Mealey's Coronavirus : Mealey's : Legal News & Analysis

Mealey's Coronavirus

August 22, 2023
8th Circuit Affirms No Coverage Ruling In Kansas City Restaurants’ COVID-19 Suit

ST. LOUIS — The Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Aug. 21 affirmed a Missouri federal court’s judgment in favor of a commercial property insurer in a breach of contract lawsuit brought by the owner of several Kansas City restaurants and bars that were forced to close or reduce their operations as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, finding that even if the insured discovered the coronavirus at its insured properties, it failed to meet the standard for physicality.
August 21, 2023
Air Force Secretary, Others Ask High Court To Consider Vaccine Mandate Class Case

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court should hear the appeal in a lawsuit filed by members of the U.S. Air Force and Space Force who refuse to get the COVID-19 vaccine for religious reasons after the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals left in place class certification and a classwide injunction as the vaccine mandate has been rescinded, the appeals are moot and vacatur is appropriate under United States v. Munsingwear, Inc., the Air Force secretary and others argue in a petition for a writ of certiorari.
August 21, 2023
California High Court Agrees To Review Tribe’s Coronavirus Coverage Dispute

SAN FRANCISCO — The California Supreme Court granted an Indian tribe insured’s petition to review a state appellate court’s finding that the insured and its experts failed to present sufficient evidence to demonstrate that the coronavirus caused property damage to the tribe’s casino and resort.
August 21, 2023
Illinois Panel Modifies, Affirmatively Answers Care Home COVID Immunity Question

ELGIN, Ill. — An Illinois appeals court answered in the affirmative a question certified to it from a lower court after modifying it to ask whether a specific executive order issued by the Illinois governor grants “immunity for ordinary negligence claims to healthcare facilities that rendered assistance to the State during the COVID-19 pandemic,” finding that the order “neither overrides nor is inconsistent with the General Assembly’s grant of authority to the Governor” pursuant to the Illinois Emergency Management Act.
August 17, 2023
Parents Challenging Schools’ COVID-19 Measures Fail To Establish Cognizable Claims

HAMMOND, Ind. — An Indiana federal magistrate judge granted the motion of a public school corporation, its superintendent and several school board members in a lawsuit challenging the measures the school corporation took in response to the COVID-19 pandemic as being in violation of Indiana state law and the state and federal constitutions, finding that a controversy no longer existed given the termination of all COVID-19-related measures and that the parents otherwise failed to state cognizable claims.
August 16, 2023
BYU Student Seeks Leave To Refile For Class Certification In Pandemic Closure Case

OGDEN, Utah — A Brigham Young University (BYU) student filed a motion in a federal court in Utah seeking leave to file a renewed motion for class certification in a lawsuit over the school’s failure to provide partial refunds of tuition and fees after classes were switched to online-only during the coronavirus pandemic; the motion came less than a month after the 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals denied rehearing after upholding the trial court’s denial of class certification.
August 16, 2023
8th Circuit: Pharmacies OK Denying Ivermectin, Hydroxychloroquine For COVID

ST. LOUIS — The Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has affirmed that Minnesota law does not recognize a right of “self-determination” that overrides the judgment of the Food and Drug Administration, medical organizations and two pharmacies that ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine cannot be dispensed off-label to treat COVID-19.
July 27, 2023
COMMENTARY: COVID-19, Generative AI And The “Lost Generation” Of Lawyers

By Jennifer M. Driscoll and Linn F. Freedman
August 15, 2023
University Of Colorado’s $5M Settlement Approved In Pandemic Remote Learning Case

DENVER — A judge in Colorado granted final approval of a $5 million class settlement by the Board of Regents of the University of Colorado, ending claims for damages by students filed after the school transitioned to online learning in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
August 11, 2023
More StubHub Ticket Purchasers Sent To Arbitration In Pandemic Cancellation Suit

SAN FRANCISCO — The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals found that a trial court erred in a class lawsuit accusing StubHub Inc. of changing its refund policies for events canceled or rescheduled due to the coronavirus pandemic when it denied a motion by the second ticket marketer to compel to arbitration five ticket purchasers who used the company’s mobile application after signing into the website because the “sign-in screen is nearly identical to the website checkout screen that the district court found was sufficient to compel the other forty-eight Plaintiffs to arbitration.”
August 11, 2023
Georgia Panel Affirms Dismissal Of Coronavirus Coverage Dispute

ATLANTA — A Georgia appeals panel affirmed a lower court’s grant of insurers’ motion to dismiss their mutual insured’s breach of contract lawsuit seeking coverage for its losses arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, saying the “overwhelming majority” of federal and state courts have rejected similar pandemic coverage claims.
August 11, 2023
Connecticut High Court Reverses Dismissal Of Wrongful Death Suit Against Doctors

HARTFORD, Conn. — The Connecticut Supreme Court reversed and remanded a trial court’s judgment that dismissed gross negligence claims against three physicians related to the death of a woman whose life-threatening heart condition was misdiagnosed during the COVID-19 pandemic, finding that the physicians were not immune for claims of gross negligence under the governor’s executive order granting immunity to health care professionals or under the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (PREP) Act.
August 10, 2023
Magistrate Recommends Denial Of Entry Of Default Sought Against PPE Supplier

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — A New York federal magistrate judge recommended that the entry of default sought by a New York medical equipment company against a health care product distributor and its CEO be denied in the medical equipment company’s lawsuit seeking the return of a $323,640 down payment for a shipment of nitrile gloves it never received and additional compensatory and punitive damages.
August 10, 2023
Amazon’s $950,000 Settlement In Home-Based Expenses Suit Preliminarily Approved

SAN FRANCISCO — A class settlement of $950,000 to be paid by Amazon.com Services LLC in a case in which an employee alleges that he and others were improperly denied reimbursement for home internet expenses incurred during the couple of years of the coronavirus pandemic was granted preliminary approval by a federal judge in California after the proposed notice, order and judgment were amended.
August 09, 2023
Civil Rights Claims In Suit Stemming From University COVID-19 Death Dismissed

PITTSBURGH — A Pennsylvania federal judge dismissed with prejudice civil rights claims in the amended complaint of the estate administrator of a university student who died of COVID-19 in a lawsuit that also alleged state law claims of wrongful death, survival and willful misconduct against the university and others, finding that the administrator could not establish that there had been conduct that “shocks the conscience” given the several measures taken by the university to reduce the risk posed by COVID-19 during the pandemic.
August 09, 2023
Urban Outfitters Asks 3rd Circuit To Stay Appeal Of Coronavirus Coverage Suit

PHILADELPHIA — URBN US Retail LLC (Urban Outfitters) asked the Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to stay its appeal of a lower federal court’s dismissal of its coverage lawsuit arising from the COVID-19 pandemic until the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has decided two cases that involve “the same issues of insurance law.”
August 09, 2023
NYU’s Rehearing Petition Denied By 2nd Circuit After Pandemic Closure Ruling

NEW YORK — The Second Circuit denied a petition for rehearing en banc filed by New York University (NYU) after a split panel ruled that a parent of an NYU student who filed a putative class complaint against the school over its closure in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic lacks standing to bring her claims for breach of contract, unjust enrichment and money had and received but that the district court erred in denying the filing of an amended complaint to add a current student.
August 08, 2023
Panel: Louisville Restaurant Owner Fails To Allege Loss In Coronavirus Coverage Suit

FRANKFORT, Ky. — A Kentucky appeals panel affirmed a lower court’s summary judgment ruling in favor of an insurer in a Louisville restaurant insured’s lawsuit seeking coverage for its lost income when it limited operations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, finding the insured failed to assert a “loss” as defined by the policy.
August 08, 2023
California Appellate Panel Issues Ruling On Pandemic Work-From-Home Expenses

SAN FRANCISCO — A California trial court erred when it sustained an employer’s demurrer and found that the employer was absolved of liability for reimbursing workers for their expenses while working from home due to a stay-at-home order issued by the governor during the coronavirus pandemic, a First District California Court of Appeal panel ruled.
August 07, 2023
Connecticut Judge Rules For Insurer In Coronavirus Coverage Dispute

HARTFORD, Conn. — A Connecticut judge granted a business owner insurer’s motion for summary judgment in its insured’s lawsuit seeking coverage for its losses arising from the coronavirus pandemic, rejecting the insured’s argument that the adhesion of coronavirus-infected respiratory droplets to its property caused direct physical loss or damage.
August 04, 2023
Airline Pilot Alleges That He Was Illegally Detained At Airport For Lacking Mask

SPOKANE, Wash. — An airline pilot filed suit in Washington federal court against an airport and airport police officers who attempted to enforce the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) COVID-19 masking policy as the pilot passed through security on the way to his flight, alleging that he was racially profiled and unlawfully detained and that the officers illegally failed to recognize an exemption to masking requirements he had by virtue of being an airline pilot.
August 04, 2023
Magistrate Again Dismisses Suit Against Google For Remote Schooling Hack

OAKLAND, Calif. — A California federal magistrate judge dismissed several claims brought against Google LLC by a minor child who claims that Google invaded his privacy while he was required to use a Google platform for remote schooling during COVID-19 and failed to prevent a hack of his computer device that resulted in a sexually explicit message being sent to his teacher.
August 04, 2023
Federal Judge Grants University’s Motion To Remand Coronavirus Coverage Dispute

SEATTLE — A federal judge in Washington granted The Board of Regents of the University of Washington’s motion to remand its breach of contract and bad faith lawsuit seeking coverage for the alleged losses to its medical and athletic properties arising out of the coronavirus pandemic, finding that for the purposes of diversity jurisdiction, the university is an “arm of the state.”
August 03, 2023
11th Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment For University In Pandemic Closure Class Case

ATLANTA — A University of Miami student who filed a putative class complaint seeking partial refunds after all schooling was transitioned to online learning in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic failed to show that she was “entitled to damages stemming from any alleged breach of contract, unjust enrichment, or inadequate refunds on the part of” the school, an 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled, affirming a trial court’s summary judgment ruling for the university.
August 03, 2023
Unsuccessful Challengers To TSA COVID-19 Mask Rule Seek Supreme Court Review

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Two airline passengers who challenged the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) enforcement of the federal transportation mask mandate filed a joint petition for a writ of certiorari seeking review of a per curiam opinion of the District of Columbia Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals denying the passengers’ petition for review because the masking regulations had expired and thus any challenge to a reinstated mask policy would require a new administrative record.