News from August 2023
Commonwealth Court upholds dismissal of man's SEPTA train assault lawsuit
HARRISBURG – The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania has upheld the granting of summary judgment to the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) which declared it immune from suit from a man who said he was assaulted on a SEPTA train by two other passengers in Philadelphia in 2019.
Associate attorney litigates with former firm and its partners over wage dispute
PITTSBURGH – A former associate attorney at a Pittsburgh law firm claims that the firm and its founding partners enriched themselves at her expense, denying her of wages that she says were due to her.
State court judge overrules defense's venue objections in mill mixer injury case
PITTSBURGH – A state court judge has overruled preliminary objections related to venue from a mill mixer manufacturer, in litigation from a Western Pennsylvania man who claimed he was maimed by such mixer while on the job.
Shaler Township denies liability for toddler who burned feet on metal door
PITTSBURGH – Shaler Township has declared it is not responsible for burn injuries suffered by a 15-month-old child, when they stepped onto a hot, metal access door more than two years ago.
Bus company seeking to keep retaliation suit against McKeesport officials alive
PITTSBURGH – A school bus transportation company that filed suit against the City of McKeesport, its school district and several officials alleging they conspired to remove it from an agreement to provide the District with busing as an act of political retaliation is now fighting back against a motion to dismiss the suit from federal court.
Fox Rothschild Expands Tax & Wealth Planning Services in Philadelphia With Addition of Partner Melissa Paszamant
Fox Rothschild LLP is pleased to welcome Melissa Paszamant to our Philadelphia office as a Partner in the Taxation & Wealth Planning Department.
Vape shop says Lancaster County authorities conducted illegal seizure of its legal products
ALLENTOWN – The proprietor of a vaping products business has launched litigation against Lancaster County, its district attorney and police officers, for allegedly conducting warrantless raids of both his and other businesses in the county this past April to seize such products, who have claimed they are Schedule I controlled substances under Pennsylvania law – while the plaintiff counters they have been legally sold in the state for years.
Couple claim husband's injuries were from defectively designed hunting boots
PITTSBURGH – A Western Pennsylvania couple claim that a pair of hunting boots the husband-plaintiff purchased were designed defectively, causing the soles of the boot to unexpectedly separate and him to suffer an injurious fall.
Woman injured during daughter's dance recital wants default judgment against hotel where it happened
PITTSBURGH – Counsel for a woman injured in a Pittsburgh hotel ballroom while watching her daughter’s dance recital and who had alleged that a negligent makeshift table setup used for the event was the proximate cause of her injuries, continues to pursue a default judgment against the hotel in question.
After shooting by Lyft driver, ride share company seeks to strike default judgment against it
PITTSBURGH – Lyft is seeking to open and/or strike a default judgment entered against in a case brought by the son and daughter of a 55-year-old man shot to death last August, in the parking lot of a Sheetz convenience store by his driver from the ride share company.
Pa. State Police barracks visitor maintains claims that she fell on building's front steps
WILLIAMSPORT – A Lycoming County woman has reiterated claims that while visiting a Pennsylvania State Police barracks, she encountered a defective condition in the building’s front steps, leading her to fall and break her left leg and left shoulder.
Benchmark Ranks Shook Partner Among Top 250 Women in Litigation
Sarah Schlossberg, chair of the Women’s Initiative and of counsel in the firm’s Commercial Litigation Department, was named to City & State's Women’s Power 100 list.
Litigators Samantha Banks and Edward Sholinsky Join Fox Rothschild in Philadelphia
Fox Rothschild LLP is pleased to announce that Samantha Banks and Edward J. Sholinsky have joined our Litigation Department as partners in the Philadelphia office.
Per judicial order, defendant in Holiday Inn hotel injury suit avoids default judgment
PITTSBURGH – One defendant has dodged a default judgment, in a Michigan family’s lawsuit alleging that an improperly placed duck crossing sign outside a Pittsburgh-area Holiday Inn hotel was the cause of injuries they sustained.
Objections in class action nuisance lawsuit against U.S. Steel mostly overruled
PITTSBURGH – A state court judge has decreed that preliminary objections from U.S. Steel as to litigation surrounding its refinery plant in Braddock and its alleged generation of pollutant byproducts are largely overruled with one exception, that being its objection toward the plaintiff seeking punitive damages.
After woman's alleged slip on slushy liquid in Wilkes-Barre store, Sheetz denies liability
SCRANTON – The Sheetz convenience store chain has denied responsibility for neck, back and knee injuries that a local woman alleged she suffered, when she slipped on fluid from a nearby soda/slushy machine which had leaked onto the floor of its Wilkes-Barre store.
Allegheny County looking to dismiss suit from sheriff's deputy who claimed COVID vax violated his beliefs
PITTSBURGH – Allegheny County and its Sheriff’s Office are seeking to dismiss litigation which alleged that they failed to reasonably accommodate the religious beliefs of one of its employees, when it mandated obtaining vaccination against COVID-19.
Former Chambersburg student sues district over molestation by chemistry teacher
HARRISBURG – A Chambersburg woman alleges she was sexually molested by her then-high school chemistry teacher over a six-month time period in 2021 and 2022, and that the school district lacked adequate policies and procedures for the protection of its students.
Six Ballard Spahr Attorneys Named to Benchmark Litigation's 40 & Under
Six Ballard Spahr attorneys across five offices and six primary practice groups have been named to Benchmark Litigation’s 40 & Under list.
Restaurant says it's not at fault for injuries suffered by woman who fell over bread rack
PITTSBURGH – A local restaurant contends that it was not responsible for injuries suffered by a woman who tripped and fell over a wire bread rack during a visit to its premises more than a year and a half ago.