Georgia Court of Appeals Decides Rare Case on Electronic Discovery
6/27/13
By: Bart Gary
On June 18, 2013, the Georgia Court of Appeals decided a case involving electronic discovery. In a business dispute, and in response to about 100 unique requests for production of documents from the plaintiff, defendants scanned all …
You May Not Have The “Right to Remain Silent”
6/20/13
By: Sun Choy
Everyone who watches police dramas knows about the “right to remain silent.” Under the famous right, the police cannot use a defendant’s statement in a prosecution unless it can be shown that the defendant was first informed …
Fourth Circuit Voids NLRB Posting Rule
6/18/13
By: Anthony Del Rio
Last week the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the National Labor Relation Board’s (NLRB) 2011 poster rule. The rule required employers to post information regarding employees’ rights to organize under the National …
A National “Safe Harbor” to Reduce the Cost of Defensive Medicine?
6/18/13
By: Michael Eshman
The Center for American Progress recently proposed a “safe harbor” in medical malpractice litigation to reduce the cost of defensive medicine. The essential component of the “safe harbor” plan is the creation of clinical-practice guidelines …
Supreme Court Upholds Arbitrator’s Class Ruling
6/14/13
By: Anthony Del Rio
This week, in Oxford Health Plans v. Sutter, the Supreme Court upheld the authority of an arbitrator to interpret an agreement to permit class arbitration. While the Court expressed some doubt regarding whether the arbitrator …
Law Enforcement Officers Permitted To Take DNA Cheek Swabs From Arrestees
6/7/13
By: Ali Sabzevari
The United States Supreme Court has continued to expand the thought that bodily intrusions constitute a search under the Fourth Amendment. The Supreme Court has applied the Fourth Amendment to police efforts to draw blood, scraping an …
Expansions of Georgia’s Immigration Laws Slated to Take Effect on July 1
6/6/13
By: Kelly E. Moul
While Washington continues to debate immigration reform, Governor Nathan Deal recently signed HB 160 into law. The signing was completed quietly and without public comment, but still stands as a meaningful extension of Georgia’s current …
Survey Finds Voters View U.S. Legal System Negatively
6/5/13
By: Matt Foree
Along with the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform’s study finding the U.S. legal system to be the most costly, the ILR also provided the results of a new national opinion survey regarding the civil legal …
Legislative Changes
6/2/13
By: Bart Gary
This year’s session of the General Assembly saw several new laws and amendments affecting the construction industry.
- Mechanic’s Lien Law
The General Assembly adopted a change to O.C.G.A. § 44-14-361 regarding the amount that may be …
Study Finds U.S. Legal System Most Costly
6/2/13
By: Matt Foree
A study released by the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, conducted by NERA Economic Consulting, shows that the American legal system is the world’s most costly, with liability costs of 2.6 times the Eurozone average. International …