A recent decision in the Birmingham County Court has added to the body of case law growing around the test for listing multiple claimants on the same claim form. In Angel and others v Black Horse Limited, unreported, 8...more
In December 2022, the Alberta legislature passed a bill allowing for an increase to the limit on civil claims in the Alberta Court of Justice (formerly, the Provincial Court of Alberta and sometimes referred to as "small...more
This is an update to our February 2023 Blakes Bulletin: Provincial Court of Alberta: New Year, New Maximum Claims Limit? regarding the passing of Bill 5 by the Alberta Legislature on December 15, 2022. The Alberta...more
Thanks to Bill 5, recently passed by the Alberta Legislature, the maximum amount for a Provincial Court of Alberta (Court) civil claim could significantly increase from C$50,000 to C$200,000. Currently, the maximum...more
Four months ago, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed the Adult Survivors Act (ASA) (S.66A/A.648A), creating a one-year window, beginning November 24, 2022, for adult survivors of sexual assault to bring civil claims against...more
Do Not Forget about State “RICO” Laws - In Part I of this series Defending RICO Claims in the Business Context, we described why a plan to defend against potential claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt...more
Since the creation of the State of West Virginia, the West Virginia Supreme Court has provided the only review of the decisions of the trial courts and administrative agencies. That meant that the West Virginia Supreme Court...more
Washington State’s “Silenced No More Act”—one of the nation’s strictest prohibitions against nondisclosure and nondisparagement agreements—went into effect on June 9, 2022. ...more
Dear YouDig?, We just went through a ridiculous three-year odyssey with our commercial plumbing contractor on a 250 unit housing development. Plumber failed in designing its work, installing its work and, even when asked...more
On May 24, 2022, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul signed the Adult Survivors Act (“ASA”), which creates a one-year lookback window, beginning on November 24, 2022, for the revival of otherwise time-barred civil claims...more
In what is known as a “snap” removal, a non-resident defendant may be able to remove a state court case to federal court based on diversity jurisdiction, despite resident defendant(s) being named in the suit. To effect a snap...more
On March 3, 2021, the German Federal Cabinet adopted an act on corporate due diligence obligations in supply chains (“Due Diligence Act”; sometimes also referred to as “Supply Chain Act”) (“Government Draft”). The Government...more
Your next-door neighbor has a bone to pick with you. Maybe he thinks you have encroached onto his property. Maybe he is mad about a fence you put up on the property line. Maybe he just isn’t in a good mood. Whatever the...more
COVID-19 litigation has begun across the nation, prompting concerns about liability exposure for colleges and universities. Although the federal SAFE TO WORK Act, which was introduced in the Senate on July 27, 2020, would...more
Q: What should I expect if a civil lawsuit has been filed against me? A: The litigation process can be a lengthy affair. Usually a trial is scheduled a year or more after the petition was filed....more
It is not uncommon for various government agencies and offices to investigate the same company, particularly following a major scandal. We have grown accustomed to seeing simultaneous investigations by the U.S. Department of...more
In law school, the correct answer to in-class queries was frequently “it depends.” In law, often there is no black or white, right or wrong – it all depends on the facts and the analysis of the law. This dynamic also applies...more
Relief from the burdens and threat of litigation from plaintiffs’ attorneys under the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act (MMPA) will take effect on August 28, 2020. The MMPA, set out in Chapter 407RSMo., is intended to...more
In Peters v. NantKwest, Inc., the Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision written by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, held that the “all expenses of the proceedings” provision of a 35 U.S.C. § 145 civil appeal does not include the...more
It doesn’t take long for those who read judicial opinions to come across an unsigned, “per curiam” decision. Many decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court, federal circuit courts, and our state Supreme Court are short-ish...more
Chicago’s City Council has passed an ordinance to protect employees from retaliation by their employers if they obey public health orders or orders of a healthcare provider to stay at home because of the COVID-19 pandemic....more
On Thursday, May 7, the American Board of Trial Advocates sponsored a discussion with the presiding judges from five Bay Area counties: San Francisco, San Mateo, Contra Costa, Alameda, and Santa Clara. The panel addressed the...more
For defendants in civil cases, securing the right to litigate in a federal court is getting easier in some jurisdictions – even when a case was initially filed in a state court in your home state. But it's critically...more
A recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit demonstrates that courts will carefully scrutinize whether civil RICO plaintiffs have satisfied the statute’s complex (and stringent) pleading...more
On December 11, 2019, the Supreme Court of the United States upheld the long-standing presumption that parties are responsible for their own attorney’s fees—holding that the “[a]ll expenses of the proceedings” provision of...more