Piedmont President Unable to Shake Retaliation Conspiracy Claims

Allegations that officers of Piedmont University conspired to prevent witnesses from testifying against its president were revived, after the Eleventh Circuit found they weren’t barred by the statute of limitations.

It was the first time the Eleventh Circuit addressed an argument that the statute of limitations for an alleged Section 1985 conspiracy starts running from its first overt act—and that no other overt acts during the relevant period can be the basis of a claim.

The Eleventh Circuit said the Fifth Circuit, from which it branched off in 1981, rejected that argument in Mizell v. North Broward Hospital District in ...