Plaintiff Sat on Her Rights and Lost Them
Barry Zalma
Read the full article at https://lnkd.in/gVXjrP5v and at https://zalma.com/blog.
Sharon Motley appealed the district court’s dismissal of her putative class action brought against Hal Taylor in his official capacity as Secretary of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (“ALEA”) for failing to warn her that her drivers license was suspended. In Sharon Motley, on behalf of herself and those similarly situated v. Hal Taylor, in his official capacity as Secretary of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, No. 20-11688, United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit (May 12, 2022)
FACTUAL BACKGROUND
In 2013, the Montgomery County District Court ordered Motley to pay fines and court costs after she pled guilty to a traffic ticket. Motley did not pay the ticket because she could not afford to do so. Motley’s driver’s license was suspended for failure to pay her fines. She had not received prior notice that her driver’s license would be suspended if she did not pay the ticket. Before suspending her license for failure to pay, neither the court nor ALEA-which administers all state laws relating to the operation of vehicles-held a hearing to determine whether her failure to pay was willful.
Employers rescinded job offers to Motley after learning of Motley’s suspended driver’s license because without a valid license it was impossible for her to perform certain job functions like deposit checks or travel for work.
Motley’s Lawsuit
Motley sued Taylor in his official capacity, seeking declaratory and injunctive relief on behalf of herself and a putative class of “[a]ll individuals whose driver’s licenses are suspended for nonpayment of traffic tickets.”
Motley’s complaint alleged in a single claim that Alabama R. Crim. P. 26.11(i)(3)-which authorizes license suspensions for failures to pay traffic fines-violates the Equal Protection and Due Process Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment.
Specifically, Motley alleged that Rule 26.11(i)(3) authorizes the suspension of a driver’s license for nonpayment of traffic fines or court costs without prior notice, the opportunity to be heard, or an express finding that the individual is able to pay and willfully failed to do so.
The district court (1) denied Taylor’s motion to dismiss to the extent it was based on the statute of limitations but (2) granted Taylor’s motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim on the merits.
DISCUSSION
The parties agree that, because Motley filed her claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 in Alabama, the applicable statute of limitations period is two years. The statute of limitations begins to run on the date where the facts which would support a cause of action are apparent or should be apparent to a person with a reasonably prudent regard for his rights.
The district court found that
the state court suspended Motley’s driver’s license for failure to pay in December 2013; and
she knew or should have known of her suspended license before July 3, 2017.
Thus, Motley’s two-year clock began to run sometime before July 3, 2017, and her claim was time-barred unless an exception to the statute of limitation applies.
IS THERE AN EXCEPTION TO THE STATUTE
Motley argued that the indefinite suspension of her license was a continuing violation. A plaintiff may bring an otherwise time-barred claim when additional violations occur within the statutory period. Applying the continuing violation doctrine the appellate court must distinguish between the present consequence of a one time violation, which does not extend the limitations period, and the continuation of that violation into the present, which does. The continuing violation doctrine is not triggered merely because the harm caused by the defendant’s action continues after the limitations period.
Motley alleged a continuing harm, not a continuing violation. While Motley’s claim does encompass an equal protection injury, that injury stems from the alleged due process violations, all of which occurred on or before December 20, 2013, when her license was suspended.
The court concluded that all of Motley’s alleged injuries stem from the 2013 suspension of her driver’s license without an opportunity to be heard or to prove her indigency. Accordingly, her claim is time-barred.
Motley’s claim against Taylor accrued at least sometime before July 3, 2017. Thus, her complaint was untimely when she filed it on July 3, 2019. And the continuing violation doctrine does not apply to save her from the statute of limitations.
ZALMA OPINION
Stale claims make it impossible for a court to deal fairly with an allegation of wrongdoing because witnesses either forget or are unavailable to testify. No litigant should be required to defend against a stale claim. Motley, perhaps because the suit was frivolous, waited four years after the accrual of a cause of action to sue and, therefore, her case was dismissed and the trial court’s decision was affirmed.
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(c) 2022 Barry Zalma & ClaimSchool, Inc.
Barry Zalma, Esq., CFE, now limits his practice to service as an insurance consultant specializing in insurance coverage, insurance claims handling, insurance bad faith and insurance fraud almost equally for insurers and policyholders. He practiced law in California for more than 44 years as an insurance coverage and claims handling lawyer and more than 54 years in the insurance business. He is available at http://www.zalma.com and [email protected].
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Insurance Expert May Not Testify to Speculative and Contains Unsupported Conclusions.
Posted on September 18, 2026 by Barry Zalma
See the full video at and at https://rumble.com/v7fmifw-expert-may-only-testify-to-what-experience-supports.html
In Michele A. Over, and The Estate Of Paul R. Over v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, and State Farm Fire And Casualty Company, Civil Action No. 23-cv-02243-PAB-STV, United States District Court, D. Colorado (September 14, 2026) Michele and Paul Over sued State Farm Fire and State Farm Auto over hail-damage and stolen-vehicle claims.
The operative dispute concerned State Farm Auto’s motion to exclude or limit opinions from plaintiffs’ insurance-industry expert, Aaron Castillo. Castillo.
Law
The proponent of expert testimony must establish by a preponderance of the evidence that an expert is qualified and that the opinions are helpful, sufficiently grounded, and reliably derived and applied. Experience-based opinions must explain how the...
150 Months in Prison for Tax Fraud
Post 4846
Posted on September 17, 2026 by Barry Zalma
See the full video at https://lnkd.in/g8rh3JBX and https://lnkd.in/gmkdy-9C, In United States Of America v. Thomas Addaquay, Nos. 25-10609, 25-10611, United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit (September 9, 2026) the Eleventh Circuit affirmed all challenged convictions, the 150-month aggregate sentence, and the challenged $4,123,474.55 restitution award.
FACTS
In United States Of America v. Thomas Addaquay, United States Of America v. Thomas Addaquay, Nos. 25-10609, 25-10611, United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit (September 9, 2026) the Eleventh Circuit affirmed all challenged convictions, the 150-month aggregate sentence, and the challenged $4,123,474.55 restitution award.
FACTS
Thomas Addaquay controlled United Consolidated Accounting and Business Services (UC), nominally a check-cashing business.
The government proved a three-stage tax-refund scheme that converted the resulting refund checks into usable funds through ...
Major Fraud Perpetrator Asserts Fifth Amendment Privilege to Avoid Prosecution
Post 5489
Posted on September 14, 2026 by Barry Zalma
Fraudster Refuses to Answer Questions About His Alleged Fraud
See the full video at https://lnkd.in/gvicAMDr and at https://lnkd.in/gvicAMDr
In Great American Insurance Co. v. Gemstone Property Management, LLC, et al., No. 23-cv-9100 (LJL), United States District Court, S.D. New York (September 8, 2026) Great American Insurance Company alleged that it was defrauded through a scheme in which Subin Associates, LLP recruited individuals to stage construction-site injuries, arranged unnecessary medical treatment and litigation funding, and pursued fraudulent personal-injury claims.
Luis Manuel Garcia Salcedo, resulted in a $6 million settlement. Non-party Jose Hernandez allegedly worked as an assistant manager at Subin, operated Hernandez Associates, and owned litigation-funding companies that shared office space with Subin and provided services to its clients.
After Great American ...
Employee Report of Fraud Results in Damages Suit After Qui Tam Suit Settled
No Statutory Hearing Right Arose Because No Dental Commission Complaint License Suspension, Revocation, Or Sanction Occurred.
Post 4855
Posted on October 2, 2026 by Barry Zalma
In Abbas Mohammadi et al. v. William M. Tong et al., No. AC 47598, Court of Appeals of Connecticut (September 29, 2026) Abbas Mohammadi owned and operated Columbia Dental, P.C., which provided dental services through multiple Connecticut offices; Columbia Oral Maxillofacial Imaging, LLC served as the billing entity.
From April 2012 to February 27, 2013, Columbia Dental employed Brittany Ames Mahoney as a dental assistant. During her employment, Mahoney claimed to have discovered certain billing irregularities, including, but not limited to, false and fraudulent reimbursement claims submitted to the Department of Social Services for services rendered to Medicaid beneficiaries. Mahoney filed a complaint and an affidavit in the United States District Court for the District of...
Another Anniversary for Barry Zalma, Inc
Posted on October 1, 2026 by Barry Zalma
From October 1, 1979 – 2026
Post 4854
Read the full issue of ZIFL at https://zalma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/ZIFL-10-01-2026.pdf Forty seven years ago today I left the world of the employed and became an entrepreneur by opening my own law firm. The law practice was incorporated shortly thereafter as Barry Zalma, Inc.
When I opened for business on October 1, 1979, I had no clients and no certainty that I would have any in the future. I had borrowed money from the bank to carry me through the first six months and was concerned about my ability to pay the loan with my third child about to be born.
Much to my surprise and pleasure, on October 1, 1979, at 8:10 a.m., the best claims handler in the London market, Alan Warboys, called from London and provided me with my first case as an independent lawyer to represent Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s, London. He, and the Lloyd’s Underwriters he represented, showed faith in me as a lawyer and insurance expert. Alan is now, although ...
Defendants Successfully Moved for Summary Judgment
Post 4854
Posted on September 30, 2026 by Barry Zalma
In Jeffrey Wayne Phillips v. Creative Website Studios, et al., No. 5:23-CV-568-BO-BM, United States District Court, E.D. North Carolina, Western Division (September 28, 2026) the Court needed to rule on the order and memorandum and recommendation (“M&R”) of the Magistrate.
Jeffrey Wayne Phillips had contracted with Creative Website Studios and SR Telecommunications for website and hosting services. He alleged that defendants repeatedly billed him for hosting periods he had already paid for and later took down his website. Phillips claimed the outage prevented him from bidding on U.S. government security contracts and sought roughly $300 million in consequential damages.
LAW
Under North Carolina law, fraud requires a false material representation or concealment, intent and effect of deception, resulting damage, and reasonable reliance. Obtaining property by false pretenses similarly requires an ...
