School handbook policies: Ministerial or discretionary?
4/28/25
By: Wayne S. Melnick and Xander D. Melnick
When does a school handbook policy create a ministerial duty versus a discretionary duty under an official immunity analysis? The Georgia Court of Appeals recently addressed that question in Wilson v. Anderson…
4/22/25
The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a district court’s grant of immunity to a police officer who fatally shot a Good Samaritan during an active shooting situation.
On Thanksgiving 2018, several gunshots rang out …
President Trump’s Executive Order 14236 revokes $15-per-hour federal contractor minimum wage
4/4/25
On March 14, 2025, President Donald Trump issued Executive Order 14236. This Executive Order revoked 18 prior executive orders and actions issued by former President Joe Biden. One of these prior executive orders was Executive Order …
Proposed Ohio Constitutional Amendment to knock out qualified immunity
2/4/25
By: Paul-Michael La Fayette and Ashley Boyes Hetzel
A proposed Ohio Constitutional Amendment has been approved for signature gathering. If successful, the proposed Amendment will be on the November 2025 ballot in Ohio. The proposed Constitutional Amendment is promoted by the Ohio …
1/29/25
By: Cara M. Wright
On January 22, 2025, the Supreme Court heard an oral argument in Barnes v. Felix. The Supreme Court granted certiorari on the question of whether the moment of threat doctrine should be applied to cases …
1/6/25
Can a felon or any other person convicted of a crime punishable by a sentence over one year be banned from owning firearms? Currently, the answer depends on where the statute is challenged.
The federal felon-in-possession …
Striking a balance: Eleventh Circuit provides clarity on restricted speech in limited public forums
10/21/24
By: Steven L. Grunberg and Wesley C. Jackson
On October 8, 2024, the Eleventh Circuit held that a Florida public school board overstepped its power to restrict speech during public comment periods at board meetings by implementing “inconsistent,” “muddled,” and …
The right time for a takings claim: Eleventh Circuit on ripeness and property rights
10/17/24
By: Dana K. Maine
In a published opinion, on October 16, 2024, the Eleventh Circuit threaded the needle on ripeness for a takings claim in Lozman v. City of Riviera Beach, Florida, — 4th —, 2024 LW 4500961. …
In New Jersey, Tort Claims Act shields municipalities from implied duty to provide clean water
10/7/24
In combining appeals on two lower court cases, a recent New Jersey appellate decision in Cerkez, individually and on behalf of all other similarly situated, v. Gloucester City, et al., Docket No. A-0661023; A-0745-23, Superior Court …
8/14/24
Georgia’s Open Records Act allows for citizens to inspect certain “public records” of government agencies in the interests of open government. The Act has long defined “public records” to include not just records created and maintained …
8/8/24
By: LaShay L. Byrd and Tia J. Combs
In many states, the law recognizes the challenges that emergency services personnel face when it comes to making split-second decisions in high-stakes situations and grant qualified immunity protection for first responders for …
FMG argues in favor of the Fifth Circuit retaining its precedent in Section 1983 Lawsuits
5/21/24
By: Philip W. Savrin, P. Michael Freed, and William H. Buechner, Jr.
FMG Attorneys Phil Savrin, Michael Freed and Bill Buechner are representing Midland County, Texas in an en banc case in which the entire Fifth Circuit …