COVID-19 relief in Indiana appellate courts extended
Relief from deadlines in court cases affected by the coronavirus pandemic has been extended by a joint order of the Indiana Supreme Court and the Indiana Court of Appeals issued Friday.
Indiana Supreme Court
Articles
Judge reduces jury damages award for doctor in defamation case
A doctor will have to settle for just $3.5 million in damages rather than the $4.75 million a Marion Superior jury awarded after a judge on Friday reduced the jury’s award in a defamation case brought against a Carmel hospital after the doctor was falsely accused of drinking on the job.
AG candidates make final pleas to GOP delegates
The crowded field of lawyers seeking the Indiana GOP nomination for attorney general will soon be narrowed to one as the four candidates make their final pleas for support from the state’s Republican delegates. The field includes embattled AG Curtis Hill, Decatur County Prosecutor Nate Hater, former Rep. Todd Rokita and Bose McKinney & Evans attorney John Westercamp.
Justices make Lake County judge pro tem appointments due to jurist’s health
Lake Superior Court Judge Clarence D. Murray will temporarily step down from his seat on the bench after informing the court that he would be unable to perform the duties of his office due to health reasons.
Retired Posey County jurist certified as senior judge
Indiana Supreme Court justices have certified a new senior judge to serve in Indiana courts.
Indianapolis attorney who took assistant’s Social Security withholdings disbarred
An Indianapolis attorney who converted his only employee’s Social Security withholdings for his own personal use for more than a decade has been disbarred from the practice of law after the Indiana Supreme Court found that he had committed attorney misconduct.
Fishers attorney gets stayed suspension, JLAP monitoring, over misconduct in 2 cases
A Fishers attorney has agreed to a stayed suspension in an attorney misconduct case, acknowledging he charged unreasonable fees and failed to act with reasonable diligence and promptness in two cases in which former clients filed grievances against him.
Attorney gets law license probation after second OWI
An Indianapolis lawyer who pleaded guilty in early 2019 to his second drunken-driving conviction in less than five years received a stayed 30-day suspension subject to two years of probation in an Indiana Supreme Court attorney discipline order handed down Friday.
AG’s office wins delay in suit challenging Hill’s eligibility
Lawyers for the Indiana Attorney General’s Office asked for a change of judge late Thursday on the eve of the first scheduled hearing in a lawsuit seeking to declare suspended Attorney General Curtis Hill ineligible to serve. Lawyers for the AG’s Office — who also filed on behalf of Gov. Eric Holcomb — also asked to vacate the hearing.
Suit asks judge to decide AG Hill’s eligibility before suspension ends
Plaintiffs who have filed a lawsuit seeking to remove suspended Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill have asked the judge in the case to rule on Hill’s eligibility to continue to serve before his 30-day suspension concludes on Wednesday.
AG Hill terminated as defendant in groping accusers’ federal lawsuit
Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill has won a victory in the continued fallout of the sexual misconduct allegations against him, successfully moving a federal judge to dismiss him as a defendant in a civil lawsuit brought against him and the Indiana Legislature. Also, the state lawmaker who helped initiate the complaint has been dismissed as a plaintiff.
Lawsuit on suspended AG Hill’s fate stalls
A lawyer maintains the Indiana attorney general’s office is trying to stymie a court fight on whether Republican Attorney General Curtis Hill can be ousted from office while his law license remains suspended until next week for groping four women during a party.
Three finalists selected for Allen Superior Court judicial vacancy
The Allen Superior Court Judicial Nominating Commission has announced the names of three finalists vying for an upcoming judicial vacancy that will be created by the retirement of Allen County’s first female judge.
Death penalty ‘secrecy statute’ now in hands of justices
It’s now year six of an ongoing battle between the Indiana Department of Correction and a Washington, D.C., lawyer who wants to know the drugs used in Indiana’s lethal injection cocktail and who supplies them. In those six years, a public records request, a lawsuit and a legislative change have propelled the dispute to the Indiana Supreme Court, which now has a consequential ruling in its hands.
Indiana Court Decisions — May 20-June 3, 2020
Read Indiana appellate court decisions from the most recent reporting period.
Justices to hear sentencing, delinquency, tax cases this week
The Indiana Supreme Court will hear three oral arguments via videoconference this Thursday, considering topics including sentencing, a tax sale and a delinquent’s possession of a firearm.
Supreme Court terminates Fort Wayne attorney’s suspension
A Fort Wayne attorney with a history of disciplinary actions had his most recent suspension lifted by the Indiana Supreme Court.
Special judge accepts jurisdiction in challenge to AG Hill’s eligibility to remain in office
A special judge has accepted jurisdiction over a civil lawsuit challenging Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill’s ability to remain in office after his law license was suspended. The case is now beginning to move forward, with a status conference set for this week.
Former judge accused of defrauding estates resigns from bar
A one-time northern Indiana trial court judge who is accused in lawsuits of taking money from two estates in cases he represented has resigned from the Indiana bar rather than face disciplinary proceedings related to his misconduct.
Justices accept Indianapolis attorney’s resignation
An Indianapolis attorney is now prevented from practicing law in the Hoosier state after Indiana Supreme Court justices accepted her resignation from the Indiana bar.