President Barack Obama signed into law a patent overhaul bill Friday that backers say will curb frivolous lawsuits and help the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office do the hiring needed to clear a huge backlog of applications. Obama said the …
A Pennsylvania court has ruled that an exclusion in underinsured motorist coverage for injuries incurred while on a motorcycle applies to motorcyclists injured after being thrown off their bikes. An underinsured motorist coverage from Allstate contained an exclusion for injuries …
Two employers can be held jointly responsible for workers’ compensation benefits for an injured worker whom they both classified as an independent contractor, a Massachusetts appeals court has ruled. The Massachusetts Appeals Court said the case presented the first appellate …
Maine’s highest court will hear arguments on whether a woman’s lawsuit should go forward against a former Catholic priest she says abused her in the early 1970s. The Maine Supreme Judicial Court will hear oral arguments Sept. 13 in Christine …
Two Billings attorneys are asking the Montana Supreme Court to stop workers’ compensation investigators from practices that they say violate the privacy rights of workers’ comp claimants. The Billings Gazette reports that Gene Jarussi and Michael Eiselein, along with 10 …
Four hundred gallons of heating oil in the basement? The Michigan appeals court says that’s distressing. The court has upheld a $100,000 verdict for a Clinton County woman whose home had to be demolished after oil was mistakenly pumped into …
The California Supreme Court has rejected an appeal of a case many workers’ compensation insurers and businesses were hoping would be reversed. Yesterday, the Supreme Court announced that it was not going to review the decision of the Fifth District …
A federal appeals court has reinstated a wrongful death lawsuit against a Madera police officer who authorities say mistakenly pulled out her handgun instead of her Taser before shooting a suspect in her patrol car. Monday’s decision by the Ninth …
A Washington State couple has been turned down on their appeal of a ruling that said Farmers Insurance can deny their uninsured motorist claim following a single-car accident, which they said was caused by another driver who disappeared. The case …
Canada’s Supreme Court will decide Friday whether the federal government should be partly liable for damages, possibly amounting to many billions of dollars, stemming from lawsuits against tobacco firms. The tobacco industry — facing suits from several provinces seeking to …