5th Circuit Case Commentaries

Retainer/Day-Rate Guarantees Fail the FLSA “Weekly Rate” Salary-Basis Test; DOL/Counsel Reliance Defeats Willfulness and Liquidated Damages

Date: Feb 22, 2026

Retainer/Day-Rate Guarantees Fail the FLSA “Weekly Rate” Salary-Basis Test; DOL/Counsel Reliance Defeats Willfulness and Liquidated Damages Introduction In Alvarez v. NES Global, L.L.C. (5th Cir....

Email Notice of Removal Satisfies § 1446(d) Absent Prejudice; Texas No-Direct-Action Rule Bars Third-Party Coverage/Bad-Faith Suits Against Insurer Affiliates

Date: Feb 22, 2026

Email Notice of Removal Satisfies § 1446(d) Absent Prejudice; Texas No-Direct-Action Rule Bars Third-Party Coverage/Bad-Faith Suits Against Insurer Affiliates 1. Introduction In Springstun v. Amer...

Actual Confusion Evidence (Declarations and Misdirected Inquiries) Creates a Triable Issue on Lanham Act “Likelihood of Confusion” at Summary Judgment

Date: Feb 19, 2026

Actual Confusion Evidence (Declarations and Misdirected Inquiries) Creates a Triable Issue on Lanham Act “Likelihood of Confusion” at Summary Judgment Case: Associated Professional Educators of...

Faris v. Bondi: Job Loss, Citizenship Revocation, and Periodic “Check-ins” Do Not Compel a Finding of Persecution; Unbriefed CAT Claims Are Forfeited

Date: Feb 16, 2026

Faris v. Bondi: Job Loss, Citizenship Revocation, and Periodic “Check-ins” Do Not Compel a Finding of Persecution; Unbriefed CAT Claims Are Forfeited 1. Introduction In Faris v. Bondi (5th Cir. Feb....

Neumann's Pharmacy v. DEA — Knowledge-of-Invalidity Required for § 1306.04(a) and “Usual Course” Does Not Federalize State Negligence Standards

Date: Feb 15, 2026

Neumann’s Pharmacy v. DEA: § 1306.04(a) Requires Knowledge that a Prescription Was Invalid, and “Usual Course of Professional Practice” Cannot Be Reduced to a State Standard of Care Court: United...

Oral Pronouncement Controls on Revocation: Unpronounced “Standard” Supervised-Release Conditions Must Be Stricken; Firearm Condition May Be Reformed to the Mandatory Core

Date: Feb 15, 2026

Oral Pronouncement Controls on Revocation: Unpronounced “Standard” Supervised-Release Conditions Must Be Stricken; Firearm Condition May Be Reformed to the Mandatory Core Introduction United States...

Res Judicata Bars Relitigation of Standing, But Jurisdictional Preclusion Still Requires Dismissal Without Prejudice (Devins v. Armstrong)

Date: Feb 15, 2026

Res Judicata Bars Relitigation of Standing, But Jurisdictional Preclusion Still Requires Dismissal Without Prejudice Introduction In Devins v. Armstrong (5th Cir. Feb. 12, 2026), pro se plaintiff...

Empty Alcohol Container + Driver Drowsiness Can Supply Reasonable Suspicion to Extend a Stop for a Dog Sniff (Qualified Immunity Applies)

Date: Feb 15, 2026

Empty Alcohol Container + Driver Drowsiness Can Supply Reasonable Suspicion to Extend a Stop for a Dog Sniff (Qualified Immunity Applies) 1. Introduction Wogan v. Rose is a Fifth Circuit...

Cooper v. State Farm: Unambiguous Off-Premises Sewage Exclusions Defeat Coverage Despite Adjuster Assurances; Reliance Is Unreasonable as a Matter of Mississippi Law

Date: Feb 15, 2026

Cooper v. State Farm: Unambiguous Off-Premises Sewage Exclusions Defeat Coverage Despite Adjuster Assurances; Reliance Is Unreasonable as a Matter of Mississippi Law 1. Introduction Parties: Ronald...

Unsound-Mind Tolling Requires Specific, Accrual-Time Incapacity Allegations; Post-Judgment Filing Restrictions Upheld in Pro Se Arrest-Suit Litigation (Kerns v. Dickson)

Date: Feb 15, 2026

Unsound-Mind Tolling Requires Specific, Accrual-Time Incapacity Allegations; Post-Judgment Filing Restrictions Upheld in Pro Se Arrest-Suit Litigation Introduction In Kerns v. Dickson (5th Cir. Feb....

Deference in Pre-Enforcement Facial Challenges to Election-Integrity Laws: Texas’s Paid Vote-Harvesting Ban Upheld; Statewide Officials Protected by Sovereign Immunity Absent Enforcement Connection

Date: Feb 15, 2026

Deference in Pre-Enforcement Facial Challenges to Election-Integrity Laws: Texas’s Paid Vote-Harvesting Ban Upheld; Statewide Officials Protected by Sovereign Immunity Absent Enforcement Connection...

Quiroz v. Hernandez — Futility of Repeated Repleading, Strict Relation-Back Limits, and Immunity/Standing Bars in Post-Incident § 1983 Litigation

Date: Feb 15, 2026

Quiroz v. Hernandez: Futility of Repeated Repleading, Strict Relation-Back Limits, and Immunity/Standing Bars in Post-Incident § 1983 Litigation 1. Introduction Quiroz v. Hernandez (5th Cir. Feb. 12,...

United States v. Leonard — Good-Faith “Close Enough” Saves Warrant Evidence Despite Allegedly Unlawful Pre-Warrant Home Entry

Date: Feb 15, 2026

United States v. Leonard: The Fifth Circuit Applies Massi’s “Close Enough to the Line of Validity” Good-Faith Doctrine to Defeat Suppression Where a Warrant Followed an Allegedly Unlawful Exigent...

Fifth Circuit Certifies Whether Texas LLC Membership Interests Are Bankruptcy-Exempt Under Tex. Bus. Orgs. Code § 101.112

Date: Feb 14, 2026

Fifth Circuit Certifies Whether Texas LLC Membership Interests Are Bankruptcy-Exempt Under Tex. Bus. Orgs. Code § 101.112 Case: Canada v. Sherman (5th Cir. Feb. 11, 2026) (Ho, J.) Procedural posture:...

Post-Satisfaction Receiverships May Continue Under § 3103(c) and Equitable Authority to Wind Up and Resolve Creditor Claims

Date: Feb 14, 2026

Post-Satisfaction Receiverships May Continue Under § 3103(c) and Equitable Authority to Wind Up and Resolve Creditor Claims 1. Introduction Corporate Management, Incorporated v. Henderson (5th Cir....

ADA Accommodation Limits: No Requirement to Reduce Essential Work by Shifting Burdens or Waive Transfer Eligibility Absent a Feasible, Specific Accommodation

Date: Feb 14, 2026

ADA Accommodation Limits: No Requirement to Reduce Essential Work by Shifting Burdens or Waive Transfer Eligibility Absent a Feasible, Specific Accommodation I. Introduction In Oliver v. Jack Henry &...

Arbitration-Excluded Last Chance Agreements Still Trigger RLA Major/Minor Jurisdictional Analysis; Minor-Dispute Animus Exception Requires Evidence

Date: Feb 14, 2026

Arbitration-Excluded Last Chance Agreements Still Trigger RLA Major/Minor Jurisdictional Analysis; Minor-Dispute Animus Exception Requires Evidence I. Introduction In Reardon v. American Airlines,...

State-Law Tort Claims Attacking Court-Directed Bankruptcy Notice Are Core Proceedings and Barred by Derivative Judicial Immunity (Trahant v. Mintz)

Date: Feb 14, 2026

State-Law Tort Claims Attacking Court-Directed Bankruptcy Notice Are Core Proceedings and Barred by Derivative Judicial Immunity (Trahant v. Mintz) I. Introduction In Trahant v. Mintz, the Fifth...

Revocation Sentencing: Reliance on Undisclosed Probation “Blue Sheet” Facts and Validity of “Life, Minus Revocation Sentence” Supervised Release

Date: Feb 14, 2026

Revocation Sentencing: Reliance on Undisclosed Probation “Blue Sheet” Facts and Validity of “Life, Minus Revocation Sentence” Supervised Release Introduction In United States v. Kruse (5th Cir. Feb....

Contextual Tapia Review in Revocation Sentencing: Mere Mention of “Rehabilitation” Is Not Plain Error Absent Dominant-Factor Reliance

Date: Feb 14, 2026

Contextual Tapia Review in Revocation Sentencing: Mere Mention of “Rehabilitation” Is Not Plain Error Absent Dominant-Factor Reliance 1. Introduction United States v. Ortiz (5th Cir. Feb. 11, 2026)...