U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

The court holds that the plaintiffs have standing to challenge both provisions of the Federal Switchblade Act, but reaches different results on their constitutional claims. The interstate-commerce restrictions in § 1242 violate the Second Amendment because switchblades are covered arms and the government did not…

The Fifth Circuit affirmed the Government’s liability under the FTCA because the bench-trial findings that the agent negligently shot the hostage were supported by the record and were not clearly erroneous.

The court affirmed summary judgment on Dyer’s disparate-treatment claim and upheld dismissal of his § 1985 conspiracy claim and his forfeited state-law conspiracy appeal. It vacated dismissal of the hostile-work-environment claim because the alleged incidents had to be considered together, and reversed dismissal of…

The court held that the plaintiffs have standing to challenge both challenged provisions, and that the interstate-commerce restrictions in § 1242 violate the Second Amendment because the government did not show that their manner of regulation accords with the Nation’s historical tradition.

The Fifth Circuit denied both petitions for review, holding that substantial evidence supported the BIA’s conclusion that Zahid had not shown he was more likely than not to be tortured if returned to Afghanistan.

The court denied both petitions for review, concluding that substantial evidence supports the denial of CAT protection and that the BIA did not abuse its discretion in denying remand or reconsideration.

The Fifth Circuit affirmed summary judgment because NFI sued after the contractual and statutory limitations periods had expired. It held that the insurer’s July 2020 letter clearly denied the claim and that later inspections, communications, and reopening for legal review did not withdraw that denial or support…

The Fifth Circuit affirmed the convictions of Brown and Nero for conspiring to possess heroin and fentanyl with intent to distribute, rejecting their sufficiency and expert-testimony challenges.

The Fifth Circuit held that Soto Duarte’s constitutional challenge to the sentencing enhancement in 8 U.S.C. § 1326(b) was foreclosed by controlling precedent permitting a judge to find the fact of a prior conviction. It granted the Government’s motion for summary affirmance and affirmed the district court’s judgment.

The Fifth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for Spillman and rejected Adorare’s challenges to the judgment, the district court’s filing restriction, and the denial of recusal. It concluded that no material factual dispute made summary judgment improper, that the district court acted within its discretion on the…

The Fifth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for Spillman and rejected Adorare’s challenges to the denial of reconsideration, the district court’s filing restriction, and the denial of recusal.

The court held that McCain plausibly alleged an Article III injury because he alleged that the restaurant induced him to buy imported frozen fish represented as premium local fish and that the restaurant’s systematic substitution plausibly affected an entrée he purchased.

The Fifth Circuit held that the CFIUS regime does not impliedly preempt Texas’s Lone Star Infrastructure Protection Act (LSIPA), either through conflict preemption or field preemption.

The court held that Ellis’s untimely challenge to the magistrate judge’s orders striking his second amended complaints deprived the court of jurisdiction to review those orders. It also concluded that Ellis had not shown a nonfrivolous appellate issue concerning his remaining arguments, denied his motion to proceed in…

The Fifth Circuit held that Banner’s failure to seek a mistrial did not categorically bar her post-verdict motion for a new trial, and that the district court could not rely on a juror’s statements about deliberations to deny that motion.

The Fifth Circuit affirmed the exclusion of the Cains’ jointly authored expert materials because they did not identify which opinions and analysis belonged to the sole designated expert.

The court held that the appeal was not moot because the proposed class settlement still required district-court approval and expressly carved out the appeal. It vacated the class certification order because the district court failed to weigh evidence of both market efficiency and market inefficiency when deciding…

The Fifth Circuit affirmed the denial of O’Connor’s compassionate-release motion because the district court reasonably balanced the sentencing factors in light of the seriousness of his offense and criminal history.

The Fifth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for the county and deputies on the family’s state-law and § 1983 claims, and affirmed denial of the Rule 59(e) motion. It concluded that a co-resident mother consented to entry, the deputies had probable cause to arrest Sanchez, and the video-recorded circumstances made the…

After reviewing the Anders brief, the record, and Day’s response, the court found no nonfrivolous issue for appellate review and dismissed the appeal. It declined to consider Day’s ineffective-assistance claims on direct appeal because the record was insufficiently developed, and concluded that his restitution…

The Fifth Circuit concluded that Britt had not identified a nonfrivolous basis to find an abuse of discretion in the denial of compassionate release. The district court stated that it considered the parties’ submissions and the § 3553(a) factors, and disagreement with its weighing of those factors did not justify…

The Fifth Circuit reversed the summary judgment for GOL and remanded because the record permits a finding that Cox’s $13 million payment partly covered debts for SEACOR’s services, and the Trade Agreement did not bar GOL from paying SEACOR.

The Fifth Circuit affirmed the judgment granting summary judgment to Freedom Mortgage and Real Star and dismissing the Percelles’ claims. It held that the Percelles forfeited their challenge to summary judgment by not responding to the motions and abandoned their appellate issues by inadequately briefing them, so it…

The Fifth Circuit held that the FCC violated the Government Corporation Control Act by relying on USAC, a corporation the FCC had established to administer the Universal Service Fund without specific congressional authorization.

The Fifth Circuit affirmed Harris’s convictions and sentence. It held that his suppression challenge was abandoned because his briefing did not adequately address the district court’s reasoning, and it rejected his challenges to the Franks hearing ruling and the Guidelines calculation.

The Fifth Circuit affirmed JaClemmie Crosby’s 60-month sentence, which exceeded the applicable guidelines range. It found no plain procedural error because the district court identified appropriate sentencing factors and gave reasons that made its reasoning clear, and no abuse of discretion because the upward variance…

The Fifth Circuit affirmed Armijo-Mercado’s 18-month within-guidelines sentence, concluding that he had not rebutted the presumption of reasonableness. His arguments that his criminal history category overstated his record and that he should receive credit for time in state custody did not establish that the district…

The Fifth Circuit vacated the dismissal for lack of specific personal jurisdiction because the defendant’s declaration did not controvert the plaintiff’s allegations about his Texas residence, the calls received in Texas, or his phone number.

The Fifth Circuit dismissed Lau’s appeal for lack of appellate jurisdiction because his notice of appeal was filed outside the 30-day deadline. None of his reconsideration motions tolled the deadline: the first two did not challenge a final judgment in substance, and the third was filed after Rule 59(e)’s 28-day limit.

The Fifth Circuit affirmed dismissal of the Reeses’ complaint as barred by res judicata, concluding that the added defendants were in privity with parties to the earlier action and that both suits arose from the same nucleus of operative fact.

The court dismissed for lack of jurisdiction the challenge to the agency’s discretionary denial of cancellation of removal, because that discretionary decision is not reviewable.

The Fifth Circuit denied the Mulaceks’ motion to approve a $25 million supersedeas bond, holding that Texas’s bond cap does not apply in federal court. Rule 69(a)(1) governs the mechanics of executing judgments, and the bond cap is procedural rather than substantive for Erie purposes.

The Fifth Circuit affirmed the denial of York’s compassionate-release motion because the Supreme Court had held that the First Step Act’s nonretroactive change to § 924(c), alone or combined with other factors, cannot make a prisoner eligible for compassionate release.

The Fifth Circuit affirmed Sanchez-Sanchez’s 57-month sentence for the drug offense. It held that the district court understood his sentence-disparity arguments and its authority to vary, but rejected those arguments after an individualized assessment of the sentencing factors; his substantive challenge likewise did…

The Fifth Circuit affirmed Tekippe’s sentence, holding that the district court’s finding of pervasive health-care fraud was plausible on the record and therefore not clearly erroneous.

After reviewing counsel’s Anders brief and the relevant portions of the record, the court agreed that the appeal presented no nonfrivolous issue and granted counsel’s motion to withdraw.

Malik appealed from the denial of his reconsideration and amended compassionate-release motions, but his appellate arguments challenged rulings on different criminal motions. Because he identified no error in the ruling underlying the appeal, the Fifth Circuit denied leave to proceed in forma pauperis and dismissed…

The Fifth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of Ratcliff’s claims without prejudice, concluding that his appellate arguments did not establish error. His contention that defendants failed to answer did not explain how that failure undermined the judgment, and his allegations of magistrate-judge bias were conclusory and…

The Fifth Circuit denied Gakou’s emergency motions for an administrative stay and a stay of removal pending appeal. It concluded that 8 U.S.C. § 1252(g) deprived it of jurisdiction to entertain a stay challenging execution of a removal order, and separately determined that Gakou’s request to prevent removal to a third…

The Fifth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for Ginnie Mae, holding that federal law and the parties’ guaranty agreement permitted Ginnie Mae to extinguish the defaulting issuer’s interests in securitized HECM mortgages, including Texas Capital’s derivative lien in their tails.