Federal Court News
Federal Court
Ex-Harvard morgue manager pleads guilty to selling human remains
WILLIAMSPORT - The former morgue manager at Harvard Medical School accused of harvesting and selling body parts like skin and heads has pleaded guilty.
Federal Court
Millions on the way to lab that created controversial Zantac scare
PHILADELPHIA (Legal Newsline) - A drug-testing lab's war on Zantac, which spawned tens of thousands of lawsuits despite claims of "junk science," will earn it millions of dollars.
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Federal Court
Judge to Wilkinsburg Massacre suspect: No wrongful arrest if you actually did it
PITTSBURGH - The man arrested for the murder of six people in a Western Pennsylvania shooting who was later acquitted won't get to take his malicious prosecution claim to trial, as a federal judge seems to think he did, in fact, pull the trigger.
Federal Court
Judge won't step in to give Pennsylvanians medical aid in dying
PHILADELPHIA - A Pennsylvania man who equated not being able to die with dignity with slavery has lost his argument in federal court, as a judge refused to bypass the General Assembly and institute medical aid in dying.
Federal Court
Bisexual man taking PennDOT to trial on hostile work environment claim
WILKES-BARRE - The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation can't escape a lawsuit filed by a bisexual former employee who claimed harassment like co-workers placing a tampon on his chair.
Federal Court
Inquirer data breach settlement finalized; $175K for lawyers
PHILADELPHIA - A federal judge has given final approval to a $525,000 class action settlement in a lawsuit over a data breach at The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Federal Court
Hockey tournament company can't be sued after player walks into duck sign at hotel
PITTSBURGH - The organizer of youth hockey tournaments has defeated a lawsuit brought by a player injured at his hotel by a joke "Duck Crossing" sign.
Federal Court
Harvard morgue manager, charged with selling body parts, says they aren't 'merchandise'
WILLIAMSPORT - The criminal case of the former morgue manager at Harvard Medical School accused of selling pieces of dead bodies asks the question of whether human remains can be considered "goods."
Federal Court
Hundreds of employees at TEKsystems grouped into four overtime pay class actions
PITTSBURGH - A federal judge's ruling raises the stakes on a labor lawsuit against a global business and technology firm.
Federal Court
'Historic' case over future of Pa. elections tossed
HARRISBURG - A group hoping to show Pennsylvania does not properly handle federal elections has failed in federal court, as a magistrate judge has found its plaintiffs lack standing to file suit.
Federal Court
Blowin' in the wind: Ex-PPD lieutenant accused of ignoring rape by detective can't ignore subpoena
PHILADLPHIA - A former Philadelphia Police Department lieutenant can't rely on the wind to blow her problems away, a judge has ruled in lawsuits over a disgraced detective found guilty of rape and other crimes.
Federal Court
Lackawanna Co. escapes liability for St. Patrick's Day assault on inmate
SCRANTON - A man arrested for public intoxication then tossed around a jail cell during Scranton's St. Patrick's Day celebration in 2023 has lost his lawsuit against the Lackawanna County Sheriff's Department.
Federal Court
Lab has 'whistleblower' settlement in place in Zantac case
PHILADELPHIA - The product-testing lab whose research has created tens of thousands of lawsuits still works to settle a case it brought itself and received no support from the federal government and more than two dozen states refusing to participate.
Federal Court
Animal rescue fails to show Rostraver Twp. took revenge on her
PITTSBURGH - A federal judge has tossed what's left of a lawsuit over a Westmoreland County neighborhood dispute, brought by a woman running an animal-and-people rescue in Rostraver Township.
Federal Court
Sextortion/suicide victim's case against Meta needs a home court
PHILADELPHIA - A social media giant says a wrongful death lawsuit against it and several others over the suicide of a sextortion victim will be grouped with others in California, while the plaintiff wants it sent back to the Philadelphia state court in which it was first filed.
Federal Court
Lawyers' tobacco playbook hits Big Food; How big can litigation get?
PHILADELPHIA - It's no secret that plaintiff lawyers often try to emulate the successes they had in the 1990s suing tobacco companies, when they teamed with government officials to score billions of dollars in fees from massive settlements.
Federal Court
Appeal filed after Philadelphia wins wrongful death case over police shooting
PHILADELPHIA - The estate of a man shot to death by Philadelphia police is appealing the loss of its wrongful death lawsuit that claimed officers should have tasered him instead.
Federal Court
Amputee fired for calling manager 'scumbag' on Facebook loses discrimination case
HARRISBURG - A Pennsylvania Department of Transportation worker fired over a Facebook post complaining about his manager has lost his discrimination lawsuit.
Federal Court
Changes from 2023 didn't take Roundup plaintiffs' 'shaky' causation experts
SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) - Experts once called "shaky" by the federal judge hearing thousands of Roundup cases can continue to testify, as the latest wave of plaintiffs make their way through a multidistrict litigation proceeding.
Federal Court
Wrongful death case against Philadelphia survives dismissal motion
PHILADELPHIA - The City of Philadelphia has lost its attempt to toss out of court a lawsuit that alleges police left a one-legged man to die in jail.