Justia U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

Petitioner, a native and citizen of India, petitioned for review of the BIA's order affirming the IJ's decision that petitioner failed to establish a clear probability of persecution on return to India on the basis of his political opinion and thus was not entitled to withholding of removal under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), 8 U.S.C. 1231, and withholding of removal under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). The court concluded that substantial evidence in the record supported the determination that petitioner was not entitled to withholding of removal under the INA. Further, because substantial evidence supported the conclusion that petitioner was not more likely than not to face torture if removed to India, the court concluded that the IJ and the Board did not err in finding petitioner ineligible for withholding of removal under the CAT. Finally, petitioner failed to establish that his due process rights were violated by having an incompetent interpreter that provided inadequate translation. View "Singh v. Holder, Jr." on Justia Law

Plaintiffs appealed the district court's order dismissing their putative class action complaint, claiming that LP negligently designed and manufactured Trimboard, a composite building product designed and marketed for use as exterior trim around windows and doors, and violated the provisions of the North Carolina Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices Act (UDTPA), N.C. Gen. Stat. 75-1.1 et seq. The court held that the district court did not err in deciding that plaintiffs' negligence claims were barred by North Carolina's economic loss rule (ELR); the district court properly dismissed the UDTPA claim; and the district court properly dismissed the declaratory judgment claim. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment. View "Ellis v. Louisiana-Pacific Corp." on Justia Law

Plaintiffs, natives of Somalia and members of the Isaaq clan, alleged that they or members of their families were subject to torture, arbitrary detention, and extrajudicial killings by government agents under the command and control of defendant, a former high-ranking government official in Somalia. At issue was whether defendant was immune from suit under the Torture Victim Protection Act of 1991 (TVPA), 28 U.S.C. 1350, and the Alien Tort Statute (ATS), 28 U.S.C. 1350. The court gave deference to the State Department's position on status-based immunity doctrines such as head-of-state immunity but, in contrast, the State Department's determination regarding conduct-based immunity was not controlling but carried substantial weight in the court's analysis. Because this case involved acts that violated jus cogens norms, the court concluded that defendant was not entitled to conduct-based official immunity under the common law. Accordingly, the court affirmed the district court's denial of both head-of-state and foreign official immunity to defendant. View "Yousuf v. Samantar" on Justia Law