In Bond v. McLaughlin, 2017 WL 728176, — So.3d — (Ala. 2017), the Alabama Supreme Court reversed summary judgment for an attorney in a legal malpractice action, finding a question of fact as to whether plaintiff could prove her “case within a case.” In an Alabama legal malpractice action, the plaintiff must prove that the…
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In Golden Nugget Lake Charles, LLC v. W.G. Yates & Sons Constr. Co., No. 16-30496, 2017 WL 892407 (5th Cir. Mar. 6, 2017), the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals determined the 60-day period for general contractors to file a lien against a project owner’s property under Louisiana Private Works Act § 9:4822(B) does not begin…
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In SEC v. Levin, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit (“Eleventh Circuit”) held that the safe harbor provision of Regulation D’s Rule 508(a) is available to a defendant in a Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) enforcement action based on a failure to register securities under Section 5 of the Securities Act….
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The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has ruled CERCLA’s discovery rule applies to toll West Virginia’s statutes of limitations only where the plaintiff has a viable CERCLA claim. Blankenship v. Consolidation Coal Company, et al., No. 15-2480 & 2482 (4th Cir., March 7, 2017). Section 9658 of CERCLA establishes a “federally…
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A recent decision issued by the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals provides support for employers seeking to avoid broad and seemingly irrelevant Requests for Information by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”). While an employer’s response to Requests for Information is usually an avenue to support its defenses, in the rare instance of overreaching or…
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In Levinson Alcoser Associates, L.P. v. El Pistolón II, LTD., No. 15-0232, 2017 WL 727269 (Tex. Feb. 24, 2017), the Supreme Court of Texas held Texas’s recently amended Certificate of Merit statute requires a plaintiff to accompany his complaint not only with a sworn Certificate of Merit from an expert stating the claim has merit,…
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Last week, the District of Oregon became the latest court to rule on the pollution exclusion that appears in almost every general liability policy. The court in Colony Insurance Company v. Victory Construction LLC, 2017 WL 960024 (D. Or. Mar. 9, 2017), concluded Colony had no duty to defend or indemnify its insureds for two…
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In Ex parte Tenax Corp., the Alabama Supreme Court reaffirmed that the exclusive-remedy provisions of the Alabama Workers’ Compensation Act, § 25–5–1 et seq., Ala. Code 1975 can provide immunity from tort claims filed by workers’ provided to an employer through a staffing agency. In July 2014, John Dees submitted an application with Onin Staffing,…
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The Southern District of Texas has issued its latest ruling in U.S. Metals, Inc. v. Liberty Insurance Corp., 2017 WL 830398 (S.D. Tex. Feb. 27, 2017), a complex and longstanding coverage litigation concerning the interpretation of the “your product” and “impaired property” exclusions. U.S. Metals sold Exxon 350 flanges used to remove sulphur from diesel…
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FINRA released its Regulatory and Examination Priorities Letter for 2017. The letter provides information about areas FINRA plans to review in its 2017 exams based on observations from their regulatory programs, as well as input from various stakeholders, including broker dealers, other regulators and investor advocates. According to its letter, FINRA will be increasing its…
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