Category: Uncategorized

Gallardo leaves Missouri’s statutory and regulatory scheme in Medicaid reimbursement vulnerable and subject to change. While Missouri currently explicitly limits the recovery of Medicaid to past medical expenses, lawmakers with similar ideologies to the majority may read the Court’s ruling as a signal to propose new legislation in allowing the State to recover more losses than its due.

The Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution provides that in all criminal prosecutions the accused enjoys a number of rights, including the right to have the assistance of counsel. The right to counsel is vital to protect other fundamental rights during the criminal justice process such as the fundamental right to a fair trial. In Shinn v. Ramirez, the United States Supreme Court evaluated whether federal courts could hold evidentiary hearings to develop the record because state post-conviction counsel was ineffective and failed to properly develop a record.

With climate change sweeping the nation and droughts in the American West, groundwater wars will likely become more common.  Groundwater litigation has involved claims from tortious takings, to commerce clause violations, to equitable apportionment.  And, states have some choice on how to handle these groundwater wars: litigate or enter into an interstate water compact.

The Prison Litigation Reform Act (“PLRA”) was enacted in 1996 primarily to reduce prisoner litigation.  The passage of the PLRA led to a decrease in the number of cases filed in federal court by prisoners.  However, there is also evidence that suggests that even meritorious claims are barred from federal court based on technicalities through a failure to comply with the PLRA.  While the initial intent of the PLRA was to prohibit the increasing flow of frivolous suits by prisoners at the time, the consequences have been dire for prisoners seeking redress for meritorious claims that fail to meet the PLRA’s high standard of exhaustion.

“Social media has fundamentally changed how, when, and where teens communicate. This has changed who can see and monitor those communications, resulting in implications for the First Amendment student speech doctrine. With the rise of social media, there is now a way for the school to see what students are saying off-campus.”

“The impact of this decision, however, will have broad implications not just for the Chiefs, but for Missouri taxpayers generally. The resulting economic realities doctrine after this decision will provide a safety net to prevent fraudulent tax avoidance in the state, while at the same time encouraging economic activity.”