Andrew D. Stine, P.A. - Florida Criminal Defence Attorney

(U.S. 6th Cir., Civil Procedure, Civil Rights, Contracts, Education Law, Health Law) In plaintiff's lawsuit against her former law school claiming violation of the ADA and breach of various implied contracts, arising from her dismissal from the law school for falling below the required minimum G.P.A. of 2.0, dismissal of the lawsuit is affirmed where plaintiff is precluded by res judicata from raising the claims at issue as she should have supplemented her complaint in state court with claims that arose during the pendency of that suit.

(U.S. 9th Cir., Civil Procedure, Contracts, Injury And Tort Law, Insurance Law, Remedies) In an action seeking car rental costs from an insurer arising out of an auto accident, dismissal of the complaint is affirmed where, under California law, an insurer is permitted to recoup a payout from a third-party tortfeasor's insurance company before the insured has sued the third-party tortfeasor, and without first making the insured whole.

(U.S. 3d Cir., Civil Procedure, Injury And Tort Law, Landlord Tenant Law, Property Law & Real Estate, Retail) In plaintiff's negligence suit against a retailer for injuries he sustained when he fell on ice/snow in the parking lot, summary judgment in favor of the defendant is affirmed as the state of New Jersey would not impose a duty on an individual tenant for snow removal from the common areas of a multi-tenant parking lot when the landlord has retained and exercised that responsibility.

(U.S. 5th Cir., Civil Procedure, Labor & Employment Law, Retail) In a class action against defendant-employer, seeking payment of unpaid wages and overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act, the district court's ruling that plaintiffs' claims were improperly joined is affirmed where district courts have considerable discretion to deny joinder when it would not facilitate judicial economy and when different witnesses and documentary proof would be required for plaintiffs' claims. However, dismissal of the action is reversed where misjoinder was not an appropriate ground for dismissal.

(U.S. 9th Cir., Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Labor & Employment Law, Tax-exempt Organizations) In an action seeking pay for the overtime hours plaintiff worked as a seminarian in a Catholic church in Washington, dismissal of the action is affirmed where the ministerial exception barred the claim because: 1) the First Amendment strongly circumscribed legislative and judicial intrusion into the internal affairs of a religious organization; 2) awarding damages would necessarily trench on the Church's protected ministerial decisions; and 3) plaintiff's complaint demonstrated that plaintiff was a minister for purposes of the ministerial exception.