LATEST SUMMARIES

CIVIL PROCEDURE, CONTRACTS, RETAIL
• Edwards v. Kia Motors of Am.

CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE, PER CURIAM, SENTENCING
• US v. Martinez

LATEST SUMMARIES

CIVIL PROCEDURE, CONTRACTS, RETAIL
Edwards v. Kia Motors of Am., No. 06-14306
In case involving disagreement over application of the Alabama Motor Vehicle Franchise Act to a retrospective mutual release agreement between a car dealer and a car manufacturer, the resolution case turns on the interpretation of unsettled Alabama law, so the following question is certified to the Alabama Supreme Court: Does the explicit prohibition of prospective releases under Alabama Code section 8-20-4(3)(m) clearly imply that retrospective releases lie beyond the purview of the Alabama Motor Vehicle Franchise Act? Read more...

CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE, PER CURIAM, SENTENCING
US v. Martinez, No. 06-13429
Conviction and sentence for defendant prisoner's forcibly assault of a federal officer by spraying urine on him are affirmed over claims that: 1) the district court erred in giving the government's proposed jury instructions on the elements of the offense; 2) the government failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that defendant intended to inflict serious bodily injury; 3) the district court abused its discretion when it prohibited him from arguing during closing about the government's failure to produce a videotape of the incident; and 4) the district court erred in its order requiring defendant to pay restitution to the victim for his medical bills. Read more...