Karen Kidd News
College faculty union can't bargain over who gets criminal background checks, Supreme Court says
PHILADELPHIA — The Pennsylvania Supreme Court recently ruled that a union that represents higher education faculty across the state has no bargaining rights over which of its members must submit to criminal background checks.
Don't blame lawyer for failure of litigation over sponge left in woman, dissenting judge says
HARRISBURG (Pennsylvania Record) — A Harrisburg personal injury attorney should not be held liable in two former clients' legal malpractice case over alleged mishandling of litigation over a second surgical sponge discovered left behind over several surgeries.In his 15-page dissent issued March 30, Pennsylvania Superior Court Judge Victor P.
Tucker Arensberg ordered to turn over records in Fla. energy company's fraud and deceit lawsuit
PITTSBURGH — A Pittsburgh law firm has until later this month to produce certain communications between one of its attorneys and principals of a Florida-based oil and gas company suing the firm over alleged fraud and deception.
Judge not buying Florida woman's attempt to sue New Jersey companies in Pennsylvania
PHILADELPHIA —A Florida woman's lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson and Ethicon, Inc., over her 2007 Prolene Mesh pelvic implant in Florida, originally filed in Pennsylvania, now will be heard in federal court in Florida.
In doubt is appeal of Philly cop who claims watchdog called him racist because of Facebook post
PHILADELPHIA — Whether a Philadelphia police inspector can appeal a federal judge's dismissal last month of his defamation lawsuit against a nonprofit watchdog group is up in the air following a recent clerk's order.
Second-hand smoke in prison is cruel and unusual, lawsuit claims; DOC official dismissed
SCRANTON — A state corrections official named as a defendant in a prisoner's federal lawsuit over the second-hand smoke he endures in prison is no longer a party in the litigation following a opinion issued last month.
Northampton County property cannot receive tax break as a 'picnic grove,' state court affirms
HARRISBURG — A property owner in a Northampton County township won't be able to receive a tax break by classifying that property as a "picnic grove," a state court affirmed.
Court affirms family of workplace-stabbing victim is entitled to death benefits
HARRISBURG — The family of a 25-year-old man stabbed to death by a co-worker at a meat processing plant is eligible for workers compensation death benefits because the man's employer failed to prove his killing was not work-related, a state court recently affirmed.
Dismissed cadet will owe thousands to Valley Forge as a result of court ruling
HARRISBURG – Back tuition and fees, along with tens of thousands of dollars in attorneys' fees, will have to paid to a military academy following 2015 dismissal of a Delaware County cadet then facing criminal charges and failure of a drug and alcohol test, according to the state Superior Court.
Clause on ski-lift ticket not enough to dismiss lawsuit over skier's 2017 accident, judge rules
SCRANTON – A release on the back of a ski-lift ticket at a Poconos resort may not be enough to bar liability in the case of a skier injured in an accident in early 2017, a federal judge ruled last month.
Dismissal motions stayed in antitrust case against imprisoned 'Pharma Bro' Martin Shkreli
PHILADELPHIA – Discovery is underway over jurisdiction in a South Carolina biotech company's anti-trust lawsuit against imprisoned pharmaceutical kingpin Martin Shkreli following a decision by a Philadelphia-based federal judge last month.
Oil City student granted time to amend civil rights lawsuit against school district and three employees
ERIE – An Oil City elementary school student has been given time to amend his civil right action against an area school district over alleged harassment he encountered from fellow students.
CSX wins class action against it over 2017 train derailment in Hyndman
JOHNSTOWN – CSX Transportation last month dodged a class action lawsuit over a 2017 train derailment in a Bedford County town that prompted an evacuation of hundreds of people that took more than two weeks.
'Class certification is appropriate,' federal judge says in WARN, WPCL case over sudden Wood-Mode closure
WILLIAMSPORT – A lawsuit against a Snyder County custom wood cabinet manufacturer that suddenly shuttered last spring has class certification following a federal judge's decision last month.
Pennsylvania judge sends Michigan woman's pelvic mesh case out of state
PHILADELPHIA – A Michigan woman's lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson and other defendants over a 2011 pelvic mesh implant Gynecare TVT-Obturator (TVT-O), originally filed in Pennsylvania, now is in federal court in New Jersey.
White man loses discrimination lawsuit, claimed he was fired for hanging stuffed monkey on MLK Day
PITTSBURGH – A federal judge has granted summary judgment in favor of the employer in the case of a former Pittsburgh-based regional bank employee fired in early 2018 for "inappropriately displaying a brown monkey in the workplace."
Judge rules for Chesapeake in dispute over arbitration award
PITTSBURGH – An arbitration award over a long-running gas lease dispute between a Bradford County couple and an energy company will stand, a federal judge ruled last month.
Former Pittsburgh employee's discrimination case against city incurs dismissal of most counts
PITTSBURGH – The case of a former Pittsburgh city employee who accepted demotion after her job was eliminated from the 2018 budget and fired a couple of months later remains alive after a federal judge dismissed much of the litigation a few weeks ago.
Defendants fighting AG Shapiro's online payday lending lawsuit lose bid for dismissal
PHILADELPHIA – The Pennsylvania Attorney General office's long-running consumer protection case against companies alleged to have engineered an illegal internet-based payday loan scheme remains alive following a federal judge's ruling last month.
Judge: Having a Pennsylvania attorney doesn't mean out-of-staters can sue there
PHILADELPHIA – The cases of 10 women who live outside of Pennsylvania and who claim they were injured by intrauterine devices manufactured by a North Wales-based pharmaceutical company has been transferred to other federal courts.