Appellate

  • February 26, 2025

    5th Circ. Mulls Whether PPP Ineligibility Precludes Forgiveness

    A Fifth Circuit panel seemed wary Wednesday of buying a truck dealer's argument that the U.S. Small Business Administration should forgive its PPP loan, pondering whether doing so could have far-reaching consequences for litigation surrounding CARES Act loans.

  • February 26, 2025

    Cannabis Users' Gun Rights In Play In Multiple Cases

    In at least a half-dozen recent and pending federal cases, cannabis users have challenged a federal policy that bars users of illegal drugs from gun ownership, pushing courts to consider whether marijuana use makes one inherently dangerous or mentally ill.

  • February 26, 2025

    Planned Parenthood Immune From FCA Suit, 5th Circ. Says

    Planned Parenthood is entitled to attorney immunity, the Fifth Circuit said Wednesday in a case that had accused the organization of improperly billing Medicaid programs for millions after losing its Medicaid credentials.

  • February 26, 2025

    US Chamber Urges 6th Circ. To Back FedEx Pension Suit Toss

    The U.S. Chamber of Commerce urged the Sixth Circuit on Wednesday to affirm dismissal of FedEx retirees' suit alleging their pensions were undervalued due to outdated mortality data used in conversions, warning that a reversal in favor of the proposed class could set off a wave of new benefits litigation.

  • February 26, 2025

    Police Supply Store, Others Ask 5th Circ. To Keep CTA Paused

    A Texas police supply store joined with Mississippi libertarians and several other parties asking the Fifth Circuit to keep the Corporate Transparency Act on hold, saying ending the stoppage of that law could force 32 million business entities to file beneficial ownership reports.

  • February 26, 2025

    Wash. Judge Says Officials Are Immune To Energy Code Suit

    A Seattle federal judge has thrown out a building industry coalition's renewed legal challenge to Washington regulations that discourage natural gas appliances in new construction, ruling the state officials named as defendants are protected because they aren't responsible for enforcing the rules.

  • February 26, 2025

    'Congress Favors Arbitration' In EB-5 Suit, 11th Circ. Told

    A Canadian citizen who is accused in a Florida lawsuit of defrauding foreign investors told the Eleventh Circuit in a hearing Wednesday that a lower court wrongfully sent the case back to state court and denied a request to halt proceedings, telling the panel that "Congress favors arbitration."

  • February 26, 2025

    Trucking Cos. Can't Be Hauled Into Fla. Court Over Ga. Crash

    A Florida appeals court ruled Wednesday that a trucker and two companies that employed him don't have to face a wrongful death suit in the state over a deadly crash that occurred 10 miles north of the Florida-Georgia line.

  • February 26, 2025

    2nd Circ. Won't Revive Federal Claims In Uniswap Crypto Suit

    The Second Circuit affirmed Wednesday that Uniswap Labs and its venture capital backers can't be held liable under federal securities law for the sale of so-called scam tokens on the decentralized Uniswap exchange, but directed the New York federal judge who tossed the buyers' suit to take another look at their state law claims.

  • February 26, 2025

    No DQ For Norton Rose In Texas Competition Row, Court Says

    Norton Rose Fulbright shouldn't be disqualified in a competitive spat between two industrial maintenance companies even though the firm has represented both entities in recent years, a state appeals court has ruled.

  • February 26, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Won't Let Micron Out Of Sharing Source Code

    The Federal Circuit held Wednesday that Micron Technology Inc. can't get out of handing over what the company deemed "highly confidential" source code to Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. Ltd. in an ongoing dispute over flash memory chip patents.

  • February 26, 2025

    Committee Advances Conn. Appeals Judge's Nom To Top Court

    The Connecticut legislature's joint judiciary committee on Wednesday advanced the nomination of Appellate Court Chief Judge William H. Bright Jr. to the state's Supreme Court and send the names of a dozen other hopefuls — including attorneys from Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP, Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP and Shipman & Goodwin LLP — to the full legislature for consideration.

  • February 26, 2025

    Texas Chief Justice Blasts ABA, Urges 'Politically Neutral' Bar

    Texas Supreme Court Justice Jimmy Blacklock urged state lawmakers Wednesday to approve judicial pay hikes while denouncing the American Bar Association's criticism of federal policies and calling for the state bar to remain "politically neutral."

  • February 26, 2025

    Trade Group Urges 6th Circ. To Undo Moot NLRB Memo Ruling

    Michigan builders are seeking to undo a ruling axing their challenge to a Biden-era policy targeting mandatory anti-union meetings now that the National Labor Relations Board's acting general counsel has withdrawn the directive. 

  • February 26, 2025

    Solicitor General Pick Says Trump Won't Skirt Court Orders

    President Donald Trump's pick for U.S. Solicitor General told senators Wednesday that he saw no "plausible scenario" in which the president would defy a court order despite contrary suggestions from members of his administration, frustrating Democrats during a committee hearing on three U.S. Department of Justice nominees.

  • February 26, 2025

    Defunct Fla. Law Firm Can't Revive Suit Over Theft Case

    A Florida state appeals court has refused to revive defunct law firm Glary & Israel PA's malpractice suit against another firm for failing to sue a bank over theft by Glary & Israel's bookkeeper's.

  • February 26, 2025

    Justices Open To Nixing Higher Hurdle For Heterosexual Bias

    The U.S. Supreme Court hinted Wednesday that it will find heterosexual bias claims should not be held to a stricter burden of proof when it decides if an Ohio agent discriminated against a worker because she's straight, with Justice Samuel Alito noting "radical agreement" among the parties that the Sixth Circuit held her to a higher standard than other Title VII plaintiffs.

  • February 26, 2025

    In-Office Lobbying Ban Is Legal, Fla. Tells 11th Circ.

    The Florida Commission on Ethics defended a voter-approved state ban on lobbying by public officials to the Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday, arguing that the ban carefully balances protecting elected officials' speech with the government's interest in preventing corruption.

  • February 26, 2025

    Vets Press 9th Circ. To Affirm LA Campus Housing Judgment

    A group of veterans' organizations, retired military officers and legal scholars are urging the Ninth Circuit to uphold a California federal judge's decision that the federal government must build veterans housing on a Los Angeles campus, saying such housing is greatly needed and complies with federal law.

  • February 26, 2025

    DC Judge Extends Order Keeping Special Counsel In Place

    A D.C. federal judge on Wednesday ordered the Trump administration to keep the fired head of the U.S. Office of Special Counsel in the post for another three days while the court deliberates the merits of the federal employment watchdog's claims that President Donald Trump lacks the authority to remove him from office without cause.

  • February 26, 2025

    Trump Can't Enact Birthright Citizenship Order During Appeal

    A Massachusetts federal judge on Wednesday left in place a block on President Donald Trump's would-be order restricting birthright citizenship, rejecting a bid by the administration to implement the executive action while it appeals the matter to the First Circuit.

  • February 26, 2025

    7th Circ. Backs Black Mail Carrier Over Remarks From Bosses

    The Seventh Circuit said a trial court was too quick to toss a Black former mail carrier's claim that she was harassed when supervisors at the U.S. Postal Service called her "the help," ruling that the comments were frequent enough to show the mistreatment was pervasive.

  • February 26, 2025

    Mass. High Court Reaffirms No Private Right To Atty Discipline

    Massachusetts' highest court on Wednesday reaffirmed that there is no private right of action to compel the state bar to open an investigation or disciplinary proceedings.

  • February 26, 2025

    Supreme Court Backs Broad View Of Lawsuit Revival Rule

    Despite fears of "litigation gamesmanship," the U.S. Supreme Court held Wednesday that cases dismissed voluntarily can later be eligible for special judicial relief and reopening, even if a statute of limitations would typically block the lawsuit.

  • February 26, 2025

    Justices Vacate TM Award That Put Co.'s Affiliates On Hook

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday vacated an award that reached nearly $47 million in a trademark dispute that questioned whether affiliates of a real estate development company should be liable for the payment even though they were not defendants in the case.

Expert Analysis

  • False Patent Marking Claims Find New Home In Lanham Act

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    While the Patent Act may have closed the courthouse doors for many false patent marking claims, the Federal Circuit, in its recent decision in Crocs v. Effervescent, may be opening a window to these types of claims under the Lanham Act, says John Cordani at Robinson & Cole.

  • 3rd. Circ. Ruling Shows Employers Where To Put ADA Focus

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    A recent Third Circuit decision in Morgan v. Allison Crane & Rigging, confirming that the Americans with Disabilities Act protects some temporarily impaired employees, reminds employers to pursue compliance through uniform policies that head off discriminatory decisions, not after-the-fact debates over an individual's disability status, says Joseph McGuire at Freeman Mathis.

  • Nvidia Case's Potential Impact On Securities Class Actions

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    In Nvidia v. Ohman Fonder, the U.S. Supreme Court could strip lower courts of their long-standing ability and obligation to holistically weigh all relevant facts supporting plaintiffs' allegations of securities fraud, which would have a wide-ranging impact on securities fraud class actions in the U.S., say attorneys at Labaton Keller.

  • Justices Face Tough Question On HHS Hospital Pay Formula

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    In Advocate Christ Medical Center v. Becerra, the U.S. Supreme Court will determine whether the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services properly applied certain Medicare reimbursement adjustments to hospitals — a decision that could significantly affect hospitals' ability to seek higher Medicare reimbursement for low-income patients, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • How Attorneys Can Break Free From Career Enmeshment

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    Ambitious attorneys can sometimes experience career enmeshment — when your sense of self-worth becomes unhealthily tangled up in your legal vocation — but taking the time to discover and realign with your core personal values can help you recover your identity, says Janna Koretz at Azimuth Psychological.

  • Where Can Privacy Plaintiffs Sue When Injury Is Online?

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    Website owners need to understand wiretapping laws to understand whether they may be sued for activity tracking in California or Pennsylvania courts, where the statutory damages for violations of half-century-old laws can be substantial — and a recent Third Circuit decision suggests establishing specific jurisdiction is not as easy as 1-2-3, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • Short-Seller Implications Of 10th Circ.'s Overstock Decision

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    The Tenth Circuit's Oct. 15 decision in Overstock Securities Litigation provides clarity on the pleading standard for a market manipulation claim under the Exchange Act, and suggests that short sellers might not be able to rely on the fraud-on-the-market presumption typically invoked by securities plaintiffs, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.

  • Patent Lessons From 4 Federal Circuit Reversals In September

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    Cases that were reversed or vacated by the Federal Circuit last month provide helpful clarity on collateral estoppel, patent eligibility, construction of claim terms that have different boundaries across different claims, and the role of courts as neutral arbiter, say attorneys at Bunsow De Mory.

  • 11th Circ. Ruling Offers Refresher On 'Sex-Plus' Bias Claims

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    While the Eleventh Circuit’s recent ruling in McCreight v. AuburnBank dismissed former employees’ sex-plus-age discrimination claims, the opinion reminds employers to ensure that workplace policies and practices do not treat a subgroup of employees of one sex differently than the same subgroup of another sex, say attorneys at Bradley Arant.

  • Ex-Chicago Politician's Case May Further Curb Fraud Theories

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    The U.S. Supreme Court recently agreed to hear Thompson v. U.S. to determine whether a statement that is misleading but not false still violates federal law, potentially heralding the court’s largest check yet on prosecutors’ expansive fraud theories, with significant implications for sentencing, say attorneys at the Law Offices of Alan Ellis.

  • Lawyers With Disabilities Are Seeking Equity, Not Pity

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    Attorneys living with disabilities face extra challenges — including the need for special accommodations, the fear of stigmatization and the risk of being tokenized — but if given equitable opportunities, they can still rise to the top of their field, says Kate Reder Sheikh, a former attorney and legal recruiter at Major Lindsey & Africa.

  • High Stakes In Justices' Review Of Clean Air Act Venue Fights

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    Disputes over the Clean Air Act's venue provision may seem arcane, but a forthcoming U.S. Supreme Court decision encompassing three cases will affect core principles of the separation of powers and constitutional due process in ways that could have significant consequences for the regulated community, say J. Michael Showalter and David Loring at ArentFox Schiff.

  • Testing The Waters As New Texas Biz Court Ends 2nd Month

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    Despite an uptick in filings in the Texas Business Court's initial months of operation, the docket remains fairly light amid an apparent wait-and-see approach from some potential litigants, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

  • Employer Lessons From Mass. 'Bonus Not Wages' Ruling

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    In Nunez v. Syncsort, a Massachusetts state appeals court recently held that a terminated employee’s retention bonus did not count as wages under the state’s Wage Act, illustrating the nuanced ways “wages” are defined by state statutes and courts, say attorneys at Segal McCambridge.

  • Opinion

    Judicial Committee Best Venue For Litigation Funding Rules

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    The Advisory Committee on Civil Rules' recent decision to consider developing a rule for litigation funding disclosure is a welcome development, ensuring that the result will be the product of a thorough, inclusive and deliberative process that appropriately balances all interests, says Stewart Ackerly at Statera Capital.

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