appellate courts

A federal appeals court has dismissed a defamation lawsuit brought by Maine lobstermen against the Monterey Bay Aquarium. The fishermen had challenged the aquarium's criticism of the lobster industry, including its warnings about the fishery's impact on North Atlantic right whales. The ruling ends the case at the appellate level, a win for the aquarium and a blow to the industry's effort to push back on its sustainability ratings.

A federal appeals court has largely upheld an injunction blocking Clark County, Nevada from enforcing its short-term rental regulations, according to KSNV. The ruling means the county must continue to hold off on implementing rules affecting vacation rental operators while litigation proceeds. The decision carries implications for hosts, neighbors and local officials in the Las Vegas area, where short-term rentals have been a contentious regulatory issue.

The US Third Circuit Court of Appeals has vacated an order that had enforced an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission subpoena against the University of Pennsylvania. The subpoena was part of a federal probe into antisemitism at the university. The ruling is a setback for the investigation and touches on the ongoing legal battles over how universities handle antisemitism on campus.

An Ohio appellate court has dismissed the appeal of De'Lawnte Hardy, the man charged in the murder of Cleveland police officer Jamieson Ritter, rejecting his attempt to challenge the case against him. The ruling moves the high-profile prosecution forward, and local outlets are reporting the decision as a significant step in a case that has drawn wide attention in Cleveland since the officer's death.

An appeals court has reversed attempted murder convictions in a Denver case, finding that jurors received the wrong legal instruction at trial. The ruling means the defendants' convictions cannot stand as decided and the cases may return to lower courts for further proceedings. Local outlets including the Denver Gazette and Colorado Politics are covering the decision, which raises questions about how jury instructions were handled in the original trial.

Australia's High Court has overturned an appeal court decision that had set aside a rape conviction, restoring the original guilty verdict. The ruling ends a years-long legal fight over the case and reasserts the higher court's position on how such convictions should be treated on appeal. Commentators are watching the decision for its implications on how appeal courts handle serious criminal convictions.

The execution of the Fort Hood shooter, scheduled to proceed, could be challenged in federal courts, according to a New York Times report. Legal observers are weighing possible obstacles that could delay or block the military death sentence, drawing attention to the intersection of military justice and federal appellate review.

The Missouri Court of Appeals has ruled that a trial court committed error when it failed to rule on a motion to amend a petition. The decision, reported by Missouri Lawyers Media, turns on procedural obligations: trial judges must address pending motions to amend before moving a case forward, and skipping that step can require appellate review.

A court ruling in the Vilardi murders case has prompted two separate appeals, keeping the long-running criminal matter alive in the courts. The case, which stems from the killings of the Vilardi family, now moves to appellate review as both sides challenge elements of the decision. Details of the ruling and the grounds for appeal remain limited.

A New Jersey appellate court has ruled that Roselle's police chief can be terminated following an investigation into his use of a racial slur. The decision removes a legal obstacle to his firing, and the case is drawing attention locally as an example of accountability for misconduct by senior law enforcement officials.

An appeals court has dismissed a defamation lawsuit brought by Maine lobstermen, according to local reports. The ruling means the case, in which the fishermen claimed their reputations were harmed, will not move forward at the appellate level. The decision is drawing attention in Maine's fishing communities, where legal battles over the lobster industry have been closely watched in recent years.

A federal appeals court has ordered that a defamation lawsuit brought by Maine lobstermen be dismissed. The ruling ends, at least at this appellate level, an effort by fishermen to pursue damages over statements they claimed harmed their reputations. Details of the original dispute and the court's reasoning were not provided in the available reporting.

The Indiana Court of Appeals has issued a ruling in the case of Samuels v. State. Details of the decision, including which issues were decided and the outcome for the parties, have not yet been widely reported. The case is drawing attention amid ongoing interest in criminal justice and appellate decisions in Indiana.

The San Francisco Chronicle has published its editorial endorsements for California's Supreme Court and state appeals court races, framed as a series of yes-or-no recommendations on judges standing for retention. The list gives voters a guide ahead of the election, telling them which justices and appellate judges the paper believes should keep their seats and which should be voted out.

The US Department of Labor has prevailed in a circuit court appeal concerning a case involving diverted employee benefit contributions and unpaid health claims. The ruling reinforces the department's enforcement authority under ERISA to recover funds that employers diverted from benefit plans and to secure payment of owed health claims for participants.

Texas judges Andrea Plumlee and Ashley Wysocki are competing in an election for the Place 8 seat on the Fifth Court of Appeals, which hears cases from the Dallas area. Both currently serve as judges, and the race pits two sitting members of the bench against each other for the appellate post.

Adam Feldman argues that appellate win rates are a misleading measure of success in court. In a new analysis, he explains that raw win percentages ignore case selection, court composition, and the types of issues on appeal, painting a distorted picture of how effectively parties or lawyers actually perform before appellate judges.

Judges Monica Purdy and Benjamin Smith are competing in the election for Place 6 on the Dallas-based Fifth Court of Appeals, a key intermediate appellate court in Texas. The contest between two sitting judges has drawn attention as voters weigh which candidate will shape appellate rulings in the Dallas region.

A federal appeals court has thrown out a prior ruling in the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's lawsuit against the University of Pennsylvania. The decision resets the long-running case between the federal anti-discrimination agency and the university, though details of the appellate court's reasoning were not immediately available.

An appeals court has heard arguments in an election case involving Clark and Stanley. The dispute, previously reported by local outlets, centers on the outcome or conduct of an election and has now moved to the appellate level. Details of the arguments and a timeline for a ruling have not been made available.

California's appellate court justices are up for retention, a process in which voters decide whether sitting judges keep their seats. The Santa Barbara Independent has drawn attention to the election, explaining how retention votes work and why appellate judges, typically confirmed with little public scrutiny, end up on the ballot at all.

An appellate panel has partly reversed a lower court's punitive damages ruling in an insurance coverage lawsuit that arose from an incident involving hate mail. The decision narrows the damages exposure in the dispute, though details of the parties and the underlying claims remain limited. The ruling is being watched in insurance coverage circles for its implications on punitive damages in similar cases.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis praised an appellate court decision striking down a grand jury report connected to the Hope Florida program, his signature welfare initiative that has faced scrutiny. The ruling removes a critical report from the public record for now, and DeSantis framed it as vindication. Critics of the program and its handling of federal funds are expected to keep pressing the issue.

The Arkansas Court of Appeals has struck down a portion of the state's whistleblower protection law, according to the Arkansas Times. The ruling limits protections previously available to state employees who report wrongdoing. Legal observers and state workers are watching closely, as the decision could affect how public employees in Arkansas raise concerns about misconduct without facing retaliation.

A US appeals court has issued the first appellate ruling on whether training AI on copyrighted material qualifies as fair use, deciding against legal research firm Ross Intelligence. Despite the ruling against Ross, parties on multiple sides of the AI copyright debate quickly claimed the decision supported their position, prompting legal commentators to caution that the court's reasoning was narrower than many assumed.

New York's Appellate Division, Third Department has ruled that a juror was improperly struck based on 'broken English,' ordering a new trial. The appellate court found that removing a prospective juror on language grounds raised discrimination concerns, prompting a retrial in the underlying case. Legal observers are weighing the decision's implications for jury selection practices and how attorneys may question prospective jurors about language proficiency without crossing discriminatory lines.

An Illinois appellate court has limited the reach of Covid-era immunity defenses, reviving claims brought against a nurse. The decision narrows the legal protections that shielded healthcare workers and institutions from liability during the pandemic, allowing the underlying case to move forward. The ruling is being watched for its potential impact on other pandemic-related lawsuits still pending in Illinois courts.

A New York appeals court has rejected Syracuse's attempt to overturn the tax exemption on Syracuse University's Schine Student Center, upholding the property tax break the city had sought to strike down. The ruling means the university keeps the exemption, while the city's efforts to collect taxes on the student center fail at the appellate level.

A Virginia trial court has been found to have wrongly classified certain assets as marital property in a domestic relations case. The ruling, reported by Virginia Lawyers Weekly, signals that the higher court determined the lower court's asset classification was in error. Lawyers are likely watching the decision for guidance on how courts should distinguish marital from separate property in divorce proceedings.

The Florida Supreme Court has named a panel to oversee the courthouse project for the state's Sixth District Court of Appeal, which was created by the legislature in 2022. The committee is expected to help guide planning and construction of the new appellate courthouse, a key step in getting Florida's newest appellate court fully operational.