Justia U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

The defendant, Guy Cuomo, was convicted of multiple offenses, including conspiracy to commit computer fraud, accessing a protected computer without authorization, aggravated identity theft, misuse of a social security number, and conspiracy to misuse social security numbers. Cuomo, along with his co-defendant, operated companies that engaged in skip tracing, which involved obtaining debtors' place of employment (POE) information by impersonating them and initiating fraudulent unemployment insurance applications using their personal information.The United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, following a jury trial, found Cuomo guilty on all counts. The court sentenced him to 45 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release. Cuomo appealed, arguing that his conduct did not violate the relevant statutes, the jury instructions were deficient, and the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case. The court found that the evidence was sufficient to support the jury's findings that Cuomo accessed a computer without authorization and obtained information for financial gain. The court also upheld the jury instructions, stating they were not erroneous. Additionally, the court found no merit in Cuomo's arguments regarding the misuse of social security numbers and aggravated identity theft, noting that the evidence supported the convictions.The appellate court affirmed the district court's judgment, concluding that Cuomo's contentions were without merit and that the district court did not err in its findings or sentencing. View "USA v. Cuomo" on Justia Law

Plaintiffs, CompassCare, the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA), and First Bible Baptist Church, challenged the constitutionality of New York Labor Law Section 203-e, which prohibits discrimination based on an employee’s or a dependent’s reproductive health decision making. They argued that the law infringed on their First Amendment rights of expressive association, speech, and religion, and that the Notice Provision, which required employers issuing employee handbooks to include information about employees' rights under the Act, compelled speech in violation of the First Amendment.The United States District Court for the Northern District of New York dismissed Plaintiffs' claims related to expressive association, speech, free exercise, religious autonomy, and vagueness. However, it permanently enjoined the enforcement of the Act’s Notice Provision. The case was then influenced by the Second Circuit's decision in Slattery v. Hochul, which held that an employer might have an associational-rights claim if the Act forces the employer to employ individuals acting against the organization’s mission.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case. It vacated the District Court’s dismissal of Plaintiffs’ expressive-association claim, the grant of summary judgment to Plaintiffs regarding the Notice Provision, and the permanent injunction. The Court remanded the case for the District Court to determine whether any Plaintiff has plausibly alleged an associational-rights claim under the precedent set by Slattery. The Court held that the Act’s Notice Provision is subject to rational basis review and is reasonably related to the State’s interest in preventing deception of employees regarding their statutory rights. It also affirmed the dismissal of Plaintiffs’ free speech and free exercise claims. View "CompassCare v. Hochul" on Justia Law

Clint Edwards, a pretrial detainee in a Westchester County Department of Corrections (WCDOC) jail, filed a lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging violations of his Fourteenth Amendment rights. Edwards claimed that Correction Officer Christopher Arocho failed to protect him and incited other inmates to attack him. He also alleged that several WCDOC officials subjected him to unsanitary and unhealthy conditions in administrative segregation and that his placement in administrative segregation without notice or a hearing violated his procedural due process rights.The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York dismissed Edwards’s conditions of confinement and procedural due process claims for failure to state a claim. The court also granted summary judgment in favor of Arocho on the failure to protect claim, determining that Edwards had not exhausted his administrative remedies as required by the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA).The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case and concluded that Edwards had adequately stated claims for conditions of confinement and procedural due process violations under the Fourteenth Amendment. The court also found that Edwards raised a factual dispute regarding whether he exhausted his administrative remedies, which precluded summary judgment on the failure to protect claim. The court vacated the District Court’s judgment and remanded the case for further proceedings. View "Edwards v. Arocho" on Justia Law

In 1996, E. Jean Carroll encountered Donald J. Trump at the Bergdorf Goodman department store in Manhattan. Carroll alleged that Trump sexually abused her in a dressing room. In 2022, Trump made public statements denying the allegations and calling Carroll a liar. Carroll sued Trump for defamation and sexual assault, seeking damages.The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York held a nine-day trial. The jury found that Trump sexually abused Carroll and defamed her in his 2022 statements. The jury awarded Carroll $5 million in compensatory and punitive damages. Trump appealed, arguing that the district court made several evidentiary errors, including admitting testimony from two women who alleged past sexual assaults by Trump and a recording of a 2005 conversation where Trump described kissing and grabbing women without consent.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case for abuse of discretion. The court found that the district court did not err in its evidentiary rulings. The testimony of the two women and the 2005 recording were deemed admissible under Federal Rules of Evidence 413 and 415, which allow evidence of other sexual assaults in cases involving sexual assault claims. The court also found that Trump did not demonstrate that any claimed errors affected his substantial rights.The Second Circuit affirmed the district court's judgment, concluding that the evidentiary rulings were within the range of permissible decisions and that any potential errors were harmless. The court upheld the $5 million award to Carroll. View "Carroll v. Trump" on Justia Law

Steven M. Camburn, a former sales specialist for Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, filed a qui tam action under the False Claims Act (FCA) and equivalent state and municipal laws. Camburn alleged that Novartis violated the Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS) by offering remuneration to physicians to induce them to prescribe its drug Gilenya, which treats multiple sclerosis. He claimed that Novartis used its peer-to-peer speaker program and other forms of illicit remuneration to influence physicians' prescribing practices.The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York dismissed Camburn's Third Amended Complaint (TAC) with prejudice, concluding that he had not pleaded his allegations with the particularity required under Rule 9(b) to support a strong inference of an AKS-based FCA violation. The court found that Camburn's allegations did not adequately demonstrate the existence of a kickback scheme.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case and held that a plaintiff states an AKS violation if they allege with particularity that at least one purpose of the purported scheme was to induce fraudulent conduct. The court found that Camburn had adequately pleaded certain categories of factual allegations that gave rise to a strong inference of an AKS violation. Specifically, Camburn sufficiently alleged that Novartis held sham speaker events with no legitimate attendees, excessively compensated physician speakers for canceled events, and selected and retained speakers to incentivize prescription-writing.The Second Circuit affirmed the district court's dismissal in part but vacated the judgment and remanded the case in part. The court instructed the district court to evaluate whether Camburn had stated all the elements of an FCA claim with respect to the adequately pleaded AKS violations and to assess the adequacy of Camburn's claims under state and municipal law. View "Camburn v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation" on Justia Law

John Bradley pleaded guilty in 2013 to possessing a firearm as a felon and was sentenced to three years in prison followed by three years of supervised release. In 2023, the Probation Office reported that Bradley violated his supervised release by using marijuana, committing assault and strangulation, and leaving the judicial district without permission. Judge Sullivan, who had presided over Bradley's initial conviction and was later elevated to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, was designated to oversee the revocation proceedings.The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, with Judge Sullivan presiding by designation, found Bradley had violated the terms of his supervised release. The court determined by a preponderance of the evidence that Bradley had used marijuana, left the judicial district without permission, and committed assault and strangulation. Consequently, the court sentenced Bradley to 18 months in prison followed by 18 months of supervised release. Bradley appealed, challenging the constitutionality of Judge Sullivan's designation and the lack of a jury trial in the revocation proceedings.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case. The court held that the statute authorizing Chief Judge Livingston to designate Judge Sullivan, 28 U.S.C. § 291(b), was constitutional and that the Designation Orders conformed to the statute. The court also held that Bradley was not entitled to a jury trial during his revocation proceedings, as the proceedings did not resemble punishment for a new offense. The Second Circuit affirmed the judgment of the district court, upholding the revocation of Bradley's supervised release and his subsequent sentence. View "United States v. Bradley" on Justia Law

A dental hygienist brought claims for sex discrimination, retaliation, and negligence against her former employer and supervisors. She alleged that her supervisor made repeated sexual advances and harassed her throughout her employment. The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York granted summary judgment in favor of the defendants on the retaliation claims and allowed the other claims to proceed to trial. A jury awarded the plaintiff $575,000 in emotional distress damages and $2 million in punitive damages. However, the district court granted a motion for a new trial, finding the damages excessive and indicative of unfair prejudice. In the second trial, the court precluded certain evidence, and the jury awarded the plaintiff only $1 in nominal damages.The plaintiff appealed the district court’s summary judgment ruling, the order granting a new trial, and the evidentiary rulings. The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case. The court affirmed the district court’s summary judgment on the retaliation claims, agreeing that the plaintiff did not engage in protected activity as required for such claims. The court also upheld the district court’s decision to grant a new trial, finding no abuse of discretion in the determination that the jury’s damages award was excessive and indicative of prejudice. Additionally, the court affirmed the district court’s evidentiary rulings, including the exclusion of the plaintiff’s psychiatric records, portions of a coworker’s deposition testimony, and an anonymous fax.The Second Circuit concluded that the district court did not err in any of its challenged rulings and affirmed the judgment of the district court. View "Qorrolli v. Metropolitan Dental Associates" on Justia Law

Randy Torres, Walston Owen, and Charles Ventura were involved in a street gang known as the Rollin’ 30s Crips. Following a jury trial, they were convicted of various offenses, including racketeering conspiracy under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). Owen and Ventura were also convicted of additional firearms and assault offenses. Torres and Owen received sentences of 475 months’ imprisonment, while Ventura was sentenced to 288 months.The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York oversaw the trial. The defendants raised several arguments on appeal, including insufficient evidence to support their convictions, errors in jury instructions, improper admission of co-conspirator statements, and issues related to jury impartiality. They also challenged the district court’s refusal to grant a downward departure in Ventura’s sentencing.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case. The court found that there was sufficient evidence to support the convictions, including the special sentencing factors related to the murders of Victor Chaffa and Nestor Suazo. The court also held that the district court did not err in its jury instructions or in its handling of the juror impartiality issues. Additionally, the court found no abuse of discretion in the admission of co-conspirator statements.The Second Circuit dismissed Ventura’s claim regarding the district court’s refusal to grant a downward departure for lack of jurisdiction and affirmed the judgments of the district court in all other respects. The court concluded that the defendants’ arguments were without merit and upheld their convictions and sentences. View "United States v. Torres" on Justia Law

Phhhoto Inc. filed a lawsuit against Meta Platforms, Inc., alleging that Meta engaged in anticompetitive practices that harmed Phhhoto's business. Phhhoto claimed that Meta's introduction of an algorithmic feed on Instagram in March 2016 suppressed Phhhoto's content, leading to a significant decline in user engagement and new registrations. Phhhoto argued that Meta's actions, including withdrawing access to Instagram's Find Friends API, terminating a joint project, and releasing a competing app called Boomerang, were part of a scheme to monopolize the market and eliminate Phhhoto as a competitor.The United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York dismissed Phhhoto's claim under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), ruling that it was time-barred by the four-year statute of limitations under the Sherman Act. The court found that Phhhoto's claim accrued outside the limitations period and that equitable tolling did not apply because Phhhoto failed to demonstrate fraudulent concealment by Meta.On appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case de novo and concluded that Phhhoto sufficiently alleged that the statute of limitations should be equitably tolled due to Meta's fraudulent concealment. The court found that Meta's public statements about the algorithmic feed were misleading and constituted affirmative acts of concealment. The court also determined that Phhhoto did not have actual or inquiry notice of its antitrust claim until October 25, 2017, when it discovered evidence suggesting Meta's anticompetitive behavior. The court held that Phhhoto's continued ignorance of the claim was not due to a lack of diligence.The Second Circuit vacated the district court's judgment and remanded the case for further proceedings, allowing Phhhoto's antitrust claim to proceed. View "Phhhoto Inc. v. Meta Platforms, Inc." on Justia Law

Participants in Deloitte LLP’s 401(k) retirement plan filed a class action lawsuit against the plan fiduciaries, alleging that they breached their fiduciary duty under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) by allowing excessive administrative and recordkeeping fees. The plaintiffs claimed that the fees were higher than those of comparable plans and that the fiduciaries failed to obtain lower fees.The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York dismissed the action, finding that the plaintiffs did not plausibly allege that the fees were excessive relative to the services provided. The court also denied the plaintiffs' motion to file an amended complaint, deeming it futile as the proposed amendments did not cure the deficiencies in the original complaint.The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reviewed the case and affirmed the district court's decision. The appellate court agreed that the plaintiffs failed to provide sufficient factual allegations to support a plausible inference that the defendants breached their duty of prudence. The court noted that the plaintiffs did not adequately compare the services provided by the plan to those of the comparator plans, nor did they provide context to show that the fees were excessive. The court also upheld the dismissal of the derivative claim for failure to monitor, as it was dependent on the primary claim of breach of fiduciary duty. View "Singh v. Deloitte LLP" on Justia Law