3d Circuit Case Commentaries

Flexible Campus Due Process and Strict Causation for Retaliation: The Third Circuit’s Clarifications in Williams v. Pennsylvania State University

Date: Apr 2, 2025

Flexible Campus Due Process and Strict Causation for Retaliation: The Third Circuit’s Clarifications in Williams v. Pennsylvania State University Introduction In Williams v. Pennsylvania State...

End-Organ Effects or Explanation Required: Third Circuit Upholds ALJ’s Step‑3 Use of Record Silence and “Simple Tasks” RFC After Moderate Mental Limitations

Date: Apr 1, 2025

End-Organ Effects or Explanation Required: Third Circuit Upholds ALJ’s Step‑3 Use of Record Silence and “Simple Tasks” RFC After Moderate Mental Limitations Case: Ramon Placencia v. Commissioner of...

Reasonable Suspicion to Detain Managers of Unlicensed Bars; Deleted Undercover Texts Do Not Trigger Due‑Process Spoliation Absent Apparent Exculpatory Value or Bad Faith

Date: Apr 1, 2025

Reasonable Suspicion to Detain Managers of Unlicensed Bars; Deleted Undercover Texts Do Not Trigger Due‑Process Spoliation Absent Apparent Exculpatory Value or Bad Faith Introduction In United States...

Minimal Explanation Suffices for Compassionate Release Denials; Amendment 826 Is Not Retroactive Under § 3582(c)(2)

Date: Mar 29, 2025

Minimal Explanation Suffices for Compassionate Release Denials; Amendment 826 Is Not Retroactive Under § 3582(c)(2) Introduction This commentary analyzes the Third Circuit’s per curiam disposition in...

Reaffirming MVRA Restitution Proof and Explanation Requirements: PSR Assertions Alone Are Insufficient — United States v. Thomas (3d Cir. 2025)

Date: Mar 29, 2025

Reaffirming MVRA Restitution Proof and Explanation Requirements: PSR Assertions Alone Are Insufficient — United States v. Thomas (3d Cir. 2025) Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit...

Third Circuit Reaffirms Non‑Retroactivity of Amendment 826 and Clarifies Limits on “Unusually Long Sentence” Compassionate Release Under § 1B1.13(b)(6)

Date: Mar 29, 2025

Third Circuit Reaffirms Non‑Retroactivity of Amendment 826 and Clarifies Limits on “Unusually Long Sentence” Compassionate Release Under § 1B1.13(b)(6) Introduction In United States v. Omelyan...

Limiting Instructions and Strong Independent Evidence Foreclose Habeas Relief for Prosecutorial Overreach Under AEDPA

Date: Mar 29, 2025

Limiting Instructions and Strong Independent Evidence Foreclose Habeas Relief for Prosecutorial Overreach Under AEDPA Introduction This commentary examines the Third Circuit’s non-precedential...

Settlement-as-Revision under the MPPAA: Third Circuit Opens § 1401(b)(1) Collection Route After Mid-Arbitration Settlement

Date: Mar 28, 2025

Settlement-as-Revision under the MPPAA: Third Circuit Opens § 1401(b)(1) Collection Route After Mid-Arbitration Settlement Introduction In Central States, Southeast & Southwest Areas Pension Fund v....

Brady Materiality Requires Reliability Impact; Delaware Rule 61(i) Bars Trigger Federal Procedural Default — Commentary on Mason v. State of Delaware (3d Cir. Mar. 26, 2025)

Date: Mar 27, 2025

Brady Materiality Requires Reliability Impact; Delaware Rule 61(i) Bars Trigger Federal Procedural Default Introduction This commentary examines the Third Circuit’s nonprecedential decision in Bruce...

Arbitrability Discovery Required When Agency to Assent Is Genuinely Disputed: Third Circuit Remands in Kirkham (Sessoms) v. TaxAct

Date: Mar 27, 2025

Arbitrability Discovery Required When Agency to Assent Is Genuinely Disputed: Third Circuit Remands in Kirkham (Sessoms) v. TaxAct Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit Date:...

Draft Settlement with Material Blanks and No Signatures Is Not Enforceable under New Jersey Law

Date: Mar 27, 2025

Lento v. Altman: The Third Circuit Confirms that a Draft “Settlement Agreement” with Material Blanks and No Signatures Is Not an Enforceable Contract under New Jersey Law Court: United States Court...

Third Circuit Reaffirms: Public Defender Appeal Filings Are Not “State Action” Under § 1983; Conclusory Supervisory “Policy” Allegations Fail Under Iqbal

Date: Mar 25, 2025

Third Circuit Reaffirms: Public Defender Appeal Filings Are Not “State Action” Under § 1983; Conclusory Supervisory “Policy” Allegations Fail Under Iqbal Case: Ashley Georges v. Helen C. Godby;...

Legislative Decision-Making and Retaliation Claims: Affirming Independent Municipal Judgment and the Limits of the Cat's Paw Doctrine

Date: Mar 24, 2025

Legislative Decision-Making and Retaliation Claims: Affirming Independent Municipal Judgment and the Limits of the Cat's Paw Doctrine Introduction In the case of LINDA ATIYEH; GETTYSBURG INVESTORS...

Refining Pleading Standards: A New Benchmark for Plausible Employment Discrimination Claims

Date: Mar 24, 2025

Refining Pleading Standards: A New Benchmark for Plausible Employment Discrimination Claims Introduction The case of Jonathan Valentin v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of Labor and...

Excluding Pre-Acquisition Wrongful Acts: Clarification of Change in Exposure Clauses in Management Liability Policies

Date: Mar 22, 2025

Excluding Pre-Acquisition Wrongful Acts: Clarification of Change in Exposure Clauses in Management Liability Policies Introduction In PNC Bank N.A. v. Axis Insurance Co., the Third Circuit addressed...

No Expectation of Finality in Served Sentences Under Appeal: Double Jeopardy, Due Process, and Law of the Case in Resentencing

Date: Mar 22, 2025

No Expectation of Finality in Served Sentences Under Appeal: Double Jeopardy, Due Process, and Law of the Case in Resentencing Introduction United States v. John Jackson, 3d Cir. No. 23-2508 (Mar....

No Reasonable Expectation of Finality in a Sentence Under Appeal: Clarifying Double Jeopardy and Due Process in Resentencing

Date: Mar 22, 2025

No Reasonable Expectation of Finality in a Sentence Under Appeal: Clarifying Double Jeopardy and Due Process in Resentencing Introduction United States v. John Jackson (3d Cir. Mar. 21, 2025)...

Commerce Clause Empowerment of Domestic Child Sex‐Trafficking Prosecution Under 18 U.S.C. § 1591

Date: Mar 22, 2025

Commerce Clause Empowerment of Domestic Child Sex‐Trafficking Prosecution Under 18 U.S.C. § 1591 Introduction United States v. John Adams, No. 24-1975 (3d Cir. Mar. 21, 2025), presents a threshold...

No Expectation of Finality in Sentences Served Under Appeal: United States v. Jackson

Date: Mar 22, 2025

No Expectation of Finality in Sentences Served Under Appeal: United States v. Jackson Introduction United States v. Jackson is a precedential Third Circuit decision handed down on March 21, 2025,...

Reaffirmation of Article III Standing Requirements: Generalized Grievances Insufficient

Date: Mar 22, 2025

Reaffirmation of Article III Standing Requirements: Generalized Grievances Insufficient Introduction This commentary examines the Third Circuit’s per curiam decision in Mary Basile Logan v. Merrick...