By Ryan Leemkuil Today, the Eighth Circuit ruled that a district court goes too far when it attempts to limit a defendant’s ability to procreate. Christopher Harris, a convicted felon, fathered ten children out of wedlock with seven different women. After Harris was caught…
By Ryan Leemkuil Last month, the Eighth Circuit rejected Arkansas inmate Christopher Deaton’s request to grow a full-length beard for religious reasons. As we noted then, Judge Colloton dissented, arguing that the panel should wait for the Supreme Court’s decision in Holt v. Hobbs, another…
By Ryan Koopmans That was the main question yesterday in Deaton v. Arkansas Department of Correction. Arkansas prisoner Christopher Deaton wants to grow a full-length beard for religious reasons, but prison policy doesn’t allow it because of safety concerns. Deaton sued under the Religious Land Use…
By Ryan Koopmans Twombly and Iqbal aligned the case law with the Federal Rules’ pleading standards, they didn’t change them (nor could they). That was Judge Colloton’s message last week in Horras v. American Capital Strategies, Ltd., an Iowa case about minority shareholder rights. Thomas Horras owned a minority interest in…
The Eighth Circuit Bar Association’s summer newsletter is out, and it contains two articles by Nyemaster Goode attorney and On Brief contributor Ryan Koopmans. The first article discusses the Eighth Circuit’s conflicting, same-day decisions in United States v. Bruguier and United States v. Rouillard. (Our…
In an opinion filed Oct 30, 2026, the Iowa Supreme Court reversed a district court’s order in In the matter of $11,500 Seized from Bitcoin Depot Operating, LLC, which denied a Bitcoin ATM operator’s request to recover $11,500 that had been seized by the police.
In its unanimous October 23, 2026, opinion in Perry v. Dordt University, the Iowa Supreme Court affirmed the dismissal of a former nursing student’s religious discrimination claim under the Iowa Civil Rights Act (ICRA).
Submitted to the Court on September 10 for further review from the Iowa Court of Appeals, the Court filed its unanimous opinion on October 16, affirming the dismissal of a mother’s untimely appeal in In re E.S.
The Court heard oral argument in State v. Amyda on September 9 and issued its opinion on October 9. Justice Mansfield wrote for the Court, which unanimously affirmed Max Amyda’s conviction for third degree sexual abuse.
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.
