Laws/Cases |
Appeals Court Hands Win to Texas Environmental Groups |
Environment Texas and the Sierra Club sued ExxonMobil in 2010, accusing the Irving-based energy giant of spewing far more pollution into the air from its massive Baytown complex than is allowed by federal and state law. Four years later, U.S. District Judge David Hittner found that only a tiny fraction of ExxonMobil's emissions events were bad enough to warrant legal action — and handed down no penalties. The environmental groups appealed the decision to the conservative-leaning U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans, which is hardly known for championing liberal causes. But on Friday, the court's three-judge panel vacated Hittner's ruling and sent the case back to him "for assessment of penalties based on the correct number of actionable violations." Kiah Collier, Texas Tribune 06/01/2016 |
Read Article: Texas Tribune |
University of Kansas Seeks Dismissal of Rape Lawsuit |
The University of Kansas is seeking the dismissal of a lawsuit filed by a former university rower who alleges she was raped by a member of the football team. The motion for dismissal was filed on Friday in federal court in Kansas City. The university claims that it was not responsible for the alleged sexual assault and that the complaint should be dismissed. The school is accused in the lawsuit of being "deliberately indifferent to the sexual harassment of a student by another student." Mara Rose WIlliams, Kansas City Star 05/31/2016 |
Read Article: Kansas City Star |
$5.5M Awarded by Ala. Jury in 2012 Crane Death Lawsuit |
A jury in Alabama has awarded $5.5 million to the family of a man who was killed in a crane accident in 2012. The 47-year-old man was killed when the crane he was operating in July 2012 toppled over. The lawsuit alleged that Southeastern Crane Inspections LLC, the company which inspected the crane, failed to disclose serious problems with the machine. A jury from Hale County returned the $5.5 million verdict on May 17. Staff Report, The Insurance Journal 06/01/2016 |
Read Article: The Insurance Journal |
Healthcare |
Senate Investigation Finds 'systemic' Failures at VA Watchdog |
A Senate investigation of poor health care at a Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Tomah, Wis., found systemic failures in a VA inspector general's review of the facility that raise questions about the internal watchdog's ability to ensure adequate health care for veterans nationwide. The probe by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee found the inspector general's office, which is charged with independently investigating VA complaints, discounted key evidence and witness testimony, needlessly narrowed its inquiry and has no standard for determining wrongdoing. Donovan Slack, USA Today 06/01/2016 |
Read Article: USA Today |
Malpractice |
La. Supreme Court Reinstates Couple's Medical Malpractice Lawsuit |
A couple from Houma, Louisiana will win a new trial in a medical malpractice lawsuit against a local surgeon. The lawsuit alleges that the surgeon cut the wrong connecting structure between the plaintiff's gallbladder and liver during a standard gallbladder removal procedure. The action caused bile to leak from the liver and damage the organ, the complaint says. The case was previously dismissed by former state District Judge Timothy Ellender Sr. and the dismissal was upheld by a state appellate court. However, the Louisiana Supreme Court reinstated the lawsuit, stating that the previous dismissal was a "miscarriage of justice." Maki Somosot, Houma Today 05/31/2016 |
Read Article: Houma Today |
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