Designated for publication Engelhardt, J. (Graves, Engelhardt, Oldham), Graves, J., dissenting; Americans with Disabilities Act Affirming dismissal of former employee’s ADA claims on the pleadings. The Court held that Turner cannot establish a prima facie case of disability discrimination under the ADA because he failed to demonstrate that he was “qualified” for the job, having … More May 14, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Graves, J. (Graves, Engelhardt, Oldham), breach of fiduciary duty Affirming dismissal of breach of fiduciary duty claims brought in a shareholder derivative suit by company’s shareholders against company’s directors. The Court held that shareholders must either make a litigation demand to the board or show demand futility by demonstrating that at least … More May 13, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Elrod, C.J. (Elrod, Higginbotham, Southwick), toxic torts, expert witness Affirming exclusion of plaintiff’s expert testimony in Deepwater Horizon-cleanup-related toxic tort action, and affirming summary judgment for defendant, but clarifying Circuit’s requirements for causation proof in an expert report. Under Daubert and Rule 702, expert testimony is admissible if it is both relevant … More May 12, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Clement, J. (Clement, Engelhardt, Wilson), Title VII, employment discrimination, labor law, jury instructions, pleadings amendment Reversing the denial of Southwest’s motion for judgment as a matter of law on employee’s belief-based Title VII claim and RLA retaliation claim and remanding with instructions for the district court to enter judgment for Southwest; affirming … More May 8-9, 2025, opinions
Unpublished opinions per curiam (King, Southwick, Engelhardt), criminal, sentencing Affirming 20-month sentence on revocation of supervised release. per curiam (King, Southwick, Engelhardt), criminal, sentencing Affirming conviction and 52-month sentence for conspiracy to possess heroin with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, maintaining a drug-involved premises, possession of methamphetamine … More May 7, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Ramirez, J. (Richman, Graves, Ramirez), Richman, J., dissenting; labor law, appellate jurisdiction The Court dismissed Amazon’s appeal of what it argued was a constructive denial of its motion for temporary restraining order or preliminary injunction of the NLRB’s Bargaining Case proceeding, for lack of appellate jurisdiction on the basis that there was … More May 6, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication Douglas, J. (Smith, Higginson, Douglas), settlement agreement, jurisdiction In appeal from district court’s ruling on severed motions to enforce settlement agreements by parties in dispute arising from partnership agreement, remanding to district court to determine parties’ citizenship for purposes of diversity jurisdiction. The Court rejected party citizenship allegations supported merely “on information … More May 5, 2025, opinions
Designated for publication per curiam (Higginbotham, Jones, Oldham), criminal, sentencing Denying motion to vacate sentence on conviction for illegal reentry. Luis Sanchez-Zurita was sentenced to 240 months for illegal reentry, with an upward variance based on his serious criminal history, including child molestation, failure to register as a sex offender, DUI with a child, and … More May 2, 2025, opinions
We report after each month on interesting statistics from the data we 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.) we will aggregate that–all of which provides useful insights into the inner workings of the Court, the relative … More April 2025 opinion statistics
Unpublished opinions Richman, J. (King, Richman, Higginson), insurance Affirming summary judgment in favor of insurer on its declaratory judgment claim regarding exclusion from coverage. per curiam (Smith, Graves, Duncan), Title VII, employment discrimination Affirming summary judgment in favor of university employer on race discrimination claims. per curiam (Davis, Smith, Higginson), insurance Affirming summary judgment in … More May 1, 2025, opinions
