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Nationwide Mut. Ins. Co. v. Mortensen, No. 08-5214, involved an action arising out of the retention of policyholder information by former insurance agents for plaintiff, summary judgment dismissing both plaintiff’s claims and defendants’ counterclaims is affirmed, on the grounds that 1) the policyholder information was readily available from another source, and thus did not qualify as a trade secret as a matter of law; 2) plaintiff effectively abandoned its breach of fiduciary duty claim on appeal because it failed to challenge the district court’s determination that it could not prove damages on that claim; 3) the agents did not qualify as employees covered by ERISA as a matter of law; and 4) the agents pointed to no evidence showing that plaintiff’s allegedly unfair trade practices resulted in an ascertainable loss....

Former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores had already retained counsel when he attended an interview with the New York Giants for a head coaching job. Three days before his interview, he had received a text from Bill Belichick, head coach of the New England Patriots, congratulating him on getting the job. Flores was soon to discover that the text was a mistake (sent to the wrong Brian) and that the team had decided on someone else, former Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll....

Fiending for a live stream of oral arguments in landmark cases? As we reported last week, the Ninth Circuit is going to lead the way in transparency by becoming the first Circuit Court of Appeals to stream its en banc proceedings live, online, at the court’s website. What cases are set for arguments? DNA collection, criminal matters, immigration, and a police shooting are all on the docket. Streaming right now, the court is hearing oral arguments in a case that is getting its third look, which challenges California’s DNA swabbing procedures....

Action Challenging California Victim’s Bill of Rights Act In Gilman v. Schwarzenegger, No. 10-15471, an action by eight California life-term prisoners who represented a class of similarly situated California prisoners, alleging that Proposition 9, the “Victims’ Bill of Rights Act of 2008: Marsy’s Law,” which modified the availability and frequency of parole hearings, violated the Ex Post Facto Clause, the court reversed a preliminary injunction in plaintiffs’ favor where the advance hearings provided for by the statute sufficiently reduced the risk of increased punishment for prisoners....

In three hours of testimony today before the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Dennis Blair, the Director of National Intelligence lamented the fact that authorities gave Miranda warnings to accused Northwest Flight 253 terror suspect Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab (inset, right), without first consulting with his office and Homeland Security officials. According to Blair, an elite high-value interrogation group (known as the ‘HIG’) comprised of CIA, FBI, and other federal agency employees, should have been been used to try and obtain actionable intelligence before MIrandizing Abdulmutallab....

The surveys say what you already know: you are going to spend more money on technology this year. It is as inevitable as Thanos destroying the…. Sorry, almost spoiled the movie for you. But seriously, you are destined for tech upgrades so you might as well accept it. Oh, you don’t have $1,000 in your back pocket for an internet-enabled, artificially intelligent, mobile assistant who is smarter than you are? No worries, you can upgrade your whole office for next to nothing....

Challenge to NASA Background Check In NASA v. Nelson, No. 09-530, an action claiming that NASA’s National Agency Check with Inquiries background check process violated a constitutional right to informational privacy, the court reversed the Ninth Circuit’s reversal of the district court’s denial of a preliminary injunction where, assuming, without deciding, that the government’s challenged inquiries implicated a privacy interest of constitutional significance, that interest, whatever its scope, did not prevent the government from asking reasonable questions of the sort included on the forms at issue in an employment background investigation that was subject to the Privacy Act’s safeguards against public disclosure....

This week, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that prison officials did not have a clearly-established duty to seek out original court records in response to a prisoner’s unsupported claim that he was being imprisoned for a term longer than his ordered sentence. The court granted the officials’ request for qualified immunity. The opinion has the unique distinction of being both well-reasoned, and a miscarriage of justice, a feat we didn’t think possible....

In an ERISA action against an insurer seeking disability benefits, summary judgment for defendant is reversed where: 1) the administrator failed to render a final decision within the time limits prescribed by the benefit plan and ERISA; and 2) the insurer’s references to hemiparesis and the conclusions of the reviewing physicians did not provide a sufficient grounds for the denial of plaintiff’s claim. Read Rasenack v. AIG Life Ins. Co., No....

The Supreme Court ruled Monday that bankrupt farmers owe capital gains taxes from a bankruptcy sale, reports The Associated Press. In a 5-4 opinion written by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the Court held that the federal income tax liability resulting from a post-petition farm sale is not “incurred by the estate” under §503(b) of the Bankruptcy Code, and is neither collectible nor dischargeable in the Chapter 12 plan. The case hinged on how the Court interpreted the phrase “incurred by the estate” for federal tax purposes....

Fracking, for all its attention-getting repercussions, is not getting any more attention from a federal appeals court. The U.S. Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals has dismissed consolidated fracking appeals that included more parties and amici than judges in the four-state circuit. In State of Wyoming v. Zinke, the appeals panel said the cases were “prudentially unripe” because a disputed federal fracking regulation is being rescinded. “Well Stimulation” Fracking is a “well stimulation” technique that is used to extract more oil and natural gas than otherwise possible....

Almost everyone loves fireworks. They are bright and colorful. They are pretty. They go boom. For most people – whether they are at home or watching a professional display – fireworks are an integral part of any Fourth of July celebration. Some state governments, however, feel differently about the subject. They only see the dangers of amateur firework displays and put harsh restrictions in place. But that does not stop stores in neighboring states from offering enticing deals (have you ever wondered how fireworks stores can stay in business with buy one, get four free sales?...

The Osage Nation won a rather significant battle in the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. The fight was over the mineral rights to the land where wind turbines were built. The tribe owns the rights to the land and the mining rights. However, it was not consulted when the land was leased to the wind farm developers. After losing at the district court level, the federal government, which was representing the tribe, advised the tribe on the last day to file an appeal that it would not do so....

Viacom and YouTube are heading back to court. The Second Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated Viacom’s $1 billion lawsuit against YouTube and Google Thursday. Viacom claims that YouTube, which is owned by Google, violated the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) by allowing users to post copyright-protected content from Viacom’s networks without permission, reports The Wall Street Journal. YouTube previously won its summary judgment motion to dismiss the case based on the DMCA safe harbor provision....

When someone intentionally sends an unsolicited sexual image through the internet, it is called “cyber flashing,” a form of sexual harassment and online abuse. It happens when a sender transmits explicit photos through Wi-Fi, messaging applications, online platforms, Bluetooth, or other file-sharing applications. Online dating apps, where cyber flashers transmit “dick pics,” photos of genitalia, or other explicit images, have become a particular problem area. This also occurs on social media apps, such as Snapchat and WhatsApp....

In an employment discrimination action involving circumstances where a co-worker claimed to be able to communicate with plaintiff’s dead brother, district court judgment is reversed where the court erred in treating plaintiff’s hostile work environment claim as one for constructive discharge. The matter is remanded for further proceedings on the hostile work environment discrimination claim. Read Winspear v. Community Development, Inc., No. 08-2041 Appellate InformationAppeal from the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota....

Both the federal Equal Pay Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibit pay discrimination based on gender. But while the EPA and Title VII are related, a plaintiff filing a claim under Title VII must only show that she is getting paid less than she would if she were male. There is not a requirement to first establish unequal pay for equal work under the EPA. That was the takeaway from a recent decision from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals....

In a way, the farmer’s market was mixing apples and oranges. Craig Zuber, who worked at the Fairgrounds Farmer’s Market in Reading, Pennsylvania, signed a settlement agreement after he was injured on the job. He then sued the company for Family Medical Leave Act violations and other claims. Boscov’s, the employer, said he waived his right to sue when he settled the injury case. A federal appeals court said, that’s different....

The Seventh Circuit’s Court of Appeals overturned a lower court’s injunction ordering the complete shutdown of a blog in a legal battle over religious artifacts and defamation. Being called a “fake nun” – have any more libelous words ever been put to paper? Sometime in the 1950s, Sister Mary Ephram saw visions of the Virgin Mary in Rome Indiana, which beckoned her to create programs to promote “Our Lady of America” in the region....

People typically associate the American Red Cross with collecting donations and offering disaster relief. It’s a do-gooder group. On the flip side, there’s Seventh Circuit Judge Richard Cudahy’s description of the Red Cross as “a company charged with unilaterally changing conditions of employment in order to cripple a new union.” This week, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals stepped into a dispute between the Red Cross and the National Labor Relations Board with its own brand of disaster relief: instructions for an interim injunction....