Case Otter Creek Solar LLC v. Vermont Public Utility Commission Court Supreme Court of Vermont Date Decided May 8, 2026
Case In re N.B., Juvenile (B.B., Father & T.R., Mother) Court Supreme Court of Vermont (Three-Justice Panel, Unpublished) Date Decided
Case James Jerome, Jr. v. Kerry Raheb and Renee Houston Court Supreme Court of Vermont (Three-Justice Panel) Date Decided May
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the denial of habeas relief for a California death row inmate, finding that the trial judge’s informal and at times inappropriate comments during trial did not demonstrate bias or render the proceedings fundamentally unfair.
Ninth Circuit affirms summary judgment for a Seattle SWAT officer who shot and killed an armed, fleeing father holding his infant daughter, holding that no clearly established law put the officer on notice that deadly force in those circumstances was unconstitutional.
The Ninth Circuit applies the Groff undue-hardship test and affirms summary judgment for a regional healthcare system that denied COVID-19 vaccination religious exemptions to nine clinical employees during the Delta-variant surge.
Case Bryant v. State, No. S26A0097 Court Supreme Court of Georgia Judge COLVIN (Brian Kemp, 2021) Date Decided May 5,
Case Cherlie Augustin v. David Duncan, et al. Court Appellate Court of Maryland Judge Arthur (Martin O’Malley, 2014) Date Decided
The Ninth Circuit publishes that the state-created danger doctrine reaches only bodily-integrity harm, not lost profits — but reverses dismissal of state-law nuisance claims to let businesses pursue equitable tolling under American Pipe.
The California Supreme Court holds that a non-killer accomplice with intent to kill is guilty of first-degree felony murder only if they aided the actual killer in the lethal act itself, not merely the underlying felony — reopening resentencing for many defendants previously denied.
When resentencing a defendant under section 1172.75, the trial court may reimpose an upper term using aggravating facts the defendant already stipulated to — no new jury findings required.
The Ninth Circuit issues an amended opinion granting a Rhines stay-and-abey for an Arizona death-row petitioner’s IAC-at-sentencing claim, and remands his Atkins intellectual-disability claim for the district court to address in the first instance.
Case Bart Richmond v. Jefferson County Attorney Court Iowa Supreme Court Judge McDermott (Kim Reynolds, 2020) Date Decided May 1,
Case State of Nebraska v. Michael M. Dicken Court Nebraska Supreme Court Judge Funke (Pete Ricketts, 2016) Date Decided May
Case Lee Boyd Malvo v. State of Maryland Court Appellate Court of Maryland Judge Ripken (Larry Hogan, 2021) Date Decided
Case State of Louisiana v. Maya Jones Court Louisiana Supreme Court Judge Hughes (elected 2012) Date Decided May 1, 2026
Case Alford v. Canada (Attorney General) Court Supreme Court of Canada (Canada) Date Decided May 1, 2026 Citation 2026 SCC
Case Quebec (Attorney General) v. Lalande Court Supreme Court of Canada (Canada) Judge Per Curiam Date Decided May 1, 2026
Delaware Superior Court denies Fox News’s motion to dismiss Governor Newsom’s defamation suit, finding it reasonably conceivable that the network acted with actual malice by selectively editing video to accuse Newsom of lying about a phone call with President Trump.
California Supreme Court reaffirms the constitutional right to pretrial release, requiring prosecutors to prove the necessity of detention by clear and convincing evidence and forbidding boilerplate denial-of-bail orders.
On automatic appeal, the California Supreme Court unanimously affirms the convictions and death sentence of Cary Stayner for the 1999 Cedar Lodge murders of Carole Sund, her daughter Juli, and Silvina Pelosso. Justice Evans concurred and dissented in part.
The Ninth Circuit denies en banc rehearing in a Nevada death-penalty habeas case, leaving in place a panel decision allowing the petitioner to invoke Martinez v. Ryan to revive long-defaulted trial-ineffective-assistance claims, over a forceful dissent from nine judges.
The Ninth Circuit affirms the denial of a Mexican spouse’s visa application, holding that after Department of State v. Muñoz a U.S. citizen spouse can still invoke the Mandel exception based on her First Amendment right to receive information, but that the consular officer’s reason-to-be
Case TV Production Company v. Broadcasting Company (names redacted in opinion) Court İstanbul Bölge Adliye Mahkemesi 53. Hukuk Dairesi (Istanbul