Justia U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons Educational Foundation (AAPS) alleged that the American Board of Internal Medicine, the American Board of Obstetrics & Gynecology, the American Board of Family Medicine, and the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security coordinated to censor and chill the speech of physicians who criticized positions taken by Dr. Anthony Fauci, lockdowns, mask mandates, Covid vaccination, and abortion. The AAPS claimed that these entities threatened to strip certification from physicians who expressed such views, which harmed the AAPS.The District Court dismissed all of AAPS's claims with prejudice, stating that it lacked standing to assert its claims against the medical boards and that the Department of Homeland Security had mooted claims against it by dissolving the Disinformation Governance Board, which AAPS alleged was responsible for censorship. The District Court also denied AAPS the ability to amend its complaint.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reversed the District Court's decision, finding that AAPS had provided sufficient allegations to support standing. The Court of Appeals also found that the District Court had erred in denying AAPS an opportunity to amend its complaint. However, the Court of Appeals agreed with the District Court that AAPS's claims against the Department of Homeland Security were moot due to the dissolution of the Disinformation Governance Board. The Court of Appeals remanded the case for further proceedings. View "AAPS v. ABIM" on Justia Law

In 2017, Terry Bevill, a captain of the Quitman Police Department, signed an affidavit supporting a motion to transfer venue in a criminal case against his friend and former colleague, David McGee. Bevill's affidavit alleged potential bias in the local justice system, including personal relationships between the sheriff, the district attorney, and the presiding judge. Following an investigation, Quitman Mayor David Dobbs terminated Bevill's employment, concluding that Bevill's affidavit violated two police department policies. Bevill filed a lawsuit claiming First Amendment retaliation and conspiracy to retaliate against him for his speech.Previously, the district court denied motions to dismiss the case filed by Sheriff Castloo, District Attorney Wheeler, and Judge Fletcher, who claimed qualified immunity. The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed this decision. Now, the same court is reviewing the district court's denial of the defendants' motions for summary judgment.The court affirmed the district court's decision. It found that Bevill spoke as a citizen on a matter of public concern when he submitted his affidavit. The court also held that Bevill's interest in his speech outweighed the government's interest in the efficient provision of public services. The court concluded that Bevill's constitutional rights were clearly established, and the defendants were not entitled to qualified immunity. The court also held that District Attorney Wheeler was not entitled to prosecutorial immunity. The court noted that it lacked jurisdiction to review the district court's finding that there was sufficient evidence for a jury to infer that the defendants conspired to terminate Bevill's employment in retaliation for his speech. View "Bevill v. Wheeler" on Justia Law

The case revolves around Gene Rudolph, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute significant quantities of cocaine. Prior to sentencing, Rudolph objected to the Presentence Investigation Report (PSR), particularly the application of various enhancements and his designation as a "career offender." The latter significantly increased his offense level and advisory guideline range for incarceration. Rudolph's career offender status was based on his past convictions, including a 1996 drug offense. He argued that this conviction should not have been considered as it occurred more than fifteen years before the current offense, making it too stale for the career offender guideline.The district court, however, determined that the PSR was accurate and that Rudolph's parole on the 1996 drug offense was revoked in 2004, which was within fifteen years of the commencement of the current offense. Consequently, Rudolph was sentenced to 262 months of incarceration.Upon appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit found that the government failed to provide an adequate evidentiary basis to support its claim that Rudolph's parole was revoked in 2004 for the 1996 drug conviction. The court ruled that the district court's adoption of this fact and application of the career offender enhancement was clear error. The court also rejected Rudolph's argument that his current offense did not qualify as a "controlled substance offense" under the sentencing guidelines. The court vacated Rudolph's sentence and remanded the case to the district court for resentencing. View "United States v. Rudolph" on Justia Law

Several Louisiana coastal parishes, joined by the Louisiana Attorney General and the Louisiana Secretary of Natural Resources, filed lawsuits against various oil and gas companies, alleging violations of Louisiana’s State and Local Coastal Resources Management Act of 1978. The companies removed these cases to federal court, asserting that they satisfy the requirements of the federal officer removal statute due to their refining contracts with the government during World War II. The district courts granted the parishes’ motions to remand these cases to state court, concluding that the oil companies did not meet their burden of establishing federal jurisdiction.The oil companies appealed the district courts' decisions. The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the district courts’ orders remanding these cases to state court. The court concluded that the oil companies failed to satisfy the “acting under” requirement of the federal officer removal statute, as their compliance with federal regulations or cooperation with federal agencies was insufficient to bring a private action within the statute. The court also found that the oil companies failed to establish that the conduct challenged in the parishes’ lawsuits was “connected or associated with” acts the companies had taken under color of federal office. View "Plaquemines Parish v. BP America Production Co." on Justia Law

The case involves a dispute over the ownership of a painting by Bernardo Bellotto, which was sold under duress by Max Emden during the Nazi persecution of Jews prior to World War II. The painting was later found in a salt mine in Austria by the Monuments Men, a group of U.S. military officers tasked with facilitating the restitution of art stolen by the Nazis. The painting was mistakenly sent to the Netherlands to fulfill a claim by a gallery in Amsterdam, but the painting was actually a replica painted by Bellotto himself, not the gallery's version. The painting was eventually sent to the United States and is currently housed in the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston. The heirs of Max Emden, the original owner, are seeking to recover the painting.The case was initially heard in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas, which dismissed the claim due to the act of state doctrine. This doctrine prohibits U.S. courts from questioning the actions of a foreign government, in this case, the Dutch government's decision to send the painting to the United States.The case was then appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. The court affirmed the lower court's decision, agreeing that the act of state doctrine applies in this case. The court held that any evaluation of the painting's ownership would require questioning the Dutch government's actions, which is prohibited by the act of state doctrine. The court also rejected the plaintiffs' arguments that the doctrine should not apply because the Dutch government's actions were not official, there would be no negative impact on foreign relations, and the act was not solely within the Netherlands. The court concluded that the act of state doctrine bars U.S. courts from questioning the validity of the Dutch government's actions. View "Emden v. Museum of Fine Arts" on Justia Law

The case involves Tammy O’Connor and Michael Stewart (the Sellers) who sold their company, Red River Solutions, LLC, to Atherio, Inc., a company led by Jason Cory, Greg Furst, and Thomas Farb (the Executives). The agreement stipulated that the Sellers would receive nearly half of their compensation upfront, with the rest—around $3.5 million—coming in the form of ownership units and future payments. However, Atherio went bankrupt and the Sellers received none of the promised $3.5 million. The Sellers sued the Executives, alleging fraud under federal securities law, Delaware common law, and the Texas Securities Act.The district court granted summary judgment to the Executives on all claims. The Sellers appealed the decision, arguing that the district court erred in applying the summary-judgment standard to the federal securities law and Delaware common law claims.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's decision on the extracontractual and Texas Securities Act fraud claims, but reversed the summary judgment grants on the federal securities law and Delaware common law claims. The court found that there was a genuine dispute as to whether the Executives' misrepresentation of Farb's role as CFO was a substantial factor in the Sellers' loss. The case was remanded for further proceedings. View "Cory v. Stewart" on Justia Law

In 2021, Grant and Sarah Palmquist, on behalf of their minor son, sued baby-food manufacturer Hain Celestial Group, Inc. and grocery retailer Whole Foods Market, Inc. in Texas state court. They sought damages for their son Ethan’s physical and mental decline, which they allege began when he was about thirty months old and had been consuming Hain’s Earth’s Best Organic Products, purchased from Whole Foods. The Palmquists attributed Ethan's health issues to heavy metal toxicity caused by the baby food. The case was removed to federal court, where Whole Foods was dismissed as improperly joined and judgment was granted in favor of Hain during trial.The district court dismissed Whole Foods on the grounds of improper joinder and denied the Palmquists’ motion to remand the case to state court. The court also granted Hain’s motion for judgment as a matter of law, concluding that the Palmquists had presented no evidence of general causation. The Palmquists appealed these decisions.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reversed the district court’s judgment denying the Palmquists’ motion to remand, vacated the final judgment of the district court, and remanded with instructions for the district court to remand the case to the state court. The court held that the Palmquists were entitled to a remand to state court because the allegations in their state-court complaint stated plausible claims against Whole Foods. The court did not address whether the district court erred in granting judgment as a matter of law in favor of Hain. View "Palmquist v. Hain Celestial Group" on Justia Law

Darion Benjamin Woods pleaded guilty to damaging the property of a foreign official in the United States. Woods and his co-defendant broke into the British Consul General’s family home in Houston, Texas, stealing various items and causing over $50,000 in damages. Woods was arrested and charged with one count of damaging property occupied by a foreign official. He pleaded guilty without a plea agreement. The presentence investigation report calculated Woods’s Guidelines imprisonment range at 12 to 18 months. Woods objected to the report, seeking a two-level reduction for acceptance of responsibility.The district court awarded Woods’s requested two-point reduction for acceptance of responsibility and calculated the Guidelines range at 8–14 months. However, the court varied upwards and sentenced Woods to 30 months in prison. The court concluded that this sentence was necessary to satisfy the 3553(a) factors and to protect the community given Woods’s prior criminal history. The court also ordered Woods to pay $56,636.15 in restitution and imposed a 3-year term of supervised release. Woods timely appealed, arguing that his above-Guidelines sentence is substantively unreasonable and that the condition in the written judgment that he must “refrain from the excessive use of alcohol” conflicts with the oral pronouncement that “while in the program, he’s not to consume alcohol excessively.”The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's decision. The court found that the district court did not abuse its discretion in sentencing Woods to 30 months in prison, which was above the Guidelines range. The court also found that the written condition of supervised release that Woods must "refrain from the excessive use of alcohol" conflicted with the oral pronouncement that "while in the program, he’s not to consume alcohol excessively." The court modified the sentence to reflect that while Woods is in the drug-treatment program, he’s not to consume alcohol excessively. View "United States v. Woods" on Justia Law

Joseph Work, a former employee of Intertek, filed a collective action against the company for unpaid overtime, liquidated damages, attorneys’ fees, and relief for the collective class. Intertek objected to the judicial forum and requested arbitration. The dispute centered on whether the agreed-upon Arbitration Agreement provided for individual or class arbitration. Work sought class arbitration, while Intertek sought individual arbitration. Intertek filed a Motion to Compel Individual Arbitration, arguing that the Arbitration Agreement did not contain an express delegation clause and was silent on class arbitration.The United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas ruled that the issue of class arbitrability was delegated to the arbitrator. The court held that the Arbitration Agreement incorporated certain JAMS Rules by reference, which delegate questions of arbitrability to the arbitrator, including the question of class arbitrability. The district court granted Work’s motion to dismiss and denied Intertek’s motion to compel individual arbitration.On appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, Intertek argued that consent to class arbitration was absent and that the language in the Arbitration Agreement was not clear. The court rejected both arguments, affirming the district court's decision. The court held that the Arbitration Agreement was not ambiguous and that it clearly incorporated the JAMS Rules by reference. The court concluded that the language in the Arbitration Agreement was "clear and unmistakable" in its incorporation of the JAMS Rules, which provide that the arbitrator decides the question of arbitrability. View "Work v. Intertek" on Justia Law

The case involves four plaintiffs who took docetaxel, a chemotherapy drug, as part of their treatment for early-stage breast cancer and subsequently suffered permanent chemotherapy-induced alopecia (PCIA). The plaintiffs allege that the manufacturers of the drug, Hospira, Inc., Hospira Worldwide, LLC, and Accord Healthcare, Inc., violated state law by failing to warn them that docetaxel could cause PCIA.The case was initially heard in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, where the defendants moved for summary judgment on the basis that the plaintiffs' state law failure-to-warn claims were preempted by federal law. The district court denied the motion, and the defendants appealed.The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit was tasked with determining whether federal law preempts the plaintiffs' state law failure-to-warn claims against the defendant drug manufacturers. The court found that the district court had erred in its interpretation of what constitutes "newly acquired information" under the changes-being-effected (CBE) regulation, which allows manufacturers to file a supplemental application with the FDA and simultaneously implement a labeling change before obtaining FDA approval. The court held that the district court failed to enforce the requirement that newly acquired information must "reveal risks of a different type or greater severity or frequency than previously included in submissions to FDA."The court vacated the district court's judgment on the plaintiffs' failure-to-warn claims and remanded the case for further consideration of one outstanding issue: whether the Bertrand Abstract, a scientific study, constituted "newly acquired information" that revealed a greater risk of PCIA than previously known. If the Bertrand Abstract does not meet this standard, the court held that the defendants would not be liable to the plaintiffs on their state law failure-to-warn claims. View "Hickey v. Hospira" on Justia Law