Courts

The Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed a trial court’s ruling on when an attorney could receive his compensation under a contingency fee agreement, even though the attorney didn’t submit a transcript of the bench trial detailing the trial court’s findings. In Thomas J. Herr v. Carter Lumber Inc., The Carter Jones Lumber Company, and Brian L. Oaks, No. 79A02-0803-CV-290, before ruling on the issue Thomas Herr was appealing – whether the trial court erred in ordering he receive compensation under a…

The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed a trial court’s dismissal of an action against the Family and Social Services Administration regarding the denial of Medicaid applications, finding the FSSA relied on an incorrect statute to justify the denial of new evidence supporting a disability claim on the appellate level. In William Curtis, Gary Stewart, and Walter Raines, on behalf of themselves and those similarly situated v. E. Mitchell Roob Jr., as Secretary of Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, and Jeff…

The Indiana Supreme Court granted transfer to five cases Aug. 14, including a case that asks whether a defendant has the right to confront the lab technician who prepared a certificate of analysis. The high court granted transfer to Richard Pendergrass v. State of Indiana, No. 71A03-0712-CR-588, in which the Indiana Court of Appeals in July affirmed Richard Pendergrass’ convictions of child molesting. The appellate court ruled Pendergrass’ Sixth Amendment right to confrontation wasn’t violated with the admittance of a certificate of analysis…

The Indiana Supreme Court has affirmed the ruling of the Court of Appeals on a case it granted transfer to Friday. Justices granted transfer late last week in Floyd Tewell v. State of Indiana, No. 48S02-0701-PC-118, in which the court was asked to rule on whether Tewell’s request challenging his prison detainment should have been treated as post-conviction relief or a writ of habeas corpus. In an order posted online today and dated Jan. 11, the Supreme Court adopted the opinion of the…

The Marion County Prosecutor’s Office was allowed to vacate property it leased after repeated water leaks because the landlords constructively and actually evicted the office from the property, the Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed March 4. At issue in Village Commons, LLC and Rynalco, Inc. v. The Marion County Prosecutor’s Office and Carl Brizzi, No. 49A05-0704-CV-195, is whether the exclusive-remedy provision in the lease between Village Commons and Rynalco (landlords), and the prosecutor’s office barred the office from asserting it was evicted…