Arkansas Case Commentaries

§ 504 Employment-Retaliation Requires an Employer–Employee Relationship; Contractor Retaliation Claims Require Public-Concern Speech; Official-Capacity Liability Requires Monell Policy/Custom

Date: Mar 14, 2026

§ 504 Employment-Retaliation Requires an Employer–Employee Relationship; Contractor Retaliation Claims Require Public-Concern Speech; Official-Capacity Liability Requires Monell Policy/Custom I....

Denial of Pro Hac Vice Admission Is an Immediately Appealable Disqualification Order; Listing Nonresident Counsel on a Pleading Is Not a Standalone Basis for Denial

Date: Mar 14, 2026

Denial of Pro Hac Vice Admission Is an Immediately Appealable Disqualification Order; Listing Nonresident Counsel on a Pleading Is Not a Standalone Basis for Denial 1. Introduction In Red Roof Inns,...

Objective Reasonableness Controls Arrests Under Article 2, Section 15: Arkansas Overrules State v. Sullivan’s Pretext-Arrest Rule

Date: Mar 7, 2026

Objective Reasonableness Controls Arrests Under Article 2, Section 15: Arkansas Overrules State v. Sullivan’s Pretext-Arrest Rule Case: Christopher Coy Gamble v. State of Arkansas | Citation: 2026...

Parole Revocation Is Not Double Jeopardy and Does Not Bar Prosecution for a New Sex-Offender Address-Change Violation

Date: Mar 7, 2026

Parole Revocation Is Not Double Jeopardy and Does Not Bar Prosecution for a New Sex-Offender Address-Change Violation Case: Russell Alexander Geaslin v. Dexter Payne, Director, Arkansas Division of...

Admissible Evidence Required to Prove “Case Within a Case” Proximate Cause in Arkansas Legal-Malpractice Actions

Date: Mar 7, 2026

Admissible Evidence Required to Prove “Case Within a Case” Proximate Cause in Arkansas Legal-Malpractice Actions 1. Introduction In Rebecca Nichols v. James Swindoll and Chuck Gibson, 2026 Ark. 42,...

Arkansas Rape-Shield: Uncorroborated Prior-Encounter Claims Are Inadmissible and Do Not Trigger Confrontation Rights Where Other Impeachment Routes Exist

Date: Feb 22, 2026

Arkansas Rape-Shield: Uncorroborated Prior-Encounter Claims Are Inadmissible and Do Not Trigger Confrontation Rights Where Other Impeachment Routes Exist 1. Introduction In State of Arkansas v. Roy...

Rule 37 Ineffectiveness After Video-Based Familiarity Identifications: No Lineup-Due-Process Analogy, No Prejudice Without Meritorious Objection, and No Cumulative Error Absent Individual Error

Date: Feb 22, 2026

Rule 37 Ineffectiveness After Video-Based Familiarity Identifications: No Lineup-Due-Process Analogy, No Prejudice Without Meritorious Objection, and No Cumulative Error Absent Individual Error Case:...

Rule 37.1 Ineffective-Assistance Claims Fail Without Strickland Prejudice When the Direct-Appeal Record Refutes Alleged Omissions

Date: Feb 15, 2026

Rule 37.1 Ineffective-Assistance Claims Fail Without Strickland Prejudice When the Direct-Appeal Record Refutes Alleged Omissions Introduction In Curtis Dorsey v. State of Arkansas, 2026 Ark. 27, the...

Statewide Citizen Standing and Mandatory Fee-Shifting to Enforce Public-Trust Disqualifications for Constitutional Office

Date: Feb 15, 2026

Statewide Citizen Standing and Mandatory Fee-Shifting to Enforce Public-Trust Disqualifications for Constitutional Office Introduction In Casey Reed v. Ken Yang; Grant County Board of Election...

Rule 37.1 Limits Reaffirmed: Conclusory “Missing Evidence” Theories, Noncognizable Brady Issues Known at Trial, and Prosecutorial-Misconduct Claims

Date: Feb 15, 2026

Rule 37.1 Limits Reaffirmed: Conclusory “Missing Evidence” Theories, Noncognizable Brady Issues Known at Trial, and Prosecutorial-Misconduct Claims I. Introduction In Chris Allen Oliger v. State of...

Clarifying Doby: Lesser-Included Instructions Turn on “Rational Basis,” Not a Total-Innocence Bar

Date: Feb 15, 2026

Clarifying Doby: Lesser-Included Instructions Turn on “Rational Basis,” Not a Total-Innocence Bar I. Introduction In Tyler Edward Tait v. State of Arkansas, 2026 Ark. 28, the Arkansas Supreme Court...

New DNA Technology (Including M-VAC) Does Not Alone Overcome Act 1780’s Timeliness Presumption or the Successive-Petition Limits

Date: Feb 15, 2026

New DNA Technology (Including M-VAC) Does Not Alone Overcome Act 1780’s Timeliness Presumption or the Successive-Petition Limits I. Introduction In Vincent Hussey v. State of Arkansas, 2026 Ark. 26,...

“Guilty–Bond Forfeiture” Is Not a Disqualifying Conviction Under Ark. Const. art. 5, § 9 and Ark. Code Ann. § 21-8-305

Date: Feb 13, 2026

“Guilty–Bond Forfeiture” Is Not a Disqualifying Conviction Under Ark. Const. art. 5, § 9 and Ark. Code Ann. § 21-8-305 Introduction In John Kyle Day v. Laura “Missy” Michelle Wardlaw; Bradley County...

Merrell v. State: Clear-Error Appellate Review for Imposition of Adult Sentences on EJJ Offenders

Date: Feb 7, 2026

Merrell v. State: Clear-Error Appellate Review for Imposition of Adult Sentences on EJJ Offenders 1. Introduction In Ayden Merrell v. State of Arkansas, 2026 Ark. 15, the Arkansas Supreme Court...

Invited-Error Bars “Jail Call” Appellate Relief; Closing-Argument Use of Prior Flights as Intent Evidence; Harmless Error for Non-Driver 404(b) Act

Date: Feb 7, 2026

Invited-Error Bars “Jail Call” Appellate Relief; Closing-Argument Use of Prior Flights as Intent Evidence; Harmless Error for Non-Driver 404(b) Act Case: Shawna Cash v. State of Arkansas Citation:...

Final Adoption of Administrative Order No. 16: Clerk-Managed Random Recusal Reassignment, Centralized Special-Judge Requests, and Repeal of Special-Judge Election Procedures

Date: Jan 31, 2026

Final Adoption of Administrative Order No. 16: Clerk-Managed Random Recusal Reassignment, Centralized Special-Judge Requests, and Repeal of Special-Judge Election Procedures Case: In Re Amendment to...

Apparent-Authority “Guardian” Status, Flexible Text-Message Authentication, and Broad Pedophile-Exception Admissibility in Child-Rape Trials

Date: Jan 31, 2026

Apparent-Authority “Guardian” Status, Flexible Text-Message Authentication, and Broad Pedophile-Exception Admissibility in Child-Rape Trials Introduction In Joseph Faulkner v. State of Arkansas, 2026...

Arkansas’s Proposed Federal-Style Discovery Reforms: Proportionality, Specific Objections, and Discovery-Certification Sanctions (with Rule 11 Preserved for Discovery Motions)

Date: Jan 31, 2026

Arkansas’s Proposed Federal-Style Discovery Reforms: Proportionality, Specific Objections, and Discovery-Certification Sanctions (with Rule 11 Preserved for Discovery Motions) 1. Introduction In In...

ACIC “Reported Stolen” Testimony Alone Is Insufficient to Prove “Stolen Property” for Theft-by-Receiving (and the Business-Records Exception Requires an Actual Record)

Date: Jan 31, 2026

ACIC “Reported Stolen” Testimony Alone Is Insufficient to Prove “Stolen Property” for Theft-by-Receiving (and the Business-Records Exception Requires an Actual Record) Case: Kent Parris v. State of...

Preservation Required for Constitutional Attacks on Arkansas’s Juvenile-Transfer Statute; Transfer Allocation Is Not “Subject-Matter Jurisdiction”

Date: Jan 24, 2026

Preservation Required for Constitutional Attacks on Arkansas’s Juvenile-Transfer Statute; Transfer Allocation Is Not “Subject-Matter Jurisdiction” I. Introduction In Jonathan Rolfe v. State of...