Publications

This column reports on several significant, representative decisions handed down recently in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Judge Raymond J. Dearie found that two of defense counsel's peremptory challenges to potential jurors were improperly based on gender. Judge Denis R. Hurley decided what categories of damages could be presented to the jury in a legal malpractice case. And Judge Margo K. Brodie denied a defendant's motion to reconsider the denial of summary judgment regarding Truth in Lending Act claims, in part because of defendant's failure to raise its "lack of assignment" argument in its earlier motion papers.

This column reports on several significant, representative decisions handed down recently in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. In a case involving a defendant who had served his sentence for receiving child pornography, Judge Jack B. Weinstein vacated as unconstitutional a condition of supervised release that defendant not attend church services with minors present. In three separate cases Judges Roslynn R. Mauskopf, Pamela K. Chen and Frederic Block ruled on motions to compel arbitration. And Judge Chen held that the Organic Food Production Act of 1990 preempted state law claims alleging improper labeling of infant formula.

This column reports on several significant, representative decisions handed down recently in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Judge Frederic Block found a complaint's allegations sufficient to plead scienter under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. Judge Margo K. Brodie held that the military exception to the waiver of immunity under the Federal Tort Claims Act did not apply where plaintiff's injuries were not incident to military service. And Judge William F. Kuntz, II, saw no reason to admit into evidence Internal Revenue Code provisions and regulations to demonstrate the defendant tax preparer's lack of willfulness, when the court would instruct the jury on the law.

This column reports on several significant, representative decisions handed down recently in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Judge Jack B. Weinstein imposed an exceptionally lenient sentence on a defendant who had suffered losses from the chaos in Syria. Judge Arthur D. Spatt explained the requirements of a complaint in admiralty that would allow defendant to implead a third party under Rules 14(c) and 9(h). And Judge Pamela K. Chen addressed the circumstances in which claims of fiduciary breach may be asserted by a mortgagor against a mortgage servicer.

This column reports on several significant, representative decisions handed down recently in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Judge Jack B. Weinstein held that plaintiff's reassignment from his position as an armed ATF Special Agent to another job within the agency did not amount to "discrimination" against an "otherwise qualified individual" by reason of any "disability" under the Rehabilitation Act of 1993, where his supervisors had reasonably concluded that he should not be carrying a gun.

This column reports on several significant, representative decisions handed down recently in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Judge Frederic Block imposed a probationary sentence in light of the extensive collateral consequences of defendant's conviction. Judge Allyne R. Ross sanctioned two attorneys for a pattern of conduct including neglect of trial-related scheduling orders. And Judge Jack B. Weinstein held that, contrary to a recently amended Application Note to a Guidelines provision, defendant's prior plea to Driving While Ability Impaired does not elevate his criminal history and thus he remains eligible for a "safety-valve" exception to a ten-year mandatory minimum sentence.

This column reports on several significant, representative decisions handed down recently in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Judge Eric N. Vitaliano, over defendant's objection, reinstated an order allowing the foreclosure sale of defendant's home. Magistrate Judge Steven I. Locke saw no basis to expunge a criminal record relating to a 1991 arrest followed by dismissal of the charges. And Judge Joanna Seybert denied intervention as of right to certain non-parties but granted limited permissive intervention in a case involving the East Hampton Airport.

This column reports on several significant, representative decisions handed down recently in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Judge Frederic Block, finding that defendant was in "custody" during his interrogation at JFK Airport, suppressed the statements he made because he had not received timely Miranda warnings. Judge Arthur D. Spatt denied a motion for a preliminary injunction allowing plaintiff's minor children to attend a Jewish school pending her lawsuit challenging New York's vaccination requirements. And Judge Jack B. Weinstein awarded damages to a U.S. citizen illegally detained as an alien by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

This column reports on several significant, representative decisions handed down recently in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Judge Edward R. Korman reduced the sentence of a man serving the second of two prison terms, despite the government's opposition. Judge Jack B. Weinstein explained the reasons for imposing seven years of strict supervised release, rather than a jail term, for possessing child pornography. Judge Denis R. Hurley rejected defendant's post-sentence request to amend her Pre-Sentence Report with information contradicting her pre-sentence submissions. And Judge Allyne R. Ross declined to transfer venue to the Southern District.

This column reports on several significant, representative decisions handed down recently in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. Judge Frederic Block granted a motion to suppress a firearm seized during a pat-down search on the street. Judge Raymond J. Dearie warned the government of possible sanctions in future cases if its grand jury subpoenas improperly directed recipients not to disclose the existence of the subpoenas. Judge Jack B. Weinstein found no long-arm jurisdiction over a Chinese company that manufactured a bicycle handlebar. And Judge Weinstein declined to dismiss a case or transfer it back to New Jersey under the first-to-file rule, where the Eastern District of New York had established jurisdiction first.