4th Circuit Case Commentaries

Riley Does Not Displace T.L.O.: Reasonable-Suspicion Cell-Phone Searches by School Officials Remain Permissible in the Fourth Circuit

Date: Apr 16, 2026

Riley Does Not Displace T.L.O.: Reasonable-Suspicion Cell-Phone Searches by School Officials Remain Permissible in the Fourth Circuit I. Introduction In O.W. v. Marie L. Carr (4th Cir. Apr. 9, 2026),...

Rule 43 Sentencing Errors and the Rogers–Singletary Debate: Re-centering the Written Judgment as the Operative Sentence

Date: Apr 16, 2026

Rule 43 Sentencing Errors and the Rogers–Singletary Debate: Re-centering the Written Judgment as the Operative Sentence Introduction United States v. John McLaurin comes to the Fourth Circuit in an...

Wolf Run Mining Co. v. DOWCP: In 15-Year Presumption Cases, Employers Must Affirmatively Exclude Coal-Dust Causation; ALJs May Use the 2000 Preamble to Test Medical Reasoning

Date: Apr 10, 2026

Wolf Run Mining Co. v. DOWCP: In 15-Year Presumption Cases, Employers Must Affirmatively Exclude Coal-Dust Causation; ALJs May Use the 2000 Preamble to Test Medical Reasoning Court: United States...

Undue Influence Can Void a Municipal Sewer-Backup Release When Emergency Need and Disparity Create a Jury Question (Fourth Circuit Applying North Carolina Law)

Date: Apr 9, 2026

Undue Influence Can Void a Municipal Sewer-Backup Release When Emergency Need and Disparity Create a Jury Question (Fourth Circuit Applying North Carolina Law) Case: Stephanie Walker v. City of...

Perry v. Marteney: Medical-Only School Vaccination Exemptions Remain “Generally Applicable”; Mahmoud/Yoder Parental-Rights Strict Scrutiny Does Not Displace Jacobson/Prince in Public-Health Mandates

Date: Apr 9, 2026

Perry v. Marteney: Medical-Only School Vaccination Exemptions Remain “Generally Applicable”; Mahmoud/Yoder Parental-Rights Strict Scrutiny Does Not Displace Jacobson/Prince in Public-Health Mandates...

Fourth Circuit: A Vacated Legal-Pornography Ban May Be Reimposed When New Individualized Evidence Emerges, and the Prior Mandate Is Not a Perpetual Bar

Date: Apr 8, 2026

Fourth Circuit: A Vacated Legal-Pornography Ban May Be Reimposed When New Individualized Evidence Emerges, and the Prior Mandate Is Not a Perpetual Bar Case: United States v. Joseph Castellano (4th...

Fourth Circuit: NCAA Five-Year/JUCO Eligibility Rules Are Commercial Under the Sherman Act, but Mandatory Preliminary Injunctions Require Full Rule-of-Reason and a Proven Market

Date: Apr 6, 2026

Fourth Circuit: NCAA Five-Year/JUCO Eligibility Rules Are Commercial Under the Sherman Act, but Mandatory Preliminary Injunctions Require Full Rule-of-Reason and a Proven Market Introduction In...

Whistleblower IRA Claims: OSC Exhaustion Requires a Retaliation Theory and Supporting Facts; Agencies May Defeat Prima Facie Retaliation by Clear-and-Convincing “Same Action” Proof Under Carr

Date: Apr 4, 2026

Whistleblower IRA Claims: OSC Exhaustion Requires a Retaliation Theory and Supporting Facts; Agencies May Defeat Prima Facie Retaliation by Clear-and-Convincing “Same Action” Proof Under Carr Case:...

Grave-Risk Findings and Discretionary Non-Return Under the Hague Convention Need Not Address Every Proposed Safeguard Explicitly

Date: Apr 4, 2026

Grave-Risk Findings and Discretionary Non-Return Under the Hague Convention Need Not Address Every Proposed Safeguard Explicitly Introduction In Affachao Abdon Samey v. Grace Aguegue (4th Cir. Apr....

“All Possible Claims and Counterclaims” Dismissal in a Settlement Precludes Later Federal Lanham Act Suits, and May Be Enforced via Rule 54(b) Reconsideration

Date: Apr 4, 2026

“All Possible Claims and Counterclaims” Dismissal in a Settlement Precludes Later Federal Lanham Act Suits, and May Be Enforced via Rule 54(b) Reconsideration I. Introduction Clear Touch Interactive,...

Settlement “Dismissal of All Possible Claims and Counterclaims” Triggers Res Judicata to Bar Later Federal Lanham Act Claims

Date: Apr 4, 2026

Settlement “Dismissal of All Possible Claims and Counterclaims” Triggers Res Judicata to Bar Later Federal Lanham Act Claims Introduction Clear Touch Interactive, Inc. v. The Ockers Company (4th Cir....

States May Not Add Delivery/Data Conditions to the Federal 340B Spending-Power Bargain: Targeted 340B-Participant Statutes Are Likely Preempted

Date: Apr 4, 2026

States May Not Add Delivery/Data Conditions to the Federal 340B Spending-Power Bargain: Targeted 340B-Participant Statutes Are Likely Preempted 1. Introduction In Pharmaceutical Research and...

States May Not Add Conditions to the Federal 340B Spending-Power Bargain: Targeted “Contract-Pharmacy Delivery” Mandates Are Likely Preempted

Date: Apr 4, 2026

States May Not Add Conditions to the Federal 340B Spending-Power Bargain: Targeted “Contract-Pharmacy Delivery” Mandates Are Likely Preempted Case: Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of...

Spending-Power Bargain Preemption: States May Not Add Conditions to the Federal 340B Manufacturer–Covered Entity Relationship

Date: Apr 4, 2026

Spending-Power Bargain Preemption: States May Not Add Conditions to the Federal 340B Manufacturer–Covered Entity Relationship Case: Pharmaceutical Research & Manufacturers of America v. John McCuskey...

Title VII Vaccine-Mandate Pleading Rule: Minimal Notice of a Religious Conflict (Including Fetal-Cell Objections) Suffices Despite Mixed Secular Reasons

Date: Apr 4, 2026

Title VII Vaccine-Mandate Pleading Rule: Minimal Notice of a Religious Conflict (Including Fetal-Cell Objections) Suffices Despite Mixed Secular Reasons Case: Rod Jenkins v. Valley Health System (No....

United States v. Tostado — Standing to Appeal Unpronounced Supervised-Release Conditions; Material Oral/Written Discrepancies Require Resentencing

Date: Apr 4, 2026

United States v. Tostado: Defendants Have Standing to Appeal Rogers–Singletary Errors, and Material Oral/Written Discrepancies in Search Conditions Require Full Resentencing 1. Introduction In United...

United States v. McMillan: Lay Investigative Testimony May Include Common-Sense Inferences; Uncorroborated Accomplice Testimony Can Sustain Conviction; New Rule 29 Grounds Are Forfeited Absent Manifest Miscarriage of Justice

Date: Apr 3, 2026

United States v. McMillan: Lay Investigative Testimony May Include Common-Sense Inferences; Uncorroborated Accomplice Testimony Can Sustain Conviction; New Rule 29 Grounds Are Forfeited Absent...

Previous Next

4th Circuit Case Commentaries

Riley Does Not Displace T.L.O.: Reasonable-Suspicion Cell-Phone Searches by School Officials Remain Permissible in the Fourth Circuit

Rule 43 Sentencing Errors and the Rogers–Singletary Debate: Re-centering the Written Judgment as the Operative Sentence

Wolf Run Mining Co. v. DOWCP: In 15-Year Presumption Cases, Employers Must Affirmatively Exclude Coal-Dust Causation; ALJs May Use the 2000 Preamble to Test Medical Reasoning

Undue Influence Can Void a Municipal Sewer-Backup Release When Emergency Need and Disparity Create a Jury Question (Fourth Circuit Applying North Carolina Law)

Perry v. Marteney: Medical-Only School Vaccination Exemptions Remain “Generally Applicable”; Mahmoud/Yoder Parental-Rights Strict Scrutiny Does Not Displace Jacobson/Prince in Public-Health Mandates

Fourth Circuit: A Vacated Legal-Pornography Ban May Be Reimposed When New Individualized Evidence Emerges, and the Prior Mandate Is Not a Perpetual Bar

Fourth Circuit: NCAA Five-Year/JUCO Eligibility Rules Are Commercial Under the Sherman Act, but Mandatory Preliminary Injunctions Require Full Rule-of-Reason and a Proven Market

Whistleblower IRA Claims: OSC Exhaustion Requires a Retaliation Theory and Supporting Facts; Agencies May Defeat Prima Facie Retaliation by Clear-and-Convincing “Same Action” Proof Under Carr

Grave-Risk Findings and Discretionary Non-Return Under the Hague Convention Need Not Address Every Proposed Safeguard Explicitly

“All Possible Claims and Counterclaims” Dismissal in a Settlement Precludes Later Federal Lanham Act Suits, and May Be Enforced via Rule 54(b) Reconsideration

Settlement “Dismissal of All Possible Claims and Counterclaims” Triggers Res Judicata to Bar Later Federal Lanham Act Claims

States May Not Add Delivery/Data Conditions to the Federal 340B Spending-Power Bargain: Targeted 340B-Participant Statutes Are Likely Preempted

States May Not Add Conditions to the Federal 340B Spending-Power Bargain: Targeted “Contract-Pharmacy Delivery” Mandates Are Likely Preempted

Spending-Power Bargain Preemption: States May Not Add Conditions to the Federal 340B Manufacturer–Covered Entity Relationship

Title VII Vaccine-Mandate Pleading Rule: Minimal Notice of a Religious Conflict (Including Fetal-Cell Objections) Suffices Despite Mixed Secular Reasons

United States v. Tostado — Standing to Appeal Unpronounced Supervised-Release Conditions; Material Oral/Written Discrepancies Require Resentencing

Limits of Liberal Construction in PLRA Screening: The “Essential Grievance” Rule for Pro Se Prisoner Pleadings

Unsettled State-Law Merits Defeat Fraudulent Joinder: “No Possibility” Requires Clear Foreclosure of the In-State Claim

Daugherty v. Dingus: Juror’s Personal Fear and Claimed Familiarity Are “Internal” Deliberative Influences Under AEDPA

United States v. McMillan: Lay Investigative Testimony May Include Common-Sense Inferences; Uncorroborated Accomplice Testimony Can Sustain Conviction; New Rule 29 Grounds Are Forfeited Absent Manifest Miscarriage of Justice