No Class-Action Tolling for Chiquita Terrorism Plaintiffs
Posted on Sep 15, 2022 in Class Actions | Comments Off on No Class-Action Tolling for Chiquita Terrorism Plaintiffs
The court was presented with a set of exotic facts in Garcia v. Chiquita Brands International, 2022 U.S. App. LEXIS 25192 (11th Cir. Sept. 8, 2022), but applied two familiar principles of civil procedure to decide the relatively narrow issues on appeal. The decision was the court’s second in the controversy arising from Chiquita’s guilty plea to unlawfully funding a paramilitary...
Court Affirms Summary Judgment in Employer’s Favor on ERISA Claims Arising from Discontinuation of Life Insurance
Posted on Jan 5, 2022 in Employment Law and Employee Benefits | Comments Off on 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....
Too Late Blues for Guitar Maker’s Copyright Ownership Claims
Posted on Apr 24, 2020 in Intellectual Property | Comments Off on Too Late Blues for Guitar Maker’s Copyright Ownership Claims
In Webster v. Dean Guitars, 2020 WL 1887783 (11th Cir. Apr. 16, 2020), the Eleventh Circuit affirmed the district court’s grant of summary judgment for a guitar manufacturer in a copyright dispute over the lightning storm graphic on “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott’s iconic guitar, known as “The Dean from Hell.” The district court properly determined that the gravamen of the copyright...
How Accountable Are You for Your Accountant’s Tax Fraud? The Eleventh Circuit Decides Not to Answer.
Posted on Jun 18, 2019 in Taxation | Comments Off on How Accountable Are You for Your Accountant’s Tax Fraud? The Eleventh Circuit Decides Not to Answer.
In Finnegan v. Commissioner, 2019 WL 2428109 (11th Cir. June 11, 2019), the Eleventh Circuit was asked to review whether a taxpayer may be indefinitely held responsible for the fraud of its paid tax return preparer. It is a question of special interest to small business owners that rely on an outside accountant to help with their taxes. Ultimately, the court chose not to answer the...
False Claims Act Statute of Limitations Extended
Posted on Apr 17, 2018 in Civil Procedure | Comments Off on False Claims Act Statute of Limitations Extended
An extended limitations period—up to ten years, in some circumstances—is applicable to actions by private plaintiffs under the False Claims Act (FCA) even when the government declines to intervene, according to a recent Eleventh Circuit decision, United States ex rel. Hunt v. Cochise Consultancy, Inc., 2018 WL 1736788 (11th Cir. Apr. 11, 2018). In so holding, the court staked out a...