Attorney fees award was reasonable, COA rules
After a former employee was awarded nearly $100,000 in attorney fees, R.L. Turner Corp. asserted the amount was unreasonable given the employee’s total award for damages was less than $12,000.
Indiana Court of Appeals
Articles
Double jeopardy voids two cocaine convictions
A trial court violated the prohibition against double jeopardy by convicting a man in a bench trial of three felony cocaine possession counts, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled in tossing out two of the convictions.
Facebook message, other evidence proper in molester’s trial
Evidence including a Facebook message sent to a 15-year-old girl was properly admitted in the trial of a man convicted of sexually abusing her at knifepoint, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday.
Widow not entitled to attorney fees in wrongful death case
Attorney fees awarded in a wrongful death suit have been overturned by the Indiana Court of Appeals weeks after the Indiana Supreme Court weighed in on the state statute’s language.
COA affirms child support, debt division orders
The Indiana Court of Appeals Monday rejected an adoptive father’s argument that he was ordered through a dissolution order to pay too much in child support, including a retroactive amount creating an arrearage.
Judges to join students in Constitution Day celebration
Indiana appellate and trial court judges along with Indiana Supreme Court attorneys will be celebrating Constitution Day by visiting with more than 2,500 students across the state.
Pool appeal sinks Carmel homeowner deeper underwater
A Carmel homeowner who stopped paying a contractor over quibbles with an in-ground pool installation filed a lawsuit that flopped at the trial court. His appeal went no more swimmingly.
Snarky former prosecutor no match for plan commission
A former prosecuting attorney who denied the truckloads of dirt dumped on his Boone County farm caused drainage problems got buried under a $519,400 fine.
COA upholds guest statute in auto injury case
An attempt to revive old constitutional arguments against Indiana’s guest statute failed to gain traction with the Indiana Court of Appeals.
COA reiterates Indiana has no private right of action in child abuse cases
Despite a mother’s assertion that she was actually filing a medical malpractice complaint, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled her complaint was a private right of action for failure to report child abuse, which is not recognized in Indiana.
Shoddy documents draws COA ire
After appearing to shrug off the need to authenticate documents, a company claiming to own the appellant’s credit card debt got a lesson in Indiana court rules and precedence.
Teenager loses privacy argument with mom
A common argument from teenagers that mom has no right to search their rooms created a case of first impression for the Indiana Court of Appeals. And the appellate court affirmed with the common response that in mom’s house, mom has access.
Child interviewer’s vouching testimony reverses molest convictions
A man convicted of three counts of Class A felony child molesting must be retried because the trial court erred by admitting testimony from a forensic interviewer who said there was no evidence the alleged victims had been coached.
COA resurrects lawsuit against Ford Motor Co.
Although an expert did run additional tests after the discovery deadline, the Indiana Court of Appeals found the wholesale exclusion of his testimony was too severe and is allowing a lawsuit against Ford Motor Co. to continue.
COA affirms that petition is not a fishing expedition
The request to depose three elderly witnesses is not an attempt by a landowner to fish for facts, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
Claims for old debt are forever barred
A dissolved corporation that did not object sooner cannot now demand payment on an old debt, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
Altice sworn in as Court of Appeals judge
Former Marion Superior Judge Robert R. Altice Jr. was sworn in as a judge on the Indiana Court of Appeals Wednesday by Chief Justice Loretta Rush, the court said in a statement.
Adoption affirmed due to biological dad’s lack of communication
A child’s biological father with a long history of incarceration for crimes including burglary and forgery lost an appeal of the child’s stepfather’s adoption petition.
CHINS ruling splits Court of Appeals
A split Indiana Court of Appeals reversed a Child in Need of Services adjudication, ruling the child’s absent, out-of-state father should be presumed to be a fit and capable parent unless the state proves otherwise.
Lack of evidence gets criminal confinement conviction dropped
A Jefferson County man, convicted of beating up someone who testified against his daughter’s boyfriend, did not confine the victim during the assault, the Indiana Supreme Court has ruled.