Disputed arbitration contract heading back to circuit court 
Continuing to work for a company does not, by itself, prove that an employee has agreed to be bound by an agreement to arbitrate employment disputes, a state appellate court said.
Class action suit resolved over unwanted calls
A $750,000 class-action settlement of a lawsuit over unwanted phone calls has won final approval in St. Louis Circuit Court.
The lawsuit filed in 2005 against 1-800-GOT-JUNK? and its St. Louis franchise Junk Doctors claimed the companies violated the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act by making unsolicited pre-recorded advertising calls.
The companies haul away old stuff from [...]
Corporate: Close Corporation - Dissolution - Shareholder Oppression
Waters v. G&B Feeds, Inc. (MLW No. 60335/Case No. SD29745 - 18 pages) (Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District, Barney, J.)
Where a trial court found that a corporate officer disregarded plaintiff’s interests as a shareholder by operating the business and making decisions without seeking her assent, borrowing money and refinancing debt without her input or [...]
Contracts: Breach Of Contract - Negligence - Plumbing Work
DeLong Plumbing Two, Inc. v. 3050 N. Kenwood LLC (MLW No. 60334/Case No. SD29589 - 9 pages) (Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District, Burrell, J.)
Where a plumbing company sued a property owner for breach of contract after the owner failed to pay for work and the owner brought a counterclaim for negligence, substantial evidence supported [...]
Insurance: Property Insurance - Indemnification - Business Expenses
George’s Inc. v. Allianz Global Risk US Insurance Co. (MLW No. 60310/Case No. 09-2220/09-2248 - 8 pages) (U.S. Court of Appeals, 8th Circuit, Wollman, J.)
Where a poultry processing company sought coverage under its property insurance and business interruption policy after an ice storm cut off electrical service resulting in the deaths of chickens, the policy [...]
Insurance: Medicare Supplement Policy - Rescission - Mistake
HealthEast Bethesda Hospital v. United Commercial Travelers of America (MLW No. 60308/Case No. 08-3665 - 6 pages) (U.S. Court of Appeals, 8th Circuit, Benton, J.)
Where an insurer agreed in a settlement with a hospital to pay the medical bills of its insured but then rescinded the policy based on a finding of a misrepresentation of [...]
Lathrop, lawyer ask for $120K for Polk case
It took three St. Louis firms nearly 500 hours of work valued at $120,000 to fight off a lawsuit filed by fraud victim James Helenthal.
Husch settles lawsuit over estate plan fees
An overbilling dispute between a client and Husch Blackwell Sanders came to a close this month. “[It] became a more complex estate plan that she neither needed nor requested,” her attorney, Timothy Monsees, [left] of Monsees, Miller, Mayer, Presley & Amick in Kansas City, said in an interview.
Pain management clinics settle over false claims
The U.S. Attorney’s Office reached an $820,000 settlement with owners of pain management clinics and the owner of a billing company for falsely submitting Medicare and Missouri Medicaid claims.
Jury awards $11M over hog farm
Jackson County Judge Jay Daugherty repeated 13 times the figure “$825,000″ Thursday afternoon as tearful farmers from Berlin, Mo., sat on the edges of the seat cushions they’d warmed for four weeks.
A jury awarded $825,000 each to 13 plaintiffs, farmers and their family members, with lesser amounts going to two other plaintiffs for a total [...]