Arbitration Mediation

Before Delegating Arbitrability to Arbitrator, Supreme Court Must Decide FAA Exclusions (New Prime, Inc. v. Oliveira)

The case of New Prime, Inc. v. Oliveira is the second arbitration / delegable / arbitrability question which the U.S. Supreme Court decided in a week. This case may have limited application to disputes involving transportation workers however it is worth discussing to ensure a clear understanding the delegation of …

Arbitration Mediation

“I Like Arbitration,” Says Justice Kavanaugh in His First Opinion on Arbitrability (Schein v. Archer & White)

Justice Kavanaugh issued his first Supreme Court opinion (unanimous) which helped streamline enforcement of arbitration AND provided contract-drafting lawyers some model arbitration language (which, as we’ll see, still needs some work). The question before the Court was whether a trial court could still decide the threshold question of “arbitrability” — …

Constitutional Law

South Dakota v Wayfair – A Dormant Commerce Clause Case Will Likely Hit Intenet Etsy and Ebay Sellers with State Sales Tax

If you sell enough on Etsy and eBay, you may find yourself having to report sales tax in your buyers’ states. A recent opinion from the U.S. Supreme Court, South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. et al., is likely going to lead to new hassles for internet merchants, including possibly individual …

Arbitration Mediation

U.S. Supreme Court Rules on Nursing Home Arbitration

The United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of a national nursing home chain by reversing a decision by the Kentucky Supreme Court and, instead, held that persons who have broad “powers of attorney” may execute arbitration agreements even when state law grants a right to access to courts and …

4th Amendment

Christopher Hopkins Speaks on Data Breach Law at Florida Atlantic University

Thanks to professor and attorney Larry Buck for inviting me to speak today about Data Breach & Cyber Security Law at Florida Atlantic University. We discussed:  Standing: how the Clapper case was filed too soon, they lost in the Supreme Court, and then three months later it was revealed, beyond their …

SCOTUS

U.S. v. Elonis — U.S. Supreme Court’s Facebook Case

A former amusement park employee’s Facebook posts may prove wrong most federal courts or will clearly carve out a rare First Amendment exception. The case of U.S. v. Elonis focuses on whether statements, often phrased as rap music, could be a “true threat” which would make it a crime if …

4th Amendment

Conflicting Court Opinions on NSA Surveillance

One year ago, the U.S. Supreme Court issued the case of Amnesty International v. Clapper and… few people cared. After all, “Clapper I,” as it became known, held that political activists had no standing to even discover if the government was spying on them. But four months later, the floodgates …

4th Amendment

Government GPS Tracking Since U.S. v. Jones

The Supreme Court’s 2012 decision in U.S. v. Jones involving GPS tracking is trending towards being a landmark decision in how the Court interprets the Fourth Amendment in technology cases.   But what has happened to GPS tracking since the Jones decision? This February 2014 article from the Palm Beach …

SCOTUS

Supreme Court: If You Possess Any Child Pornography, Do You Owe the Victim Restitution?

The case of Paroline v. United States will be argued before the U.S. Supreme Court today.  This is one of those cases where emotions are appropriately high but ultimately court observers may find that the Court may dryly rule upon statutory construction issues… meaning grammar.  But this case highlights a …

SCOTUS

US Supreme Court Denies Cert in Osama Bin Laden Burial Photos

On January 13, 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court denied cert in the case of Judicial Watch v. Department of Defense and Central Intelligence Agency (scroll down to page 5).  This case arose from a FOIA request for photos and/or video of Osama Bin Laden corpse and burial at sea.  The Obama …

law & order

Don’t Bring a Video Game to a Gun Fight

In the aftermath of the Sandy Hook and Gabrielle Giffords’ shooting stories (and hundreds others), the National Rifle Association and other gun proponents have argued that video games are a contributing factor — if not the reason — for gun violence in the United States.  It was suggested by the …

Privacy

U.S. Supreme Court, GPS Darts & George Orwell

The case of U.S. v. Jones is set for oral argument before the U.S. Supreme Court next week and may resolve whether police may physically attach a GPS transmitter on a person’s car to track its movements for an extended period of time — without a warrant. Read the article …