Four years ago, the Supreme Court declined a federal habeas petitioner’s request to review the Sixth Circuit’s decision in Avery v. United States, 770 F. App’x 741. Justice Kavanaugh, the Sixth Circuit’s assigned circuit justice, attached a “statement” to the Supreme Court’s cert. denial to highlight a circuit split that Avery implicated and to note … Continue Reading
In our prior post, we noted that the Sixth Circuit seldom grants motions to certify questions of state law. And even though the circuit grants less than 20% of such motions, the questions still have to be accepted by the state supreme court. But the certification process is often a rough road. No recent case … Continue Reading
Nearly every state allows federal courts to certify questions of state law to obtain definitive answers from state supreme courts on unsettled issues of state law. The United States Supreme Court has explained that certifications “saves time, energy, and resources and helps build a cooperative judicial federalism.” All states, except North Carolina, have rules or … Continue Reading
Last Friday, the Sixth Circuit declined to expand the rights of Kentucky counties to seek enforcement of a Kentucky statute. In an unpublished opinion, Boyd County v. MERSCORP, Inc., the Sixth Circuit upheld the district court’s decision to dismiss a lawsuit brought by forty-one Kentucky counties as a class action lawsuit against Mortgage Electronic Registration … Continue Reading
