Marianna Bettman

Subscribe to Marianna Bettman's Posts

Ever since the 2002 case of Republican Party of Minnesota v. White,  in which the U.S. Supreme Court struck down, on First Amendment Grounds, the “announce clause” of the Minnesota Supreme Court’s Code of Judicial Conduct, which prohibited judges and judicial candidates from announcing their views on disputed legal or political issues, judicial elections have…

Update: read what happened on remand in this case here.

On April 28, 2015, the Supreme Court of Ohio handed down a merit decision in State v. Castagnola, 2015-Ohio-1565.  In a 4-3 opinion written by Justice Kennedy, for herself and Justices Pfeifer, O’Neill, and O’Donnell, the court held that the search warrant issued in…

Update: On July 14, 2015, the Supreme Court of Ohio dismissed this case as improvidently accepted.  Read more about that here.

Read the analysis of the oral argument here.

On May 5, 2015, the Supreme Court of Ohio will hear oral argument in the case of James P. Kuhn v. Kelly L. Kuhn n/k/a Cottle…

In  Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. v. Schwartzwald, 2012-Ohio-5017. a case in which the mortgage company did not own the note or mortgage at the time suit was filed, the Supreme Court of Ohio held that a plaintiff’s standing must be determined at the time suit is filed, because standing is necessary to…

On April 22, 2015, the Supreme Court of Ohio handed down a merit decision in Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. v. Horn,  2015-Ohio-1484. In a unanimous opinion written by Justice Kennedy, the court held that in a foreclosure action, while a plaintiff must have standing at the time suit is filed (this was the holding in…

On April 22, 2015, the Supreme Court of Ohio handed down a merit decision in Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. v. Horn,  2015-Ohio-1484. In a unanimous opinion written by Justice Kennedy, the court held that in a foreclosure action, while a plaintiff must have standing at the time suit is filed (this was the holding in…

On April 22, 2015, the Supreme Court of Ohio unanimously dismissed as improvidently certified SRMOF 2009-1 Trust v. Lewis, 2015-Ohio-1494. The case was argued February 25, 2015. The issue in the case, which was accepted on certified conflict, was whether a plaintiff in a foreclosure action must have an interest in both the…

Case Background

In 2007, Donald Landfair, then 78 years old (which means he is now 85 or 86—justice does move slowly!) boarded two of his horses, including Green Acre Annie (“Annie”) at Rochel Smith’s father’s stables. Rochel Smith was barn manager there.  In March of 2007, Landfair transported his horses by trailer to a blacksmith…

Read what happened on remand in this case here and here.

On April 2, 2015, the Supreme Court of Ohio handed down a merit decision in Sivit v. Village Green of Beachwood, L.P., 2015-Ohio-1193. In a unanimous opinion written by Justice Paul Pfeifer, the court held that this suit by a group of…

The Supreme Court of Ohio has set no oral arguments for the month of April. This is probably because the court needs time to catch up on its submitted cases. Arguments resume May 5.  Traditionally, the court tends not to hear new cases for most of the summer.  Unlike the U.S. Supreme Court, which decides…