Justia U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

The Eleventh Circuit reversed the district court's denial of defendant's motion for acquittal, holding that no reasonable jury could find from the little evidence presented during the two-day trial that defendant was guilty of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. 846 and 841. While the circumstances presented by the government here might show that it was more likely than not that defendant knew that the boxes contained some sort of contraband, the permissible inferences did not support a holding that the government proved that defendant knew this was a conspiracy involving a controlled substance or that he knew he was in possession of a controlled substance. The court explained that, without this requisite showing of knowledge, the government failed to carry its burden. View "United States v. Louis" on Justia Law

Defendants were not eligible for relief under 18 U.S.C. 3582(c)(2) where they were sentenced to the statutory mandatory minimum applicable to their offenses at their original sentencing. The Eleventh Circuit held that the district court had no authority to compel the government to file 18 U.S.C. 3553(e) motions and thus had no authority to sentence defendants below that mandatory minimum. Accordingly, the court reversed the district court's decisions and vacated the orders granting relief under section 3582(c)(2), remanding with instructions to deny the motions and to reimpose their original sentences. View "United States v. Melton" on Justia Law

Petitioner, a citizen of Guyana and lawful permanent resident of the United States, petitioned for review of the BIA's order upholding the IJ's finding that he was removable under 8 U.S.C. 237(a)(2)(A)(iii). The Eleventh Circuit granted the petition, holding that petitioner's prior conviction for violating Florida Statute 893.13(1)(a) did not constitute an aggravated felony. In this case, the Florida statute is divisible and, under the modified categorical approach, a conviction for delivery of a controlled substance under section 893.13(1)(a) does not qualify as an aggravated felony. View "Gordon v. U.S. Attorney General" on Justia Law

Specific procedures provided in Section 4 of the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), 9 U.S.C. 1 et seq., demanding a jury trial on arbitrability issues displace the general procedures for demanding a jury trial under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Plaintiff filed suit against his former employer, alleging discrimination in violation of several federal statutes. The Eleventh Circuit held that the district court did not err in holding a bench trial on the signature issue in spite of plaintiff's general demand for a jury trial in his complaint. Furthermore, the employer's participation in litigation on the merits of plaintiff's claims after the district court's initial denial of his motion to compel arbitration was not inconsistent with its right to arbitration. Accordingly, the court affirmed the district court's order granting the employer's motion to compel arbitration and dismissing plaintiff's claims without prejudice. View "Burch v. P.J. Cheese, Inc." on Justia Law

Plaintiffs filed suit against defendants for harms allegedly suffered by plaintiffs when plaintiffs were enrolled in a clinical study while being treated for health issues accompanying their premature births. The Eleventh Circuit held that plaintiffs' negligence, negligence per se, breach of fiduciary duty, and products liability claims were not viable under Alabama law, and the district court correctly dismissed them. The Eleventh Circuit certified to the Alabama Supreme Court: Must a patient whose particular medical treatment is dictated by the parameters of a clinical study, and who has not received adequate warnings of the risks of that particular protocol, prove that an injury actually resulted from the medical treatment in order to succeed on a claim that his consent to the procedure was not informed? View "Lewis v. Moore" on Justia Law

After city officers shot plaintiff, he filed suit alleging claims, inter alia, under 42 U.S.C. 1983 for violations of his constitutional rights. On appeal, defendants challenged the district court's denial of their second motion to dismiss and instructing them to develop and file their Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(f) report. The Eleventh Circuit vacated the district court's order to the extent that it denied without prejudice the motion to dismiss on immunity grounds and directed plaintiff to amend his complaint again. The court explained that, after plaintiff has filed his second amended complaint, defendants may file another motion to dismiss that includes assertions of immunity from suit. View "Howe v. City of Enterprise" on Justia Law

This appeal arose out of the Ponzi scheme orchestrated by Scott Rothstein through his law firm, Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler (RRA). Trustees of RRA filed suit alleging breach of contract and bad faith claims against insurance carriers that reached a settlement with Gibraltar and its executives after originally denying coverage. The Eleventh Circuit applied Florida law and exercised plenary review, holding that coverage was barred by a "professional services exclusion" found in each of the policies. Accordingly, the court affirmed the district court's grant of the insurers' motion to dismiss. View "Stettin v. National Union Fire Insurance Co." on Justia Law

In an in rem admiralty proceeding involving the wreckage of Spanish galleons, Fleet-Queens recovered approximately four hundred gold coins, among other treasures, from an area that Gold Hound had allegedly been salvaging while acting as a subcontractor for Fleet-Queens. Gold Hound filed suit claiming that this discovery was made using its proprietary maps and software, seeking to intervene in the in rem action to assert a maritime lien over some of these artifacts and to assert state law claims. The district court denied the motion to intervene and concluded that Gold Hound was not entitled to a maritime lien. The Eleventh Circuit held that the district court properly determined that it had and continues to have subject-matter jurisdiction over the res; Gold Hound should be granted leave to intervene in this proceeding to assert its in rem claims; and, on remand, the court deferred to the district court's discretion to determine whether to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over Gold Hound's state law claims. The court vacated the district court's denial of Gold Hound's motion to intervene and its denial of Gold Hound's claim to a maritime lien and remanded, because the court could not decide on the record whether Gold Hound may succeed because basic facts remain in dispute. View "Salvors, Inc. v. Unidentified Wrecked & Abandoned Vessel" on Justia Law

The Eleventh Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of petitioner's motion under 28 U.S.C. 2255 to vacate her conviction and sentence for using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, car jacking in this case. The court held that Johnson v. United States does not apply to or invalidate 18 U.S.C. 924(c)(3)(B) and that petitioner's attempted-carjacking conviction qualifies as a crime of violence under section 924(c)(3)(B). Alternatively, the court held that petitioner's attempted carjacking categorically qualifies as a crime of violence under the force clause of section 924(c)(3)(A). View "Ovalles v. United States" on Justia Law

ZPRIM sought review of the SEC's final order finding that petitioners made material misrepresentations to prospective clients in violation of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, 15 U.S.C. 80b-1. The Eleventh Circuit vacated the violations and monetary sanctions related to the newsletter ZPRIM published in December 2009. In this case, ZPRIM's disclaimer was not boilerplate and was not buried among too many other things, but was explicit, repetitive and linked to the statement about which the SEC complains. Therefore, in light of the clear cautionary statements in the newsletter, the Commission's finding of materiality for that newsletter was not supported by substantial evidence. The court affirmed all other violations and sanctions. View "ZPR Investment Management Inc. v. SEC" on Justia Law