1st Circuit Case Commentaries

Doe v. City of Boston: Retaliation Requires But-For Causation, Decisionmaker Knowledge, and More Than Authorized or Legally Compelled Record Disclosures

Date: Jan 29, 2026

Doe v. City of Boston: Title VII Retaliation Requires But-For Causation and Decisionmaker Knowledge; Authorized or Legally Compelled Record Disclosures Do Not Suffice Absent Evidence of Deviation I....

United States v. Camillo — Corroborated Hearsay and Marital Privilege Satisfy Rule 32.1 in Supervised-Release Revocations

Date: Jan 29, 2026

Corroborated Hearsay + Marital Privilege as “Interest of Justice” Good Cause Under Rule 32.1(b)(2)(C) in Supervised-Release Revocations Case: United States v. Camillo (No. 25-1472) | Court: U.S....

Post-Rahimi Constitutionality of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9) and the Irrelevance of “I Thought It Was Legal” Evidence Under Rehaif

Date: Jan 29, 2026

Post-Rahimi Constitutionality of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9) and the Irrelevance of “I Thought It Was Legal” Evidence Under Rehaif Commentary on United States v. Minor, U.S. Court of Appeals for the First...

Massachusetts “Open and Gross Lewdness” (§ 16) Is Not a CIMT Absent a Lewd (Sexual) Intent Element

Date: Jan 29, 2026

Massachusetts “Open and Gross Lewdness” (§ 16) Is Not a CIMT Absent a Lewd (Sexual) Intent Element Introduction In Cabral Fortes Tomar v. Bondi (1st Cir. Jan. 23, 2026), the First Circuit reviewed a...

Kolackovsky v. Town of Rockport — Particularized Pleading of Injury Required for Article III Standing in Zoning-Overlay Challenges

Date: Jan 29, 2026

Particularized Pleading of Injury Required for Article III Standing in Zoning-Overlay Challenges (Abutter and Town-Meeting Voter Status Insufficient) 1. Introduction In Kolackovsky v. Town of...

Federal Sovereign Immunity Bars FCA § 3730(h) Retaliation Suits Against Federal Employers

Date: Jan 29, 2026

Federal Sovereign Immunity Bars FCA § 3730(h) Retaliation Suits Against Federal Employers Introduction In UNITED STATES, ex rel. ERIK K. SARGENT v. DOUGLAS A. COLLINS (1st Cir. Jan. 22, 2026), the...

Title VI Does Not Compel Universities to Suppress Protected Political Speech, and Campus Liability Turns on Deliberate Indifference

Date: Jan 28, 2026

Title VI Does Not Compel Universities to Suppress Protected Political Speech, and Campus Liability Turns on Deliberate Indifference Introduction StandWithUs Center for Legal Justice v. MIT returns to...

United States v. Papantoniadis — Forced Labor Under § 1589 May Be Proven Through a Workplace-Wide Climate of Fear (Including Threatened Deportation) and Contextual Evidence Beyond the Named Victim

Date: Jan 23, 2026

United States v. Papantoniadis — Forced Labor Under § 1589 May Be Proven Through a Workplace-Wide Climate of Fear (Including Threatened Deportation) and Contextual Evidence Beyond the Named Victim...

Mongue v. The Wheatleigh Corporation: Rule 23(e) Allows Approval of a “Global” Settlement Negotiated by Counsel Representing Both a Class and Individual Plaintiffs Absent a Realized Conflict

Date: Jan 23, 2026

Mongue v. The Wheatleigh Corporation: Rule 23(e) Allows Approval of a “Global” Settlement Negotiated by Counsel Representing Both a Class and Individual Plaintiffs Absent a Realized Conflict...

United States v. Maldonado-Velazquez — Upward Variances for Firearms “Firepower” Beyond the Guidelines and No Plea Breach When Government Defends the Sentence on Appeal

Date: Jan 18, 2026

Upward Variances for Firearms “Firepower” Beyond the Guidelines and No Plea Breach When Government Defends the Sentence on Appeal I. Introduction In United States v. Maldonado-Velazquez (1st Cir....

Government-Issued License Plates as “Goods” Under the Lanham Act and the Survival of Personal-Capacity Trademark Claims Against Puerto Rico Officials

Date: Jan 17, 2026

Government-Issued License Plates as “Goods” Under the Lanham Act and the Survival of Personal-Capacity Trademark Claims Against Puerto Rico Officials 1. Introduction Clemente Properties, Inc. v....

U.S.S.G. § 2K2.1 Upward Variances: Large Ammunition Quantities and Multiple (High-Capacity) Magazines as “Heartland” Aggravators, with Sentencing Rationale Inferable from the Record

Date: Jan 16, 2026

U.S.S.G. § 2K2.1 Upward Variances: Large Ammunition Quantities and Multiple (High-Capacity) Magazines as “Heartland” Aggravators, with Sentencing Rationale Inferable from the Record I. Introduction...

U.S. v. Del-Valle-Camacho: Large Ammunition Quantity and Multiple (High-Capacity) Magazines as a Sufficient, Guideline-Independent Basis for an Upward Variance

Date: Jan 16, 2026

Large Ammunition Quantity and Multiple (High-Capacity) Magazines Can Independently Justify an Upward Variance When the Guidelines Do Not Account for That Quantity 1. Introduction In United States v....

Expert-Testimony Gatekeeping for Negligence/IIED Claims Challenging Mandated Child-Abuse Reporting; Evidence of Actual Service Denial Required for Section 504

Date: Jan 15, 2026

Expert-Testimony Gatekeeping for Negligence/IIED Claims Challenging Mandated Child-Abuse Reporting; Evidence of Actual Service Denial Required for Section 504 Case: J.S.H. v. Newton Court: United...

Time-Limited, Health-Furthering Medical Exemptions Do Not Defeat General Applicability of COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates (and Reply-Brief Individualized-Exemption Theories Are Waived)

Date: Jan 10, 2026

Time-Limited, Health-Furthering Medical Exemptions Do Not Defeat General Applicability of COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates (and Reply-Brief Individualized-Exemption Theories Are Waived) Case: Brox v. Woods...

Reliance-Interest Review and the Limits of Post Hoc Declarations in APA Stay Motions: 340B Rebate Pilot Enjoined Pending Appeal

Date: Jan 8, 2026

Reliance-Interest Review and the Limits of Post Hoc Declarations in APA Stay Motions: 340B Rebate Pilot Enjoined Pending Appeal Introduction This First Circuit order arises from a high-stakes...

United States v. Mello — §3146 Failure-to-Appear Grouping Does Not Bar §3C1.1 Obstruction Enhancement (No Double Counting)

Date: Jan 8, 2026

§3146 Failure-to-Appear Counts, When Grouped, Do Not Create “Double Counting” That Bars a §3C1.1 Obstruction Enhancement Case: United States v. Mello (1st Cir. Jan. 7, 2026) | Court: United States...

Digital-Evidence Drug-Quantity Extrapolation and No Double Counting Between § 3146 Failure-to-Appear and § 3C1.1 Obstruction

Date: Jan 8, 2026

Digital-Evidence Drug-Quantity Extrapolation and No Double Counting Between § 3146 Failure-to-Appear and § 3C1.1 Obstruction Case: United States v. Mello (1st Cir. Jan. 7, 2026) | Court: United...

Pending Discovery Does Not Block Summary Judgment Absent Rule 56(d), and § 1983 Malicious Prosecution After a Warrant Requires a Franks-Style Falsehood or Omission

Date: Jan 8, 2026

Pending Discovery Does Not Block Summary Judgment Absent Rule 56(d), and § 1983 Malicious Prosecution After a Warrant Requires a Franks-Style Falsehood or Omission 1. Introduction In Besosa-Noceda v....

Radfar v. Covino: Off-Duty Protective-Order Litigation Is Not “Color of Law,” a Stray Ethnic Slur Alone Won’t Prove Discriminatory Purpose, and Malicious Prosecution Requires an Initiated Criminal Proceeding

Date: Jan 8, 2026

Radfar v. Covino: Off-Duty Protective-Order Litigation Is Not “Color of Law,” a Stray Ethnic Slur Alone Won’t Prove Discriminatory Purpose, and Malicious Prosecution Requires an Initiated Criminal...