Last week, we explored where the Ninth Circuit’s many visiting judges call home. This week, we investigate a slightly different subject: which president appointed those visiting judges? Some court watchers have suggested that...more
Last week, we noted that the Ninth Circuit’s visiting judges together perform the work of roughly 6 additional Ninth Circuit judges. But who, exactly, secures an invite to help serve as these supplemental members of the Ninth...more
This week, we take a look at two decisions tackling novel procedural issues. In the first, the Court strictly applied the amount-in-controversy requirement of the Class Action Fairness Act, faulting a defendant for not...more
11/20/2020
/ Affirmative Defenses ,
Amount in Controversy ,
Breach of Contract ,
CAFA ,
Calculation of Damages ,
Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employment Litigation ,
Motion to Remand ,
Remand ,
Sua Sponte ,
Summary Judgment
Ninth Circuit appeals are not always decided by Ninth Circuit judges. Because of the Court’s nation-leading workload, the Ninth Circuit regularly relies on visiting judges to fill out the panels that hear and resolve cases....more
This week, we examine one Ninth Circuit decision holding that a debt-collector cannot insulate itself from liability under the Federal Debt Collection Practice Act by contractually obligating its clients to provide it with...more
This week, the Ninth Circuit examines how the loss-causation requirement of a securities-fraud claim may be satisfied in cases involving FOIA disclosures, and considers the application of Younger v. Harris to a State...more
11/6/2020
/ Bristol-Myers Squibb ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Statements ,
First Amendment ,
FOIA ,
Loss Causation ,
Public Information ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Scienter ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Stock Drop Litigation
This week, the Court knocks down a party’s argument that it was “de facto debarred” from exporting activities under the Arms Export Control Act, and explains what exactly triggers the statute of limitations in Wiretap Act...more
10/30/2020
/ Appeals ,
Appellate Courts ,
Arms Export Control Act ,
Audio Recording ,
Cause of Action Accrual ,
Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) ,
Exports ,
Licensing Rules ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Reaffirmation ,
Remand ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Wiretap Act
This week, we examine two decisions confronting novel procedural issues. In the first, the Ninth Circuit sought to promote development of the law by encouraging courts to alter how they address claims under the Fair Credit...more
10/23/2020
/ Appeals ,
Beneficiaries ,
Credit Reports ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Medical Devices ,
Medicare ,
Proxies ,
Reaffirmation ,
Reimbursements ,
Statutory Damages ,
Statutory Violations ,
Suppliers
This week, we take a look at Ninth Circuit cases holding a ban on mobile billboards subject to strict scrutiny given the vehicles exempted from its scope, and addressing the standards governing summary judgment and discovery...more
This week, we examine a Ninth Circuit decision addressing whether a plaintiff pursuing a Lanham Act counterfeiting claim must demonstrate that consumers were likely to be confused (the answer: yes), and another resolving the...more
This week at This Week, we take a look at two cases that divided the panels deciding them. In the first, the Ninth Circuit (splitting from the Fourth) held an arbitration clause the plaintiff had signed with a third party to...more
This week, we examine one Ninth Circuit decision exploring the extent to which the deprivation of information and statutorily-conferred powers can satisfy Article III’s injury-in-fact requirement, and a second declining to...more
9/20/2020
/ Appeals ,
Appellate Courts ,
Article III ,
Board of Directors ,
Confidentiality Policies ,
Corporate Executives ,
Dismissals ,
First Amendment ,
Health Care Providers ,
Injury-in-Fact ,
Janus v AFSCME ,
Non-Union ,
Reaffirmation ,
Reversal ,
Special Committees ,
State Action Doctrine ,
Tribal Corporations ,
Union Dues
This week, we highlight Ninth Circuit decisions denying copyright protection to assertions of fact (even if those facts were made up), and deepening a slight Circuit split on the Americans with Disabilites Act's...more
9/15/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Appeals ,
Appellate Courts ,
Authors ,
Burden-Shifting ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Disability Access Claims ,
Fair Use ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Judgment As A Matter Of Law ,
Public Accommodation ,
Screenplays ,
Split of Authority ,
Summary Judgment ,
Theater Productions
This week, the Ninth Circuit explains when courts have personal jurisdiction over foreigners who contract with U.S.-based businesses, and whether severe pain can qualify as a disability under the Longshore and Harbor Workers’...more
9/5/2020
/ Administrative Appeals ,
Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Appeals ,
Appellate Courts ,
Denial of Benefits ,
Disability ,
Disability Benefits ,
Foreign Defendants ,
Forum Non Conveniens ,
LHWCA ,
Longshoremen ,
Minimum Contacts ,
Mootness ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Non-US Entities ,
Pain Management ,
Personal Jurisdiction ,
Popular ,
Remand ,
Reversal ,
Workers' Compensation Claim
In the past two weeks, we’ve examined which judges tend to agree and disagree with one another when on the same en banc panel, and which of those judges tend to end up in dissent. This week, we look at whether the views of...more
This week, this Ninth Circuit once again issued a number of opinions arising from the employment relationship. Here, we focus on two of particular interest. In the first, the Court sought to unravel whether an emergency room...more
8/21/2020
/ Administrative Proceedings ,
Appeals ,
Appellate Courts ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Breach of Duty ,
Denial of Benefits ,
Dismissals ,
Duty of Loyalty ,
Duty of Prudence ,
Emergency Rooms ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Equitable Relief ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Independent Contractors ,
IRA Rollovers ,
Long Term Disability Insurance ,
Mandatory Requirements ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Pensions ,
Physicians ,
Reaffirmation ,
Title VII
Last week, we continued our look at Ninth Circuit en bancs by examining which judges were most and least likely to dissent in the 60 en banc cases submitted and decided since December 2014.* This week, we look at cases...more
This week, we take a look at two Ninth Circuit decisions concerning the employer-employee relationship. In the first, the Court let the lawsuit against the NFL for its negligent handling of drug distribution to its injured...more
8/14/2020
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Agency Deference ,
Appeals ,
Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA) ,
Controlled Substances ,
Dismissals ,
Dissenting Opinions ,
Employer Contributions ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Failure To State A Claim ,
Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA) ,
Negligence ,
Negligence Per Se ,
NFL ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Pain Management ,
Partial Reversal ,
Pension Plan Amendments ,
Pensions ,
Petition for Review ,
Pleading Standards ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Remand ,
Sports ,
Standard of Review ,
Substantial Evidence Standard ,
Unilateral Modification
Last week, we began our look at the Ninth Circuit en bancs by examining which judges were most and least likely to be selected to en banc panels. This week, we address what these judges decide when selected: who tends to be...more
En banc proceedings are a central feature of the Ninth Circuit, which regularly revisits its panel decisions. Ninth Circuit en bancs come with a special twist: the uncertainty of which judges will hear the case. Given the...more
A federal district court found that the new California law barring mandatory employment arbitration agreements is preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA). The court granted the challengers’ motion for preliminary...more
2/18/2020
/ Arbitration Agreements ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Preemption ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
State Attorneys General ,
State Bans ,
State Labor Laws ,
Trial Court Orders ,
TRO