Notable Petitions

Two recently filed petitions are worth noting: U.S. Bank National Association ND v. Thomas (09-1161), which challenges certain state-law usury claims against banks, and Norfolk Dredging Company v. Misener Marine Construction, Inc. (09-1164), which seeks to clarify the status of certain state statutes affecting maritime law.  The briefs in opposition have not yet been filed, but the petitions and their questions presented appear below the jump.

Title: U.S. Bank National Association ND v. Thomas
Docket: 09-1161
Issues: (1) Whether state-law usury claims against state-chartered, federally insured banks are completely preempted by a provision of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980 now codified at 12 U.S.C. § 1831d; and (2) whether the definition of the term “interest” under 12 U.S.C. § 85 may be limited to periodic percentage interest rates, excluding many types of fees charged in connection with a loan (or other extension of credit).

• Opinion below (8th Circuit)
• Petition for certiorari
• Amicus brief of the American Bankers Association et al.

Title: Norfolk Dredging Company v. Misener Marine Construction, Inc.
Docket: 09-1164
Issues: (1) Whether the Supreme Court should overrule the doctrine that state statutes that “work material prejudice to the characteristic features of the general maritime law [or] interfere with the proper harmony and uniformity of that law in international and interstate relations” are impliedly preempted; and (2) whether a state statute granting attorneys’ fees to a prevailing party is preempted in light of the Supreme Court’s prior concern for substantive state law “rules upon which maritime actors rely in making decisions about primary conduct.”

• Opinion below (11th Circuit)
• Petition for certiorari