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Appeals Posts
Court: Police Need Warrant to Search Phone. But Guess What? They Get to Keep Your Phone While They Get One.
Jun 26, 2014
Court: Police Need Warrant to Search Phone. But Guess What? They Get to Keep Your Phone While They Get One.
Will cops still get access to cell phone data post arrest? You bet. Today’s Supreme Court decision just means they need to get permission from a judge before they start searching who you have been texting. And odds are very good, that permission will be granted. In a unanimous decision authored by Chief Justice Roberts,…
Supreme Court Denies Cert. in New Jersey Sports Betting Case
Jun 23, 2014
Supreme Court Denies Cert. in New Jersey Sports Betting Case
Today, the United States Supreme Court denied New Jersey’s petition for a writ of certiorari to hear an appeal from lower court decisions that invalidated its sports wagering law. This ends a three year fight to bring sports betting to New Jersey’s casinos and racetracks, but NJ State Senator Raymond Lesniak, who has spearheaded efforts…
Supreme Court Expands Whistleblower Protection
Mar 17, 2014
Supreme Court Expands Whistleblower Protection
The U.S. Supreme Court recently held that Sarbanes–Oxley extends whistleblower protection, not just to employees of public companies, but to employees of private contractors and subcontractors that serve public companies. In a 6-3 decision, the Court rejected the First Circuit’s narrow construction of the statute in favor of the Labor Department’s more expansive interpretation. Now…
Omnicare Decision Limits the Reach of False Claims Act
Feb 28, 2014
Omnicare Decision Limits the Reach of False Claims Act
A recent decision by the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit limiting the reach of the False Claims Act demonstrates how relators who pursue cases in which the government declines to intervene can end up making law that is unfavorable to the government’s enforcement of that statute. United States ex rel. Rostholder v. Omnicare,…
Prosecutor’s Tweets May Have Been Improper but Did Not Deprive Defendant of Fair Trial
Jan 11, 2014
Prosecutor’s Tweets May Have Been Improper but Did Not Deprive Defendant of Fair Trial
Last month, the Missouri Court of Appeals published its opinion holding that criminal defendant David Polk is not entitled to a new trial. Although the prosecutor may have acted improperly by posting trial updates via Twitter, there was no evidence that her updates swayed the jury to convict Polk. The court’s decision resolves a once-cold…
Federal Government Blocks International Online Gamblers, Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes Sue
Jan 3, 2014
Federal Government Blocks International Online Gamblers, Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes Sue
The Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes have filed suit against Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell after the Department Interior blocked their effort to offer real-money online gaming to international customers. The Tribes were prepared to launch Pokertribes.com after coming to a revenue-sharing agreement with the state of Oklahoma. Pursuant to the terms of the agreement,…
Court Dismisses Loss Recovery Case, in Big Win For Fantasy Sports Industry
Oct 9, 2013
Court Dismisses Loss Recovery Case, in Big Win For Fantasy Sports Industry
Today, in a closely watched case in Illinois, a federal court dismissed a lawsuit brought under the Illinois Loss Recovery Act (ILRA) against daily fantasy sports site FanDuel, Inc. and daily fantasy sports player Patrick Kaiser, finding that the plaintiff lacked subject matter jurisdiction to bring the suit. This is one of several lawsuits that…
Appeals Court: Forced Rectal Search of Suspect Violates Fourth Amendment Law
Oct 8, 2013
Appeals Court: Forced Rectal Search of Suspect Violates Fourth Amendment Law
In a recent opinion, the US Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit addressed whether it was constitutionally reasonable for police to use a doctor – in this case, a doctor “who is known to conduct unconsented intrusive procedures when suspects are presented by the police” – to forcibly recover drugs from a man’s rectum….
Did Florida Accidentally Outlaw All Smartphones?
Aug 8, 2013
Did Florida Accidentally Outlaw All Smartphones?
A lawsuit recently filed by Incredible Investments, LLC, owned by entrepreneur Consuelo Zapata, alleges that the language in a recently enacted Florida law that was intended to shut down Internet cafes and slot machines has actually outlawed all mobile devices that are capable of accessing the Internet. The complaint, which seeks to have the new…
Full Tilt Poker Remission Process for Players Expected to Begin ‘Shortly,’ and on Favorable Terms
Aug 2, 2013
Full Tilt Poker Remission Process for Players Expected to Begin ‘Shortly,’ and on Favorable Terms
More than two years after “Black Friday” – the day on which federal prosecutors shut down the U.S. operations of Full Tilt Poker and other major online poker providers and seized billions of dollars in assets – it appears that the final chapter in that enforcement action may soon be written. The Garden City Group,…
