Designated for publication Higginson, J. (Higginbotham, Stewart, Higginson), copyright, jury instructions Affirming judgment on jury verdict (and denial of JMOL) that defendant internet service provider was liable for contributory copyright infringement on plaintiff independent record labels’ copyright claims; vacating damages award predicated on statutory damages for each of the 1,403 songs at issue in the … More October 9, 2024, opinions
Designated for publication Douglas, J. (Wilson, Douglas, Vitter, by designation), tax Reversing district court judgment in favor of plaintiff tire retailer and against IRS on question of liability for excise tax, holding that, “[w]hen a party orders taxable articles to be shipped to the United States for resale and is otherwise uninvolved in the importation … More October 8, 2024, opinions
Designated for publication per curiam (Jones, Ho, Wilson), Ho, J., concurring; criminal, sentencing On remand from the U.S. Supreme Court, affirming defendant’s conviction of being in possession of a firearm while subject to a domestic violence restraining order; and affirming sentence of 73 months to run consecutively with any state court sentence on pending charges. … More September 10-12, 2024, opinions
Designated for publication Southwick, J. (Stewart, Dennis, Southwick), securities fraud Denying second petition for en banc rehearing, no active-duty judge having requested a poll, and re-issuing mandate. The Court held that the district court judge’s finding of unclean hands, such that no setoff was awarded, rather than the unclean-hands issue going to the jury, was … More August 26-27, 2024, opinions
Another quick-blurb catch-up post (the briefing and arguing has been non-stop since mid-July–Take the Fifth may need to take on some more staff!). Designated for publication Southwick, J. (Barksdale, Southwick, Graves), criminal, Sixth Amendment, sentencing Affirming conviction and sentence on fraud under the Paycheck Protection Program, upholding denial of motion to substitute counsel and district … More August 1-15, 2024, opinions
Designated for publication Smith, J. (joined by Jones, Stewart, Southwick, Higginson, Willett, Ho, Duncan, Engelhardt, Oldham, Wilson, Ramirez, JJ.); Haynes, J., concurring in judgment only; Richman, C.J., dissenting (joined by Elrod, Graves, Douglas, JJ.); criminal, sufficiency of evidence, Miranda rights, due process On en banc rehearing of panel opinion that had reversed on the basis … More June 5-7, 2024, opinions
Designated for publication Engelhardt, J. (King, Ho, Engelhardt), Ho, J., dissenting in part; First Amendment, antitrust, standing, mootness, amendment In First Amendment and antitrust claims by physicians’ professional association against governing boards and against the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security arising from labeling as misinformation or disinformation of some physicians’ views on Covid … More June 3, 2024, opinions
Designated for publication Elrod, J. (Elrod, Ho, Wilson), timeliness After receiving response from Texas Supreme Court on certified question, reversing district court’s dismissal of claims as barred by the statute of limitations, and remanding for further proceedings. Oldham, J. (Jolly, Engelhardt, Oldham), qualified immunity Affirming denial of qualified immunity. To quote from the Court’s introduction: … More May 1-7, 2024, opinions
Designated for publication Stewart, J. (Richman, Stewart, Dennis), habeas corpus Affirming district court’s dismissal of second-in-time § 2254 petition as a successive habeas petition, rejecting argument that the fact that the appeal of the denial of the petitioner’s first-in-time § 2254 petition was still pending made his second-in-time petition merely an amendment of the first-in-time … More April 12-15, 2024, opinions
Designated for publication Oldham, J. (Dennis, Engelhardt, Oldham), Dennis, J., dissenting; bankruptcy Vacating bankruptcy court’s award of $239,655 in compensatory damages on civil contempt award, and remanding for further proceedings. The Court held that the bankruptcy court’s limited contempt power–limited to civil contempt–meant that it may only shift fees that are compensatory for actual expenses … More April 4, 2024, opinions
