As I stated last month, the focus of my column for the year 2020 will be the legal complexities of riding--and possibly falling off of--a rental scooter in 2020. Fortunately for consumers, a favorable opinion has already come down from the US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in Wilson v. Huuu...
Civil Rights: 42 U.S.C. § 1983—Use of Excessive Force Tuuamalemalo v. Greene, No. 18-156665 (9th Cir. December 24, 2019) (J. Fletcher) https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca9/18-15665/18-15665-2019-12-24.html USE OF CHOKE HOLD ON A NON-RESISTING RESTRAINED PERSON VIOLATES 4TH ...
Our first Newsletter of 2020 has been released! We cover the following topics: 'Before You Rent a Scooter, Protect Yourself Legally' by Matt Schmidt 'Why You Need a Real ID& How to Get Yours Before the Deadline' by Dev Sethi 'Black Boxes in Medicine & the Implications for Malpractice Cases...
Caridad Community Kitchen is a community meal program of the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona. It provides meals for those in need, as well as a culinary and job skills training program for low-income or underemployed individuals. Our entire office was proud to spend the day volunteering...
As rental scooters across the country become the new hot thing, interpreting the legal contracts riders unknowingly "sign" when they hop on one has become an interesting phenomenon that will become a litigation battleground in the upcoming years (like Uber, but worse). My column for the next year...
As US health officials urge people not to use e-cigarettes, especially those containing THC, and as President Trump and the FDA weigh banning vaping products, the insurance marketplace has taken decisive action. Already health insurance underwriters have been categorizing vaping as essentially th...
Discovery—Unsealing Trade Secrets Subject to Protective Order Center for Auto Safety v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., No. 1 CA-CV 18-0244 (App. Div. I, November 26, 2019) (J. Swann) ARIZONA RULE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE 5.4 and THE UNIFORM TRADE SECRET ACT PROTECT TRADE SECRETS EVEN IN THE FACE OF IMPO...
Arizona wrongful death claims are authorized by ARS 12-612. The jury is given broad discretion in deciding the appropriate measure of damages. The statute provides some guidance, "The jury shall give such damages as it deems fair and just...." Beyond that, it's left to the jury's wisdom. Case ...
A detailed report out from Fortune and Kaiser Health Network details a decade worth of failures and false starts in the growing and lucrative area of electronic medical records. The end result is that patients remain at risk of harm while their data sits on the sidelines and while special interes...
Breast augmentation is the most popular form of plastic surgery in the country. Recently, however, the Food and Drug Administration has decided to issue a boxed warning and is considering requiring a decision checklist--a list doctors must go over with their patients--due to increased findings of...
I have written previously about Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder and the claim that it causes certain types of cancer. Baby powder is made of talc, which is mined from the earth. The claim is that talc works its way into the body and can lead to cancer, often uterine cancer in women. In addition,...
Recently, an appellate court in Texas overruled a $9 million jury verdict in favor of an injured worker against a drilling company. The court ordered a new trial after finding the jury had access to an unredacted document showing that the defendant had $9 million in liability insurance coverage....
The NFL, college and high school football have begun to confront the problem of brain trauma. The NFL settled a massive lawsuit arising out of CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy). The settlement calls for a wide range of reforms and payments to NFL victims of CTE. In the meantime, the NCAA ...
A Missouri teenager saved money from her after-school job and small inheritance to buy a used Honda Civic. The car was carefully selected - a 2018 with less than 5,000 miles. Last week an aerosol can of dry shampoo left in the center console exploded - blowing out the sunroof and destroying the...
Juror Misconduct Rojas v. State, No. 2 CA-CR 2018-0271 (App. Div. II, August 28, 2019) (J. Eppich) https://www.appeals2.az.gov/decisions/CR20180271%20Opinion.pdf WHERE COURTROOM OBSERVER POSTS VIDEO OF TRIAL SHOWING SOME OF THE JURORS IN THE VIDEO AND POSTS IT ON SOCIAL MEDIA AND SOME JURORS BE...
Constitution—Free Speech vs Same Sex Wedding Brush & Nib Studio, LC v. City of Phoenix, No. CV-18-0176-PR (September 16, 2019) (J. Gould) https://www.azcourts.gov/Portals/0/OpinionFiles/Supreme/2019/Brush%20and%20Nib%20Filed.pdf ART STUDIO HAS CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT TO REFUSE TO CREATE CUSTOM WED...
The Food and Drug Administration sent JUUL, whose omnipresent e-cigarette has taken the teenage market by storm, a warning letter earlier this week saying that the company illegally marketed its vaping product as a less harmful alternative to cigarettes. For more than a year now, Juul has been t...
Read the Schmidt, Sethi & Akmajian September 2019 Newsletter.
School is back in session. And with it comes the now familiar struggle to manage kids' smartphone use, both in an out of school. A California high school has taken a page from comedians like Dave Chappelle, Chris Rock, and Aziz Ansari. San Mateo High School, in Silicon Valley, is using low tech...
Over the years we have been fortunate to be in a position to support Tucson's champions. We believe that many life lessons are learned playing a high school sport. Poise, dedication, sacrifice, humility, fearlessness and so much more. Last night we were proud to gift the Sunnyside boy's soccer ...
Robert Zangrillo faces felony charges for paying $250,000 to get his daughter into the University of Southern California as a fake athlete. Recently unsealed court records outline his defense -- his money was a donation, no different than those made by presumably many other families to grease th...
Torts: Qualified Immunity of Police Officers City of Caldwell v. Winfield, D.C. No. 1:16-cv-00359 (9th Cir. July 25, 2019) (J. Graber) http://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2019/07/25/18-35300.pdf WHERE POLICE OFFICER BELIEVED HE HAD PERMISSION TO ENTER PLAINTIFF'S HOME TO CONDUCT SEA...
The Supreme Court of the United States often goes by a nickname, "The Highest Court in the Land." And that's not just because of its secret, fifth floor basketball court. SCOTUS, another popular nickname, is the highest court in the federal judiciary. Established by Article III of the United S...
Yesterday, Matt Schmidt and and Amanda Bynum tought "Stress Management & Wellness: a Toolkit for Lawyers" for the State Bar of Arizona. The program was attended by over 70 people in person and online. In sum, the seminar focused on practical mindfulness strategies to overcome five primary elemen...
Torts: Implied Obstacle Preemption Dashi v. Nissan N.A., Inc, No. 1 CA-CV 18-0389 (App. Div. I, June 13 2019) (J. Weinzweig) https://www.azcourts.gov/Portals/0/OpinionFiles/Div1/2019/1%20%20CA-CV18-0389%20-%20Dashi%20v.%20Nissan%20-%20File%20Version.pdf NHTSA'S REFUSAL TO REQUIRE ADVANC...