On September 1, 2022, U.S. District Judge David Cercone (U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania) entered an order dismissing, with prejudice, all claims against the president of a bank who had been sued for alleged Section 1983 federal civil rights violations regarding the account of a now-incarcerated prisoner. The claims—which were entirely without merit—were defeated on the basis of Rule 12(b)(6) (motion to dismiss) briefing submitted by Pohl and Burns White on behalf of the bank’s president. In the resulting report and recommendation of the U.S. Magistrate Judge, adopted by the U.S. District Judge, the court agreed with Burns White’s arguments and held that: “Plaintiff fail[ed] to state a plausible Section 1983 claim against [the bank president] for alleged violations of his rights under the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments” of the U.S. Constitution. As a result, the firm’s banking client and its president are excused from further involvement in the case.
