UPDATES & ANALYSIS
Residential contractors must be licensed to represent homeowners with insurers
Homesteads exempt from mechanic’s lien foreclosure to collect legal fees, Iowa Supreme Court rules
Homeowners may have to pay a contractor for labor and materials in a mechanic’s lien foreclosure, but they cannot be forced to forfeit their homestead to cover the contractor’s legal fees, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled. That is, however, unless the homesteader waits too long to make that claim.
That was the good-news, …
Iowa Supreme Court to hear arguments Feb. 10 in a case of an emotional support dog versus a neighbor with allergies
Two tenants on the same floor of an Iowa City apartment building assert conflicting rights that seem irreconcilable — one needs a dog for emotional support and the other is allergic to dogs — and they are asking the Iowa Supreme Court to decide which party should prevail.
The case, read more
Transformation of Iowa Supreme Court continues with Dana Oxley’s appointment
With the appointment of Cedar Rapids attorney Dana Oxley, the Supreme Court is one step closer to a historic transformation.
On Jan 28, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced the appointment of Oxley to replace the late Chief Justice Mark Cady. Oxley, 52, has practiced law at Shuttleworth & Ingersoll in Cedar Rapids since 2011, …
Iowa Supreme Court says its ruling on racial composition of juries does not apply retroactively
Two years ago the Iowa Supreme Court overruled a quarter-century-old precedent that established an exclusive test for determining whether a criminal jury reflects a fair cross section of the community. In its decision in Thongvanh v. State ha …
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U.S. Supreme Court won’t hear Iowa Insurance Commissioner’s appeal of Iowa Supreme Court decision
The U.S. Supreme Court will not hear the Iowa Insurance Commissioner’s appeal of a 2020 Iowa Supreme Court decision that the Federal Arbitration Act preempts Iowa’s statute governing liquidation of a failed insurance company. The U.S. Supreme Court’s denial of certiorari in the
The Iowa Supreme Court is expected to release opinions in two cases Friday, February 26, 2021. Below are On Brief’s previously published summaries of the cases. Go to On Brief’s Cases in the Pipeline page to read briefs filed with the Court in the app … A law-enforcement officer’s “common sense” observation that a person might be illegally using a cell phone while driving is reasonable suspicion to stop the vehicle for further investigation, the Iowa Supreme Court said in a decision handed down Feb. 19. The Court’s divided 4-3 decision in
The Iowa Supreme Court is expected to release opinions in five cases Friday, February 19, 2021. Below are On Brief’s previously published summaries of four of these cases. Go to On Brief’s Cases in the Pipeline page to read briefs filed with the Court in the a …Opinions in two cases expected from Iowa Supreme Court Friday
Traffic stop is justified if ‘common sense’ suggests driver violated cell phone law, Iowa Supreme Court rules
Opinions in five cases to be handed down by Iowa Supreme Court Friday
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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.