The FCC recently adopted broadband privacy rules which will be implemented on a staggered schedule. The FCC did not provide calendar dates for implementing the rules and some of the dates are based on pending PRA approvals. The following is a summary of the new privacy rules and the dates they are scheduled to take effect. On January 3, 2017,…
The Indiana General Assembly recently made changes to the Indiana Underground Plant Protection statute (Indiana Code § 8-1-26) which will take effect July 1, 2017. S.B. 472, 120th Gen. Assem., Reg. Sess. (Ind. 2017). The main change in this chapter is the creation of a new voluntary “design information notice” which applies to advance planning efforts relating to a demolition…
The Indiana Tax Court recently ruled in Zimmer, Inc. v. Indiana Department of Revenue that Zimmer, Inc.’s Indiana activities regarding exhibition booth components constituted a taxable use and thus owed tax for some of the exhibition booth components. Zimmer is in the business of designing, manufacturing and distributing a wide variety of medical device products. In its activities, it participates…
The Indiana Supreme Court ruled evidence of more than financing alone must be presented to demonstrate that the City has engaged in a policy-oriented decision making process in order for discretionary function immunity to apply. Cathy Beloat sued the City of Beech Grove after breaking her leg by stepping in hole in Main Street in the City. The City of…
“The use of ‘scare tactics’ by an insurance representative to discourage the filing of claims cannot be condoned. Such actions are certainly clear and convincing evidence of oppression and justify the imposition of punitive damages.” Liberty Mut. Ins. Co. v. Parkinson, 487 N.E.2d 162, 166 (Ind. Ct. App. 1985).
Attorneys practicing in Indiana are well aware that Indiana courts and administrative agencies are moving to “mandatory” electronic filing. The Indiana Supreme Court’s e-filing project is rolling along, with e-filing now mandatory (except upon a petition showing good cause) for the Supreme Court and Appellate Courts and over twenty counties. More county courts are going “E” every month. By 2018,…
On February 16, 2017, the Indiana Supreme Court issued an opinion regarding a sports participant’s duty owed to other participants in sports-injury tort cases. Megenity v. Dunn (No. 22D03-1309-CT-1354, decided Feb. 16, 2017). The Court affirmed the trial court’s ruling that a participant does not breach a duty owed to another participant by engaging in conduct ordinary in the sport,…
On February 15, 2017, the Indiana Court of Appeals issued a published opinion affirming a municipality’s ability to charge a Stormwater Fee to all property owners within the boundaries of the city. Mint Management, LLC v. City of Richmond (No. 89a01-1603-PL-496, decided February 15, 2017). The Court of Appeals found the definition of “user” under the statute included all property…
The Indiana Court of Appeals recently issued a decision in a dispute between a public utility and a local municipality that may be of interest to electric utilities. Duke Energy Indiana filed a lawsuit against the City of Franklin after the city announced plans to improve the intersection of two streets near State Road 44. Duke alleged that the expanded…
On November 2, 2016, the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) released their broadband privacy protection order, which came almost 18 months after the FCC reclassified broadband internet service (BIAS) as a common carrier telecommunication service under Title II of the Communications Act (the Act). The order communicates three main goals to be accomplished via the expanded consumer privacy standards: transparency, choice,…