![](https://iowaappeals.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/logo.png)
As Iowa Supreme Court heads into last month of its term, 28 decisions are still in the pipeline
The Iowa Supreme Court is expected to release decisions in five cases Friday, which will bring to 82 the number of cases disposed of so far in the 2017-18 term.
The Court heard its final round of oral arguments on April 10, and all cases have now been submi …
read moreA choice between giving up constitutional rights and personal property is no choice at all, the Iowa Supreme Court rules
A person who claims ownership of property seized by the State should not have to choose between invoking constitutional rights or forfeiting the property, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled May 25 (In the Matter of Property Seized From Jean Carlos Herrera and Ferndando Rodgriguez).
< ...
read moreThe Iowa Civil Rights Act doesn’t reach beyond the state’s borders, Iowa Supreme Court rules
An Iowan working for Deere & Co. in China cannot sue for employment discrimination because the Iowa Civil Rights Act does not reach beyond the borders of Iowa, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled May 18.
Matthew Jahnke was brought back to Iowa from his China …
read moreLegal malpractice claim tossed by the Iowa Supreme Court because the aggrieved client waited too long to sue
A client who accused her attorney of malpractice missed the deadline for filing a lawsuit against him, according to the Iowa Supreme Court.
Michelle Skadburg said she was acting on the advice of her attorney when she used her late mother’s $107,000 estate …
read moreIowa Supreme Court says convicted child abuser should get police reports that could help him win a new trial
Iowa Supreme Court’s sex-by-fraud decision comes down to the meaning of ‘consent’
The Iowa Supreme Court’s May 4 ruling upholding the sex-abuse conviction of a man who faked his identity turns on the question of consent. The question is not whether the woman consented to having sex, however, but the question is with whom.
Michael Kels …
read moreU.S. Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch and U.S. Attorney General Sessions on the program for Eighth Circuit Judicial Conference in Des Moines
Iowa lawyers and judges attending the Eighth Circuit Judicial Conference in Des Moines Aug. 15-17 will have an opportunity to hear from three major newsmakers in the legal world.
- U.S. Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, who was assigned by Chief J
…
read moreIowa’s Supreme Court justices unanimous in a juvenile-sentencing decision
As Iowa Supreme Court heads into the home stretch, 45 appeals are still in the pipeline
The Iowa Supreme Court is expected to release decisions in two cases Friday, which will bring to 63 the number of cases disposed of in the first eight months of the 2017-18 term.
The Court heard its final round of oral arguments on April 10, and all cases h …
read moreThe Iowa Supreme Court’s views have evolved on equal protection, according to Drake Law Review article co-authored by Justice Edward Mansfield
The Iowa Constitution states in Article I, Section 6 that “All laws of a general nature shall have a uniform operation; the general assembly shall not grant to any citizen, or class of citizens, privileges or immunities, which, upon the same terms shall not equally belong to all citizens.”< …
read moreFEATURED POSTS
Iowa Supreme Court will mark Justice Appel’s retirement at June 2 ceremony
Iowa Supreme Court Justice Brent Appel will retire from the Court effective June 13 after serving on the Court for 16 years. Appel, who turns 72 this year, reached the ma …
Iowa Supreme Court applies ‘plain feel’ exception to uphold Fourth Amendment warrantless search
Appellate courts have over the past half century given police officers more latitude to make warrantless searches during traffic stops using two of the five senses – sight and touch – to assess whether a suspicious item discovered in a pat-down search is evidence of a crime.
The sense of touch was at issue in a decis …
Des Moines police officers denied immunity for holding crime witnesses, Eighth Circuit rules
Federal courts recently have begun to reexamine the common law doctrine of “qualified immunity” that protects public officials from individual liability where there is no clearly established constitutional or statutory right at stake.
This reconsideration has been prompted in large part by critics of granting qualifi …
Eighth Circuit Vacates Injunction Against Iowa’s Mask Mandate Ban On Mootness Grounds
On Monday, May 16, a panel of judges from the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit vacated an Iowa federal district judge’s injunction barring enforcement of Iowa’s ban of mask mandates in schools. In doing so, the Court of Appeals overturned its prior ruling from January, which affirmed the injunction …
APPELLATE CALENDAR
EDITORIAL TEAM
ABOUT
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.