Recently in Court News Category

In a time of strained resources and judicial shortages, Chief Judge William B. Traxler, Jr. of the Fourth Circuit has agreed to take on extra duties as the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Judicial Conference of the United States, effective today. He succeeds Judge David B. Sentelle of the D.C. Circuit, who took senior status yesterday.

Chief Justice John G. Roberts made the announcement today and stated:

Affordable Care Act litigation is a lot like Ghostface in the Scream movies. At the end of each film, you think that you have closure. Then another Scream comes along, proving you wrong.

That's pretty much what we have today with the Supreme Court's decision to remand Liberty University's employer mandate and contraceptive coverage mandate challenges: You may have thought the Court's healthcare decision in June signaled the end of ACA litigation until 2014.

You were mistaken.

When someone wants to legally pack heat, the laws applicable to the concealed carry of a firearm typically will fall into one of three types: "shall issue," "may issue," and no permit laws. Maryland is one of ten "may issue" states, meaning when a gun owner wants a concealed carry permit, the state has the discretion to deny a permit.

Raymond Woollard sought a permit in 2002, after his son-in-law broke into his house in Baltimore County. Woollard and his son subdued the intruder with two legally possessed guns. He subsequently obtained a concealed carry permit. While his first renewal was approved, a second renewal was denied in 2009, as was the subsequent appeal, reports The Washington Post.

Less than a month after a district court ordered South Korea’s Kolon to stop manufacturing and selling Heracron (a Kevlar competitor), the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the company can resume production while it appeals the judgment, Reuters reports.

Last year, a jury found last year that the South Korean manufacturer stole 149 trade secrets relating to the Kevlar fiber, and awarded Kevlar-manufacturer DuPont more than $919 million in damages. In August, District Judge Robert Payne barred Kolon from selling products made with its para-aramid fiber for 20 years, according to Bloomberg.

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals Traveling Roadshow is coming to a location near you. If you’re located in Richmond or West Virginia, that is.

If you’ve looked at the Fourth Circuit’s oral arguments schedule for the 2012-2013 term, you may have noticed a trend: Almost all of the hearings are at the circuit’s Richmond, Va. home.

The lone outlier? An October 4 hearing at the West Virginia University College of Law.

You may have heard about jurors who can’t stop texting, tweeting, Facebooking during a trial. Some judges consider such behavior annoying. Others consider it grounds for a mistrial.

Instead of leaving the questions of where social media and smartphones cross the line up to a trial judge or appellate court, the Judicial Conference Committee on Court Administration and Case Management (CACM) has proposed model jury instructions regarding electronic technology use during trial.

Stephanie Thacker was sworn in as the first female judge from West Virginia to serve on the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday, reports the West Virginia Record. West Virginia’s senators, Jay Rockefeller and Joe Manchin, joined Chief District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin, Thacker’s family, friends and some former co-workers at her investiture.

Judge Thacker was confirmed by the Senate for the appellate bench in April by a vote of 91-3. Senators Jim De Mint (R-S.C.), Mike Lee (R-Utah) and David Vitter (R-La.) opposed her confirmation.

Big news from the Senate this week: Stephanie Dawn Thacker has been confirmed as a judge for the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, writes The Hill.

Thacker was nominated by President Barack Obama in September 2011 to fill the vacancy left by the death of Judge M. Blane Michael earlier that year. She was nominated upon recommendation by Senator Jay Rockefeller, who praised her humility and intellectual honesty this week at her confirmation.

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments in a special sitting at the North Carolina Central University (NCCU) Law School in Durham, N.C. on March 23, 2012.

The court will hear three cases during the NCCU Law session in March.

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals will hold oral arguments at the University of Virginia (UVA) Law School Caplin Auditorium on March 23, 2012. A Fourth Circuit panel holds an appellate argument session at the University every three years.

The court will hear four cases during the special session in March.