United States Ninth Circuit - Opinion Summaries

NICKEL v. BANK OF AMERICA

Banking Law, Remedies, Probate, Trusts & Estates
The appropriate remedy under California law for a breach of trust by a profit-making bank (a professional trustee) is a proportionate share of the...

BERGT v. THE RET. PLAN FOR PILOTS EMPLOYED BY MARKAIR, INC.

ERISA, Government Benefits, Labor & Employment Law
When provisions of an ERISA plan master document are more favorable to an employee than conflicting statements in the plan summary, unambiguous...

PICKERN v. HOLIDAY QUALITY FOODS, INC.

Civil Rights, Property Law & Real Estate
In a suit for injunctive relief under ADA Title III, where a disabled plaintiff has actual knowledge of illegal barriers to access by a public...

CAIRNS v. FRANKLIN MINT CO.

Injury & Tort Law, Intellectual Property, Trademark
In a claim based on the use of Princess Diana's name and likeness on commercial items, denial of a post-mortem right of publicity claim was proper,...

BERG v. E.I. DUPONT DE NEMOURS & CO.

Health Law, Injury & Tort Law, Remedies
Court's reliance on an expert report to establish that plaintiffs could not show toxic exposure to a threshold level of radiation, did not warrant...

US v. ROMERO

Criminal Law & Procedure, Sentencing
After a guilty plea to false personation of an officer of the U.S., a sentence enhancement under U.S.S.G. section 2F1.1(b)(4)(A), for an offense...

US v. STAPLETON

Criminal Law & Procedure
Court's use of an instruction, permitting the jury to find defendant vicariously liable for mail fraud and wire fraud, for the acts of other...

IN RE HANFORD NUCLEAR RESERVATION LITIG.

Injury & Tort Law
In suits for damages from exposure to harmful levels of radioactive emissions, individual claims should not have been dismissed for failure to...

LITTLE v. KERN COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT

Civil Procedure, Ethics & Professional Responsibility
An attorney, faced with contempt charges after multiple efforts to disqualify a judge, was entitled to notice of the charges and an opportunity to be...

US v. MINORE

Criminal Law & Procedure
Under Apprendi, before accepting a guilty plea, the district court must advise the defendant that the government would have to prove to a jury, beyond...