An inartfully pleaded class definition coupled with a failure of proof was enough to prevent a class-action plaintiff from invoking the Class Action Fairness Act’s “local controversy” exception to avoid removal from the sheltering arms of a Florida circuit court, according to the Eleventh Circuit in Simring v. GreenSky, LLC, 2022 U.S. App. LEXIS 8002…
Tag: Judge Andrew Brasher
Court Affirms Summary Judgment in Employer’s Favor on ERISA Claims Arising from Discontinuation of Life Insurance
In Klaas v. Allstate Insurance Co., 2021 U.S. App. LEXIS 38473 (11th Cir. Dec. 28, 2021), the Eleventh Circuit affirmed summary judgment in the employer’s favor on ERISA claims stemming from the employer’s discontinuation of retirees’ life insurance benefits. Until 2013, Allstate provided eligible Allstate employees with life insurance that continued after the employee’s retirement….
Strike While the Arbitration Award Is Hot: Three-Month Window to File Motion to Vacate Does Not Prevent Earlier Confirmation
The Federal Arbitration Act provides for motions to confirm (9 U.S.C. § 9) or to vacate or modify (9 U.S.C. §§ 10, 11) an arbitration award, but the motions are not all subject to the same deadline. A motion to confirm may be filed within a year after the award is made, whereas the window…
Class Claims for Declaratory and Supplemental Relief Remanded to State Court
In Mack v. USAA Casualty Insurance Co., 2021 WL 1572709 (11th Cir. Apr. 22, 2021), the Eleventh Circuit dismissed for lack of an Article III “case or controversy” a putative class action in which the plaintiff sought a declaration that his insurer’s adjustment of total loss claims violates Florida law and money damages as corresponding…
ERISA’s Fee-Shifting Provision Permits Awards Against Parties, Not Attorneys
Does ERISA’s fee-shifting provision, 29 U.S.C. § 1132(g)(1), permit a court to award fees against a party’s counsel? Deciding this issue of first impression that has divided district courts within and without the Eleventh Circuit, the court in Peer v. Liberty Life Assurance Co. of Boston, 2021 WL 1257440 (11th Cir. Apr. 6, 2021), held…
Judge William Pryor Becomes Chief Judge of Eleventh Circuit
The Eleventh Circuit welcomed a new chief judge this week, as the Hon. William H. Pryor Jr. replaced the Hon. Ed Carnes in that role on the latter’s seventieth birthday, in accordance with 28 U.S.C. § 45. Judge Carnes had previously given notice of his intention to take senior status, and District Judge Andrew Brasher…
Judge Andrew Brasher Confirmed to the Eleventh Circuit
The U.S. Senate confirmed U.S. District Judge Andrew Brasher’s nomination to the Eleventh Circuit with a 52-43 vote on February 11, 2020. Judge Brasher was previously sworn into office as a United States District Judge for the Middle District of Alabama on May 1, 2019. Prior to taking the bench, Judge Brasher served as Alabama’s…