Federal Judiciary

2008/06/02

R. GUY COLE, JR., Circuit Judge. Plaintiffs-Appellants Bernard Francis Schultz and Elizabeth Mary Sabatine (hereinafter ?the Schultzes?), husband and wife and residents of Hamilton County, Tennessee, filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 13 in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee. Independently, the Schultzes filed a complaint for declaratory judgment in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, alleging that the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (?BAPCPA? or ?the Act?) violates Article I, Section 8, Clause 4 of the Constitution (the ?Bankruptcy Clause?), which gives Congress the power to establish ?uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States.? U.S. CONST. art. 1, § 8, cl. 4 (emphasis added). The district court granted the Government?s motion for summary judgment and dismissed the Schultzes? complaint. For the following reasons, we AFFIRM the judgment of the district court.

2008/06/03

BERTELSMAN, District Judge. Plaintiff-Appellant Frank J. Lawrence, Jr. (?Lawrence?) appeals from the district court?s judgment dismissing his claims filed pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against officials of the State Bar of Michigan in connection with their denial of his application for a license to practice law. For the following reasons, we AFFIRM.

2008/06/05

PER CURIAM. Plaintiff sued his ex-wife claiming that her autobiographical book defamed him. The allegedly defamatory portions of the book describe two incidents of physical assault by plaintiff against defendant, and an allegation that plaintiff committed adultery during their marriage. After a bench trial, the district court entered judgment in favor of the defendant. Plaintiff appeals.