‘Ordered freedom’: AG Rokita sets agenda focused on ‘liberty’
Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita recently sat down with Indiana Lawyer to answer questions about his first 100 days in office and his agenda for the next four years.
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After veto override, governor turns to courts
In the legal brawl between Gov. Eric Holcomb and the Indiana General Assembly over who has the power to call the Statehouse into a special session, the Marion Superior Court will first have to determine which lawyers are actually representing the executive branch.
Suit seeks direct election of Lake County judges, says merit selection discriminatory
A federal lawsuit filed by the Democratic mayor of Hammond and a Lake County attorney argues that Indiana’s judicial nominating system that appoints judges in the state’s four most diverse counties is racially discriminatory. Judges in Lake County should be directly elected or judges statewide should be appointed through merit selection, the suit says.
Fired Cathedral teacher’s suit against archdiocese over same-sex marriage dismissed
In a one-page order, Marion Superior Special Judge Lance Hamner did what a previous special judge and the Indiana Supreme Court had not done – dismiss the wrongful termination lawsuit filed by a gay teacher against the archdiocese of Indianapolis.
Egg dispute back in court over allegations of cracked contract
A dispute between farming companies over egg production and chickens snatched from their coops will return to court to address two breach claims after the Indiana Court of Appeals partially reversed a dismissal.
Over Thomas’ dissent, SCOTUS rejects West Point rape appeal
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal from a woman who says she was raped as a West Point cadet, with Justice Clarence Thomas alone arguing that the court should have heard her case.
Supreme Court won’t take Maryland bump stock ban case
The Supreme Court of the United States is declining to take up a challenge to Maryland’s ban on bump stocks and other devices that make guns fire faster.
AG Rokita files motion to strike governor’s lawsuit
Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita filed a motion to strike Friday to have the Marion Superior Court toss the governor’s lawsuit over executive powers, arguing in part, “the Governor cannot merely sue the legislature over laws he does not like.”
Lake Co. must pay probation officers’ legal expenses, COA rules
Lake County must foot the bill for legal expenses incurred by two probation officers in a federal lawsuit brought by a probationer, the Indiana Court of Appeals has ruled.
Census Bureau: 70% of voters cast ballots early or by mail
More than two-thirds of all U.S. citizens of the voting age population participated in the 2020 presidential election, according to a new U.S. Census Bureau report, and 69% of those cast ballots by mail or early in-person voting — methods that Republicans in some states are curtailing.
Lawyers question Rokita’s actions in lawsuit filed by governor
Attorney General Todd Rokita’s move to insert himself into the dispute between Gov. Eric Holcomb and the Indiana General Assembly over executive power is being challenged by members of the legal profession who see the state’s top lawyer as violating his oath and overstepping his authority.
Wary Supreme Court weighs student’s Snapchat profanity case
A wary Supreme Court on Wednesday weighed whether public schools can discipline students for things they say off campus, worrying about overly restricting speech on the one hand and leaving educators powerless to deal with bullying on the other.
Supreme Court wrestles with New Jersey pipeline case
The Supreme Court on Wednesday wrestled with how to resolve a clash between the state of New Jersey and a pipeline company over land the company needs for a natural gas pipeline.
Investors in Terre Haute, Gary casinos sue gaming commission over emergency rule
Investors in two Indiana casinos have filed a lawsuit against the Indiana Gaming Commission, alleging the entity overstepped its authority with an emergency rule adopted late last year.
COA: Landowners violated ordinance by building ‘pond,’ but attorney fees not supported in ordinance
Two homeowners who built a pond in an airport district without a permit violated a local ordinance, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday, affirming judgment in favor of the local plan commission. However, an award of nearly $8,000 in attorney fees for the commission must be vacated.
SCOTUS to settle circuit split in foreign arbitration case
An aircraft engine fire that sparked a foreign arbitration discovery battle between an American manufacturer and a British company over a 150-year-old law is headed to the United States Supreme Court for clarification.
Stafford: Hoosiers may yet vote by mail; lawyers will vote by email
Indiana has no legitimate excuse to require “excuses” for registered voters who wish to cast an absentee ballot. The state is not our parent, and in the last vote, plenty of us determined that as grown adults we shouldn’t have to go through a ridiculous exercise of asking their permission. The last thing that ought to be is a law.
Holcomb’s lawsuit draws rebuke from Attorney General
Following the Legislature’s override of his veto, Gov. Eric Holcomb has filed a lawsuit against the legislative branch, claiming the provisions in HEA 1123 which allow the Indiana General Assembly to call itself into “emergency session” are unconstitutional. Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita, however, is asserting that his office has the exclusive authority to resolve the dispute.
Gary gun dealer target of Chicago lawsuit
The city of Chicago filed a lawsuit Monday against Westforth Sports in Gary, alleging the retailer has “engaged in a pattern of illegal sales that has resulted in the flow of hundreds, if not thousands, is illegal firearms” across state lines and into the Windy City.
Student’s Snapchat profanity leads to high court speech case
Fourteen-year-old Brandi Levy was having that kind of day where she just wanted to scream. So she did, in a profanity-laced posting on Snapchat that has, improbably, ended up before the Supreme Court in the most significant case on student speech in more than 50 years.