6th Circuit Case Commentaries

Post-Esteras Revocation Sentencing: Courts May Sanction Breach of Trust and Consider Violation Seriousness (for Deterrence/Rehabilitation) and May Impose Consecutive Terms When Separately Explained

Date: Apr 4, 2026

Post-Esteras Revocation Sentencing: Courts May Sanction Breach of Trust and Consider Violation Seriousness (for Deterrence/Rehabilitation) and May Impose Consecutive Terms When Separately Explained...

Post-Esteras Revocation Sentencing: Breach-of-Trust and Violation Seriousness Remain Permissible; Consecutive Terms Supported by § 7B1.3(f)

Date: Apr 4, 2026

Post-Esteras Revocation Sentencing: Breach-of-Trust and Violation Seriousness Remain Permissible; Consecutive Terms Supported by § 7B1.3(f) Introduction In United States v. Michael Williams (6th Cir....

Chapter 20 Lien-Retention Rule: No “Plan-Completion” Substitute for § 1325(a)(5)(B)(i)(I) When § 1328 Discharge Is Unavailable

Date: Apr 3, 2026

Chapter 20 Lien-Retention Rule: No “Plan-Completion” Substitute for § 1325(a)(5)(B)(i)(I) When § 1328 Discharge Is Unavailable 1. Introduction In re: Sharenne L. Tucker is a Sixth Circuit Bankruptcy...

FINRA May Discipline Unregistered “Associated Persons” Who Control Member Firms; Jarkesy-Based Jury-Trial Objections Must Be Exhausted Before the SEC

Date: Mar 29, 2026

FINRA May Discipline Unregistered “Associated Persons” Who Control Member Firms; Jarkesy-Based Jury-Trial Objections Must Be Exhausted Before the SEC I. Introduction Case: Eric Smith v. SEC, No....

Pearson v. Michigan Department of Corrections: Qualified Immunity for Non-Treating Officials Who Rely on Contract Medical/Infection-Control Judgments; Michigan GTLA “The Proximate Cause” Not Resolved on the Pleadings

Date: Mar 28, 2026

Pearson v. Michigan Department of Corrections: Qualified Immunity for Non-Treating Officials Who Rely on Contract Medical/Infection-Control Judgments; Michigan GTLA “The Proximate Cause” Not Resolved...

Sixth Circuit: Nursing-Home Arbitration Enforced When POA Signer Acts as “Resident Representative” Without Affirmatively Disclaiming Agency; Contract Terms May Be Clarified by Integrated Admission Papers

Date: Mar 28, 2026

Sixth Circuit: Nursing-Home Arbitration Enforced When POA Signer Acts as “Resident Representative” Without Affirmatively Disclaiming Agency; Contract Terms May Be Clarified by Integrated Admission...

Correctable Due-Process Claims Must Be Exhausted Before the BIA and Require a Showing of Prejudice in In Absentia Reopening

Date: Mar 28, 2026

Correctable Due-Process Claims Must Be Exhausted Before the BIA and Require a Showing of Prejudice in In Absentia Reopening I. Introduction In Chinedu Onyenobi v. Pamela Bondi (Sixth Cir. Mar. 26,...

Napue/Brady Relief Requires Materiality Even When a Secret Deal Is Proven; Minimal Jury-Waiver Advisements Suffice in Capital Cases Under AEDPA

Date: Mar 28, 2026

Napue/Brady Relief Requires Materiality Even When a Secret Deal Is Proven; Minimal Jury-Waiver Advisements Suffice in Capital Cases Under AEDPA Case: Juan Antonio Lamar Kinley v. Margaret Bradshaw,...

Proven False “No-Deal” Testimony Does Not Warrant Habeas Relief Absent Napue Materiality; Minimal Jury-Waiver Advisements Suffice Under AEDPA

Date: Mar 28, 2026

Proven False “No-Deal” Testimony Does Not Warrant Habeas Relief Absent Napue Materiality; Minimal Jury-Waiver Advisements Suffice Under AEDPA Case: Juan Antonio Lamar Kinley v. Margaret Bradshaw,...

Qualified Immunity for Non-Treating Prison Leaders Who Rely on Contract Medical Staff During an Outbreak; Michigan GTLA “The Proximate Cause” Usually Not Resolved on the Pleadings

Date: Mar 28, 2026

Qualified Immunity for Non-Treating Prison Leaders Who Rely on Contract Medical Staff During an Outbreak; Michigan GTLA “The Proximate Cause” Usually Not Resolved on the Pleadings Case: Machelle...

Ambiguous “First” Claims Are Not Literally False Under the Lanham Act; Plaintiffs Must Prove Consumer Deception

Date: Mar 28, 2026

Ambiguous “First” Claims Are Not Literally False Under the Lanham Act; Plaintiffs Must Prove Consumer Deception Case: Victory Global, LLC v. Fresh Bourbon, LLC (6th Cir. Mar. 26, 2026) Court: United...

Repair-Cost Payments May Be Depreciated When Policy Values Repairs at “Actual Cash Value” and Replacement-Cost Coverage Requires Completed Repairs

Date: Mar 27, 2026

Repair-Cost Payments May Be Depreciated When Policy Values Repairs at “Actual Cash Value” and Replacement-Cost Coverage Requires Completed Repairs Introduction In Schoening Investment LP v....

Totality-of-the-Circumstances Validity of a Second Faretta Waiver After Brief Reassertion of Counsel; No Due-Process Remedy for Secret Reliance on a Disbarred Advisor Absent State Action

Date: Mar 27, 2026

Totality-of-the-Circumstances Validity of a Second Faretta Waiver After Brief Reassertion of Counsel; No Due-Process Remedy for Secret Reliance on a Disbarred Advisor Absent State Action I....

Express Assent to a Joint Trial After a New Superseding Indictment Waives Rule 8 Severance; “Sometimes Sleeps” Is Insufficient to Establish Fourth Amendment Standing

Date: Mar 27, 2026

Express Assent to a Joint Trial After a New Superseding Indictment Waives Rule 8 Severance; “Sometimes Sleeps” Is Insufficient to Establish Fourth Amendment Standing Introduction In United States v....

Affirmative Consent to a Joint Trial After a New Superseding Indictment Waives Rule 8 Misjoinder/Severance Claims

Date: Mar 26, 2026

Affirmative Consent to a Joint Trial After a New Superseding Indictment Waives Rule 8 Misjoinder/Severance Claims I. Introduction In United States v. William Ewing (consolidated with co-defendant...

Pattern-Instruction Amendments Do Not Create Plain Error Without Substantive Change; General Credibility Instructions Suffice for Law-Enforcement Witnesses

Date: Mar 26, 2026

Pattern-Instruction Amendments Do Not Create Plain Error Without Substantive Change; General Credibility Instructions Suffice for Law-Enforcement Witnesses I. Introduction United States v. Michael...

Rule 29 Sufficiency Preservation When Defendant Rests Without Evidence: Government’s Rest Marks the “Close of All the Evidence”

Date: Mar 26, 2026

Rule 29 Sufficiency Preservation When Defendant Rests Without Evidence: Government’s Rest Marks the “Close of All the Evidence” I. Introduction United States v. Paul Curry (Sixth Circuit, Mar. 23,...

Retaliatory Arrest Under Nieves: “Similarly Situated” Comparators Must Share the Arrest-Generating Conduct

Date: Mar 26, 2026

Retaliatory Arrest Under Nieves v. Bartlett: “Similarly Situated” Comparators Must Share the Arrest-Generating Conduct Case: Daniel Grady v. John Cratsenburg Court: Court of Appeals for the Sixth...

Perez-Mejilla: Land-Dispute Threats and Verbal Harassment Rarely Establish “Persecution,” and Unraised BIA Issues Are Forfeited

Date: Mar 24, 2026

Perez-Mejilla: Land-Dispute Threats and Verbal Harassment Rarely Establish “Persecution,” and Unraised BIA Issues Are Forfeited 1. Introduction In Hector Perez-Mejilla v. Pamela Bondi (6th Cir. Mar....

Untimely Asylum “Changed Circumstances” Are Unreviewable Discretion Calls; Failure to Seek Police Protection Undercuts Withholding/CAT Claims

Date: Mar 24, 2026

Untimely Asylum “Changed Circumstances” Are Unreviewable Discretion Calls; Failure to Seek Police Protection Undercuts Withholding/CAT Claims I. Introduction In Oscar Rivera-Gaona v. Pamela Bondi...