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Appellate
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August 02, 2024
5th Circ. Tosses 1988 Case In Galveston Voting Rights Ruling
Multiple minority groups cannot "combine forces" to bring vote dilution claims under a portion of the Voting Rights Act that prohibits race discrimination, the Fifth Circuit said, overruling a decades-old case in a blockbuster decision regarding Galveston County's voting districts.
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August 02, 2024
2nd Circ. Backs Conviction Over Fake-Therapy Scheme
The Second Circuit on Friday refused to overturn the conviction of a therapist who was found guilty of bilking a New York state program for developmentally disabled children, saying the trial court didn't err in declining to excuse a juror who had loose ties to a government witness.
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August 02, 2024
Panel Says Co. Forfeited $12.7M Claim Over Rail Project
A Colorado Court of Appeals panel has found that a construction company overstated how much it was owed from a public project to build a new Denver rail line and can't seek any remedy for that $12.7 million claim, according to an opinion that applied provisions of a public works law for the first time.
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August 02, 2024
Justices Urged To Hear Standing Issue For Patent Licensors
The U.S. Supreme Court has been asked to give its take on whether the terms of a decade-old loan can be used to create issues over legal standing and exclusionary rights in a lawsuit tied to radio frequency developed in the mid-2000s.
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August 02, 2024
Nonprofit Presses 5th Circ. To Keep 'Life-Saving' Parole Policy
A Massachusetts community group called on the Fifth Circuit Friday to maintain an embattled immigration program allowing Haitian nationals to be paroled into the U.S., arguing the policy's critics haven't shown the program harms them.
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August 02, 2024
9th Circ. Revives Indian's Asylum Bid To Flee Persecution
A split Ninth Circuit panel on Friday ruled the Board of Immigration Appeals wrongly denied an Indian national's asylum petition, saying the past threats and a beating he received from political opponents in India amounted to persecution.
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August 02, 2024
Patients Ink $1M Deal To Settle Pharmacy Data-Breach Claims
A home-delivery pharmacy service struck by a data breach in 2021 has agreed to pay $1 million to settle a class action brought by plaintiffs whose personal information was compromised, according to a Friday filing.
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August 02, 2024
Paper Cos. Challenge Superfund Liability At 6th Circ.
International Paper Co. and Weyerhaeuser Co. on Thursday asked the Sixth Circuit to reverse a Michigan federal judge who found that they can be sued for future cleanup costs of a Michigan Superfund site.
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August 02, 2024
3rd Circ. Backs Ex-NJ Firefighter's $50M Drug Fraud Sentence
The Third Circuit backed the eight-year prison sentence handed to a former New Jersey firefighter convicted for his role in a $50 million healthcare fraud scheme, rejecting his argument he was wrongly punished for taking his case to trial.
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August 02, 2024
4 ERISA Excessive Health Fee Suits To Watch
The Third Circuit will decide whether to revive a suit from MetLife workers alleging their pharmacy benefits were mismanaged, while suits proceed in district court against Wells Fargo and Johnson & Johnson alleging they violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act via high drug costs a pharmacy benefit manager charged workers. Here, Law360 looks at four cases involving claims that employers violated ERISA by charging high healthcare costs — including for prescription drugs — that attorneys are watching.
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August 02, 2024
Colo. Appeals Panel Rejects Lower Tax Rate For Hospital
A Colorado rehabilitation hospital should be classified as a commercial property for tax purposes because it was predominantly designed for its services and not for residency, a state appeals court said, reversing a state assessment board.
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August 02, 2024
8th Circ. Says Mining Co. Can't Escape Peruvians' Claims
The Eighth Circuit refused to overturn a ruling greenlighting litigation filed by more than 1,400 Peruvian nationals against U.S. billionaire Ira Rennert and his holding company The Renco Group seeking to hold them liable for alleged lead poisoning tied to a smelting and refining complex in rural Peru.
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August 02, 2024
Full 6th Circ. Won't Allow Worker's Experts Back In Injury Suit
The full Sixth Circuit won't review a panel's decision to toss two expert witnesses a former Marathon Petroleum Co. LP barge worker relied on to support his claims that the company's failure to render prompt and proper treatment contributed to his worsening health.
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August 02, 2024
2nd Circ. OKs 33 Months For Ex-DOJ Paralegal's Video Leaks
In an unpublished opinion Friday, the Second Circuit upheld a former U.S. Department of Justice paralegal's 33-month sentence for helping her gang-affiliated son expose two associates who cooperated with a law enforcement probe into a 2018 robbery.
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August 02, 2024
Mich. Judge DQ'd Over 'Disdain' Of Ineffective-Counsel Claims
A Michigan state judge showed bias in favoring a criminal defendant's trial counsel who had previously clerked for the court, a state appeals court found Thursday, disqualifying the judge from presiding over the defendant's ineffective-assistance of counsel hearing.
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August 02, 2024
Mich. AG Says Enbridge 6th Circ. Rehearing Bid Is Meritless
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel is fighting Enbridge Energy's bid for a full Sixth Circuit rehearing on a decision to send a challenge to its Line 5 pipeline back to state court, saying none of the company's arguments against remand are viable.
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August 02, 2024
Manhattan DA Slams Trump's 'Regurgitated' Recusal Bid
The Manhattan district attorney pilloried Donald Trump's renewed request for the judge overseeing his hush money case to recuse himself, branding it a "regurgitated" attempt to rehash issues the court already decided without any new facts — besides Kamala Harris' presidential bid.
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August 02, 2024
DC Circ. Rejects Speech Rights Challenge To DMCA
A D.C. Circuit panel on Friday knocked down a challenge to a provision of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act that bars circumventing digital locks on copyrighted material, ruling that the law is in line with the First Amendment.
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August 02, 2024
Land Sale Deals Allowed In Colo. Eminent Domain Dispute
A Colorado appeals court ruled against the city of Westminster in its eminent domain action, ruling that three comparable sales contracts and an adjacent land parcel's $51.5 million purchase and sale contract can be admitted as evidence in a valuation trial.
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August 02, 2024
DC Circ. Says Precedent Allows H-1B Spousal Work Permits
The D.C. Circuit on Friday upheld an Obama-era program authorizing some spouses of highly skilled foreign workers to get work permits, rejecting a challenge from an organization of former IT workers who say they are being displaced by temporary visa holders.
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August 02, 2024
Plumbing Co. Sales Reps Owed OT, 1st Circ. Affirms
A group of more than 600 sales representatives at a Massachusetts-based plumbing and HVAC wholesaler are eligible for overtime pay, the First Circuit concluded on Thursday, affirming a lower court's finding on a Fair Labor Standards Act complaint brought by the government.
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August 02, 2024
Geico Auto Policy Doesn't Cover HPV Claim, 8th Circ. Says
Geico doesn't have to cover a woman's claim that she contracted HPV during sexual encounters in a policyholder's car, the Eighth Circuit ruled Friday, saying the woman's injuries did not arise out of the "use" of the vehicle as required by the auto policy.
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August 02, 2024
11th Circ. Reopens Emory Suit Over Sex Assault Hearing
Emory University must face a male student's suit claiming he was mistreated during a hearing about sexual assault accusations against him, the Eleventh Circuit ruled, saying he'd provided enough details to suggest the school's sexual misconduct policy created an implied contract between them.
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August 02, 2024
4th Circ. Says Upcoming 50th Birthday Didn't Affect Benefits
An administrative law judge was right to find a worker who suffers from a series of mental health issues isn't owed Social Security disability benefits, the Fourth Circuit said, agreeing that the worker's upcoming 50th birthday didn't strengthen her claim.
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August 01, 2024
Roberta Kaplan's New Firm Nabs 2 Attys From Former Firm
Kaplan Martin LLP, the firm co-founded in June by intrepid litigator Robbie Kaplan, announced Thursday that two seasoned attorneys are joining as partners from Kaplan's previous firm, Hecker Fink LLP.
Expert Analysis
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Foreign Discovery Insights 2 Years After ZF Automotive
Although an Arizona federal court decision last month demonstrates that Section 1782 discovery may still be available to foreign arbitral parties, the scope of such discovery has narrowed greatly since the U.S. Supreme Court's 2022 decision in ZF Automotive, and there are a few potential trends for practitioners to follow, say attorneys at Venable.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Always Be Closing
When a lawyer presents their case with the right propulsive structure throughout trial, there is little need for further argument after the close of evidence — and in fact, rehashing it all may test jurors’ patience — so attorneys should consider other strategies for closing arguments, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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Deciphering SEC Disgorgement 4 Years After Liu
Since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2020 decision in Liu v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to preserve SEC disgorgement with limits, courts have continued to rule largely in the agency’s favor, but a recent circuit split over the National Defense Authorization Act's import may create hurdles for the SEC, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.
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Where Anti-Discrimination Law Stands 4 Years After Bostock
On the fourth anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark Bostock ruling, Evan Parness and Abby Rickeman at Covington take stock of how the decision, which held that Title VII protects employees from discrimination because of their sexual orientation and gender identity, has affected anti-discrimination law at the state and federal levels.
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8th Circ. Insurance Ruling Spotlights Related-Claims Defenses
The Eighth Circuit’s recent Dexon v. Travelers ruling — that the insurer must provide a defense despite the policy’s related-acts provision — provides guidance for how policyholders can overcome related-acts defenses, say Geoffrey Fehling and Jae Lynn Huckaba at Hunton.
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Series
Playing Chess Makes Me A Better Lawyer
There are many ways that chess skills translate directly into lawyer skills, but for me, the bigger career lessons go beyond the direct parallels — playing chess has shown me the value of seeing gradual improvement in and focusing deep concentration on a nonwork endeavor, says attorney Steven Fink.
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9th Circ. Clarifies ERISA Preemption For Healthcare Industry
The Ninth Circuit's recent ruling in Bristol SL Holdings v. Cigna notably clarifies the broad scope of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act's preemption of certain state law causes of action, standing to benefit payors and health plan administrators, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.
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Patent Lessons From 7 Federal Circuit Reversals In May
A look at recent cases where the Federal Circuit reversed or vacated decisions by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board or a federal district court provide guidance on how to succeed on appeal by clarifying the obviousness analysis of design patents, the finality of a judgment, and more, say Denise De Mory and Li Guo at Bunsow De Mory.
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Litigation Inspiration: Attys Can Be Heroic Like Olympians
Although litigation won’t earn anyone an Olympic medal in Paris this summer, it can be worthy of the same lasting honor if attorneys exercise focused restraint — seeking both their clients’ interests and those of the court — instead of merely pursuing every advantage short of sanctionable conduct, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.
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What To Know As CFPB Late Fee Rule Hangs In Limbo
Though the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's final credit card late fee rule faces an uncertain future due to litigation involving injunctions, emergency petitions and now a venue dispute, card issuers must understand how to navigate the interim period and what to do if the rule takes effect, say attorneys at Steptoe.
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Updated Federal Rules Can Improve Product Liability MDLs
The recent amendment of a federal evidence rule regarding expert testimony and the proposal of a civil rule on managing early discovery in multidistrict legislation hold great promise for promoting the uniform and efficient processes that high-stakes product liability cases particularly need, say Alan Klein and William Heaston at Duane Morris.
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Lean Into The 'Great Restoration' To Retain Legal Talent
As the “great resignation,” in which employees voluntarily left their jobs in droves, has largely dissipated, legal employers should now work toward the idea of a “great restoration,” adopting strategies to effectively hire, onboard and retain top legal talent, says Molly McGrath at Hiring & Empowering Solutions.
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9th Circ. Ruling Shows Lies Must Go To Nature Of Bargain
The Ninth Circuit’s recent U.S. v. Milheiser decision, vacating six mail fraud convictions, clarifies that the key question in federal fraud cases is not whether lies were told, but what they were told about — thus requiring defense counsel to rethink their strategies, say Charles Kreindler and Krista Landis at Sheppard Mullin.
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What High Court Ruling Means For Sexual Harassment Claims
In its recent Smith v. Spizzirri decision, the U.S. Supreme Court held that a district court compelling a case to arbitration is obligated to stay the case rather than dismissing it, but this requirement may result in sexual harassment cases not being heard by appellate courts, says Abe Melamed at Signature Resolution.
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Trademark In Artistic Works 1 Year After Jack Daniel's
In the year since the U.S. Supreme Court's Jack Daniel's v. VIP Products ruling, courts have applied Jack Daniel's inconsistently to deny First Amendment protection to artistic works, providing guidance for dismissing trademark claims relating to film and TV titles, say Hardy Ehlers and Neema Sahni at Covington.