1st Circuit Case Commentaries

Per-Claimant Occurrence Controls Known-Loss Exclusion: First Circuit Requires Defense of Class Action Where Post-Inception Damages Are Separate Occurrences Under Massachusetts Law

Date: Sep 9, 2025

Per-Claimant Occurrence Controls Known-Loss Exclusion: First Circuit Requires Defense of Class Action Where Post-Inception Damages Are Separate Occurrences Under Massachusetts Law Introduction In...

Agency Implementation of Presidential Orders Remains Reviewable Under the APA Absent a No‑Discretion Mandate: The First Circuit’s Denial of a Stay in Orr v. Trump

Date: Sep 8, 2025

Agency Implementation of Presidential Orders Remains Reviewable Under the APA Absent a No‑Discretion Mandate: The First Circuit’s Denial of a Stay in Orr v. Trump Introduction This commentary...

Decisionmaker’s Interview Remark About Female Suitability Can Defeat Summary Judgment; Strategic Waiver Limits Babb Protection for Federal ADEA Claims — Commentary on Warner v. DeJoy (1st Cir. 2025)

Date: Sep 8, 2025

Decisionmaker’s Interview Remark About Female Suitability Can Defeat Summary Judgment; Strategic Waiver Limits Babb Protection for Federal ADEA Claims — Commentary on Warner v. DeJoy (1st Cir. 2025)...

Independent Military Purpose Shields Army CID Investigations from FTCA Liability; Posse Comitatus Not Violated Absent Pervasive Civilian Law-Enforcement Role

Date: Sep 4, 2025

Independent Military Purpose Shields Army CID Investigations from FTCA Liability; Posse Comitatus Not Violated Absent Pervasive Civilian Law-Enforcement Role Introduction In Perales-Muñoz v. United...

Narrowing the “Ignored Evidence” Doctrine and Clarifying Post‑Wilkinson Review: First Circuit in Ortiz Trejo v. Bondi on Exceptional Hardship and BIA’s Evidence Review

Date: Sep 2, 2025

Narrowing the “Ignored Evidence” Doctrine and Clarifying Post‑Wilkinson Review: First Circuit in Ortiz Trejo v. Bondi on Exceptional Hardship and BIA’s Evidence Review Introduction In Ortiz Trejo v....

Monreal/Recinas Are Not Checklists: First Circuit’s Post-Wilkinson Framework for Reviewing Hardship and the Materiality Requirement for Omitted Factors

Date: Aug 31, 2025

Monreal/Recinas Are Not Checklists: First Circuit’s Post-Wilkinson Framework for Reviewing Hardship and the Materiality Requirement for Omitted Factors Introduction In Lopez Cano v. Bondi, the First...

First Circuit Conditions Internet-Monitoring Fees on Ability-to-Pay and Clarifies Limits on Ex Parte Sentencing Inputs

Date: Aug 31, 2025

First Circuit Conditions Internet-Monitoring Fees on Ability-to-Pay and Clarifies Limits on Ex Parte Sentencing Inputs Case: United States v. Negrón-Cruz Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the First...

Toward the “Vanishing Point”: First Circuit Clarifies Minimal Weight for Structural Conflicts When Administrators Mitigate Bias and Provide Reasoned Explanations under ERISA — Commentary on Bernitz v. USAble Life

Date: Aug 31, 2025

Toward the “Vanishing Point”: First Circuit Clarifies Minimal Weight for Structural Conflicts When Administrators Mitigate Bias and Provide Reasoned Explanations under ERISA — Commentary on Bernitz...

First Circuit Narrows Duty-to-Defend for Additional Insureds: “Sole-Liability” & Strict-Notice Requirement Under Claims-Made Policies

Date: Aug 26, 2025

First Circuit Narrows Duty-to-Defend for Additional Insureds: “Sole-Liability” & Strict-Notice Requirement Under Claims-Made Policies Introduction In BI 40 LLC v. Ironshore Specialty Insurance Co.,...

“Solely-as-a-Result” Means Exactly That: First Circuit Narrows Additional-Insured Coverage and Reaffirms Strict Notice Duties in Claims-Made Policies

Date: Aug 26, 2025

“Solely-as-a-Result” Means Exactly That: First Circuit Narrows Additional-Insured Coverage and Reaffirms Strict Notice Duties in Claims-Made Policies Introduction In BI 40 LLC v. Ironshore Specialty...

Registration Does Not Delay Accrual: The Foss Rule on Copyright Limitations in the First Circuit

Date: Aug 25, 2025

“Registration Does Not Delay Accrual” Foss v. Eastern States Exposition (1st Cir. 2025) and the Statute-of-Limitations Clock in Copyright Litigation 1. Introduction Cynthia Alyson Foss, a...

Extending Buckhannon: The First Circuit Clarifies “Prevailing-Party” Status Under Clayton Act §16 in Garavanian v. JetBlue Airways Corp.

Date: Aug 25, 2025

Extending Buckhannon: The First Circuit Clarifies “Prevailing-Party” Status Under Clayton Act §16 in Garavanian v. JetBlue Airways Corp. 1. Introduction The United States Court of Appeals for the...

Foreign Providers, Same Channel: First Circuit Holds that Medicare Act Exhaustion Applies to Overseas Hospitals’ State-Law Claims Against Medicare Advantage Organizations

Date: Aug 25, 2025

Foreign Providers, Same Channel: First Circuit Holds that Medicare Act Exhaustion Applies to Overseas Hospitals’ State-Law Claims Against Medicare Advantage Organizations Introduction Hospital...

Foreign Providers Must Exhaust Medicare Advantage Remedies Before Suing: The First Circuit Speaks in Hospital Quirurgica Del Sur v. Martin's Point Health Care

Date: Aug 25, 2025

Foreign Providers Must Exhaust Medicare Advantage Remedies Before Suing: Hospital Quirurgica Del Sur v. Martin's Point Health Care 1. Introduction In Hospital Amerimed Cancún S.A. de C.V. & Hospital...

Extending Absolute Quasi-Judicial Immunity to Court-Appointed Receivers: Commentary on Suny v. KCP Advisory Group, LLC

Date: Aug 25, 2025

Extending Absolute Quasi-Judicial Immunity to Court-Appointed Receivers: Commentary on Suny v. KCP Advisory Group, LLC (1st Cir. 2025) Introduction In Suny v. KCP Advisory Group, LLC, No. 23-1800...

No Sua Sponte Duty to Re-Offer Plea Withdrawal & Minor Supervised-Release Misstatements Do Not Invalidate Guilty Pleas – A Commentary on United States v. Morales-Ortiz

Date: Aug 25, 2025

No Sua Sponte Duty to Re-Offer Plea Withdrawal & Minor Supervised-Release Misstatements Do Not Invalidate Guilty Pleas Commentary on United States v. Morales-Ortiz, 104 F.4th ___ (1st Cir. 2025) 1....

“Cost-Saving Alone Is Not a Rational Basis” – First Circuit Denies Sovereign Immunity and Clarifies Equal Protection Limits on State Disability-Service Allocations

Date: Aug 25, 2025

“Cost-Saving Alone Is Not a Rational Basis” – First Circuit Denies Sovereign Immunity and Clarifies Equal Protection Limits on State Disability-Service Allocations 1. Introduction McKenna v. Maine...

“Bivens Survives the Inspector General Act”: A Commentary on Arias v. Herzon (1st Cir. 2025)

Date: Aug 19, 2025

“Bivens Survives the Inspector General Act” A Comprehensive Commentary on Arias v. Herzon, No. 23-1618 (1st Cir. 2025) 1. Introduction Arias v. Herzon presented the U.S. Court of Appeals for the...

“Reasonable Prediction” Prevails: Hussey v. City of Cambridge and the First Circuit’s Reinforcement of Deference to Law-Enforcement Employers in Social-Media Speech

Date: Aug 19, 2025

“Reasonable Prediction” Prevails: Hussey v. City of Cambridge and the First Circuit’s Reinforcement of Deference to Law-Enforcement Employers in Social-Media Speech 1. Introduction In Hussey v. City...

The “Indirect-Supplier” Doctrine: First Circuit Clarifies Duty to Disclose Supply-Chain Risks in Securities Fraud Actions

Date: Aug 19, 2025

The “Indirect-Supplier” Doctrine: First Circuit Clarifies Duty to Disclose Supply-Chain Risks in Securities Fraud Actions Introduction In State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio v. Charles River...