Rules | Judiciary.org

Supreme Court

Court opts for plain meaning in dispute over procedural rules for relief from erroneous judgments

The Supreme Court on Monday clarified the meaning of “mistake” in the federal procedural rule that allows litigants to seek relief from erroneous final judgments. In an 8-1 opinion in Kemp v. United States, the court ruled that “all mistakes of law made by a judge” constitute “mistakes” under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b)(1).

The case involved the various subsections of Rule 60(b), which establishes different deadlines for motions designed to correct various errors that courts … Read the rest

Supreme Court

Courts may not “make up” new procedural rules to favor arbitration

In a series of decisions, the Supreme Court has insisted that the Federal Arbitration Act requires courts to put arbitration contracts on “equal footing” with other kinds of contracts. These decisions have often favored companies seeking to enforce arbitration agreements, rejecting rules that give employees or consumers a way out from contract clauses requiring them to arbitrate their disputes on an individual basis. But Monday’s unanimous decision in Morgan v. Sundance clarifies that the equal-footing rule works both ways. … Read the rest

Civil Law

FERC Approves Civil Penalties for Alleged Violations of CAISO and PJM Market Rules

On March 28, 2022 and March 29, 2022, FERC issued two orders approving stipulation and consent agreements between FERC’s Office of Enforcement and Dynergy Marketing and Trade, LLC (“Dynergy”) and Constellation NewEnergy Inc. (“Constellation”), respectively. Among other things, Dynergy agreed to pay a $ 450,000 civil penalty for alleged violations of PJM Interconnection LLC (“PJM”) capacity tariff requirements and Constellation agreed to pay a $ 2.4 million civil penalty for alleged violations of California Independent System Operator (“CAISO”) resource adequacy … Read the rest