U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
Recent News About U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
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Appeals panel decides Chicago surgical center wanted malpractice trial, can't sue insurer for $1.3M
A Chicago federal appeals court says a Chicago surgical center is just as responsible as its insurer for the decision to take a medical malpractice case to trial rather than settle, meaning it can't now sue the insurer over the decision, which cost the surgical center $1.3 million. -
Appeals panel: Widow doesn't get to collect $60K insurance for man who hanged himself while masturbating
The widow of a man who died when he allegedly accidentally hanged himself when an apparent act of autoerotic asphyxiation went wrong, should not be able to collect an additional $60,000 in insurance coverage from his death, a federal appeals panel has ruled. -
Seventh Circuit tosses suit over inflatable beach mat, chides plaintiffs for 'luring' defendants into IL court
A Chicago federal appeals panel has deflated a lawsuit by the designers of an inflatable beach mat, who alleged two companies rooked them out of royalties, finding the case does not belong in an Illinois federal court, because the out-of-state companies do not have any substantial presence in Illinois. -
Illinois' Collective Bargaining Freedom Act not likely to see SCOTUS challenge, attorneys say
A new Illinois law that bars municipalities from enacting local "right-to-work" rules probably will not get challenged before the U.S. Supreme Court, but a Chicago suburb's existing case still could, two attorneys said during a recent interview. -
Appeals panel: Background check service OK to report woman's 1996 battery guilty plea to landlord
The U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a ruling against a woman who was suing a background check service she said wrongly reported a past guilty plea to a prospective landlord, leaving her unable to rent an apartment. -
SCOTUS weighs competing briefs in widow's appeal in case vs GSK over suicide of lawyer taking generic Paxil
The U.S. Supreme Court is tackling the question of whether drug companies can be sued for not making their warning labels strong enough, even though the FDA controls the labels. But whether a forthcoming Supreme Court decision will affect a decision denying a $3 million judgment to the widow of a Chicago lawyer who committed suicide after taking the generic equivalent of Paxil remains unclear. -
Appeals panel: IL can deny concealed-carry permits to citizens of states with less stringent monitoring
In a 2-1 decision, a Chicago federal appeals court has upheld a lower court's ruling that said Illinois is within its rights to bar residents of most other states from seeking concealed gun permits in Illinois, on grounds those states do not make their gun-carrying citizens provide criminal and mental health information to databases Illinois can access and monitor. -
Judge allows Facebook to ask appeals panel if hundreds of workers belong in OT pay class action
A Chicago federal judge has granted Facebook's request to allow a federal appeals panel to weigh in on whether the judge had properly allowed a group of 450 Facebook employees to move forward with a class action accusing the company of shorting them overtime pay, as Facebook asserts a large number of those worker pay disputes are barred by arbitration agreements. -
Lawyer Xydakis, client sanctioned more than $1M for frivolous Wilmette condo association lawsuits
A Cook County judge has ordered more than $1 million in sanctions and penalties against a lawyer and his client in connection with a litany of legal actions against a Wilmette condo association. -
SCOTUS again asked to order SEIU to repay $32M in home caregivers' union fees already ruled unconstitutional
Arguments have begun to be filed in the latest try to persuade the U.S. Supreme Court to order an Illinois labor union to refund potentially tens of millions in fees the court has already declared were unconstitutionally collected. -
Archdiocese: 7th Circuit should decide if fired gay ex-church music director can sue for hostile work environment
The Chicago Archdiocese is asking a federal judge for permission to take straight to a federal appeals court the question of whether a Calumet City church music director, who has accused the local Catholic Church of firing him for being gay, can sidestep the legal latitude afforded churches under the Constitution by repackaging his lawsuit to instead argue the church subjected him to a hostile work environment. -
Appeals court: Young man struck by train in Indiana when fleeing police can't sue Norfolk Southern Railway
A federal appeals panel has ruled a young Indiana man can't continue with his lawsuit against a railway company after he was struck by a train while running away from a police officer. -
Judge: Labor unions don't owe non-union state workers refunds, despite unconstitutional fees
Labor unions representing public employees shouldn’t need to refund fees they unconstitutionally collected from non-union employees, because they were acting in “good faith,” relying on state laws and prior legal precedent, a federal judge has ruled. -
Judge OKs $35M Pella windows class action deal; $7.6M to plaintiffs' lawyers, $967K to objector Frank
Homeowners whose Pella windows may have leaked will soon be in line for refunds for their repair costs, while attorneys for plaintiffs and objectors will receive millions more in fees, under a deal approved by a Chicago federal judge to close at last a long, tortured class action lawsuit. -
Bankruptcy code not intended to 'shelter' Chicago parking, traffic ticket scofflaws: Appeals panel
A federal appeals panel has determined that a bankruptcy filing shouldn’t offer protection from traffic fines. -
Appeals court: Clergy housing allowance tax exemption rules are constitutional
A federal appeals panel has reversed a lower court ruling that said tax-free housing allowances for clergy breached the separation between church and state, finding the long history of such exemptions in the United States allows churches, not government, to properly "advance religion." -
Man waited decades too long to launch his legal dogfight over fate of WWII fighter, appeals court says
A federal appeals court last week clarified a ruling confirming ownership of a World War II fighter plane that has been at the heart of a legal dogfight. -
Federal appeals court rules GE doesn't have to remove polluted soil where Morrison factory stood
A Chicago federal appellate panel has upheld a lower court ruling that said owners of land contaminated by chemicals from a General Electric plant in northwestern Illinois cannot force the company to remove the polluted soil, because the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency is only calling for GE to contain the contamination. -
Southwest Airlines workers: Class action over fingerprint scans not subject to union deal interpretation
Lawyers for a group of Southwest Airlines employees have asked a federal appeals court to find a Chicago federal judge was wrong to toss their class action accusing the airline of violating their rights under a state’s biometrics privacy law, as the plaintiffs said their union contract doesn’t negate the airline’s alleged liability under the state law. -
Subway not on the hook for T-Mobile promo texts offering free sandwiches, judge says
A T-Mobile customer can’t make fast food sandwich chain Subway pay up for a promotional text message sent by the wireless carrier offering its customers free sandwiches as a reward for being a T-Mobile user, a federal judge has ruled.