Recent Articles

The Power of Video …

Christopher M. Ernst
April 19, 2008 10:43

The ABA Journal recently ran an interesting article about the power of video and the potential Achilles heel of Wal-Mart. It’s generally recognized that Wal-Mart approaches personal injury litigation with zealous earnestness. Obtaining discovery from Wal-Mart can be a difficult...

A Global Look at Punitive Damages

Christopher M. Ernst
March 27, 2008 14:28

A recent New York Times article provides an interesting look at punitive damage awards. Noting that punitive damages are a peculiar aspect of American law, many courts around the world have refused to allow plaintiffs to collect on American court judgments awarding punitive damages. But...

Negligent Hiring and Fiduciary Duties

Christopher M. Ernst
March 08, 2008 12:21

in a recent opinion by the 9th District Appellate Court, it was ruled that there is no fiduciary relationship created between a company and its customers when that company hires an employee. In the case Zanni v. Winfred Stelzer, 2007-Ohio-6215, the employer (a mortgage company) was sued by one of...

Ohio Tort Reform Upheld

Christopher M. Ernst
January 06, 2008 20:36

To the surprise of very few, the Ohio Supreme Court announced last week that it was affirming several sections of the 2004 Tort Reform Act. The Court ruled that legislation capping the amount of noneconomic damages that may be awarded to personal injury plaintiffs and placing limits on the amount...

Need for Tort Reform a Lie?

Christopher M. Ernst
July 29, 2007 10:10

In the great push for tort reform, one of the most often cited reasons is the need to rein in run-away juries in medical malpractice cases. But is this fear real? According to Professor Philip Peters, Jr. of the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law, juries are more likely to favor...

Ohio to recognize False Light claim?

Christopher M. Ernst
June 07, 2007 15:49

The Ohio Supreme Court issued a decision yesterday that appears to recognize the False Light tort claim. Not previously recognized in Ohio, False Light claims are a type of invasion of privacy claim. This case involved a dispute between private homeowners in Stark County and the owner of a...

Supreme Court Dismisses Uddin

Christopher M. Ernst
May 03, 2007 16:19

The Ohio Supreme Court on May 2, 2007 dismissed as improvidently accepted an appeal addressing the “Open and Obvious” Doctrine: Uddin v. Embassy Suites Hotel, 113 Ohio St.3d 1249, 2007-Ohio-1791. I reported on the Uddin oral argument in the lead article of the March/April 2007 issue of...

$261,000,000.00 …. and counting …

Christopher M. Ernst
April 15, 2007 13:45

The Plain Dealer reports, on April 15, 2007, that the cost of tort litigation is continuing to climb skywards. According to the article (using data produced by Towers Perrin), the tort system cost $2 billion dollars in 1950. In 10 years, that figured increased by 150%. In 10 more years, it...

Should Judges Be Allowed to Talk to Jurors?

Christopher M. Ernst
April 04, 2007 17:32

The 9th District Court of Appeals believes the answer is no. In the case Brody v. SCR-SCP, Inc., (2007 - Ohio - 1477, March 30, 2007), the 9th District ruled that a judge’s ex parte communications with a juror amounted to prejudicial error and overturned the defense verdict which was arrived...

Risks of E-Lawyering

Christopher M. Ernst
April 04, 2007 02:12

More and more lawyers are morphing their practices on the Internet, in one fashion or another. Chubb Insurance has prepared a great handbook on e-lawyering that is well worth the read. For a free download of the handbook, click here.