A U.S. District Judge in Texas ruled that a lawsuit over alleged “fight clubs” in a Corpus Christi facility for people with mental disabilities can proceed. Judge Janis Graham Jack dismissed the request from the four state officials named as defendants that they be excluded from the lawsuit because of qualified immunity. The lawsuit, which [...]
posted on April 22, 2010 by
Quadriplegic Awarded Damages for Bedsores
A New York judge has awarded $2.2 million to a quadriplegic former construction worker who developed severe bedsores while recovering from a spinal cord injury. According to an attorney for the plaintiff, staff at the Westchester Medical Center failed to regularly turn the patient during his stay at the hospital. The bedsores had to be [...]
posted on April 20, 2010 by
Judge Dismisses Suit in Death of Musician
A federal judge in Los Angeles recently dismissed without prejudice an eight-year-long wrongful death lawsuit filed against the city over the fatal shooting of former rapper Christopher Wallace, also known as the Notorious B.I.G. In the lawsuit, Wallace’s mother accused the Los Angeles police department of conspiracy and attempting to cover up their involvement in [...]
posted on April 16, 2010 by
Suit Filed Against Cop Who Allegedly Caused Wreck
A Mississippi judge has approved a lawsuit filed by a woman who claims she was severely injured when the car she was riding in was hit by a police officer who ran a red light without his lights on siren on. The city of Jackson, Miss., attempted to have the lawsuit thrown out, claiming that [...]
posted on April 6, 2010 by
Supreme Court Allows Suit Against San Carlos PD
The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld a ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that will allow a former California resident to file a lawsuit against the city of San Carlos and two police officers. According to the lawsuit, the officers wrongly broke into the home of Bruce Hopkins and arrested him after [...]
posted on April 1, 2010 by
The New Jersey Supreme Court has ruled that a home healthcare company had no right to access e-mails sent from former employer to her attorney. In a unanimous ruling, the high court upheld an appellate decision that the Loving Care Agency had no need to read communications sent on company laptop from a password-protected Yahoo [...]
posted on March 31, 2010 by
Whistle-Blower Suits Take Hit From Supreme Court
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled 7-2 to further restrict the grounds on which whistle-blower lawsuits can be brought on behalf of the U.S. government. The ruling revolved around a portion of the False Claims Act, which allows ordinary citizens to help the government uncover and fight fraudulent contracts. One portion of the law [...]
posted on March 26, 2010 by
Judge Awards Damages in Wrongful Death Lawsuit
An Ohio judge has awarded $2.8 million in a wrongful death lawsuit to the family of a high school student who was murdered in July 2007. Jacob Feichtner and two others were shot and killed by former Cleveland firefighter Terrance Hough Jr. during an argument about fireworks in their neighborhood. Hough was convicted of three [...]
posted on March 24, 2010 by
Judge Orders Dialysis Firm to Repay Medicare
A U.S. District Court Judge in St. Louis has ordered Renal Care Group, a kidney dialysis company, to pay $19.4 million back to Medicare in a whistle-blower lawsuit. The suit claimed that the firm created a shell company to earn an extra 30 percent on dialysis supplies â?? money that is supposed to go only [...]
posted on March 24, 2010 by
Noneconomic Damages Cap Declared Unconstitutional by Ga. Supreme Court
The cap on noneconomic damages in Georgia was unanimously struck down by the Georgia Supreme Court, who stated in their opinion that caps are â??violative of the right to trial by jury.â? The issue was brought before the court in a case involving a woman whose face was permanently disfigured after a face-lift operation. The [...]
