Family sues Muncie funeral home, alleging botched funeral
The children of an Indiana woman are suing a Muncie funeral home, alleging that her remains and funeral arrangements were mishandled.
Negligence
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Negligence claim against GM, contractor to continue after deadly explosion
A negligence claim against General Motors and two independent contractors stemming from a deadly explosion at a Grant County GM plant will continue after a district court judge denied in part the defendants’ motions for summary judgment.
COA: Charter school suit requires tort claim notice
An Indiana trial court properly granted summary judgment in favor of a charter school organizer under the Indiana Tort Claims Act because an organizer and charter school jointly make up the statutory definition of a “charter school,” the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Monday. The appellate panel also upheld the constitutionality of classifying a charter school as a “governmental entity.”
Is gun maker liable? Court takes up Newtown shooting case
With both gun rights supporters and gun control advocates nationwide looking on, lawyers for Newtown families and gun maker Remington Arms are set to face off Tuesday before the Connecticut Supreme Court to argue whether the company should be held liable for the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre.
Justices: Employer’s admission limits theories of recovery
Indiana precedent does not allow both a respondeat superior and negligent hiring claim against an employer to proceed if the employer has admitted their employee was acting within the course and scope of their employment when the negligence occurred, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled in an opinion that upheld partial summary judgment for Pizza Hut.
South Bend settles drowning death lawsuit for $12K
A family that accused South Bend of being negligent in their daughter’s drowning death has settled a lawsuit for $12,000.
Summary judgment affirmed for machine rental company in negligence case
A machine rental company did not owe a duty to train or offer to train a man who later died while using the boom lift on how to use the equipment and, thus, was entitled to summary judgment on a negligence claim brought by his estate, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
COA: Attack on wrestling event attendee was unforeseeable
A woman who was injured in an attack while walking from a Bartholomew County wrestling event to her car cannot succeed on her negligence claim against the wrestling company because the attack was not foreseeable, so the company did not owe a duty to her, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
COA: Suspended attorney’s failure to litigate attributable to client
A now-suspended attorney’s repeated failure to communicate with his client and litigate her case was a failure directly attributable to the client and, thus, made the opposing party entitled to summary judgment, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday.
Judge dismisses claims against hospital in discovery dispute
A federal judge has dismissed a man’s claims in a complaint accusing the Indiana Supreme Court, a hospital and the chair of a medical review panel of violating his due process rights. The judge found that federal precedent and a failure to state a claim barred the man’s claims against the hospital.
COA to hear legal malpractice appeal
A woman who lost her legal malpractice case against a law firm she said failed to timely bring negligence and wrongful death claims against the St. Joseph County Prosecutor’s office will have her day before the Indiana Court of Appeals next week.
Supreme Court to hear whistleblower case against IDEM
A former state employee who claims she was fired for blowing the whistle on questionable payment practices in the Indiana Department of Environment Management will bring her case before the Indiana Supreme Court next week, when she will urge the justices to allow her complaint against the state agency to continue.
Supreme Court: ‘remoteness’ of prior conviction doesn’t affect admissibility
Determining that the “remoteness” of a prior offense does not affect the admissibility of evidence at trial, the Indiana Supreme Court has affirmed the award of roughly $2 million in compensatory and punitive damages to a man injured by a drunk driver.
New Castle Schools negligence case headed to trial
The Indiana Court of Appeals has reversed summary judgment in case stemming from an altercation in a New Castle career program, finding that genuine issues of material fact remain as to whether the school was negligent.
Lawsuit against Columbus over crosswalk headed toward trial
Although the city of Columbus has immunity from the policy decisions that may have contributed to a 13-year-old’s injuries when he was struck by a vehicle in a city crosswalk, genuine issues of material fact remain that preclude the city from being awarded summary judgment in a lawsuit, a divided Indiana Court of Appeals has held.
7th Circuit affirms summary judgment to jail health care providers
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed summary judgment to a county jail healthcare provider and his employer Monday after finding that the inmate bringing the malpractice claims against the providers failed to prove that his care was objectively unreasonable.
Fight over Knightstown demolition sent back to trial court
A man who owns a building on Knightstown’s Main Street can proceed with his lawsuit after the town lost some rulings in its favor on interlocutory appeal.
Justices rule against woman injured by karate kick
A woman who sued a karate classmate when she was injured by his jump-kick cannot prove recklessness, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled Thursday, extending its jurisprudence applied to torts arising from sports injuries.
Statute of limitations bars medical negligence case
After a dermatology appointment left a Marion County woman with facial discoloration that never went away as her doctor said it would, the woman sought damages in a negligence complaint. However, because she failed to prove that she “later learned” that her injury was worse than she thought, the Indiana Court of Appeals held that the woman’s claim cannot proceed in court because it was not timely filed.
Trial court erred in granting new trial in electrocution estate dispute
A trial court erred in ordering a new trial after a jury returned a general verdict in favor of the estate of an electrician who wired a barn where a teenager was electrocuted in 2010, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday.