Justices

Justices Tuning in to Cable Television Civil Rights Lawsuit

But while many distributors carry Allen’s channels, two cable giants have refused. But Comcast and Charter Communications, the nation’s two largest cable providers, have passed on carrying Allen’s channels. So do the now-merged AT&T and DirecTV after Allen sued them and they settled. Comcast has noted that Allen originally sued Comcast but also civil rights groups including the NAACP and …


Supreme Court Justices Tuning in to Cable Television Civil Rights Lawsuit

But while many distributors carry Allen’s channels, two cable giants have refused. An appeals court has let his lawsuits go forward, but now the Supreme Court will weigh in and could deliver a setback. A trial court dismissed Allen’s suit three times before an appeals court, according to Comcast, wrongly let it go forward . READ MORE: Black woman uses 153-year old civil rights law to sue PNC …


Utah Supreme Court Considers Lawsuit Over Shooting of ‘Geist’ the Dog

The state’s top court is wading into the controversy surrounding the shooting of “Geist” the dog. In arguments Monday, the Utah Supreme Court considered whether Sean Kendall should be required to post a bond before he proceeds with a $2 million lawsuit against Salt Lake City police who shot his dog. At issue is a unique Utah law that requires a bond if a person tries to sue a cop.


Border-Shooting Lawsuit May Divide U.S. Supreme Court Justices

U.S. Supreme Court justices indicated they are divided in a case over a shooting across the Mexican border, hinting they may split 4-4 and leave high court nominee Neil Gorsuch to cast the deciding vote. Hearing arguments in Washington, the justices weighed an appeal from the parents of Sergio Hernandez, a Mexican teenager who was shot to death by a U.S. Border Patrol agent in 2010. The family …


US Supreme Court Considers Lawsuit Over 2001 Detention of Muslims

Washington: Ahmer Abbasi speaks softly as he describes the strip searches, the extra shoves, the curses that he endured in a federal jail in Brooklyn following the 11 September attacks. “I don’t think I deserved it,” Abbasi said during a telephone interview with The Associated Press from his home in Karachi, Pakistan. Abbasi’s quiet, matter-of-fact tone belies his determination, even after 15 …


Judge in Birmingham Tosses Lawsuit Against Supreme Court Justices Who Legalized Gay Marriage

A federal judge on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit filed by a Bessemer attorney against the five U.S. Supreme Court justices who made up the majority opinion legalizing gay marriage nationwide. U.S. District Court Judge Madeline Haikala tossed out the lawsuit based on judicial immunity. The U.S. 11 th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in a previous case that federal judges have judicial immunity …



Companies Forced to Rethink U.S. High Court Class Action Strategy

Lawyers for companies trying to fend off costly class action lawsuits are rethinking longstanding legal strategies after businesses lost two key U.S. Supreme Court cases as well as their staunchest supporter on the bench. At the start of the court’s term in October, the business community had reason to believe the justices would further pare back class action litigation after rulings …


Appeals Panel: Fresh Look Needed at TCPA Class Actions vs Insurers, So Don’t Only Enrich Lawyers

A panel of state appellate justices could have simply found an insurer wasn’t obligated to pay to cover a $4 million settlement reached to end a lawsuit brought by a suburban engineering firm that claimed it had received so-called “junk fax” advertisements. But the justices used the occasion to also send a message to the lawyers it says are responsible for a “proliferation” of potential junk …


U.S. Top Court Rejects Wal-Mart, Wells Fargo Class Action Appeals

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected two corporate challenges in class action cases, refusing to hear bids by Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N) and Wells Fargo & Co to throw out large judgments against them. Wal-Mart had sought to get rid of a $187 million class action judgment over the retailer’s treatment of workers in Pennsylvania.