May 2017

Seventh Circuit holds that transgender discrimination is a form of sex discrimination

Applying Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, 20 U.S.C. §1681, as well as the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, a three judge panel of the Seventh Circuit has ruled that a school must allow a transgender boy to use the boy's bathroom, holding that discrimination on the basis of gender idenitty is a form of sex discrimination. Whitaker v....

Time-barred claim in bankruptcy held not to violate Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. §§1692e, 1692f, probibits debt collectors from using "any false, deceptive, or misleading representation or means in connection with the collection of any debt. §1692e, as well as prohibiting any "unfair or unconscionable menas to collect or attempt to collect any debt," §1692f. In Midland Funding, LLC v. Johnson, 197 L.Ed.2d 790 (2017), the... Read more about Time-barred claim in bankruptcy held not to violate Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

Veteran's retirement pay can be distributed as community property but not so for disability benefits

In Howell v. Howell, 197 L. Ed. 2d 781 (2017), the Supreme Court interpreted and applied a federal statute that allows veterans' retirement pay to be distributed on divorce as community property but does not allow distribution of disability benefits. 10 U.S.C. §1408(c)(1), §1408(a)(4)(B). Read more about Veteran's retirement pay can be distributed as community property but not so for disability benefits

Adverse possessor has trespass claim against original owner

In Owens v. Buccheri, 2016 Mass. LCR LEXIS 121 (Mass. Land Ct. 2016), the Massachusetts Land Court held that an adverse possessor can sue the original owner of land acquired by adverse possession for trespass when the original owner cuts down trees and excavates on the land. While in some sense an unremarkable holding, it is an object lesson not to engage in self-help on disputed land when the facts are such that one might have lost title to that land by adverse possession.

The court also reaffirmed the rule that one can commit a trespass by mistake if entry...

Legal aid access to farm to aid migrant farmworkers held not to be a trespass

In a case reminiscent of the well-known case of State v. Shack, , 277 A.2d 369 (N.J. 1971), a federal judge applying Maryland state law has held that lawyers have a right to enter farmland to provide services to migrant farmworkers and that such an entry is not a trespass even if it is against the wishes of the land owner. Rivero v. Montgomery Cnty... Read more about Legal aid access to farm to aid migrant farmworkers held not to be a trespass

Cell tower on neighboring property is not an aesthetic nuisance

In Laubenstein v. Bode Tower, LLC, 392 P.3d 706, 2016 OK 118 (Okla. 2016), the Oklahoma Supreme Court refused to recognize a cell tower on neighboring property as a nuisance. The neighboring owner complained both about the tower's appearance as well as the flashing warning lights installed for safety purposes which reflected in the water on his property. The court based its ruling partly on... Read more about Cell tower on neighboring property is not an aesthetic nuisance

Electricity easement held not to encompass use for fiber-optic cable

While most courts have held that utility easements for electricity or telephone purposes can be used for cable television and other such purposes, see. e.g., Henley v. Continental Cablevision of St. Louis County, Inc., 692 S.W.2d 825 (Mo. Ct. App. 1985), a small number have gone the other way on the ground that easements are limited rights to use the land of another and that the use cannot exceed the scope of the original grant, see, e.g., Marcus Cable Assocs. v. Krohn, 90 S.W.3d 697, 699 (Tex. 2002).

The Eighth Circuit recently took the minority...

Sexual orientation discrimination as a form of sex discrimination

While the West Virginia Supreme Court adopted the traditional view that discrimination because of sexual orientation is not a form of sex discrimination, State v. Butler, 2017 W. Va. LEXIS 333 (W.Va. 2017) (hate crime against two gay men did not constitute criminal civil rights violation willfully injuring a person "because of such other person's … sex"), the Seventh Circuit came to the...

Supreme Court rules that a city has a claim against a bank for the consequences of discriminatory subprime mortgages

In Bank of America Corp. v. City of Miami, 137 S.Ct. 1296, 197 L. Ed. 2d 678 (2017), the Supreme Court held that the City of Miami was an "aggrieved person" within the meaning of the Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. §3602(i), and that it could sue the Bank of America (and other banks) for lost tax revenue and other municipal expenses resulting from alleged discriminatory grants of subprime mortgages to Miami residents that... Read more about Supreme Court rules that a city has a claim against a bank for the consequences of discriminatory subprime mortgages

Retroactive restraints on leasing in homeowners associations

The courts continue to divide over the question of whether it is fair to allow homeowners associations to impose retroactive restraints on leasing on existing owners who purchased with no notice of the restriction. While most states allow this, a few do not, and the Restatement (Third) of Property (Servitudes) §6.10(2), §6.10 cmt. g, takes the position that such major changes in property rights can only be accomplished prospectively unless there is a unanimous vote to alter those rights.

The Idaho Supreme Court recently adopted what appears to be the majority...

Joseph William Singer

Bussey Professor of Law, Harvard Law School