ORDER STEVEN J. McAULIFFE, Chief Judge. The issues presented in this ancillary forfeiture matter are a bit convoluted, both legally and factually. The government seeks to forfeit a number of firearms as substitute property allegedly belonging to the defendant, Edward L. Brown. Bernhard Bastian, Jr., contests the government's forfeiture claims on grounds that he holds legal title to the property at issue, and that he acquired title before the government sought to forfeit the property. Both...
OPINION & ORDER JOSEPH N. LAPLANTE, District Judge. This products liability case arises out of severe and permanent injuries, including blindness, that plaintiff Karen Bartlett suffered after ingesting sulindac, a prescription drug manufactured by the defendant, Mutual Pharmaceutical Company. Bartlett brought claims against Mutual for strict liability (defective design), strict liability (failure to warn), fraud, and negligence under New Hampshire law. This court granted summary judgment to...
OPINION AND ORDER JOSEPH N. LAPLANTE, District Judge. This bitter dispute over a failed deal to buy a company raises questions about the reach of the promissory estoppel doctrine. The plaintiffs, Robert Rockwood and Roxana Marchosky, claim that the defendant, SKF USA Inc., "through its cumulative words, conduct, and acts of assurance, manifested an intention to purchase" the company they owned, Environamics, Inc. The plaintiffs further allege that they reasonably relied on this "promise" to...
ORDER LANDYA B. McCAFFERTY, United States Magistrate Judge. In this civil action, plaintiff, PC Connection, Inc. (hereinafter "plaintiff" or "PC Connection"), sues the defendant, Dayton Crabtree (hereinafter "defendant" or "Crabtree"), alleging cyberpiracy, trademark infringement, violations of state consumer protection law, and other federal claims under the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. 1051, et seq. Doc. No. 6. PC Connection is an online retailer that markets and sells computer products,...
MEMORANDUM OPINION JOSEPH N. LAPLANTE, District Judge. The question in this case is whether defendant HSW Financial Recovery, Inc. violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. 1692 et seq. ("FDCPA"), or state tort law by attempting to collect a debt from plaintiffs Steven Goldsmith and his company segNET Technologies, Inc. that, according to them, had already been paid in full. HSW has moved to dismiss the case under Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6),...
MEMORANDUM ORDER JOSEPH N. LAPLANTE, District Judge. This case arises from a dispute between two married couples over a business plan to produce, market, and sell pizza dough. Plaintiffs Martin and Julie Lapham, together with Martin's marketing company, Fin Brand Positioning, LLC, brought suit against defendants David and Dawn Tully and their company, Take 2 Dough Productions, Inc., alleging that the Tullys reneged on the business plan and misappropriated intellectual property that the...
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER PAUL BARBADORO, District Judge. Melissa Simmons appeals from the Social Security Commissioner's denial of her application for Disability benefits. She faults the Administrative Law Judge ("ALJ") who denied her claims both for failing to find that she met the requirements of the listing for multiple sclerosis and for refusing to seek testimony from a vocational rehabilitation expert before determining that a significant number of jobs existed in the national economy that...
ORDER LANDYA B. McCAFFERTY, United States Magistrate Judge. Plaintiff Coldwell Banker Real Estate, LLC ("CB") is a franchisor of real estate offices across the United States. Defendant Brian Moses ("Moses"), through his businesses, defendants Brian Moses Realty, Inc. and Brian Moses & Associates Realty, Inc. (collectively "BM Realty"), owned two CB franchises from September 1996 until January 2007, one in Nashua and the other in Salem, New Hampshire. This dispute arises out of that franchise...
MEMORANDUM ORDER JOSEPH N. LAPLANTE, District Judge. This products liability case, which arises from injuries allegedly caused by the prescription drug Sulindac, is scheduled to begin trial next week. In advance of trial, this court ordered the parties to brief whether the defendant Mutual Pharmaceutical Company has sufficient evidence to support its affirmative defenses based on (1) plaintiff Karen Bartlett's failure to stop taking the drug Sulindac and/or to seek medical care as soon as...
MEMORANDUM ORDER JOSEPH N. LAPLANTE, District Judge. This products liability case presents numerous disputes over the admissibility of expert testimony. Plaintiff Karen Bartlett, who took the generic drug Sulindac and suffered severe side effects, brought suit against the drug's manufacturer, Mutual Pharmaceutical Company, asserting state-law claims of strict products liability and negligence based on defective design. She alleges, in particular, that Sulindac's safety risks outweigh its...
ORDER JOSEPH N. LAPLANTE, District Judge. This case raises questions about the scope of law enforcement officers' authority to detain the occupants of a premises while executing valid search and arrest warrants there. Plaintiffs Thomas Mlodzinski, his wife Tina Mlodzinski, and their daughter, Jessica, have sued a number of officers who took part in executing warrants for the arrest of Tina's then-17 year-old son, Michael Rothman, for allegedly beating another man with a nightstick, and for...
OPINION & ORDER JOSEPH N. LAPLANTE, District Judge. The question in this case is whether a manufacturer may be held liable for injuries caused by a prescription drug. Plaintiff Karen Bartlett, who took the generic drug Sulindac and suffered severe side effects, brought suit against the drug's manufacturer, Mutual Pharmaceutical Company, asserting state-law claims of strict products liability, negligence, and fraud. She alleges, in particular, that Sulindac is an unreasonably dangerous...
MEMORANDUM ORDER JOSEPH N. LAPLANTE, District Judge. This case presents a question that has divided the federal circuit courts of appeal: whether a public employee may bring an employment discrimination claim under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA"), 42 U.S.C. 12132, which prohibits disability discrimination by public entities. Compare Bledsoe v. Palm Beach County Soil & Water Conservation Dist., 133 F.3d 816 (11th Cir.1998) (allowing such claims), with Zimmerman...
MEMORANDUM ORDER JOSEPH N. LAPLANTE, District Judge. These cases raise the question of whether an intervenor who presents no independent federal claims can persist in litigating an action that the principal parties seek to resolve upon a negotiated settlement. As explained below, the answer is no. I. Background Each of the cases was commenced by a provider of personal wireless services to challenge a decision by a local land use authority denying permission to construct a cellphone...
ORDER JAMES R. MUIRHEAD, United States Magistrate Judge. Plaintiff Northeastern Lumber Manufacturers Association ("NeLMA") is a trade association that certifies the grade and quality of lumber and whether lumber used in wood packaging materials has been treated according to industry standards governing the control of wood-borne insects and plant-based diseases. Defendants Northern States Pallet Company, Inc. ("Northern States") and its president, James H. Jackson ("Jackson"), were engaged in...
ORDER JAMES R. MUIRHEAD, United States Magistrate Judge. Plaintiffs, the Libertarian Party of New Hampshire ("LPNH") its chairman Brendan Kelly, Libertarian Party supporter Hardy Macia, and Libertarian candidates for the 2008 presidential election "Bob" Barr and his running mate, Wayne A. Root, brought this 42 U.S.C. 1983 action contending New Hampshire's statutory scheme for placing names of candidates on the general election ballot violates their First and Fourteenth Amendment rights....
