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7 insurers sue Toyota over acceleration crashes
LOS ANGELES — Seven insurance companies have sued Toyota Motor Corp. in an attempt to recover money paid to cover crashes they blame on sudden acceleration. The insurers cite data that blames 725 crashes on the problem and fault the Japanese automaker for failing to equip its cars with an override system that would cause […]
Jury awards punitive damages in priest abuse case
DOVER, Del. — A jury has assessed punitive damages of one dollar against a Catholic parish in Wilmington in a priest child sex abuse case. But the jury on Wednesday returned a punitive damage award of $30 million against former priest Francis DeLuca. The jury last week found that St. Elizabeth’s parish was negligent in […]
Viacom appeals ruling in YouTube copyright case
NEW YORK — Viacom is appealing a court decision that YouTube obeyed copyright laws even though the Internet video site used to show thousands of pirated clips. The challenge filed Friday in a federal appeals court in New York had been expected since a June ruling rebuffed Viacom’s copyright infringement lawsuit against YouTube and its […]
Parish held liable for abuse by priest
DOVER, Del. — A jury has found a Roman Catholic parish in Wilmington liable for a former priest’s sexual abuse of a young boy in the 1960s and has awarded damages of $3 million against the parish and $30 million against the priest. The jury ruled Wednesday that St. Elizabeth’s parish was negligent in not […]
A crack in the contributory fault line
Maryland’s top court has signaled a willingness to consider changing the standard that bars plaintiffs in personal injury cases from recovering any damages if they were partially at fault. Court of Appeals Chief Judge Robert M. Bell, in a letter released Friday, has called for a study on whether the court could alter the contributory […]
Baltimore nonprofit files housing lawsuit
BALTIMORE — A Baltimore nonprofit has filed a discrimination lawsuit claiming that a Maryland apartment complex made fewer apartments available to black renters. The lawsuit was filed in federal court Wednesday by Baltimore Neighborhoods Inc., which works to combat housing discrimination. According to Baltimore Neighborhoods, two black “testers” were told that the Middlebrooke Apartm[...]
Small claims broadened as damages threshold raised for civil jury trials
Maryland voters have approved by a two-to-one margin an increase in the damages-claim threshold for civil jury trials in circuit court from claims in excess of $10,000 to those that exceed $15,000. The effect of the increase, an amendment to the state constitution, will broaden the definition of small claims, which are brought in district […]
Court again upholds damages cap
Maryland’s statutory cap on non-economic damages will remain for the foreseeable future following Friday’s ruling by the state’s top court that the controversial limit is constitutional. The General Assembly, which now has sole authority to lift the cap, has no desire to repeal the 24-year-old law, said Sen. Brian E. Frosh, who chairs the Senate […]
Md. court upholds state cap on lawsuit payouts
ANNAPOLIS — Maryland’s highest court has upheld a state law that limits the amount of money people can receive for non-economic damages in personal injury lawsuits. Judges on the Court of Appeals ruled against the parents of a 5-year-old boy who drowned at a Crofton swimming pool in 2006 when they upheld the cap on […]
Punitive damages awarded to fired Laurel worker
A federal jury has awarded $100,000 in punitive damages to a Laurel man who was fired from his job at a major Alaska government contractor after he reported discrimination at the billion-dollar company. The jury, which decided the case against Chugach Alaska Corp. and one of its subsidiaries after a three-day trial in Baltimore last […]
