civil | Judiciary.org

Supreme Court divided over disputed civil rights attorney’s fees

The justices on Tuesday were divided over a dispute regarding attorney’s fees for plaintiffs in civil rights cases. A federal appeals court in Richmond, Va., ruled that a group of drivers challenging a state motor vehicle law was entitled to reimbursement of their attorney’s fees because a federal district court had issued an order that temporarily barred the state from enforcing the law – and then the Virginia legislature repealed the law. During roughly 80 minutes of oral argument … Read the rest

Circuit Courts

Federal Judges Bring Civil Discourse Program to Law Students

Court proceedings put a premium on decorum and civil discourse, but the skills and dispositions that set the stage start long before the attorneys and parties enter the courtroom. That is why federal judges and attorneys collaborated with Duke Law School to bring the Judiciary’s Civil Discourse and Difficult Decisions program to law students for the first time.
Judiciary News – United States Courts… Read the rest

Supreme Court

Justices consider civil rights tester’s right to sue

The Supreme Court on Wednesday heard oral argument in the case of a civil rights tester who searches the internet to find hotels whose websites do not provide information about the accessibility of their facilities, as required under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The owner of a Maine hotel argued that because the tester, Deborah Laufer, never intended to stay at the hotel, she does not have a legal right to bring a lawsuit. But after roughly 90 minutes … Read the rest

Supreme Court

Civil rights “tester” asks court to dismiss case

Lawyers for a self-appointed civil rights “tester” have asked the Supreme Court to dismiss her case as moot – that is, no longer a live controversy. Deborah Laufer, who has physical disabilities and vision impairments, told the justices that she has voluntarily dismissed her case in the district court after an attorney who represented her in other cases was disciplined by a federal court in Maryland. But lawyers for the hotel company that Laufer is suing urged the justices … Read the rest