Hilda L. Solis sued Tyson Foods, Inc. on a Fair Labor Standards Act violation theory claiming that Defendant failed to keep accurate time records and failed to pay production workers for the time that they spend donning and doffing safety and sanitary gear, and performing other related work activities. The Labor Department wanted workers to be paid for " certain pre- and post-shift and meal period... More...   $250000 (11-06-2009 - aL)

This appeal requires us to determine whether the district court properly rescinded its order converting a motion to dismiss into a motion for summary judgment. We must also determine whether the court properly denied Defendants qualified immunity. After reviewing the record and the parties’ briefs, we AFFIRM IN PART AND REVERSE IN PART.

I. FACTS

A. Background

The following f... More...   $0 (10-07-2009 - AL)

This appeal is the second appeal in this case before the Court. In the first appeal, the Court vacated the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of Mr. Pieniozek (“Pieniozekâ€�) on Mega Life and Health Insurance Company’s (“Megaâ€�) claim for rescission of Ms. Pieniozek’s life insurance policy and Pieniozek’s counterclaim for breach of contract, and remanded the case for ... More...   $0 (10-19-2009 - AL)

Latoya Duckett, age 28, sued the Fort Motor Company on a products liability theory claiming that the Mercury Mountaineer SUV in which she was a passenger was defective and unreasonably dangerous because it was unstable and likely to roll over too easily in an accident. Her leg was amputated and one arm paralyzed during the accident on Interstate 20 near Douglasville, Georgia and sustained some b... More...   $0 (10-15-2009 - AL)

Because state supreme courts are the final arbiters of state law, “when we write to a state law issue, we write in faint and disappearing ink,â€� and “once the state supreme court speaks the effect of anything we have written vanishes like the proverbial bat in daylight, only faster.â€� Sultenfuss v. Snow, 35 F.3d 1494, 1504 (11th Cir. 1994) (Carnes, J., dissenting). A dozen years ago we held ... More...   $0 (09-11-2009 - AL)

This interlocutory appeal presents the question whether two deputies at a county jail were deliberately indifferent to the serious medical need of a pregnant detainee who had used crack cocaine daily. The undisputed evidence proves that both deputies knew that a nurse at the jail had seen and spoken with the detainee, and it is undisputed that the nurse determined that the detainee’s medical nee... More...   $0 (09-11-2009 - AL)

Appellant Point Clear Holdings, Inc. (“PCHâ€�) appeals from the district court’s grant of summary judgment to Appellees H.E. Scobee, Dorothy Scobee, Hank Perkins, and Paula Perkins (collectively “the Lot Ownersâ€�). The dispute in this case centers on controlling the use of Pine Grove Drive, a street in Point Clear, Alabama. PCH owns Pine Grove Drive, and the Lot Owners have a private easeme... More...   $0 (08-12-2009 - AL)

The Family and Estate of Derrick Marshall sued Rodeway Inn f/k/a King’s Inn hotel and Tamara Mitchell on negligence theories for the wrongful death of Mr. Marshall who was found unconscious in the bottom of the motel's pool. Derrick, age 19, was staying at the motel to attend a family reunion. The pool had been ordered closed by the Montgomery County Health Department but motel employees alleg... More...   $3800000 (08-28-2009 - AL)

The plaintiffs, David Corbitt and Alexander Raya (collectively, “Appellantsâ€�), appeal the entry of summary judgment in favor of the defendant, Home Depot U.S.A., Inc. (“Home Depotâ€�), on their sexual harassment and retaliation claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e–2000e-17, and their state law claims of assault and battery, outrage, and invasion of p... More...   $0 (07-10-2009 - AL)

The plaintiffs, David Corbitt and Alexander Raya (collectively, “Appellantsâ€�), appeal the entry of summary judgment in favor of the defendant, Home Depot U.S.A., Inc. (“Home Depotâ€�), on their sexual harassment and retaliation claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e–2000e-17, and their state law claims of assault and battery, outrage, and invasion of p... More...   $0 (07-10-2009 - AL)

Parsons & Whittemore Enterprises Corporation sued Cello Energy; LLC, Biofuels Operating Co.; LLC, Boykin Trust, LLC; Allen Boykin; Jack W. Boykin on a fraud theory claiming that defendants falsely claimed that they could produce cheap fuel from hay, waste wood and other materials. Plaintiff claimed that Cello Energy built and staffed a plant, but never accomplished what Boykin had long promisedâ€... More...   $7604537 (07-02-2009 - AL)

The City of Heflin sued Heflin and Tracy Lambert on a declaratory judgment theory seeking to establish the ownership of a street. The city claimed that Lambert and Ashton Place did not recognize Elliott Drive as a public road and there existed a dispute over ownership of portions of the street.


Defendants denied that the City owned the street and counterclaimed for $196,550 maintaining ... More...   $5000 (06-26-2009 - AL)

Bruce Walker and Kimberly Smith-McKenzie sued Sumter County Sheriff Johnny L Hatter on various employment law violation theories. Kimberly Smith-McKenzie claimed that she was sexually harassed and retaliated against for complaining. Bruce Walker claimed that he was discriminated against because of his race and retaliated against for supporting Smith-McKenzie.

The defenses asserted by She... More...   $2500000 (06-06-2009 - AL)

This appeal presents the question of whether claims brought pursuant to the Credit Repair Organizations Act ("CROA"), 15 U.S.C. § 1679 et seq., are subject to arbitration. The district court held that the statute precludes arbitration. We disagree.

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Credit Solutions, Inc., a/k/a Credit Solutions of America, Inc. ("CSA") is a debt settlement compan... More...   $0 (04-06-2009 - AL)

In this case we consider the constitutionality of the statutory-damages provision found in § 616(a)(1)(A) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRAâ€�), 15 U.S.C. § 1681, et seq. The district court, finding that the statutory-damages provision is unconstitutionally vague and excessive, dismissed the complaints with prejudice. For the reasons stated below, we vacate the rulings of the district co... More...   $0 (04-09-2009 - AL)

In this case, Jefferson County employees challenge as unconstitutional and violative of federal law certain amendments made by the Jefferson County Commission to its retirement system. The district court dismissed the employees’ claims, finding that (1) the claims constituted a de facto appeal from a previous state court judgment which rejected similar arguments and that, therefore, under the Ro... More...   $0 (03-31-2009 - AL)

The State of Alabama sued Sandoz, Inc., a subsidiary of Novartis AG for wrongfully causing the State's Medicaid program to pay too much for prescription drugs from 1991 to 2005.

Sandoz denied wrongdoing.... More...   $78400000 (02-26-2009 - AL)

The issue in this case concerns the application of the Alabama Motor Vehicle Franchise Act (“Franchise Actâ€� or “the Actâ€�) to a retrospective mutual release agreement (the “Releaseâ€�)1 between Appellants Edwin Edwards and ELL 12,2 and Appellee Kia Motors America, Inc. (“KMAâ€�). See Ala. Code § 8-20-11. Unable to determine whether the relevant provisions of the Franchise Act did in fa... More...   $0 (01-06-2009 - AL)

In this state-law libel and negligence action, the Appellants—officials from New York City and various investigators hired by the City to conduct investigations in Georgia—appeal the district court’s order concluding that Georgia privilege law applies to this case and that Georgia’s anti-SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) statute does not apply in federal court. Becaus... More...   $0 (12-19-2008 - AL)

These appeals present a host of issues arising out of litigation about whether executives of Drummond, Ltd., the Colombian subsidiary of a coal mining company in Alabama, paid paramilitary operatives to torture and assassinate leaders of a Colombian trade union, SINTRAMIENERGETICA. In 2002 and 2003, the union and several of its leaders and relatives of deceased leaders sued Drummond and its parent... More...   $0 (12-25-2008 - AL)

An opt-in class of 1,424 store managers, in a collective action certified by the district court, sued Family Dollar Stores, Inc. (“Family Dollarâ€�) for unpaid overtime wages under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSAâ€�), 29 U.S.C. §§ 201- 219. During an eight-day trial, the Plaintiffs used Family Dollar’s payroll records to establish that 1,424 store managers routinely worked 60 to 70 hou... More...   $35576059 (12-20-2008 - AL)

Yvonne Baldwin, the former acting police chief of Prichard, Alabama sued the city on a sexual discrimination theory under 42 U.S.C. 2000e claiming that the City offered her a discriminatory contract and then retaliated against her for filing a complaint. Plaintiff claimed that Prichard discriminated against her when it offered only a two-year contract. After she rejected the offer, the city gave L... More...   $235000 (12-20-2008 - AL)

This appeal concerns the personal jurisdiction of a U.S. district court over a Taiwanese company in a suit for declaratory judgment of non-infringement and invalidity of two U.S. patents owned by that Taiwanese company. Because the plaintiffs failed to allege that the Taiwanese company purposefully directed any activities beyond merely sending notice letters at residents of the forum and that the ... More...   $0 (12-19-2008 - AL)

This appeal involves a dispute over insurance coverage. Plaintiff-Appellee Capstone Capital Corporation (“Capstone�), a real estate investment 1 trust, sued its insurance carrier Defendant-Appellant Twin City Fire Insurance Company (“Twin City�) for coverage of litigation expenses related to defending a particular lawsuit.

In moving for summary judgment, Twin City argued to the dist... More...   $0 (11-10-2008 - AL)

This appeal involves a dispute over insurance coverage. Plaintiff-Appellee Capstone Capital Corporation (“Capstone�), a real estate investment 1 trust, sued its insurance carrier Defendant-Appellant Twin City Fire Insurance Company (“Twin City�) for coverage of litigation expenses related to defending a particular lawsuit.

In moving for summary judgment, Twin City argued to the dist... More...   $0 (11-04-2008 - AL)

Neighbors of Ipsco Steel Co., now SSAB Alabama, sued it on a nuisance theory complaining about the sound of steelmaking for mental anguish and loss of the enjoyment of their property. Plaintiffs were among about 50 households in the Axis area who lived in a rural setting prior to the plant's arrival, the area had been designated as industrial by the early 1980s. Plaintiffs complained about the n... More...   $0 (10-05-2008 - AL)

The Family and Estate of Joseph Watkins sued Greatwide Dedicated Transport of Texas and, its driver, Thomas Rowell on an auto negligence theory seeking damages for the wrongful death of Mr. Watkins, age 79. Plaintiffs claimed that the semi-tractor trailer rig being driven by Rowell was being driven in excess of the speed limit by nearly thirty mph when it hit Mr. Watkin's car at the intersection ... More...   $1000000 (10-05-2008 - AL)

The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a settlement with First Lowndes Bank in Lowndes County, Ala., resolving allegations that the bank engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination against African-American customers by charging them higher interest rates on manufactured housing loans, in violation of the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA).
... More...   $185000 (09-29-2008 - AL)

Sherry Knowles sued Macon County Greyhound Park d/b/a VictoryLand on fraud and breach of contract theories claiming that defendant wrongfully refused to pay off on May 2, 2006 when the bingo machine she was playing displayed a jackpot of about 41 million credits.

VictoryLand claimed the jackpot display was a malfunction and never paid Knowles for the credits. VictoryLand machines have sign... More...   $10000000 (09-06-2008 - AL)

This appeal presents the question whether a complaint about conduct regulated by the Medicare Act filed in a state court may be removed to a federal court. Seven individual beneficiaries of the federal Medicare program filed a complaint against Healthspring of Alabama, Inc., the administrator of a Medicare Advantage health-insurance plan. Healthspring removed the case to a federal court and assert... More...   $0 (09-02-2008 - AL)

Kevin Danley was arrested for driving under the influence and was taken to jail. While there he had a disagreement with some of the jailers after he was made to use a dirty toilet without any toilet paper. Because Danley failed to obey one of the jailer’s orders during the disagreement, another jailer pepper sprayed him. Although pepper spray is an accepted non-lethal means of controlling unruly... More...   $0 (08-23-2008 - AL)

This diversity case involves a commercial real estate lease and a proposal by the assignee of that lease to sublease the real estate to a third party. A significant issue in this case arises out of a consent clause in the assignment, which gives the assignor “sole discretionâ€� to withhold consent to the assignee’s proposed sublease. We certify this issue to the Alabama Supreme Court because i... More...   $0 (07-31-2008 - AL)

Alvarene Butler is black and Karen Stacey is white. They both worked for the Alabama Department of Transportation. One work day in January of 2005 they were going to lunch together. Stacey was driving a pickup truck, and Butler was the only passenger.

On the way to lunch, the truck collided with another vehicle, which was driven by a black male. After the collision, Stacey turned to Butler ... More...   $0 (07-31-2008 - AL)

OSI, Inc. (OSI) appeals, for the second time, the grant of summary judgment in favor of the Government on OSI's claims relating to the Air Force's use of certain land–including, in part, land now owned by OSI–as a landfill during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. OSI brought tort claims under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), claims of cost recovery under the Comprehensive Environmental Response... More...   $0 (05-05-2008 - AL)

The question presented in this case is whether an award of attorney's fees granted under 28 U.S.C. § 2412(d)(1)(A) belongs to the party or to the party's attorney. We conclude the statute unambiguously grants an award to the "prevailing party." Accordingly, we hold the award belongs, in the first instance, to the party and not the party's attorney. We therefore affirm the district court's con... More...   $0 (05-05-2008 - AL)

Georgia McCann ("McCann") has been employed as a correctional officer for the Mobile County Sheriff's Office since 1993. From 2003 until September 2005, McCan... More...   $0 (05-13-2008 - AL)

Petitioner-Appellant Gareth Baran is an Australian citizen. On February 16, 2007, he filed a petition in the Southern District of Alabama seeking the return of his minor son pursuant to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (the "Convention") and its implementing legislation, the International Child Abduction Remedies Act of 1988 ("ICARA"), 42 U.S.C. § 116... More...   $0 (05-13-2008 - AL)

The main issue in this appeal is whether a district court must allow litigants to intervene in an action based only on a speculative concern about the stare decisis effect of a decision in that action. Petitioners, 161 employees or former employees of the Tyson Foods, Inc., plant in Blountsville, Alabama, appeal the denial of their motion to intervene in an action filed by M.H. Fox, an employe... More...   $0 (03-14-2008 - AL)

Astrazeneca denied wrongdoing.... More...   $215000000 (02-22-2008 - AL)

The plaintiffs in this employment discrimination case brought under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq., and 42 U.S.C. § 1981, are seven employees and two former employees of Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated ("CCBCC"). In their complaint, they allege that CCBCC is maintaining a "pattern or practice" of discrimination against them and all other similarly sit... More...   $0 (02-06-2008 - AL)