Constitutional Problems With the Kentucky Proposal (Supported by Mitch McConnell) to Change the Way U.S. Senate Vacancies Are Filled

VIKRAM DAVID AMAR

In this second of a series of columns, Illinois Law dean and professor Vikram David Amar comments on the Kentucky proposal to change the way U.S. Senate vacancies are filled. Dean Amar argues that the Seventeenth Amendment precludes such a proposal, which would allow the state legislature to substantively constrain the governor’s choices in making a temporary appointment.

Read More

Douglas v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.

Docket: 18-11567

Opinion Date: March 26, 2021

Judge: Priscilla R. Owen

Areas of Law: Banking, Real Estate & Property Law

After Wells Fargo foreclosed on plaintiffs' home, they filed suit to set aside the foreclosure sale, to cancel the trustee’s deed, to quiet title, and for trespass to try title (collectively, the foreclosure-sale claims). Plaintiffs also filed claims for alleged violations of the Texas Debt Collection Act (TDCA), Texas Financial Code sections 392.301(a)(8) and 392.304(a)(8), and of their due process rights. Alternatively, plaintiffs asserted claims for breach of contract, unjust enrichment, and money had and received. The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment on the foreclosure-sale claims where the undisputed evidence shows that Wells Fargo properly served notice; affirmed the district court's grant of summary judgment on the due process claim where it was not only untimely, but also inextricably tied to the non-meritorious foreclosure-sale claims; and dismissed the remaining claims. In this case, Wells Fargo was not prohibited by law from foreclosing and the district court did not err in dismissing this TDCA claim; Wells Fargo did not violate the Texas Finance Code; and the claims for breach of contract, unjust enrichment, and money had and received are unpersuasive.

Frew v. Young

Docket: 20-40541

Opinion Date: March 26, 2021

Judge: Jerry E. Smith

Areas of Law: Civil Procedure

This case is related to a consent decree that was aimed at making improvements to Texas's implementation of Medicaid's Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment program. Plaintiffs challenge the district court's determination that, despite their status as a "prevailing party" under 42 U.S.C. 1988, they are not entitled to fees. Plaintiffs appeal the district court's underlying judgment and its subsequent denial of their motion to reconsider. The Fifth Circuit concluded that, because plaintiffs failed timely to appeal the underlying judgment, the court lacks jurisdiction to review it. Accordingly, the court dismissed that portion of the appeal. The court concluded that the denial of the motion for reconsideration is properly before the court. The court explained that, although the district court construed that motion under the incorrect Federal Rule of Civil Procedure, it nonetheless reached the proper result. In this case, the district court erred by construing the motion as arising from Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 54(b). Rather, Rule 59(e) was the proper procedural mechanism under which the district court ought to have considered the motion to reconsider. However, the error was harmless because Rule 59(e) provides a lower threshold for a movant to prevail. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment.

Valentine v. Collier

Docket: 20-20525

Opinion Date: March 26, 2021

Judge: W. Eugene Davis

Areas of Law: Civil Rights, Constitutional Law, Government & Administrative Law, Health Law

Shortly after COVID-19 struck the Wallace Pack Unit, plaintiffs filed suit seeking injunctive relief on behalf of three certified classes of inmate for violations of the Eighth Amendment, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Rehabilitation Act. Specifically, plaintiffs alleged that defendants acted with deliberate indifference to their health and safety in violation of the Eighth Amendment in light of the dangers of COVID-19 for a geriatric prison population, and that defendants violated the ADA and Rehabilitation Act by failing to accommodate for specific risks to wheelchair-bound and other mobility-impaired inmates. On April 16, 2020, the district court entered a preliminary injunction which was stayed by the Fifth Circuit on April 22 and then vacated on June 5. On September 29, 2020, the district court issued a permanent injunction, concluding that plaintiffs did not need to exhaust administrative remedies; defendants were deliberately indifferent; and defendants violated the ADA and the Rehabilitation Act. The Fifth Circuit reversed the district court's permanent injunction and rendered judgment for defendants. The court concluded that the prison officials were not deliberately indifferent based on a lack of a systemic approach. After considering Policy B-14.52, its unwritten additions, and its administration, the court explained that the record does not support a finding of deliberate indifference in the way the officials considered and adopted a response to COVID-19. The court also concluded that the prison officials were not deliberately indifferent based on a failure to abide by basic public health guidance regarding testing, social distancing, mask use, handwashing, sanitation, and cleaning. Finally, the court concluded that the mobility-impaired inmates failed to establish their prima facie ADA claim, and consequently their Rehabilitation Act claim.

United States v. Reyna-Aragon

Docket: 20-10071

Opinion Date: March 26, 2021

Judge: Kurt D. Engelhardt

Areas of Law: Criminal Law

The Fifth Circuit affirmed defendant's 60 month sentence imposed after he pleaded guilty to illegal reentry after removal from the United States in violation of 8 U.S.C. 1326(a) and (b)(1). In this case, the parties agree that the district court committed ex post factor error under United States v. Martinez-Ovalle, 956 F.3d 289 (5th Cir. 2020), when it applied the more onerous 2018 Guidelines in effect at the time of defendant's sentencing, rather than the more lenient 2016 Guidelines in effect at the time of his illegal reentry offense. The court concluded that the government has satisfied its heavy burden of proving that the district court's ex post facto error was harmless. The court also concluded that defendant failed to show that the district court committed any error, much less clear or obvious error, affecting his substantial rights in its reliance on the presentence report's description of defendant's sexual assault arrest where it was not a "bare arrest record."