The Sixth Circuit just held that Michigan’s talk-therapy ban infringes free speech. Pending at the Supreme Court is the constitutionality of Colorado’s equivalent law. That case, Chiles v. Salazar, was argued in October. And the Sixth Circuit panel could fairly foreshadow the justices’ upcoming decision. Judge Kethledge and Judge Larsen formed the majority with Judge … Continue Reading
It is not every day that sitting judges give lawyers specific instruction on how to write their briefs. Judge Kethledge wrote a helpful primer about effective writing a while back. This week, Chief Judge Pryor and Judge Newsom from the Eleventh Circuit offer their own nugget of free advice: Begin briefs with an introduction. We … Continue Reading
The Sixth Circuit’s recent decision in Estate of Donovan L. Lewis v. City of Columbus sheds light on important issues relating to the collateral order doctrine and third parties’ rights to intervene. The underlying merits of the case involve a Monell claim under Section 1983 that the Columbus police department maintains policies and customs of … Continue Reading
Our post a few weeks ago discussed the subject matters more likely to attract en banc review, and this post will talk about the effect of panel composition on en banc review. The chief reason to worry about who is on your panel is because they will be deciding your case. The federal courts of … Continue Reading
“Let’s Go Brandon” was the message on the sweatshirts two siblings wore to middle school. Everyone knows what that phrase means – including their teachers, so the school required the boys to change clothes. That left their mother unhappy; she sued the school for silencing her kids. This week, a divided Sixth Circuit panel sided … Continue Reading
Check out this post from our sister blog on an important employment decision: Sixth Circuit Extends Family Member Relationships Covered By Family and Medical Leave Act (US) | Employment Law Worldview… Continue Reading
The Supreme Court issued three opinions today, including an important decision on whether omissions in SEC filings are actionable, and a decision that the Takings Clause does not distinguish between legislative and administrative land-use permit conditions (and that relies on Judge Murphy’s recent Takings Clause decision). But no decision yet on the highly-anticipated blockbuster cases … Continue Reading
The Sixth Circuit yesterday in a per curiam opinion (paneled by Judges Boggs, Thapar, and Readler) accepted interlocutory appeal of and vacated a class certification order from the Eastern District of Michigan. The case is In re: Ford Motor Company, Case No. 22-0109 (6th Cir.). The Court’s opinion served to remind district courts that they … Continue Reading
The Sixth Circuit issued a notable decision two days ago in one of the higher-profile appeals pending before it. The Panel’s opinion was written by Judge Griffin and joined by Judge Batchelder and Judge Bloomekatz. In its decision, the Court took the uncommon step of sua sponte certifying a question of state law (here, Ohio … Continue Reading
In Knight v. Metro. Gov’t of Nashville and Davidson County (No. 21-6179), the Sixth Circuit decided a longstanding question about the standard that applies to conditions imposed by a legislature on those applying for building permits. The issue is common enough: a city wants more sidewalks to improve safety, health, and traffic. So the city … Continue Reading
Who was the first Sixth Circuit judge to use the (cleaned up) parenthetical in a judicial opinion? What is the current status of (cleaned up) in the Sixth Circuit? Which judges use it regularly, which judges never use it, and which judges use it sparingly? This post attempts to provide some answers to these questions. … Continue Reading
Readers of this blog may be interested in an event that the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky chapter of the Federal Bar Association is hosting on Tuesday, December 6th from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. at the Taft Center in Cincinnati (425 Walnut St., 2nd floor of U.S. Bank building). The event will feature a panel consisting of Benjamin … Continue Reading
The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued an opinion in Marietta Memorial Hospital Employee Health Benefit Plan v. DaVita Inc., which reversed the Sixth Circuit’s October 2020 decision finding that DaVita Inc. plausibly asserted a claim against an Ohio hospital’s health plan for unlawfully discriminating against patients with end-stage renal disease by offering low reimbursement rates … Continue Reading
Today, President Biden nominated Columbus, Ohio appellate litigator Rachel Bloomekatz to the Sixth Circuit as part of his eighteenth round of judicial nominees, which would fill the seat vacated by Judge R. Guy Cole Jr. Judge Cole announced in December his intention to take senior status. Rachel Bloomekatz is currently a solo practitioner at Bloomekatz … Continue Reading
The Sixth Circuit issued a very interesting decision three days ago in Arizona v. Biden (22-3272). The origins of the dispute go back to last fall when the Secretary of Homeland Security issued “Guidelines for the Enforcement of Civil Immigration Law.” The Guidance notes the Department lacks the resources to apprehend and remove the roughly … Continue Reading
The saga of the OSHA ETS litigation has (nearly) come to an end. Yesterday, the DOJ filed a motion in the Sixth Circuit to dismiss as moot all of the consolidated petitions challenging OSHA’s vaccine-or-test mandate. The DOJ informed the Sixth Circuit that, “[a]fter evaluating the [Supreme] Court’s decision, OSHA decided to withdraw the Vaccination … Continue Reading
Today, the Sixth Circuit will consider another governmental mandate–this one, a tax mandate–as it hears argument (by video) in a case that pits Ohio once more against the federal government. The case is Ohio v. Yellen, No. 21-3787. The panel consists of Judges Griffin, Donald, and Bush. Argument is expected to start around 9:30. You … Continue Reading
When a panel of the Sixth Circuit denied rehearing in a criminal case last month, Judge Moore issued a separate opinion, joined by Judge White, that highlights an important point for appellate advocacy. That is, regardless of how common some knowledge may be to the litigants at the trial level, the judges on appeal know … Continue Reading
In another of the many strands of the Flint water cases, a Sixth Circuit panel (Moore, White, JJ., Sutton, J. concurring) on August 5 reaffirmed its May 2020 decision in Waid vs. Snynder that plaintiffs plausibly alleged the City of Flint and City and State officials (including former Governor Rick Snyder) violated plaintiffs’ substantive due … Continue Reading
Last night Chief Judge Cole announced a one-year delay in the Sixth Circuit Judicial Conference, which had been scheduled for June 2020. Rumor had it that our own Ben Glassman was to participate, so now fans of Ben and Simone Biles alike will all have to set their sights to 2021. Full statement below. Stay … Continue Reading
The Administrative Office of the Courts now maintains a single page with links to courthouse and filing notices for all federal courts. You can find the page and its updates here. No new news from the Sixth Circuit since the March 16 notice we published last week. Many thanks for the hard work of keeping … Continue Reading
Squire Patton Boggs is excited to welcome Ben Glassman back to the firm as a partner in the Cincinnati and Columbus offices. As recently reported in the Cincinnati Enquirer, Ben joins after serving as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio from 2016 to 2019. At least as important for readers of the … Continue Reading
The Sixth Circuit has joined other circuits in unanimously holding that HIPAA creates no private right of action. That was the easy part. The panel divided 2-1 in ruling that a Tennessee statute likewise provides no remedy for patients allegedly overcharged by Ciox, a medical-records company. But Faber v. Ciox Health wasn’t a complete blowout: … Continue Reading
Six Ohio cities represented by Tom Goldstein filed a petition at the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals opposing Judge Polster’s certification of the negotiation class in the opioid MDL. The cities’ petition urges the Sixth Circuit to immediately review the certification of the negotiation class now rather than on appeal—lest they risk wasting the time and … Continue Reading
