and below, you can find a few tips on how to apply the Marie Kondo method to tidying up your desk....

Colorado has legalized marijuana. Undoubtedly, some of the out-of-staters who cross the border to purchase marijuana will take it back with them when they leave. This causes headaches for neighboring states that do not wish to legalize marijuana – all of Colorado’s neighboring states, to be exact. That is what the Nebraska and Oklahoma v. Colorado lawsuit is about. Two states that barely border Colorado filed suit in the Supreme Court of the United States on Thursday....

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on Monday that a plaintiff doesn’t have to be prosecuted under a criminal statute to challenge the statute. Oklevueha Native American Church of Hawaii, Inc. (Oklevueha) and Michael Rex Mooney a.k.a. Raging Bear sued the federal government, seeking declaratory and injunctive relief barring the government from enforcing the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) against them after their marijuana was seized and destroyed. (They also asked for the return of or compensation for the seized marijuana....

In re: Squire, 08-4401, concerned a challenge to the district court’s imposition of a reciprocal disbarment of a judge from practicing in federal court, in proceedings arising from the suspension of the judge on the county’s Domestic Relations and Juvenile Court from practicing law in state of Ohio for two years. In affirming the reciprocal discipline, the court held that the failure to disclose the names of those persons to whom the Ohio disciplinary counsel may have spoken during the course of his investigation, but who were not part of the administrative record resulting in petitioner’s disbarment did not testify against her, was not a due process violation requiring reversal....

Lawyers: Keep your email address current with the courts’ electronic filing systems. Seriously. It could make or break your case. And you could be publicly shamed. By the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, no less. This record-keeping reality check emerged from WorldCom’s 2002 bankruptcy. MCI WorldCom Communications, Inc. (MCI) sued Communications Network International (CNI) to recover for allegedly unpaid telecommunications services. CNI counterclaimed for fraud, intentional nondisclosure, breach of contract, and defamation and sought both compensatory and punitive damages....

We enjoy Judge Richard Posner’s opinions for the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals because no one escapes his ire. This week, in Turek v. General Mills, Judge Posner criticized the district court judge for his lack of understanding of federal jurisdiction and class action complaints, and the plaintiff for bringing frivolous, unintelligible claims. Ultimately, the plaintiff committed the greater sin in the court’s eyes, and the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed dismissal....

The Second Amendment grants individuals a right to bear arms, but what rights do private businesses have to keep gun carriers off their premises? The question, while not new, has gained new urgency in recent days following the announcements by several major national retailers “asking” that customers refrain from openly carrying firearms in their stores. On Sept.3, Walmart and Kroger issued statements making that request; two days later, the national drug chains CVS and Walgreens followed suit along with Wegmans Food Markets....

Narayan v. EGL, Inc., 07-16487, concerned an action seeking unpaid overtime wages, business expenses, meal compensation and unlawful deductions from wages under the California Labor Code. The court of appeals reversed summary judgment for defendants on the ground that, under California’s multi-faceted test of employment, there existed at the very least sufficient indicia of an employment relationship between the plaintiffs and defendant such that a reasonable jury could find the existence of such a relationship....

The Thomson Reuters Institute asked thousands of law students about the value of their legal education during the pandemic. The results indicate many students have doubts about whether law school is worth the price, with 30% of respondents saying remote learning is not giving them enough of an education to succeed relative to its cost. Many faculty shared this concern, with 21% giving a similar low score to value. As is true with many higher education institutions, law schools that switched to all remote learning but did not lower tuition as a result of the pandemic faced a backlash from students and the public....

Sponsored Content. An interaction with a police officer can quickly become tense. Even if you haven’t done anything wrong, getting pulled over can feel uncomfortable or even unsafe. The statistics show why. According to data compiled by The Washington Post, about 1,000 people are fatally shot by police every year. Black Americans are killed by police at about twice the rate of white Americans. But it’s not just American citizens in danger....

In plaintiff’s suit against his insurance company for breach of a policy, district court’s judgment in favor of plaintiff is affirmed in most part where: 1) district court’s ruling on the issue of liability is affirmed as it properly found that plaintiff’s wood inventory was not “in the open” when it was damaged because it was securely covered by a tarp and not left exposed to the elements; 2) district court did not err in awarding damages as defendant failed to produce evidence that contradicted plaintiff’s affidavit regarding the value of the wood inventory; and 3) district court abused its discretion in awarding plaintiff prejudgment interest at the rate of 6....