Tort/Negligence – FTCA – Subject Matter Jurisdiction – Agency Policy – Unsafe Ladder/Door Combo
Hinson v. United States (Lawyers Weekly No. 002-004-17, 12 pp.) (Terrence Boyle, J.) 514-cv-00877; E.D.N.C. Holding: The discretionary-function exception to the Federal Tort Claims Act’s waiver of sovereign immunity does not apply to an agency’s decision as to when to add safety features to a ladder/access door combination or whether to take the unsafe ladder […]
Tort/Negligence – No FTCA Claim for Injury at Navy Training Facility
Wood v. U.S. (Lawyers Weekly No. 001-011-17, 22 pp.) (Niemeyer, J.) No. 15-2106, Jan. 4, 2017; USDC at Norfolk, Va. (Jackson, J.) 4th Cir. Holding: A Norfolk sheriff’s deputy who was seriously injured during a training session on a Naval base when she jumped from a training structure onto a set of mats, landing in […]
Civil Practice – FTCA Med-Mal Claim Filed Too Late
Raplee v. U.S. (Lawyers Weekly No. 001-165-16, 17 pp.) (Motz, J.) No. 14-1217, Nov. 22, 2016; USDC at Greenbelt, Md. (Grimm, J.) 4th Cir. Holding: The 4th Circuit affirms dismissal of plaintiff’s medical malpractice claim filed under the Federal Tort Claims because the claim was untimely; although plaintiff’s first lawyer filed his FTCA med-mal claim […]
Tort/Negligence – FTCA – Wrongful Death – Gross Negligence – Legal U-Turn
Garcia v. United States (Lawyers Weekly No. 002-010-16, 13 pp.) (Louise Flanagan, J.) 4:14-cv-00088; E.D.N.C. Holding: Even though a Marine’s U-turn attempt was legal, since (1) he had been warned that it was a dangerous maneuver, (2) conditions were dark and rainy, and (3) the tractor-trailer he was driving was darkly camouflaged, the plaintiff-estate may […]
Tort/Negligence – FTCA – Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies – Claim Amendment – Reset Clock
Weston v. United States (Lawyers Weekly No. 15-03-0925, 26 pp.) (William Osteen Jr., J.) 1:15-cv-00084; M.D.N.C. Holding: After plaintiff was injured in an auto accident with an employee of the Federal Aviation Administration, a letter from her attorney demanding $3,000 was sufficient to constitute a “claim” within the meaning of the Federal Tort Claims Act. […]
Constitutional – First Amendment – Bivens Action – FTCA – Jehovah’s Witness – VA Medical Procedure
Clinton v. Brown (Lawyers Weekly No. 15-04-0844, 11 pp.) (Frank Whitney, J.) 3:15-cv-0048; W.D.N.C. Holding: A constitutional remedy under Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, 403 U.S. 388 (1971), is only available for claims arising under the Fourth, Fifth, and Eighth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Since plaintiff alleges […]
Tort/Negligence – FTCA – Intentional Torts – Law Enforcement Proviso – TSA Screeners – Limited Search Authority
Weinraub v. United States Under the Federal Tort Claims Act, the U.S. has waived sovereign immunity for certain intentional torts committed by investigative or law enforcement officers.
Tort/Negligence – FTCA – Assault – Pentagon Police Officer
Ignacio v. U.S. A Pentagon police officer who allegedly assaulted a contract security officer assigned to the Pentagon, while the two were stationed at a Pentagon security checkpoint, does not have sovereign immunity from a suit for assault under the Federal Tort Claims Act; the 4th Circuit reverses the district court decision that the U.S. was immune from suit because the police officer [...]
Tort/Negligence – FTCA – Scope of Employment – National Guard – Assault on Recruit – Negligent Supervision
Pittman v. United States Even though the Federal Tort Claims Act does not waive the government’s sovereign immunity with regard to intentional torts, plaintiff has nevertheless stated a claim by alleging that a National Guard sergeant failed to intervene while a specialist under his command gave alcohol to a 17-year-old recruit and engaged in sexual relations with her.
Tort/Negligence – FTCA – Medical Malpractice – Remedies – California Law – Reversionary Trust
Cibula v. U.S. In this case in which a family won a multi-million dollar Federal Tort Claim Act award from the U.S. for their child’s brain damage caused by government doctors, the 4th Circuit remands the case for a second time for the Virginia federal district court to grant the government a reversionary interest in the child’s future care award under the controlling California law.
Tort/Negligence – FTCA – Medical Malpractice – Army Hospital – Private Contractors – Gonzalez Act – Anesthesia – C-Section – Feres Doctrine
Glenn v. Performance Anesthesia, P.A. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-02-0847, 15 pp.) (W. Earl Britt, Sr.J.) E.D.N.C. Holding: Since the defendant-anesthetists were working for the Army pursuant to a personal services contract, plaintiff’s only avenue for relief is the Federal Tort Claims Act. And since plaintiff’s decedent was giving birth at an Army hospital because she […]
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