Leaders of Oregon’s Multnomah County have filed a lawsuit against 17 Oil and gas companies including Exxon Mobil, Shell, Chevron, BP, and other leading players. The county is the most populated in the state, is home to landmark destination Portland, and is known for having mild but rainy weather. After... Read More »
The California Supreme Court ruled that police officers can be liable in civil court for misconduct that occurs during an investigation. The decision significantly broadens liability for law enforcement, rolling back years of decisions protecting the police from litigation. The case concerned the conduct of several sheriff’s deputies in Riverside... Read More »
The California Highway Patrol has agreed to pay $7 million to end a federal wrongful death lawsuit filed after a Sacramento man was shot to death by a CHP officer. The settlement came two months before the case was set to go to trial. Thirty-one-year-old Daniel Shaham was killed on... Read More »
A small group of Detroit parents are planning to file a lawsuit against the Detroit Public Community School District after they say school leaders at Moses Field Elementary School physically and verbally abused students while attempting to cover up their actions. The elementary school serves children with disabilities, and the... Read More »
A former student at Whitworth University in Spokane, Washington, has filed a lawsuit against the university after becoming the target of a ransomware attack discovered in July 2022. The lawsuit was filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Spokane and accuses the university of negligence after hackers were able to... Read More »
In the wake of concerns about the lack of oversight about the ethics of some of its member-lawyers, the State Bar of California submitted a change to its Rules of Professional Conduct last year, which the California Supreme Court approved with minor changes on June 21. The new rule puts... Read More »
On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the conviction of a federal prisoner despite subsequent changes in the law rendering his conviction invalid. The ruling prevents inmates from seeking federal review of a conviction, even an unlawful conviction, if they already sought federal relief in the past. In 2000, Marcus... Read More »
Three construction workers were injured recently in a fire on a Bronx construction site which had been the subject of numerous safety violations. The recent fire is another data point in the country’s growing construction fire problem. The fire in question occurred while the three workers were conducting waterproofing. The... Read More »
John Eastman, one of ex-President Donald Trump’s attorneys and the man accused of designing the legal strategy that sought to keep Trump in power after he lost the 2020 election, is currently embroiled in a disbarment hearing that could result in him losing his license to practice law in California. ... Read More »
A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit that pushed to reverse a Tennessee law prohibiting transgender individuals from changing the sex listed on their birth certificate. When the lawsuit was filed, Tennessee was one of only three states with such laws. The other states included Kansas and Ohio, both of which... Read More »
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently issued a report on the state of discrimination and harassment in the construction industry. The report paints a stark picture of race- and gender-based discrimination and harassment on construction sites nationwide. Drawing on evidence presented at a May 2022 hearing, academic research,... Read More »
Striving to protect both its workers and the public they serve, the City of Los Angeles issued a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for all its 100,000 employees in October 2021. Not everyone was happy about the mandate, and one non-profit organization called ”Firefighters4Freedom” (F4F) sued the City, arguing that getting vaccinated... Read More »
The search for the missing OceanGate submersible which gripped the nation over the past week ended in tragedy when it was confirmed that the vehicle imploded roughly two hours after its descent to view the Titanic, killing all five crew members onboard. As questions and criticism continue to arise regarding... Read More »
The U.S. Supreme Court recently upheld a lower court decision prohibiting race-based gerrymandering. In a surprise 5-4 decision, the Court narrowly avoided a complete gutting of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Two of the Court’s conservative members, Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh, joined the liberal-leaning justices to... Read More »
The U.S. Supreme Court declined the opportunity to review California’s test for determining whether a worker should be classified as an “employee” or as an “independent contractor.” The denial of certiorari comes as the National Labor Relations Board issues its own more stringent test for classifying workers. Originally signed into... Read More »
