Iowa Supreme Court rejects Planned Parenthood’s constitutional challenge to Iowa law preventing abortion providers from accessing grant funds for sexual education programs
In 2019, the Iowa General Assembly passed a law adding funding conditions that barred abortion providers from participating in two federally funded educational grant programs. These programs focus on educating Iowa’s youth on sexual education, including pregnancy prevention. Planned Parenthood of the Heartland (PPH) has h …
read moreTwo Iowa Supreme Court appeals challenge State jurisdiction on Tama Indian Settlement
The Iowa Supreme Court will hear appeals in the coming term on the question of whether the State of Iowa or the federal government has jurisdiction over two criminal cases involving Native American members of the Tama Indian Settlement in Tama County.
The cases are State v. Bear (20-0401) and State v. Cungti …
read moreIowa Supreme Court holds that signed liability waiver does not protect zip line operator from claims of “gross negligence”
During a visit to the Mt. Crescent Ski Area in Honey Creek, Iowa, Thomas Lukken stepped off an elevated platform and whizzed down a zip line only to be met with a crash at the end, fracturing his neck. The Iowa Supreme Court ruled this term in Lukken v. Century, Inc. that the liability waiver he signed may not have …
read moreIowa Supreme Court: Godfrey’s discrimination claims fail under both the Iowa Constitution and the Civil Rights Act
Four years ago, three justices of the Iowa Supreme Court said the Iowa Constitution provided a cause of action for a state official bringing a claim against the governor and his staff alleging that they deprived him the constitutional right to due process based on his sexual orientation or partisan politics. Then-Chief Just …
read moreIowa Supreme Court: Lawsuit challenging governor’s judicial appointment presents a “political question,” not a question for the courts
In State of Iowa ex rel. Dickey v. Besler, an opinion issued in February 2021, the Iowa Supreme Court was confronted with a lawsuit by a private citizen challenging the appointment of and Iowa District Court judge as invalid under state law. The Supreme Court held that a private citizen does possess standing to bri …
read moreDavenport mayor may remove Civil Rights Commissioner without cause, Iowa Supreme Court rules
Nicole Bribriesco-Ledger was appointed to serve a regular two-year term on the Davenport Civil Rights Commission beginning on December 1, 2017. On April 15, 2019, the Mayor of Davenport, Frank Klipsch, removed removed Bribriesco-Ledger and three other commissioners via letter. Klipsch appointed four new commissioners on Apr …
read moreIowa Supreme Court expected to release opinions in three cases Wednesday
Opinions in three cases are expected to be released by the Iowa Supreme Court Wednesday, June 30, the final day of the 2020-21 term. Following are On Brief’s previously published summaries of those three cases.
Godfrey v. State of Iowa, Terry Branstad, in his official capacity as Governor, and Bre …
read moreIowa Supreme Court: Cities may delay, not ban, criminal background checks on job applicants
Iowa Supreme Court expected to release opinions in seven cases Friday
Opinions in seven cases are expected to be released by the Iowa Supreme Court Friday, June 18. Go to On Brief’s Cases in the Pipeline page and click on the “Cases Argued” tab to see which cases that were argued this term remain to be decided this term, which ends June 30.
Following are On Brief’s previously publi …
read moreU.S. Supreme Court sends Dubuque police search case back to the Eighth Circuit
The U.S. Supreme Court remanded a case involving a warrantless search by Dubuque police to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals for further consideration in light of a May 17 Supreme Court decision that narrowed the scope of a precedent on which the appeals court relied.
The Eighth Circuit held in read more
FEATURED POSTS
A statistical review of the 2022-2023 Iowa Supreme Court term
[This article by Matthew A. McGuire, Spencer S. Cady, and Chris E. Slack was originally published in the August 2023 issue of The Iowa Lawyer magazine.]
In our analysis of the 2020- …
U.S. Supreme Court on California’s Proposition 12: Banning imports of pork from ‘cruel’ treatment not unconstitutional – at least for now
Most every state was affected one way or another by decisions handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court in its recently ended term. A decision upholding California’s restriction on the sale of certain pork products in the state of California, however, may have an outsize impact on Iowa, which is the No. 1 pork producer and ex …
Iowa Supreme Court rules that Iowa Utilities Board must consider alternatives to a public utility’s plan for managing emissions
In an opinion filed on April 28, 2023, the Iowa Supreme Court in Environmental Law and Policy Center v. Iowa Utilities Board ruled under Iowa Code section 476.6 the Iowa Utilities Board erred in not considering certain intervenors’ evidence when approving MidAmerican Energy’s required biennial plan and budget f …
Work of Iowa Supreme Court continues during summer break between terms
Since the Iowa Supreme Court ended its 2022-23 term June 30 with release of all remaining decisions, the justices have been spending the summer months on court administration matters that could affect the practice of law and operation of Iowa courts for years to come.
Among the items on the Court’s administrative term …
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On Brief: Iowa’s Appellate Blog is devoted to appellate litigation with a focus on the Iowa Supreme Court, the Iowa Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.