Appellate

  • July 08, 2024

    Baseless Lawsuit Rule A 'Catch-22' For Texans, 5th Circ. Told

    Those that are labeled vexatious litigants under a Texas statute meant to restrict baseless lawsuits are stuck in a "catch-22" if they seek to file legitimate litigation, a group of Texans told the Fifth Circuit on Monday.

  • July 08, 2024

    Clinic Is Liable For Botched Operations, NC Justices Told

    A patient claiming she underwent unnecessary and flawed spinal surgery at the hands of a defrocked doctor urged the North Carolina Supreme Court on Friday to let stand a ruling that the practice where he worked and its physicians can be held liable for her treatment.

  • July 08, 2024

    Senate Confirms 7th Circ. Judge GOP Slammed For Backlog

    The Senate voted 47-43 on Monday evening to confirm U.S. District Judge Nancy L. Maldonado to the Seventh Circuit.

  • July 08, 2024

    Federal Circuit Doubts Impropriety Of $4K H-1B Fraud Fee

    A Federal Circuit panel seemed unpersuaded Monday by an argument from software companies that a $4,000 fraud fee for H-1B visa petitions does not apply to noncitizens in the U.S. seeking to change their nonimmigrant visa status to H-1B.

  • July 08, 2024

    Texas Anesthesia Co. Can't Pause Or Appeal Suit, FTC Says

    The Federal Trade Commission urged a Texas federal court not to pause its suit accusing U.S. Anesthesia Partners Inc. of a monopolistic "roll-up" of Lone Star State anesthesia practices, arguing the company can't appeal an order refusing to toss the case against it.

  • July 08, 2024

    Justices Told To Ignore 'Hopeless' Challenge To Antitrust Test

    A group of wholesalers who say the makers of 5-Hour Energy illegally favored Costco in distributing the energy drink shots told the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to reject the drink-maker's certiorari petition, saying it asks the justices to take on the role of fact-finders.

  • July 08, 2024

    8th Circ. Won't Review Immigration Hardship Determination

    A split Eighth Circuit panel held Monday that it can't review whether a Mexican man's U.S. citizen children will experience extreme hardship if he's removed, saying the underlying decision denying him removal relief is discretionary and therefore shielded from judicial review.

  • July 08, 2024

    9th Circ. Denies Northrop Retirees' Bid For New Judge

    A Ninth Circuit panel on Monday shot down Northrop Grumman pensioners' bid to have their proposed ERISA class action tried before another judge, after two different appellate court panels overturned a lower court judge's two previous dismissals in the matter.

  • July 08, 2024

    11th Circ. Revives Fla. Worker's Retaliation Claim

    The Eleventh Circuit partially revived a retaliation suit brought by a Florida construction worker who claims he was harassed for being Cuban and unable to speak English and threatened and assaulted after reporting the behavior, before being fired by a company that said it found him sleeping on the job.

  • July 08, 2024

    9th Circ. Revives Liability Claims In Welder's Injury Suit

    The Ninth Circuit has mostly reversed a summary judgment order that freed a hoist maker and maintenance company from product liability and negligence claims by a welder who was injured when the hoist came loose and struck him in the head.

  • July 08, 2024

    DraftKings Hiding Ball On Noncompete Law, 1st Circ. Told

    A former DraftKings executive fighting a noncompete so he can work for rival sports-betting upstart Fanatics has told the First Circuit his ex-employer is overlooking the importance of a California law that could unwind the restrictive covenant.

  • July 08, 2024

    Mich. Justices Back Funeral Costs Imposed Years After Murder

    The Michigan Supreme Court said Monday that it is not unconstitutional to apply current restitution laws to old crimes, finding that restitution awards do not run afoul of constitutional prohibitions on retroactively making the consequences of a crime harsher.

  • July 08, 2024

    Trump Allies Push For Fani Willis DQ In Election Case

    A pro-Donald Trump think tank has thrown its support behind the former president's bid at the Georgia Court of Appeals to have a trial court's decision reversed and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis disqualified from prosecuting Trump and 18 co-defendants over interference in the 2020 election.

  • July 08, 2024

    DC Circ. Supports NLRB Order Against Puerto Rico Hospital

    The National Labor Relations Board rightly found that a hospital in Puerto Rico violated federal labor law by unilaterally slashing workers' hours, the D.C. Circuit ruled, saying the hospital can't excuse its actions with claims about financial effects from the pandemic.

  • July 08, 2024

    Rite Aid Says Elixir Buyer In Contempt Over Liability Dispute

    Bankrupt pharmacy chain Rite Aid has asked a New Jersey bankruptcy judge to find the purchaser of its prescription benefits subsidiary in contempt, saying the buyer is defying his orders by refusing to assume $200 million of the subsidiary's liabilities.

  • July 08, 2024

    UnitedHealth's Cross-Plan Offsetting Affirmed By 8th Circ.

    The Eighth Circuit affirmed Monday a Minnesota federal judge's decision to toss a suit from patients insured by UnitedHealth Group alleging a billing practice known as cross-plan offsetting violated federal benefits law, finding the lower court properly concluded the patients hadn't sufficiently established injury.

  • July 08, 2024

    House Hearing Postponed For Trump's NY Prosecutors

    The House Judiciary Committee's hearing with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and top prosecutor Matthew Colangelo on former President Donald Trump's conviction on 34 felony counts has been postponed.

  • July 08, 2024

    1st Circ. Nominee Cut Teeth As 'Victim-Centered' Prosecutor

    Maine Superior Court Justice and First Circuit nominee Julia Lipez spent most of her legal career prosecuting federal human trafficking cases, an experience former colleagues say demonstrates her sense of fairness and a sharp focus on the well-being of victims.

  • July 08, 2024

    The Biggest Patent Rulings Of 2024: A Midyear Report

    The Federal Circuit issued its first en banc patent decision since 2018, a circuit judge's suspension was solidified and courts shed further light on foreign damages and skinny labels. Here's a look back at these rulings and other top patent decisions from the first half of 2024.

  • July 08, 2024

    US Supreme Court Term In Review: What You Need To Know

    Judicial deference, agency courts, presidential immunity, abortion and social media moderation were just some of the issues the U.S. Supreme Court considered in its latest term.

  • July 08, 2024

    Biden Says Reelection Crucial To Supreme Court Reform

    President Joe Biden told congressional Democrats his reelection is crucial to bringing about "real" reforms to the U.S. Supreme Court in a letter Monday rejecting calls for him to back out of the presidential race.

  • July 05, 2024

    Antitrust Partner In Fatal Crash Remembered As A Mentor

    Present and past colleagues this week remembered Molly Donovan, a partner at antitrust boutique Bona Law PC who died in a tragic accident earlier this month, as a powerhouse with an intricate understanding of antitrust matters who always maintained a positive outlook no matter what the status of a case.

  • July 05, 2024

    Judge Says Michigan Not Immune From Enbridge's Line 5 Suit

    A federal judge ruled on Friday that Michigan state officials can't quash a lawsuit from Enbridge Energy LP aimed at ending their efforts to shut down a U.S.-Canada pipeline that traverses the Great Lakes State.

  • July 05, 2024

    9th Circ. Backs Remand Of Cedars-Sinai Patient Data Suits

    The Ninth Circuit held Friday that a trio of proposed class actions accusing Cedars-Sinai of improperly sharing patients' personal information with tech companies indeed belong in California state court, agreeing with a lower court that the health provider wasn't acting at the direction of the federal government.

  • July 05, 2024

    Don't Defer To ITC On Domestic Industry, Fed. Circ. Told

    The U.S. Supreme Court's elimination of Chevron deference confirms that courts need not defer to the U.S. International Trade Commission's interpretation of the domestic industry requirement for patent cases, eyelash extension company Lashify has told the Federal Circuit.

Expert Analysis

  • For Lawyers, Pessimism Should Be A Job Skill, Not A Life Skill

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    A pessimistic mindset allows attorneys to be effective advocates for their clients, but it can come with serious costs for their personal well-being, so it’s crucial to exercise strategies that produce flexible optimism and connect lawyers with their core values, says Krista Larson at Stinson.

  • High Court's Jan. 6 Rioter Case May Have Wide Ripple Effects

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    The U.S. Supreme Court will soon hear oral arguments in Fischer v. United States, a case that will determine whether a law enacted after the Enron scandal can be used to prosecute Jan. 6 rioters, and could affect the government’s ability to charge those who impede a range of official proceedings, say Brook Dooley and Sara Fitzpatrick at Keker Van Nest.

  • 5th Circ. Clarifies What Is And Isn't A 'New Use' Of PFAS

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    The Fifth Circuit's March 21 decision in Inhance Technologies v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, preventing the EPA from regulating existing uses of PFAS under "significant new use" provisions of the Toxic Substances Control Act, provides industry with much-needed clarity, say Joseph Schaeffer and Sloane Wildman at Babst Calland.

  • CORRECTED: Endoscope Patent Case Offers Guidance On Right To Repair

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    An Alabama federal court's decision in Karl Storz v. IMS reaffirmed that product owners have broad rights to repair or modify their property as they see fit, highlighting the parameters of the right to repair in the context of patent infringement, say Dustin Weeks and Dabney Carr at Troutman Pepper. Correction: Due to an editing error, a previous version of this article and headline attributed the Karl Storz ruling to the wrong court. The error has been corrected.

  • Trump's NY Civil Fraud Trial Spotlights Long-Criticized Law

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    A New York court’s recent decision holding former President Donald Trump liable for fraud brought old criticisms of the state law used against him back into the limelight — including its strikingly broad scope and its major departures from the traditional elements of common law fraud, say Mark Kelley and Lois Ahn at MoloLamken.

  • How A Motion Before Justices May Help Trump Beyond Court

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    Even if Donald Trump loses his presidential immunity claim before the U.S. Supreme Court, the delay created by the motion may mean a trial can't be completed before the November election, says Paul Tuchmann at Wiggin and Dana.

  • Opinion

    $175M Bond Refiled By Trump Is Still Substantively Flawed

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    The corrected $175 million bond posted by former President Donald Trump on Thursday to stave off enforcement of the New York attorney general's fraud judgment against him remains substantively and procedurally flawed, as well as inadequately secured, says Adam Pollock of Pollock Cohen.

  • Opinion

    Requiring Leave To File Amicus Briefs Is A Bad Idea

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    A proposal to amend the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure that would require parties to get court permission before filing federal amicus briefs would eliminate the long-standing practice of consent filing and thereby make the process less open and democratic, says Lawrence Ebner at the Atlantic Legal Foundation and DRI Center.

  • NJ Ruling Offers Road Map To Fight Dishonored Check Claims

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    As ATM and mobile check deposits become more common, a New Jersey state appellate court’s recent ruling in Triffin v. Neptune shows that issuers can rely on copies of checks to defend against claims that checks were wrongfully dishonored after being electronically deposited, say attorneys at Sherman Atlas.

  • 4 Ways To Motivate Junior Attorneys To Bring Their Best

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    As Gen Z and younger millennial attorneys increasingly express dissatisfaction with their work and head for the exits, the lawyers who manage them must understand and attend to their needs and priorities to boost engagement and increase retention, says Stacey Schwartz at Katten.

  • A Look At Recent Challenges To SEC's Settlement 'Gag Rule'

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    Though they have been unsuccessful so far, opponents of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's so-called gag rule, which prevents defendants from denying allegations when settling with the SEC, are becoming increasingly vocal and filing more challenges in recent years, say Mike Blankenship and Regina Maze at Winston & Strawn.

  • How 3 Unfolding Cases Could Affect The Energy Industry

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    Three judicial decisions now in the pipeline — Texas' challenge to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's methane regulations, Delaware's climate suit against big energy companies, and a case before the Supreme Court of Texas on royalty lease interpretation — could have important implications for the energy industry, say Michelle Scheffler and Rachael Cox at Skadden.

  • Conn. Bankruptcy Ruling Furthers Limitation Extension Split

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    A recent Connecticut bankruptcy court decision further solidifies a split of authority on whether Bankruptcy Rule 9006(b) may be used to extend the limitations period, meaning practitioners seeking to extend should serve the motion on all applicable parties and, where possible, rely on the doctrine of equitable tolling, says Shane Ramsey at Nelson Mullins.

  • How Purdue Pharma High Court Case May Change Bankruptcy

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s upcoming ruling in Purdue Pharma may be the death of most third-party releases in Chapter 11 cases, and depending on the decision’s breadth, could have much more far-reaching effects on the entire bankruptcy system, say Brian Shaw and David Doyle at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Series

    Serving As A Sheriff's Deputy Made Me A Better Lawyer

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    Skills developed during my work as a reserve deputy — where there was a need to always be prepared, decisive and articulate — transferred to my practice as an intellectual property litigator, and my experience taught me that clients often appreciate and relate to the desire to participate in extracurricular activities, says Michael Friedland at Friedland Cianfrani.

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