Alabama Supreme Court Appellate Alert: Decisions from October 16, 2026

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The Alabama Supreme Court issued its weekly release list on Friday, October 16, which included the following orders and opinions of interest to the business community:

• Envoy Air, Inc. v. Creagh – A jury awarded $675,000 (including $425,000 in punitive damages) on a retaliatory-discharge claim. The Supreme Court affirmed, 5-4. Although some evidence suggested plaintiff was terminated by HR for falsifying a medical note, other evidence suggested she was terminated by a manager who fabricated evidence as a pretext to fire her for filing a worker’s compensation claim. The Supreme Court remanded for the trial court to provide reasons for its denial of the defendant’s motion for remittitur. Justice Sellers dissented, joined by Justice Parker, on the basis that plaintiff failed to show the stated reason for her termination was pretextual. Justice Cook, joined by Justice Wise, dissented on the basis that HR’s involvement in the termination showed plaintiff was not terminated “solely because” of a prohibited characteristic, as required by Alabama’s wrongful-termination statute.

• Ex parte UOP, LLC – After the defendants filed a motion to dismiss for improper venue, the circuit court left that motion pending and allowed discovery. The Supreme Court held that the circuit court exceeded its discretion and ordered it to rule on the defendants' challenge to venue “as expeditiously as possible” and to limit discovery to the venue issues. Justice Mendheim, joined by Chief Justice Stewart, dissented, reasoning that the trial court properly allowed limited discovery on venue and that the defendants’ petition was untimely.

If you have questions about these decisions or want to discuss any other matters relating to Alabama appellate law, please do not hesitate to reach out to any member of Maynard Nexsen’s Appellate Group.