Jennifer Nelson

In an Indiana custody case that started before a married couple’s only child was born, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled that either Indiana or the state where the child was born could have jurisdiction over proceedings. The Indiana trial court dismissed proceedings in favor of Washington State, where the child was born, as a more convenient forum, clearing the way for that state to take over jurisdiction. The issue in Anthony N. Stewart v. Signe L. (Stewart) Vulliet, No. 12S02-0708-CV-331, is whether…

In a case of first impression, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled a guilty plea can’t be challenged in post-conviction proceedings by a claim of newly discovered evidence regarding the events making up the crime. In Shawn E. Norris v. State of Indiana, No. 43S03-0807-CR-379, Shawn Norris appealed the post-conviction court’s grant of the state’s motion for summary disposition on Norris’ petition for post-conviction relief. Norris pleaded guilty four years earlier to molesting his sister’s child, served his sentence, and then later…

A union and the owner of the facility the union wants to organize can proceed to arbitration to decide whether the facility is a covered workplace under an agreement requiring neutrality, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled today. In United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union v. TriMas Corporation, No. 07-1688, the United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union (USW) brought an action in federal…

The Indiana Supreme Court upheld a trial court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of a defendant and also clarified the designation of evidence in regards to Indiana Trial Rule 56(C). In Idan (John) Filip and Valaria Filip v. Carrie Block and 1st Choice Insurance Agency, No. 75S05-0704-CV-149, the Filips filed a suit against Block and 1st Choice, alleging negligence in the selection of insurance on an apartment building they purchased in 1999. Block was the insurance agent of the previous owner,…

Teachers who work for a federally funded program to help children prepare for kindergarten are not eligible under Indiana statute for unemployment during summer breaks, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled today. In South Bend Community School Corporation v. Linda D. Lucas, No. 93A02-0705-EX-387, the majority of judges agreed with South Bend that Head Start institutions should be considered schools under Indiana statute and therefore, its teachers are not allowed to collect unemployment during the summer. Lucas works as a teacher at…

Indiana Court of Appeals judges disagreed today in an opinion in which the majority ruled that a man who claimed he was temporarily homeless should be charged with violating the Indiana statute that requires registered sex offenders to provide their new address to authorities within seven days of a move. One judge dissented, saying their ruling would make homelessness a crime.Judges L. Mark Bailey and Ezra Friedlander affirmed Daniel J. Milliner’s conviction for failing to register as a sex offender and…

Interest may not be calculated on workers’ compensation benefits, including past-due medical bills, because Indiana legislation doesn’t expressly allow for it, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled today. In Christopher R. Brown, D.D.S., Inc. v. Decatur County Memorial Hospital, No. 93S02-0711-EX-561, Dr. Christopher Brown appealed the decision by the full Workers’ Compensation Board that he was not entitled to interest on past-due medical bills incurred from his treatment of a patient who was receiving workers’ compensation benefits from Decatur County Memorial Hospital. Indiana’s…