• Parents of a 10-year-old boy who witnessed a killer whale's fatal attack on a trainer sue Sea World Orlando for infliction of emotional distress. "Without question, it was reasonably foreseeable and in fact predictable that an attack such as this one by a killer whale with the tendencies of Tilikum was inevitable." Connell v. Sea World
• Denver judge dismisses Oklahoma City bomber Terry Nichols's civil rights claims against prison officials for denying him a high-fiber diet.
Nichols v. Federal Bureau of Prisons
• Illinois teenager with cerebral palsy sues the Special Olympics for refusing to let her play basketball with the help of a service dog.
Youngwith v. Special Olympics
• Montana judge sets aside a government decision removing protections for the northern Rocky Mountain gray wolf. The Endangered Species Act "was not intended to sow the dragon's teeth of strife or to plant the seeds of future conflicts that have given rise to this case."
Defenders of Wildlife v. Salazar
• San Francisco judge dismisses a cereal consumer's false advertising suit. "[T]here is nothing in the packaging or marketing of Cap’n Crunch that would in any way deceive a reasonable consumer into believing that the cereal contains or derives nutritional value from real fruit." Werbel v. PepsiCo
• Iowa judge says a sheriff denied the applications of a father and son for concealed weapons permits in retaliation for their political activism. "This is a great reminder that the First Amendment protects the sole individual who may be a gadfly, kook, weirdo, nut job, whacko, and spook, with the same force of protection as folks with more majoritarian and popular views." Dorr v. Weber
• 5th Circuit rules that a school district violated the religious freedom of a Native American boy by requiring him to wear his long hair in a bun on top of his head or in a braid tucked into his shirt. The boy "has a sincere religious belief in wearing his hair uncut and in plain view."
A.A. v. Needville Ind. Sch. Dist.
• 11th Circuit denies a challenge to an ordinance restricting handouts of food to the homeless in Orlando parks. "[W]e are unpersuaded that the conduct of simply feeding people ... is expressive for First Amendment purposes."
First Vagabonds Church v. City of Orlando
 
|
|
Spanking Victim Slaps Insurer for Unpaid Award |
 |
The California woman who won a $1.7 million jury award for being spanked at work has now slapped her former employer's liability insurer with a $5.6 million breach-of-contract suit for refusing to pay a post-verdict settlement.
“Of course I'm angry and frustrated,” Janet Orlando said of the unusual development in her legal saga. “The stress is killing me.”
A jury in May found Alarm One, Inc. liable for the spankings Orlando received from supervisors as part of a misguided effort to build camaraderie in the company's Fresno office where she worked as a saleswoman. After Alarm One appealed, Orlando agreed to a reduced award of $1.4 million.
But according to her new complaint, the company and its insurer, Carolina Casualty, have not honored the agreement, refusing to pay “in order to negotiate a lesser settlement payment and in order to gain leverage over Orlando [in] any further settlement negotiations.”
Plaintiff's counsel Nicholas “Butch” Wagner told the Fresno Bee that Alarm One wanted another $200,000 to $400,000 knocked off the award. "They tried to talk us into a lesser settlement," he said. "We said, 'You're out of your mind.'"
Orlando is seeking the $1.4 million settlement amount, 10 percent interest on the settlement and $4.2 million in punitive damages from Carolina Casualty and its claims adjuster, Monitor Liability Managers.
One attorney said attempts to renege on a settlement are "very unusual." Maybe Alarm One just wants to get the award a bit closer to $150,000 –- the amount of a pre-trial settlement offer that Orlando rejected.
|
Other Spanking Case Sources
|
By Matthew Heller
12/18/06
A jury should decide whether two Texas Rangers pitchers “substantially assisted or encouraged” a teammate who hurled a chair into the stands during a brawl, hitting an Oakland A's fan in the face, a California judge has ruled.
The injured fan, Jennifer Bueno, sued alleged chair thrower Frank Francisco and the two other players for battery and assault after the Sept. 13, 2004 melee at the Oakland Coliseum. Bueno's husband, who was sitting in a field box, had been heckling a Rangers relief pitcher.
Doug Brocail and Carlos Almanzar claim they cannot be held liable as aiders and abettors because they had no idea Francisco was going to throw a chair and did not assist or encourage him in doing so.
But in a Dec. 7 order, Alameda County Superior Court Judge Frank Roesch found a triable issue of fact and denied the players' motion for summary judgment. The case is set for trial Jan. 12.
Brocail, now with the San Diego Padres, allegedly charged into the stands and, within a few feet of Bueno, cocked his fist “as if he were going to throw a punch, only to be restrained by others from completing his assault.”
“The end result was that Francisco accomplished what Brocail set out to do,” Bueno's lawyers argue in a brief.
Roache also allowed co-plaintiff Andre Vernan, who claims he injured his back trying to dodge the flying chair, to proceed to trial.
|
UPDATE ... The parties announced a settlement of all claims Jan. 12, the day set for trial. Terms are confidential.
|
By Matthew Heller
12/18/06
|
|
-
Off With His Head! Woman Sues 'Mad Hatter' Actor
Experimental theater clashes with premises liability law in the case of a Kentucky woman who claims she was injured while watching a performance of a circus-inspired play when one of the actors balanced his knee on her head.
Read more...
-
Charity Worker Accuses CEO of Hypnotic Seduction
A former charity worker may be pushing the limits of sexual harassment law by alleging that her boss required her to participate in “relaxation sessions” on his “magic couch” during which he hypnotized and molested her.
Read more...
-
Appeal is Expert's Latest Challenge to Judges
Expert witness Dr. David Egilman was previously successful in showing he had standing to appeal a judicial order in a case in which he was not a party — but that case may not help him in his latest challenge to a trial judge.
Read more...
-
Plaintiff's Expert Files Appeal in 'Popcorn Lung' Lawsuit
A controversial expert witness for plaintiffs has filed an unusual non-party appeal of a Washington state judge's decision finding his theory that snackers can contract lung disease from exposure to microwave popcorn is not scientifically sound.
Read more...
-
Philly School Sued Over Race Attack on Student's Mom
Taking civil rights law to what may be an extreme, an Asian-American woman is alleging a Philadelphia high school's tolerance of racism rendered her “helpless prey” to African-American students who attacked her when she picked her child up from the school.
Read more...
-
'McSteamy' Sex Tape Suit Cools off With Settlement
Acting couple Eric Dane and Rebecca Gayheart have dropped a $1 million lawsuit against Gawker.com for publishing a videotape featuring them in a nude threesome with a friend after the gossip website agreed to take down the much-viewed posting.
Read more...
-
Sex Harassment Claims Hit Actor Affleck, 'Bones' Star
A producer of a film about actor Joaquin Phoenix, an extra on the set of the TV show “Bones,” an assistant property master, and a makeup artist are among the plaintiffs in a recent epidemic of lurid Hollywood lawsuits.
Read more...
|
Arnaout v. Warden
Subject: Muslim inmate prayer
Document: John Walker Lindh declaration
Marriage of J.B. and H.B.
Subject: Same-sex divorce
Document: Opinion
Stovell v. James
Subject: LeBron's paternity
Document: Complaint
U.S. v. Arizona
Subject: Illegal immigration
Document: Complaint
Rosenberg v. Google
Subject: Negligent navigation
Document: Complaint
more
|
|
McCourt v. McCourt
Court: L.A. Superior
Subject: Dodgers divorce
Pom Wonderful v. Welch Foods
Court: USDC, C. Calif.
Subject: False advertising
more
|
|
McCourt v. McCourt
Date: 8/30/10
Court: L.A. Superior
Hearing: Dodgers divorce trial
more
|
|
|
