Hail creates firestorm for State Farm
Hailstorm damages more than property, resulting in $14.5 million defamation verdict against the insurer.
Courts
Articles
Fight over judicial salaries raises separation of powers questions
Questions arise as to whether legislative or executive branch tinkering with judicial salaries interferes with the courts’ constitutional duties and infringes on judicial independence.
Ruling against local planning, zoning officials has statewide implications
Deciding where the planes fly in or out of an airport and how land and buildings are used on airport grounds became the pivotal issue in a recent lawsuit in Marion Superior Court.
Class action alleges UPL
The plaintiffs’ lawyers will use the United Financial decision from the Indiana Supreme Court to make their argument.
Appeals court splits on new sentence modification issue
An inmate’s request for a sentence modification has divided the Indiana Court of Appeals, with the majority concluding that the 365-day period during which a trial court could grant a modification begins when someone is originally sentenced, not re-resentenced after a successful appeal.
Judge: Man did not commit attempted child exploitation
The Indiana Court of Appeals split on whether a man committed attempted child exploitation when he tried to take pictures up teenagers’ skirts at a mall using a camera attached to his shoe.
Judges examine estate case involving will, self-proving clause
Deciding on an issue of first impression regarding the proper execution of a person’s will, the state’s second-highest appeals court has determined the Indiana General Assembly doesn’t want validly signed wills and self-proving clauses to be set aside lightly.
Court decides 2nd marijuana-odor case in 2 days
Continuing a line of holdings during the past decade, the Indiana Court of Appeals has clearly stated that the odor of raw marijuana can be enough for police to search someone during a valid traffic stop.
Search didn’t violate driver’s rights
The smell of burnt marijuana on a person alone may constitute probable cause to support an arrest and search incident to arrest, the Indiana Court of Appeals held in a case of first impression.
Circuit Court upholds $500,000 restitution order
A man who waived his right in plea negotiations to challenge his sentence or an order of restitution may not appeal the imposition of $533,000 in restitution to a victim depicted in child pornography, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals held July 14.
COA: Evidence supports dealing conviction
The Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed a defendant’s conviction of dealing in methamphetamine, finding that pill dough created while making the drug could be used to count toward the three grams needed to charge someone with Class A felony dealing.
COA upholds $12 garnishment
A Miami Circuit Court did not err in its interpretation of a statute involving garnishment of wages when ruling a company was correctly withholding only $12.17 from an employee, held the Indiana Court of Appeals Wednesday.
Judges remand medical malpractice action
The Indiana Court of Appeals has ordered a trial court to hold a hearing as to what testimony an expert could give and to revise one of its orders in limine in a medical malpractice suit stemming from an overdose of Benadryl more than 15 years ago.
AG sues to recover $18,000 from LaGrange County clerk
Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller has filed a civil suit against Beverly S. Elliott, LaGrange County clerk, seeking more than $18,000 in misappropriated funds. Elliot is also facing criminal charges following an investigation by the State Board of Accounts and the Indiana State Police.
Arguments for woman who claims she was wrongfully convicted
The case of a woman who contends she was wrongfully convicted of arson and murder because of faulty science will be heard by the Indiana Court of Appeals July 13.
31 students prepare for law school as ICLEO Fellows
The Indiana Supreme Court has announced this year’s Indiana Conference for Legal Education Opportunity Fellows, who are currently preparing for the start of the fall semester.
Judge blocks Medicaid fee cut to pharmacies
A federal judge in Indianapolis has temporarily blocked the state from cutting the fees it pays to pharmacists for dispensing Medicaid prescriptions.
Indiana Supreme Court takes 3 cases; denies 27
The state’s highest court has granted transfer to three cases, including one in which they vacated the Indiana Court of Appeals decision and sent it back to the appellate court.
Justices rule officer didn’t search car to find gun
The Indiana Supreme Court has upheld a man’s firearm conviction, finding the police officer who found a handgun in the man’s car during a traffic stop wasn’t searching the car when he saw the gun.
COA sides with pro se defendant in murder case
The Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled that a trial court erred when it accepted a man’s guilty plea to murder, because the defendant had at the same time claimed his innocence.