UPDATES & ANALYSIS
Iowa Court of Appeals April 2024 Published Opinion Roundup
The Iowa Court of Appeals selects certain opinions for publication in the Northwestern Reporter. On April 11, 2024, the Court of Appeals selected three opinions for publication, summarized below.
Closely divided Iowa Supreme Court finds challenges to abortion restrictions under Iowa constitution subject to rational-basis review, reverses injunction against “fetal heartbeat” law
In a 4-3 decision, the Iowa Supreme Court held that rational basis review is the applicable standard in addressing challenges to abortion restrictions under the Iowa constitution.
April 2024 Opinion Roundup
The Iowa Supreme Court entered opinions in nine cases during April 2024. Opinions from April not covered elsewhere on the blog are summarized below.
Iowa Supreme Court reverses prior decisions on liability for failure to maintain city sidewalks and swimming pools
The Iowa Supreme Court in two separate decisions handed down June 14 overturned two of its previous rulings on the question of liability for injuries that occur on city sidewalks and at municipal swimming pools. Both rulings were divided, with two justices citing the principle of stare decisis to say the prior rulings shoul …
Iowa Court of Appeals outlines analysis for parental rights’ termination and reunification extension
Minor child B.W. was exposed to drug use from the day he was born, testing positive for cocaine and initiating intervention by the Iowa District Court for Polk County. In an effort to foster harmony and a healthy living environment for the child, Iowa Department of Health and Human Services attempted to assist the family …
FEATURED POSTS
A statistical review of the 2023-2024 Iowa Supreme Court term: The Court finds a new equilibrium
[This article by Matthew A. McGuire, Spencer S. Cady, and Chris E. Slack was originally published in the August 2024 issue of The Iowa Lawyer magazine.]
The period between 2018 and 2022 was a period of great change for the Iowa Supreme Court, with five of the seven current justices joining the Court d …
Firing for posting rainbow flag criticism did not violate Civil Rights Act, Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals holds
When Daniel Snyder posted a comment on his employer’s intranet site expressing his opposition to the company’s use of a rainbow flag indicating support for LGBTQ+ equality, he believed he was sending the post to be seen only by the sender of an employee survey.
Instead, his post could be seen by all employees through …
June 2024 Opinion Roundup
The Iowa Supreme Court entered opinions in fifteen cases during June 2024. In addition to individual posts on six cases analyzed on this blog, the remaining opinions from June are summarized below.
Iowa Court of Appeals July 2024 Published Opinion Roundup
The Iowa Court of Appeals selects certain opinions for publication in the Northwestern Reporter. On July 3, 2024, the Court of Appeals selected four opinions for publication. Following are summaries of those opinions.
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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.