Business Law

The United States District Court for the Southern District of California ruled that common law claims involving wire transfers, including claims for negligence, conversion, and money had and received, are displaced by duties, allocation of risk and remedies available under the Uniform Commercial Code Article 4A, codified in California at Cal. Comm. Read more

The Nevada Supreme Court determined, based on a Nevada statute, that directors and officers of a corporation are not liable for acts or failures to act unless there is a breach of fiduciary duty involving intentional misconduct, fraud or a knowing violation of law. The Nevada Supreme Court did not address exclusions listed in the Nevada statute based on articles of incorporation or corporate governance documents providing for the liability involving other acts. Read more

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires employers to provide women with “preventive care and screenings” without cost sharing, and requires the Heath Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to issue comprehensive guidelines defining such services. These requirements have been the subject of continuous litigation. Read more

In Hamilton v. Elite of Los Angeles, Inc. (In re Hamilton), 803 F. App’x 123 (9th Cir. 2020) (2-1 unpublished decision), the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that the bankruptcy court erred in confirming a chapter 11 plan where the debtor was paying only a small portion of a large non-dischargeable debt and yet enjoining the creditor from attempting to collect the rest of the debt from "property committed to the Plan" for five years. Read more

Keith Burchell consented to undergo a surgical procedure to remove a mass in his scrotum for testing. During the surgery, Dr. Gary Barker discovered the mass was much larger than expected. Believing the mass was malignant, Dr. Barker decided to remove it entirely. Dr. Barker did not first consult Burchell (who was under general anesthesia) or Burchell’s medical proxy (who was present but unknown to Dr. Barker) before performing the more extensive surgery. Burchell suffered serious side effects from this surgery. Read more

“Virtual Presence” by Real-Time Livestreaming Satisfies the Contemporaneous Presence Requirement for a Bystander NIED Claim Read more

Cause Does Not Exist for the Court to Reconsider Disallowance of a Claim under Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(B)(6) Where the Court Found Movant Lacked a Cogent Excuse for Failing to Respond to the Objection in the First Place. Read more

Court rejected the notion that those who do business with a Ponzi scheme in principle do not provide reasonably equivalent value for an intentional fraudulent conveyance and that the avoidability of the transfers by the enterprise depends in part on the good faith of the transferee targets. Read more

An Indiana bankruptcy court has held that a purchase money security interest in windows, siding and gutters installed in a Chapter 13 debtor’s home was subject to lien-stripping because it was junior to the first mortgage loan. Read more

The following published decisions may be of interest to attorneys practicing insurance law. Read more