Last Week in Federal Appeals (No. 20)
Last Week in Federal Appeals (No. 20)
Appellate decisions from the week of August 9-13, 2021
“This is a cautionary tale for every attorney who litigates in the era of e-filing. Kevin Rollins brought suit against his employer for personal injury. The employer filed a motion for summary judgment on the eve of the parties’ agreed deadline for dispositive motions. But Rollins’s counsel never saw the electronic notification of that motion. That’s because, by all accounts, his computer’s email system placed that notification in a folder that he does not regularly monitor. Nor did he check the docket after the deadline for dispositive motions had elapsed.
As a result, Rollins did not file an opposition to the summary judgment motion. So the district court subsequently entered judgment against Rollins.
Rollins seeks relief from that judgment under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 59(e). But our precedents make clear that no such relief is available under circumstances such as this. “
~Judge Ho, Rollins v. Home Depot USA
Supreme Court of the United States
Chrysafis v. Marks
In a rare move, the Supreme Court granted an injunction application submitted directly to the Justices, enjoining the enforcement of a New York law allowing renters to avoid eviction by self-certifying financial hardship due to COVID-19.
Klassen v. Indiana University
Justice Barrett denied an application for injunctive relief submitted by Indiana University students seeking to prevent the school from requiring them to either get vaccinated against COVID-19 or wear masks. (For more on the 7th Circuit case, see last week’s post.) Interestingly, Justice Barrett did not refer the application to the whole Court, suggesting she believed the application was sufficiently meritless that it did not warrant the other Justices’ attention. In fact, she did not even issue a written opinion.
Third Circuit
Vogt v. Wetzel
The Third Circuit held that prison officials violated a prisoner’s rights when they rejected his incoming mail without notifying him. The panel thus vacated a district court decision dismissing the prisoner’s due process claim.
Ocean County Board of Commissioners v. NJ Attorney General
The Third Circuit upheld a New Jersey state directive limiting the ability of state and local law enforcement officers to cooperate with federal immigration authorities. The panel rejected the argument that this directive was preempted by federal law.
Fourth Circuit
Peltier v. Charter Day School, Inc.
The Fourth Circuit revived a lawsuit by female charter school students challenging a dress code that required them to wear skirts, jumpers, or skorts rather than pants or shorts. The panel held that the school was not a state actor and, thus, could not be sued for violations of the constitution. But it also held that dress code challenges were not categorically excluded by Title IX and remanded for further proceedings.
Bauer v. Elrich
The Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court order tossing out a challenge to a Montgomery County program that provided cash assistance to undocumented immigrants during COVID-19. While the program might violate federal law, the panel explained, Congress did not create a private right of action allowing taxpayers to challenge the county’s program.
Fifth Circuit
Rollins v. Home Depot USA
The Fifth Circuit affirmed a district court’s order granting summary judgment to Home Depot after Rollins failed to respond to Home Depot’s summary judgment motion. Rollins failed to respond because his counsel was not aware of the motion: the lawyer’s firm email system sent the ECF email filing notice to an “other” folder instead of the lawyer’s inbox, and he never checked the docket. The panel held that was no excuse.
Eighth Circuit
Animal Legal Defense Fund v. Vaught
The Eighth Circuit revived an Animal Legal Defense Fund lawsuit seeking to enjoin Peco Foods (an operator of chicken slaughterhouses) from suing it (and its co-plaintiff) under an Arkansas law providing a “[c]ivil cause of action for unauthorized access to property.” The Fund wanted to send undercover investigators into the slaughterhouse as employees or applicants to report on conditions and claimed that allowing a lawsuit under the Arkansas law would infringe on its First Amendment rights. The panel held that the Fund had standing to sue, but left the merits to the district court.
Animal Legal Defense Fund v. Reynolds
The Eighth Circuit upheld an Iowa statute prohibiting people from accessing agricultural production facilities by false pretenses. As in the last case, the Animal Legal Defense fund hoped to send undercover investigators into such facilities to inspect conditions on the pretext of seeking employment with them or in other guises. The panel held that prohibiting obtaining access to such facilities under false pretenses does not violate the First Amendment, but criminalizing false statements on an employment application went too far (at least insofar as the law did not include a materiality requirement).
Tenth Circuit
Ashaheed v. Currington
The Tenth Circuit reversed a district court order dismissing a Muslim prisoner’s Section 1983 claim against state prison officials. The prisoner alleged that, upon arrival, he was forced to shave his beard in violation of his religious beliefs despite invoking prison policies creating a religious exception to beard-shaving regulations.
Points of Interest
The California Supreme Court ruled that, despite a new law allowing recreational marijuana, state prison inmates still cannot legally possess the drug.
The Texas Supreme Court reversed a lower court decision prohibiting law enforcement officials from arresting Democratic lawmakers who fled the state to prevent the state legislature from having a quorum. The order was followed, this week, by a conditional grant of mandamus providing more thorough reasoning.
Any opinions expressed here are my own. This article is not legal advice; if you have a legal issue, you should consult an attorney.
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