Unpublished decisions per curiam (Stewart, Graves, Wilson) (oral argument), insurance Affirming summary judgment for plaintiff on coverage dispute. At issue on appeal was whether two exclusions in an employment practices liability insurance policy—one for “salaries, wages or bonuses” (except as a component of a back pay award) and another for “employment termination severance payments”—barred coverage … More November 11, 2026, opinions
Unpublished decisions per curiam (Clement, Engelhardt, Wilson) (no oral argument), § 1983 Dismissing appeal of summary judgment dismissal of § 1983 claims, due to untimely notice of appeal. Marlon James Pettieway appealed the district court’s grant of summary judgment on his 42 U.S.C. § 1983 claim for failure to exhaust administrative remedies. The threshold question … More November 10, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication per curiam (Graves, Ho, Douglas) (no oral argument), Ho, J., dissenting; criminal, appeal waiver Granting motion for reconsideration of dismissal of appeal under appeal-waiver, and instead carrying the motion with the case. Defendant Jerad Barrett entered a plea agreement on drug charges in which the government agreed to supersede the original indictment … More November 9, 2026, opinions
Unpublished decisions per curiam (Barksdale, Graves, Higginson) (no oral argument), criminal, sufficiency of evidence Affirming conviction on drug charges. Following a jury conviction on one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances (21 U.S.C. §§ 846, 841(a)(1)) and four counts of possession with intent to distribute, Asberry raised three … More November 6, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication Elrod, C.J. (Elrod, Engelhardt, Guidry, by designation) (oral argument), Engelhardt, J., dissenting in part; trademark infringement, Lanham Act Vacating judgment for defendant on Lanham Act and trademark claims, affirming on evidentiary and discovery rulings, and remanding for further proceedings on likelihood of confusion finding. Casa Tradición sells luxury tequila under its registered … More November 2-5, 2026, opinions
I report after each month on interesting statistics from the data I generate from the daily opinion summaries from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and at the end of each court year (Oct.-Sept.) I aggregate that–all of which provides useful insights into the inner workings of the Court, the relative success … More October 2026 opinion statistics
Designated for publication Ho, J. (Stewart, Higginson, Ho) (no oral argument), removal, diversity jurisdiction, personal tort Vacating remand order in case removed on basis of diversity jurisdiction, and remanding to federal district court for further proceedings. Rubidia De Chavez and other plaintiffs brought a state-law tort suit following the death of her husband against several … More October 30, 2026, decisions
Designated for publication Higginson, J. (Smith, Higginson, Wilson) (no oral argument), criminal, appeal waiver On remand from U.S. Supreme Court, dismissing appeal of conviction and sentence on basis of appeal waiver in plea agreement. Rashon Harris pleaded guilty to possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute under 21 U.S.C. § 841(a) and received a 240-month … More October 29, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication en banc (oral argument at panel stage); en banc, standing, preemption, First Amendment Granting en banc rehearing of July 24, 2026, panel opinion (Higginbotham, Ho, Douglas; Ho, J., dissenting in part) that had affirmed preliminary injunction of Texas social media regulation statute as to monitoring and filtering requirements as preempted by federal … More October 28, 2026, opinions
Designated for publication Richman, J. (Richman, Oldham, Ramirez) (oral argument withdrawn), Oldham, J., dissenting; maritime law, expert witness, toxic tort Affirming summary judgment for defendant in maritime toxic tort arising from Deepwater Horizon disaster. Richard DuFour, Jr. worked nearly three years as a cleanup worker following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in Pascagoula, Mississippi, … More October 27, 2026, opinions
