Findlaw Case Summaries: Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals 12

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July 8-13, 2009
ADMIRALTY, CORP. GOVERNANCE, CORPORATION & ENTERPRISE LAW, DEBT COLLECTION Transfield ER Cape Ltd. v. Industrial Carriers Inc., No. 09-1733 In a dispute involving a maritime attachment and garnishment against a corporate alter ego, district court order vacating the attachment is affirmed where, if a corporation is registered with the New York Department of State and therefore found within the district for the purposes of Rule B of the Supplemental Rules for Admiralty and Maritime Claims and Asset Forfeiture Actions, that corporation’s alter egos are also found within the district and the property of those alter egos is not subject to maritime attachment.

CIVIL RIGHTS, LABOR & EMPLOYMENT LAW Harris v. Mills, No. 07-2283 In an employment discrimination action brought under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation act, district court judgment granting the defendants’ motion to dismiss the plaintiff’s pro se amended complaint is affirmed where: 1) the district court erred in concluding that claims under Title II of the ADA and the Rehabilitation Act cannot be asserted against individuals in their official capacity; 2) plaintiff’s amended complaint fails to state reasonable accommodation claims upon which relief can be granted, as both of his claims are legally insufficient; and 3) plaintiff’s due process rights were not violated, as he was given notice and an opportunity to be heard before his petition for reinstatement was denied, and a New York Civil Practice Law and Rules Article 78 post-deprivation hearing.

ERISA, LABOR & EMPLOYMENT LAW, PER CURIAM Burke v. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP Long Term Disability Plan, No. 08-1611 In a dispute involving disability insurance benefits, district court judgment dismissing plaintiff’s ERISA claim is affirmed where the court was correct to enforce the limitations period of the benefits plan in its entirety, including its prescribed start date, and to dismiss plaintiff’s claim as time-barred as it was brought after the expiration of the limitations period
CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE, SENTENCING US v. Daye, No. 08-1012 Sentence for being a felon in possession of a firearm is vacated and remanded where: 1) defendant’s prior state conviction for engaging in a sexual act with a minor satisfies the standard articulated in Begay and is therefore a violent felony under the residual clause of the Armed Career Criminal Act; and 2) the District Court must consider of remand whether Defendant’s escape conviction constitutes a conviction for a violent felony under Chambers, and whether his two prior state convictions stem from conduct committed on different occasions for purposes of the Act.

CIVIL PROCEDURE, CONTRACTS, INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, TRADEMARK Altvater Gessler-J.A. Baczewski Int’l Inc. v. Sobieski Destylarnia S.A., No. 07-2273 In a trademark dispute involving Austrian liquor, district court order granting defendants motion to dismiss for improper venue is reversed and remanded where the subject matter of plaintiff’s claims is not covered by the forum selection clauses contained in the licensing agreement as plaintiff’s claims do not sound in contract and are not based on rights originating from the licensing agreement. .

CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE, SENTENCING US v. Martinez, No. 08-3454 Sentence for drug crimes is affirmed where the district court properly found that defendant was not eligible for a sentence reduction as his sentence as a career offender under U.S.S.G. sec. 4B1.1 was not based on a sentencing range that was subsequently lowered by the Sentencing Commission.

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