DISCLAIMER:  The following unofficial case summaries are prepared by the clerk's office
                        as a courtesy to the reader. They are not part of the opinion of the court.
153765P.pdf   04/28/2017  Shelby County Health Care Corp  v.  Southern Farm Bureau Casualty
   U.S. Court of Appeals Case No:  15-3765
   U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas - Jonesboro   
[PUBLISHED] [Colloton, Author, with Melloy and Shepherd, Circuit Judges] Civil case - Hospital lien. For the court's prior opinion in the matter, see Shelby Cty. Health Care Corp. v. S. Farm Bureau Cas. Ins. Co., 798 F.3d 686 (8th Cir. 2015). Plaintiff brought this claim against the defendants who had settled a wrongful death claim without assigning any of the recovery to pay the medical expenses the deceased incurred with plaintiff; held,the district court erred in finding the claim for impairment of plaintiff's lien was barred by the Rooker-Feldman doctrine; the court erred in finding Arkansas courts would apply Arkansas law under its choice-of-law rules, as Tennessee law applies to this action seeking relief for impairment of a lien; reversed and remanded for further proceedings. Judge Shepherd, dissenting. 161069P.pdf 04/28/2017 Martinizing International, LLC v. BC Cleaners, LLC U.S. Court of Appeals Case No: 16-1069 U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota - Minneapolis
[PUBLISHED] [Loken, Author, with Murphy and Kelly, Circuit Judges] Civil case - Trademarks. Plaintiff failed to prove BC willfully infringed plaintiff's trademarks,and the district court erred in awarding damages, an accounting for profits and attorneys' fees; the court also erred in granting default judgment against BC's member-managers as plaintiff had failed to show it was entitled to monetary remedies against BC. The district court did not err in enjoining BC from using plaintiff's trademark. Affirmed in part, reversed in part and remanded with directions concerning the entry of an amended judgment. 161113U.pdf 04/28/2017 Juan Jacinto-Vazquez v. Loretta E. Lynch U.S. Court of Appeals Case No: 16-1113 Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals
[UNPUBLISHED] [Per Curiam - Before Colloton, Bowman and Kelly, Circuit Judges] Petition for Review - Immigration. Petitioner failed to establish a clear probability that his life or freedom would be threatened in Mexico because of his membership in a particular social group; the denial of CAT relief is affirmed without further comment. 161931P.pdf 04/28/2017 Paul Scott v. Nancy A. Berryhill U.S. Court of Appeals Case No: 16-1931 U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas - Batesville
[PUBLISHED] [Gruender, Author, with Colloton and Kelly, Circuit Judges] Civil case - Social Security. Substantial evidence supported the ALJ's determination that claimant did not meet or equal Listing 12.05C; the questions the ALJ posed to the vocational expert accounted for claimant's limitations in concentration, persistence and pace of work; substantial evidence supported the denial of benefits, and the denial is affirmed. Judge Kelly, dissenting. 162015P.pdf 04/28/2017 Erin Caligiuri v. Symantec Corp. U.S. Court of Appeals Case No: 16-2015 and No: 16-2113 U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota - Minneapolis
[PUBLISHED] [Gruender, Author, with Murphy and Kelly, Circuit Judges] Civil case - Class Actions. In class action alleging defendant failed to disclose free alternatives to re-download Norton ant-virus software, the district court approved a settlement for the consumer class under which defendant would pay $60 million into the total settlement fund; the district court did not have to wait for a final accounting of administrative costs before approving the settlement and it did not err in approving the settlement based on the settlement administrator's estimate of the costs and the amount each class member would receive; in determining the amount of attorneys' fees, the district court did not abuse its discretion by using the percentage-of-the-benefit method or by awarding the attorneys one-third of the total settlement fund; Electronic Frontier Foundation, a global nonprofit dedicated to defending consumer liberties in a digital world, was an appropriate cy pres recipient and the terms of the award which provide that any minimal remaining funds be distributed to the Foundation was not an abuse of the court's discretion; service award of $10,000 to two named plaintiffs was not an abuse of the court's discretion. 162279P.pdf 04/28/2017 Christopher Bahtuoh v. Michelle Smith U.S. Court of Appeals Case No: 16-2279 U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota - Minneapolis
[PUBLISHED] [Murphy, Author, with Loken and Benton, Circuit Judges] Prisoner case - Habeas. The Minnesota court's did not err in determining counsel did not render ineffective assistance of counsel by advising Bahtuoh not to testify after the close of the government's case where he had told the jury in his opening argument that Bahtuoh would testify on his own behalf; the Minnesota Supreme Court's determination that the change in strategy was reasonable based on unexpected developments during the government's case was not contrary to or an unreasonable interpretation of federal law; nor was the Minnesota Supreme Court's decision based on an unreasonable determination of the facts. 162846P.pdf 04/28/2017 Hudson Enterprises, Inc. v. Certain Underwriters, etc. U.S. Court of Appeals Case No: 16-2846 U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas - Little Rock
[PUBLISHED] [Murphy, Author, with Gruender and Kelly, Circuit Judges] Civil case - Insurance. The district court did not abuse its discretion by denying plaintiffs' motion to strike defendant's expert's report as the expert was disclosed on a timely basis and the report was disclosed within a few day of the date defendant received it; the term "flood" in the underlying insurance contract was unambiguous, and the damage to plaintiffs' docks was directly or indirectly caused by a flood on the Little Maumelle River. 163208U.pdf 04/28/2017 United States v. Makayla Kills In Water U.S. Court of Appeals Case No: 16-3208 U.S. District Court for the District of South Dakota - Aberdeen
[UNPUBLISHED] [Per Curiam - Before Gruender, Murphy and Kelly, Circuit Judges] Criminal case - Criminal law. Defendant's plea agreement repeatedly stated that it was entered under Rule 11(c)(1)(B) and that the court could accept the plea and reject the plea agreement's sentencing recommendation; the court was not bound by the parties' sentencing agreement and retained the authority to impose a greater sentence. 163544U.pdf 04/28/2017 United States v. Jorge Gonzalez U.S. Court of Appeals Case No: 16-3544 U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas - Fayetteville
[UNPUBLISHED] [Per Curiam - Before Riley, Murphy and Shepherd, Circuit Judges] Criminal case - Sentencing. Anders case. Defendant's sentence was not substantively unreasonable. 163546U.pdf 04/28/2017 United States v. Javier Garcia-Hernandez U.S. Court of Appeals Case No: 16-3546 U.S. District Court for the District of South Dakota - Sioux Falls
[UNPUBLISHED] [Per Curiam - Before Riley, Murphy and Shepherd, Circuit Judges] Criminal case - Sentencing. Anders case. Defendant's sentence was not substantively unreasoanble. 163590U.pdf 04/28/2017 United States v. Brandon Rubio U.S. Court of Appeals Case No: 16-3590 U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri - Springfield
[UNPUBLISHED] [Per Curiam - Before Colloton, Bowman and Kelly, Circuit Judges] Criminal case - Criminal law. Anders case. Defendant knowingly and voluntarily entered into the appeal waiver in his guilty plea, and the court will enforce the waiver and dismiss the appeal. 171012U.pdf 04/28/2017 United States v. Jesse Garcia U.S. Court of Appeals Case No: 17-1012 U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota - St. Paul
[UNPUBLISHED] [Per Curiam - Before Loken, Benton and Kelly, Circuit Judges] Criminal case - Criminal law. Defendant's jurisdictional challenge to the district court's jurisdiction in this criminal matter, based on his claim that he is a "private, sovereign, flesh and blood man" rejected, and the district court's judgment is summarily affirmed.