STOLI – Stranger-Originated Life Insurance – was the subject of the court’s decision in Estate of Malkin v. Wells Fargo Bank, NA, 2021 Westlaw 2149344 (11th Cir. May 27, 2021). Judge Beverly Martin authored the court’s opinion, which affirmed a Florida district court’s invalidation of the life insurance policy at issue but certified questions relating…
Judge Beverly Martin to Resign on September 30, 2021
Judge Beverly Martin, an Obama appointee who also served as a judge in the Northern District of Georgia and as United States Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, has notified the White House that she intends to resign as a judge on the Eleventh Circuit effective September 30, 2021. Judge Martin is regarded as…
FCRA Class Action Foiled by Comcast Arbitration Agreement
A Comcast arbitration agreement by which a former subscriber to the cable service agreed to arbitrate “any claim or controversy related to Comcast” was enforced by the court in Hearn v. Comcast Cable Communications, LLC, 992 F.3d 1209 (11th Cir. 2021), overturning a contrary decision by the Northern District of Georgia. The arbitration agreement was…
Credit Reporting Agency’s Procedures and Investigation to Ensure FCRA Accurate Reporting Not Reasonable Enough for Summary Judgment
In Losch v. Nationstar Mortgage LLC, 2021 WL 1653016 (11th Cir. Apr. 28, 2021), the Eleventh Circuit considered whether the defendant Experian violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act’s requirements that a credit-reporting agency employ “reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy of the information concerning the individual” when preparing credit reports, 15 U.S.C. § 1681e(b),…
Class Claims for Declaratory and Supplemental Relief Remanded to State Court
In Mack v. USAA Casualty Insurance Co., 2021 WL 1572709 (11th Cir. Apr. 22, 2021), the Eleventh Circuit dismissed for lack of an Article III “case or controversy” a putative class action in which the plaintiff sought a declaration that his insurer’s adjustment of total loss claims violates Florida law and money damages as corresponding…
Public Accommodations Under ADA Limited to Actual, Physical Places, with Website Accessibility Claims Permitted Only for Intangible Barriers to Access
The fact that a website was incompatible with screen-reader software for visually impaired users was held insufficient (without more) to state a claim for public-accommodation discrimination under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act, in Gil v. Winn-Dixie Stores. Inc., 2021 WL 1289906 (11th Cir. Apr. 7, 2021). The Eleventh Circuit held in a…
Debt Collector’s Provision of Consumer Information to Mail Service Is Actionable Under FDCPA
Note: on November 17, 2021, the court ordered that this case be reheard en banc. In Hunstein v. Preferred Collection & Management Services, Inc., 2021 WL 1556069 (11th Cir. Apr. 21, 2021), the Eleventh Circuit held that a consumer had standing to challenge a debt collector’s provision of the consumer’s information to a third-party mail…
ERISA’s Fee-Shifting Provision Permits Awards Against Parties, Not Attorneys
Does ERISA’s fee-shifting provision, 29 U.S.C. § 1132(g)(1), permit a court to award fees against a party’s counsel? Deciding this issue of first impression that has divided district courts within and without the Eleventh Circuit, the court in Peer v. Liberty Life Assurance Co. of Boston, 2021 WL 1257440 (11th Cir. Apr. 6, 2021), held…
Email Service of Motion to Vacate Arbitration Award Not Sufficient Without Prior Express Consent, and Agreement to Arbitrate Under AAA Rules Does Not Provide Such Consent
The Eleventh Circuit rejected an argument from a party seeking to vacate an arbitration award that an email courtesy copy of a “notice of motion” was effective service under the Federal Arbitration Act. In O’Neal Constructors, LLC v. DRT America, LLC, 2021 WL 1220710 (11th Cir. Apr. 1, 2021), the appellant, DRT, sought to vacate…
General Statistical Evidence of “Local Controversy” Held Insufficient for Jurisdiction Under Class Action Fairness Act
Can class-action plaintiffs avoid federal court by relying on general economic studies and population statistics to prove that their case should be in state court? Not in the Eleventh Circuit. In Smith v. Marcus & Millichap, Inc., 2021 WL 939184 (11th Cir. Mar. 12, 2021), the court held that “studies, surveys, and census data—which do…