Arkansas Supreme Court Addresses Immunity Defenses for Attorney General
The Arkansas Supreme Court recently clarified how sovereign immunity and statutory immunity apply to actions of the attorney general in Rutledge v. Remmel, 2022 Ark. 86 (Ark. 2022). Plaintiffs sued the attorney general in both her official and her individual capacity, seeking both injunctive and monetary relief. They alleged that the attorney general had filed…
Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Rules that Attorney General May Not Prosecute Election Law Violations
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals recently ruled, on separation of powers grounds, that the attorney general of Texas does not have authority to prosecute violations of Texas’ election laws, and that a statute purporting to give the attorney general that power is unconstitutional. Texas v. Stephens, No. PD-1033-20 (Tex. Crim. App. Dec. 15, 2021)….
Korean Company Has Sufficient Nexus with State to Permit Gas Price Manipulation Suit by California Attorney General
A recent decision by the California Court of Appeal clarified that, to demonstrate the court’s personal jurisdiction over a defendant in an antitrust case, the attorney general must simply establish that a defendant’s activities directed at the California market have a direct nexus with the anticompetitive conduct alleged in the complaint. SK Trading International Co….
Kansas Attorney General May Appeal Trial Court Decision After Intervening
The Kansas supreme court recently issued a decision on mask mandates which addressed the attorney general’s right to appeal after having intervened in the case. Butler v. Shawnee Mission Sch. Dist. Bd. of Educ., 2022 Kan. LEXIS 4 (Kan. Jan. 7, 2022). The school board of Shawnee Mission, Kansas adopted a mask mandate to address…
Recent Decisions on the Common Interest Doctrine and Multistate Cases
State courts in Minnesota and Vermont have reached different conclusions about whether documents produced and exchanged by state attorneys general, working together on investigations, are protected by the common interest doctrine from release under state public records acts. In each case, Energy Policy Advocates (EPA) made requests under the Minnesota and Vermont public records statutes…
Tennessee Attorney General Use of Investigative Demands Approved
A recent decision in Tennessee reaffirmed that attorney general’s civil investigative authority and upheld sanctions against a company who failed to produce the requested material. In In re Investigation of Wall and Assocs. 2021 Tenn. App. LEXIS 449 (Tenn. Ct. App. Nov. 12. 2021), the defendant was a provider of taxpayer services. The Tennessee attorney…
State Attorneys General May Obtain Disgorgement of Profits Obtained Outside the State
A New York district court recently reaffirmed the right of state attorneys general to seek disgorgement on a national level from defendants in antitrust cases brought by the states. The decision in FTC et al. v. Vyera Pharmaceuticals, No. 20cv00706 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 24, 2021) is particularly noteworthy because the Supreme Court recently limited the FTC’s…
Investigatory Authority of Hawaii Attorney General Affirmed
The Hawaii attorney general’s subpoena authority was recently upheld by the Hawaii supreme court in In re Investigation of KAHEA, 2021 Haw. LEXIS 213 (Haw. Sept. 20, 2021). The attorney general issued subpoenas to KAHEA, a community-based environmental justice organization that opposes development of a large telescope on Mauna Kea on the island of Maui….
Alaska Attorney General’s Common Law Powers Do Not Allow Suit Against Legislature
The reach of the Alaska attorney general’s common law powers was the central focus In Taylor v. Alaska Legislative Affairs Agency, No. 3AN-21-0639ICI (July 29, 2021). On June 16, 2021, the Alaska Legislature passed an appropriations bill to fund Alaska government for the year. The bill included a provision giving it effect on June 30,…
Personal Jurisdiction Over Attorneys General in Out-of-State Federal Courts
Two recent decisions in California and Arkansas reached different conclusions as to the court’s jurisdiction over a state attorney general based on the issuance of civil investigative demands (CIDs). In the more recent case, Twitter, Inc. v. Paxton, No. 21-cv-01644 (N.D. Cal. May 11, 2021), the Texas Attorney General’s Office (AGO) issued a CID to…
