A West Virginia federal judge rejected a proposed $151 million deal reached by American Water Works and Eastman Chemical that would have settled class claims arising from a 2014 coal-processing chemical spill, but indicated the agreement is salvageable. Good et al. v. American Water Works Co. Inc. et al., Case No. 2:14-cv-01374, (S.D. W. Va., July…
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In Curtis v. Miss. Board For Architects, Prof. Engineers, Prof. Land Surveyors, and Prof. Landscape Architects, No. WD 80174, 2017 WL 2241516 (Mo. Ct. App. May 23, 2017), the Missouri Court of Appeals affirmed the Missouri Board of Architects, Professional Engineers, Professional Land Surveyors, and Professional Landscape Architects’ (the “Board”) disciplinary order against an architect…
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In Kennedy v. Hall, No. 16-60569, 2017 WL 664041, at *1 (5th Cir. Feb. 17, 2017), the Fifth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for a Mississippi attorney and his law firm in a legal malpractice action applying the “case-within-a-case” doctrine. Mississippi law requires the plaintiff in a malpractice action to prove by a preponderance of the…
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In Melden & Hunt, Inc. v. East Rio Hondo Water Supply Corporation, No. 16-0078, 2017 WL 2492006 (Tex. June 9, 2017), East Rio Hondo Water Supply Corp. contracted with Melden & Hunt, Inc. to provide engineering-design and project-supervision services for a new water-treatment plant in San Benito, Texas. Following substantial completion of the project, East…
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A recent decision issued by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that an employer may defend a claim under the Equal Pay Act by proving that its pay structure was based on employees’ prior salaries, so long as this structure was reasonable and effectuated a business policy. This decision parts ways with other Circuits…
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Our firm recently obtained an award from a FINRA panel denying all of Claimant’s claims and finding for Respondents. The panel also granted our Motion for Expungement. The claim (Arbitration number 16-03568) was filed in December, 2016. Claimant alleged claims of breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract, failure to supervise, violation of the Alabama…
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A New York Appellate Court has ruled a hazardous materials exclusion did not relieve an insurer of its obligation to defend a recycling plant operator from claims the Plant is spreading a foul odor. Hillcrest Coatings, Inc. v. Colony Ins. Co., 2017 NY App. Div. LEXIS 4519 (NY 4th Dept. June 9, 2017). The five-judge…
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In Anderson v. Taylor Morrison of Florida, Inc., No. 2D16-314, 2017 WL 2374404 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. May 31, 2017), the Second District Court of Appeal of Florida held an arbitration provision in a homeowner’s sales agreement was void as against public policy because it limited the homeowner’s statutory remedies. In April 2009, Reginald and…
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The Massachusetts Supreme Court recently issued the most comprehensive opinion to date addressing whether an insurer’s duty to defend extends to counterclaims asserted by the insured. The court in Mount Vernon Fire Ins. Co. v. VisionAid,Inc., SJC-12142 (Mass. 2017), held that where an insurance policy provides that the insurer has the “duty to defend any…
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On January 17, 2017, the IRS issued a Guidance Notice classifying syndicated conservation easement transactions as “Listed Transactions,” or presumed tax shelters. A conservation easement is an agreement between a landowner or investor, and a land trust or government agency that permanently limits development of the land with the aim of conservation. The restrictions are…
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