A brief was filed in the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of the Ohio petitioners seeking recognition in Ohio of their valid out-of-state same-sex marriages. The petitioners contend that the State of Ohio must list them as parents on their children’s birth certificates and recognize the spouse on death certificates if one partner dies. Petitioners […]
Even with the Ohio Statute prohibiting traffic cameras without a police officer present ( SB 342) and the Ohio Supreme Court’s ruling finding administrative appeals of traffic camera tickets constitutional (Walker v. City of Toledo, Slip Opinion No. 2014-Ohio-5461. ), there is still plenty of litigation around concerning traffic cameras. For example, in Butler County,
Traffic Camera Litigation Continues: Butler County Case Asserts Due Process Violations Read Post »
The Ohio Supreme Court held that City of Munroe Falls’ ordinances requiring drillers to get a conditional zoning certificate, pay a deposit for a performance bond, hold a public hearing and a wait a year before drilling were preempted by State law regulating drilling. Justice French wrote the lead opinion joined by Justices O’Connor and
In State v. Brown, 6th Dist. No. WD-12-070, 2013-Ohio-5351, the Sixth District Court of Appeals found that evidence obtained from a traffic stop outside the officer’s jurisdiction had to be excluded pursuant to Art. I, Section 14 of the Ohio Constitution, which prohibits unlawful searches and seizures. The search and seizure did not violate the
Recently enacted Ohio legislation, H.B. 5, imposes numerous changes on municipal taxes, including: Employers do not have to withhold municipal tax for an employee until the employee has worked 20 days in the municipality (it used to be 12). For municipal tax purposes, companies can carry forward net operating losses for five years to offset
Does the Ohio Municipal Tax Reform Act Violate Home Rule? Read Post »
Yesterday, the Ohio Supreme Court decided that when a defendant asserts a mental-capacity defense and then abandons it, psychologist’s testimony regarding defendant’s feigning of mental illness violates defendant’s right against self-incrimination guaranteed by Article I, Section 10 of the Ohio Constitution and the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution. State v. Harris, Slip Opinion
The Supreme Court agreed to hear cases upholding bans in four states on same-sex marriages and recognition of same-sex marriages legally performed in other states. The four states involved are Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan and Tennessee. The Court accepted two issues for review: 1) Does the Fourteenth Amendment require a state to license a marriage between two
U.S. Supreme Court to Review Ohio Ban on Same-Sex Marriage Read Post »
Texas Eastern Transmission, a private Texas pipeline corporation, moved for immediate possession of land in Belmont County, Ohio, based upon federal approval of a pipeline route. See Texas Eastern Transmission, LP v. 3.2 Acres Permanent Easement and 4. Acres Temporary Easement of Land in Colerain Township, Belmont County, Ohio, S.D. Ohio, Case No. 2:14-cv-02650, MOTION
The Ohio Supreme Court held that administrative appeals of traffic camera tickets did not unconstitutionally usurp the powers of municipal courts as set forth in the Ohio Constitution. The case involved the City of Toledo’s practice of diverting challenges to traffic camera violation notices to an administrative hearing officer set up within the police department.
Traffic Camera Appeals Process is Constitutional, Ohio Supreme Court Rules Read Post »
What started off as an admirable effort to curb Lake Erie pollution and to enforce Ohio oil and gas laws ended up including language to weaken recently passed legislation against puppy mills, as well as provisions possibly endangering basic land-line telephone services. H.B. 490, as passed by the Ohio House this November, includes all those
HB 490 Violates the One Subject Rule, Rolls Back Puppy Mill Legislation Read Post »