January 27
1926: The case of Euclid v. Amber Realty Co. is argued in the Supreme Court. This case upheld the constitutionality of local zoning ordinances, concluding that zoning is a constitutional exercise of police power, thus laying the foundation for this essentially universal form of land use regulation. 272 US 365 (1926).1908: Adair v. United States decided. The constitutionality of the Erdman Act was challenged by an employer who had discharged an employee for union activity, holding that it was an unlawful invasion of property rights protected by the Fifth Amendment and the guarantees of due process. In writing for the Court, Justice Harlan suggested the equality of management and labor in the bargaining arrangement, and held the law to be an undue encroachment on personal liberty and private property rights, in violation of the Fifth Amendment. In addition, reaching back into early arguments over substantive due process and the free labor ideology, Justice Harlan associated the right of freedom of contract with the Fifth Amendment. He found that attempts to regulate union activity on either side of the bargaining table were outside of Congress' constitutional power under the Commerce Clause, and that there was "no legal or logical connection" between interstate commerce and union membership. 208 US 161 (1908).

Masters Law Group (formerly Wiggins & Masters) litigates civil appeals in every state and federal appellate court in Washington State. Mr. Masters was an appellate law clerk, Ms. Lemmel was a judicial extern in both state and federal courts, and Mr. Crisalli was a judicial extern in Oregon and an appellate law clerk in Washington. Our paralegal, Cheryl Fox, is an experienced attorney who handles record and other issues for us.

Our appeals have involved nearly every area of life and the law, from accord and satisfaction to banking, class actions to constitutional rights (state and federal), contracts to covenants, deeds of trust to easements, election law to employment discrimination, family law to guardianships, health care to intellectual property, insurance coverage to jury trials, kayaks to landlords & tenants, malpractice (legal and medical) to negligence (personal injury plaintiffs & defendants), officers & directors (corporations) to partnerships, parental rights to probates, products liability to quiet title actions, railroads to real estate, securities to statutes, trusts & estates to usury, venue to water rights, wills to witnesses, and from workers compensation to zoning - and ZZ Top (yes, we represented that little ol' band from Texas).

We enjoy assisting trial counsel in anticipating appellate issues, but the far greater part of our practice is directly in the appellate courts. Our broad and deep experience enables us to represent clients efficiently and effectively.

Our Team Our Cases
Google

Search WWW Search appeal-law.com