3d Circuit Case Commentaries

Receipt of Child Pornography Under 18 U.S.C. § 2252A(a)(2)(A) Categorically Constitutes a CIMT Because Post–Free Speech Coalition Prosecutions Require Images of Actual Minors

Date: Jul 24, 2026

Receipt of Child Pornography Under 18 U.S.C. § 2252A(a)(2)(A) Categorically Constitutes a CIMT Because Post–Free Speech Coalition Prosecutions Require Images of Actual Minors Case: Jean Buteau...

Sworn SSDI Inability-to-Work Statements and Contemporaneous Medical Restrictions Can Defeat “Qualified Individual” Status Under the Rehabilitation Act Despite a Later Light-Duty Note

Date: Jul 24, 2026

Sworn SSDI Inability-to-Work Statements and Contemporaneous Medical Restrictions Can Defeat “Qualified Individual” Status Under the Rehabilitation Act Despite a Later Light-Duty Note 1. Introduction...

Receipt of Child Pornography Under 18 U.S.C. § 2252A(a)(2)(A) Is Categorically a CIMT Because Conviction Requires Images of Actual Children

Date: Jul 24, 2026

Receipt of Child Pornography Under 18 U.S.C. § 2252A(a)(2)(A) Is Categorically a CIMT Because Conviction Requires Images of Actual Children Introduction In Jean Buteau Remarque v. Attorney General...

Limited Undertaking, Limited Duty: Vendor Pump Training Does Not Create a General Workplace-Safety Duty Under Restatement § 324A

Date: Jul 24, 2026

Limited Undertaking, Limited Duty: Vendor Pump Training Does Not Create a General Workplace-Safety Duty Under Restatement § 324A Case: Savannah Byers v. Finishing Systems Inc (remaining claims...

Third Circuit: No Duty to Accommodate or Provide FMLA Leave Without Clear, Timely Notice—Disability Laws Do Not Excuse Misconduct

Date: Jul 24, 2026

Third Circuit: No Duty to Accommodate or Provide FMLA Leave Without Clear, Timely Notice—Disability Laws Do Not Excuse Misconduct I. Introduction In Cheryl Hileman v. West Penn Allegheny Health...

Confirmed Plan Bars Post-Effective-Date Revocation of Expedited Distribution Elections

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Confirmed Plan Bars Post-Effective-Date Revocation of Expedited Distribution Elections 1. Introduction This Third Circuit decision arises out of the Boy Scouts of America and Delaware BSA, LLC...

Ordinance-Authorized Municipal Revenue Pledges Are Consensual (Not Statutory) Liens; Pennsylvania Gaming “Local Share” Payments Are Fees (Not Special Excise Taxes) in Chapter 9

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Ordinance-Authorized Municipal Revenue Pledges Are Consensual (Not Statutory) Liens; Pennsylvania Gaming “Local Share” Payments Are Fees (Not Special Excise Taxes) in Chapter 9 I. Introduction Case:...

Nuanced Training Gaps in Multi-Unit Warrant Execution Do Not Support Single-Incident Monell Liability Absent a Pattern

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Nuanced Training Gaps in Multi-Unit Warrant Execution Do Not Support Single-Incident Monell Liability Absent a Pattern 1. Introduction In Felishatay Alvarado v. City of Philadelphia (3d Cir. July 17,...

Confirmed Plan Elections Are Irrevocable: Claimants Cannot Rescind an Expedited Distribution Choice Without an Impermissible Plan Modification

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Confirmed Plan Elections Are Irrevocable: Claimants Cannot Rescind an Expedited Distribution Choice Without an Impermissible Plan Modification 1. Introduction This Third Circuit decision arises from...

Countrywide “Women” PSG Requires a Record-Based Unifying Targeting Characteristic; Generalized Gender Violence Is Not Enough

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Countrywide “Women” PSG Requires a Record-Based Unifying Targeting Characteristic; Generalized Gender Violence Is Not Enough Nonprecedential disposition: The Third Circuit designated this opinion...

Ordinance-Authorized Municipal Revenue Pledges Are Consensual (Not Statutory) Liens, and Pennsylvania Gaming “Operation Fees” Are Not “Special Excise Taxes” in Chapter 9

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Ordinance-Authorized Municipal Revenue Pledges Are Consensual (Not Statutory) Liens, and Pennsylvania Gaming “Operation Fees” Are Not “Special Excise Taxes” in Chapter 9 1. Introduction In re: City...

Third Circuit En Banc: De Facto Bans on Commonly Used Semi-Automatic Rifles and >10-Round Magazines Violate the Second Amendment

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Third Circuit En Banc: De Facto Bans on Commonly Used Semi-Automatic Rifles and >10-Round Magazines Violate the Second Amendment Case: Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs I v. Attorney...

Third Circuit (en banc): Common-Use Addressed at Bruen Step Two; New Jersey’s De Facto Bans on Semi-Automatic Rifles and >10-Round Magazines Unconstitutional

Date: Jul 22, 2026

Third Circuit (en banc): Common-Use Addressed at Bruen Step Two; New Jersey’s De Facto Bans on Semi-Automatic Rifles and >10-Round Magazines Unconstitutional I. Introduction In Association of New...

Bruen Step-Two “Common Use” and the Unconstitutionality of De Facto Bans on Semi-Automatic Rifles and >10-Round Magazines

Date: Jul 21, 2026

Bruen Step-Two “Common Use” and the Unconstitutionality of De Facto Bans on Semi-Automatic Rifles and >10-Round Magazines Case: Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs I v. Attorney General...

Title VII Retaliation Requires Complaints Tied to Protected-Class Discrimination; Repeated § 1915 Pleading Failures Justify Dismissal With Prejudice

Date: Jul 21, 2026

Title VII Retaliation Requires Complaints Tied to Protected-Class Discrimination; Repeated § 1915 Pleading Failures Justify Dismissal With Prejudice Introduction In Kerian Pelenah v. University of...

Anti-Assignment Clauses with Payment Carve-Outs Confer ERISA Standing to Sue for Nonpayment; Chargemaster “Normal Charges” Are Plausibly Pleaded at the Motion-to-Dismiss Stage

Date: Jul 21, 2026

Anti-Assignment Clauses with Payment Carve-Outs Confer ERISA Standing to Sue for Nonpayment; Chargemaster “Normal Charges” Are Plausibly Pleaded at the Motion-to-Dismiss Stage 1. Introduction In...

Sua Sponte Statute-of-Limitations Dismissal Is Improper When Equitable Tolling May Apply and the Prisoner Lacked Notice and a Chance to Respond

Date: Jul 21, 2026

Sua Sponte Statute-of-Limitations Dismissal Is Improper When Equitable Tolling May Apply and the Prisoner Lacked Notice and a Chance to Respond Introduction In Anthony Dowell v. Laurel Harry (3d Cir....

United States v. Alan Dorsey — Extending a Completed Traffic Stop Requires Independent Reasonable Suspicion; a Passenger’s Hesitation to Give a Last Name Is Not Enough

Date: Jul 21, 2026

Extending a Completed Traffic Stop Requires Independent Reasonable Suspicion; a Passenger’s Hesitation to Give a Last Name Is Not Enough Introduction In United States v. Alan Dorsey (3d Cir. July 17,...

Receivers May Modify Self-Dealing Lease Terms Despite Attornment Clauses; Conclusory “Lender Breach” Allegations Do Not Vacate Default

Date: Jul 20, 2026

Receivers May Modify Self-Dealing Lease Terms Despite Attornment Clauses; Conclusory “Lender Breach” Allegations Do Not Vacate Default 1. Introduction ICON PSG 1 FL, LLC v. Jenkins Court Realty Co.,...

USSG § 3B1.1(c) in Money-Laundering Sentencing: Oversight of Non-Indicted Participants Supports Role Enhancement

Date: Jul 18, 2026

USSG § 3B1.1(c) in Money-Laundering Sentencing: Oversight of Non-Indicted Participants Supports Role Enhancement Introduction In United States v. Gordon Johnson (3d Cir. July 15, 2026)...