United States Supreme Court - March 2013 Opinion Summaries

Comcast Corp. v. Behrend

Antitrust & Trade Regulation, Class Actions, Commercial Law
Plaintiffs' class action, alleging violations of the federal antitrust laws, was improperly certified under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(b)(3),...

Millbrook v. US

Government Law, Injury & Tort Law
28 U.S.C. section 2680(h) of the Federal Tort Claims Act, the proviso that extends the government's waiver of immunity to claims for certain...

Florida v. Jardines

Criminal Law & Procedure, Evidence
Using a drug-sniffing dog on defendant-homeowner's porch to investigate the contents of the home is a "search" within the meaning of the Fourth...

Wos v. E. M. A.

Government Law, Health Law, Injury & Tort Law, Constitutional Law, Government Benefits
The federal anti-lien provision pre-empts North Carolina's irrebuttable statutory presumption that one-third of a tort recovery is attributable to...

Decker v. Northwest Environmental Defense Center

Administrative Law, Constitutional Law, Environmental Law, Water Law
In a citizen suit brought under the Clean Water Act (CWA) alleging that defendants had not obtained National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System...

Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Commercial Law, Constitutional Law, Entertainment Law, Intellectual Property, Copyright, Media Law
The "first sale" doctrine, which provides that the owner of a particular copy lawfully made under the Copyright Act, is entitled, without the...

Standard Fire Ins. Co. v. Knowles

Civil Procedure, Class Actions, Constitutional Law, Insurance Law
Plaintiff's stipulation that he and the class would seek less than $5 million in damages does not defeat federal jurisdiction under the Class Action...

Levin v. US

Government Law, Health Law, Injury & Tort Law, Military Law, Professional Malpractice
Under the Gonzalez Act, which makes the remedy against the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) preclusive of any suit against armed...