Municipal ordinances created to protect residents’ civil rights are not enforceable in state court, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled June 30. The Iowa Civil Rights Act authorizes the state Civil Rights Commission to issue “right to sue” letters to complainants, who are then able to…
An applicant for a firefighter position is rejected after the employer’s consulting physician concludes the applicant is medically unqualified without disclosing the reason: The applicant had recently had symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS). Did the employer violate the disability discrimination provision of the Iowa Civil…
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…
Iowa’s former Workers’ Compensation Commissioner has a right to sue the State for monetary damages under the Iowa Constitution, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled Friday. The decision is the latest chapter in Christopher Godfrey’s five-year legal battle against former Gov. Terry Branstad and five other…
By Debra Hulett The Iowa Supreme Court’s recent Nelson v. Knight opinion is the first decision this term interpreting the Iowa Civil Rights Act. This term, the Court will likely decide at least two other appeals presenting questions regarding the Iowa Civil Rights Act. Two…
Trial courts have a duty under the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to assure that a criminal defendant who cannot afford to hire a lawyer is provided one at the State’s expense. To comply with that constitutional mandate, Iowa created the Office of State Public Defender (SPD) to employ attorneys to provide indigent defense or to contract with attorneys in private practice willing to take on those criminal cases.
Online video provider TikTok does business with millions of American users in all 50 states, including Iowans who have downloaded the company’s app hundreds of thousands of times and who agree to its terms of service. Still, the company argues, it should not have to defend itself against a lawsuit filed in state court by the Iowa Attorney General claiming the company misrepresents the nature of its content available to Iowa children.
A plaintiff suing former coworkers at the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines for defamation waited too long to file suit in Polk County District Court because she failed to act on information she knew or should have known that could have formed the basis for a defamation claim before the statute of limitations expired, the Iowa Supreme Court held in a Jan. 9 decision.
Does a foreign corporation consent to the jurisdiction of Iowa’s courts when it registers with the Secretary of State to do business in this state, appoints an agent in Iowa for service of process, and is served with notice of a lawsuit through its Iowa…
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.
