Michelle Brandt, a long-time Cedar Falls city employee, brought claims against the city and several employees stemming from her time working for the city as well as her termination in 2018. Brandt brought claims for interference with and retaliation for her exercise...
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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...

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...

Iowa Supreme Court and Eighth Circuit Uphold Denials Of Insurance Coverage Arising From COVID-19 Business Closures
In separate opinions, each issued on Friday, April 22, the Iowa Supreme Court and the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit held that businesses that closed in spring 2020 to comply with COVID-19 emergency regulations could not obtain coverage under...

Appeals court upholds injunction against Iowa’s ban on mask mandates in schools, but wants it narrowed
A group of Iowa parents of children with disabilities who sued the State to block enforcement of a state law banning mask mandates in schools are entitled to a preliminary injunction, but it should be narrowly tailored to apply only to schools with students with...
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Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals affirms dismissal of former City of Cedar Falls employee’s claims against the city
Iowa Supreme Court’s splintered abortion ruling: Four opinions covering 182 pages
Was a real estate agent liable when a prospective buyer fell on an icy driveway? The Iowa Supreme Court says no
Iowa Supreme Court declines to extend juvenile sentencing protections to young adults in two cases
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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.