Registration of a copyright is a precondition to a suit for copyright infringement. The Eleventh Circuit joined the minority of circuits to have addressed whether registration occurs when an owner files an application to register the copyright or when the Register of Copyrights registers the copyright in Fourth Estate Public Benefit Corp. v. Wall-Street.com, LLC,…
Author: Wendy Spiro
Improper Claim-Splitting Warrants Dismissal
In a case of first impression, the Eleventh Circuit has held that a plaintiff’s second case against a defendant, arising out of the same nucleus of operative facts, was properly dismissed as the product of improper claim-splitting. Vanover v. NCO Fin. Servs., Inc., 2017 WL 2129557 (11th Cir. May 17, 2017). In 2014, Karen Vanover…
No ERISA Claims for Multi-Employer Pension Fund Contributor
Responding to a pension fund’s dire financial condition, its board passed an amendment requiring employers withdrawing from the fund to pay a portion of the fund’s deficiency. One contributing employer, WestRock, then sought a declaratory judgment that the amendment violated ERISA, arguing on appeal that it had a claim under 29 U.S.C. §§ 1132(a)(10) or 1451(a)….
ADA and RA Protect Hospital Patients’ Ability to Exchange Medically Relevant Information
In Silva v. Baptist Health South Florida, Inc., 2017 WL 1830158 (11th Cir. May 8, 2017), the Eleventh Circuit clarified the standard for liability for ADA and RA effective-communication claims against hospitals. The court held that “the relevant inquiry is whether the hospitals’ failure to offer an appropriate auxiliary aid impaired the patient’s ability to…
Deference on All Fronts to Government Settling Qui Tam Action
Deference runs throughout a decision published last week, United States v. Everglades College, Inc., 2017 WL 1658478 (11th Cir. May 3, 2017), where the court issued four holdings in connection with the government’s settlement of a False Claims Act qui tam action relating to federal financial aid funds under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965….
To Bar, or Not to Bar: That Is the Certified Question
How long after winning a judgment in the federal court can a Florida plaintiff conduct post-judgment collection efforts? That is the question at the heart of Salinas v. Ramsey, 2017 WL 1593469 (11th Cir. May 2, 2017). The issue has been decided differently in cases before the Florida District Courts of Appeal, and so Tuesday, the Eleventh Circuit…
Dismissal of VPPA Class Action Against CNN Affirmed, But Spokeo Standing Upheld
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a putative class action against CNN in a case concerning the CNN app that the plaintiff downloaded to his iPhone. Perry v. Cable News Network, Inc., 2017 WL 1505064 (11th Cir. Apr. 27, 2017). The plaintiff Perry alleged that CNN violated the Video Privacy Protection Act (“VPPA”) by…
For FMLA Retaliation Claims, It’s the End-of-Leave Date that Counts
The Eleventh Circuit has held that the end of FMLA leave, not the beginning, is the relevant date for determining “close temporal proximity” between protected activity and an adverse employment action when evaluating an FMLA retaliation claim. Jones v. Gulf Coast Health Care of Delaware, LLC, 2017 WL 1396165 (11th Cir. Apr. 19, 2017). Rodney…
The First Amendment Rises to the Top: State Cannot Prohibit Dairy from Describing its Skim Milk as “Skim Milk.”
The Creamery is a dairy farm in rural Florida which sells all-natural dairy items, including skim milk produced in the usual way: cream rises and is skimmed off, and the result is skim milk. The Creamery does not replace the (fat soluble) Vitamin A lost in skimming. But Florida law prohibits the sale of milk…
Unlawful and Non-Competitive Parallel Conduct is Still Insufficient to State a RICO Claim
The Eleventh Circuit relied on Twombly’s heightened pleading standard in affirming a dismissal for failure to state a RICO claim in Almanza v. United Airlines, 2017 WL 957191 (11th Cir. Mar. 13, 2017). The plaintiff Mexican nationals, representing a putative class, were charged a tourism tax by the defendant airlines as part of their airfare,…