Appellate

  • October 28, 2024

    9th Circ. Says Amazon Auto-Renewal Suit Is Too Late

    The Ninth Circuit said Monday that a proposed class action accusing Amazon of duping Prime subscribers into paying for memberships in its audiobook seller, Audible, was filed after a three-year statute of limitations under New York law had expired.

  • October 28, 2024

    Hotel Guests Ask 3rd Circ. To Look At Algorithm Price-Fix Suit

    Three Atlantic City guests are taking their beef with hotel-casinos to the Third Circuit after a New Jersey federal court threw out their lawsuit that accused hotel owners in the town of using an algorithm to inflate the price of rooms.

  • October 28, 2024

    RNC Asks High Court To Stop Pa. Provisional Ballot Rule

    The Republican Party urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to freeze a ruling from Pennsylvania's top court allowing voters whose mail-in ballots are rejected as defective to submit provisional ballots as replacements, claiming the late change to voting rules in a key battleground state could "taint" the 2024 election.

  • October 28, 2024

    New Jury Ordered In 'Cop City' Trial Over Court Closure

    A defendant in the sprawling, 61-person racketeering indictment of protesters against Atlanta's controversial "Cop City" police training center will get another shot at jury selection after the Georgia Court of Appeals said Monday that a Fulton County trial judge unjustifiably closed her courtroom to the public and the press.

  • October 28, 2024

    5th Circ. Affirms Texas Health Coordinator Is Not Tax-Exempt

    A Texas nonprofit corporation that coordinates healthcare mostly for privately insured patients does not qualify for tax-exempt status because its business fails to help the larger community, the Fifth Circuit ruled Monday in affirming a U.S. Tax Court decision.

  • October 28, 2024

    NJ Suspends Ex-Carter Ledyard Partner After NY Disbarment

    The New Jersey Supreme Court has ordered the indefinite suspension of a former Carter Ledyard & Milburn LLP partner, two years after a New York state appeals court disbarred the lawyer for ignoring subpoenas and failing to cooperate in a fee investigation.

  • October 28, 2024

    Farm Co. Can't Push Worker's Wage Suit To Arbitration

    A California appeals court refused to send to arbitration a farm laborer's suit accusing a farm labor contractor of shorting workers on wages, saying the company can't rely on an arbitration pact that one of its clients signed with the workers.

  • October 28, 2024

    Cleary Adds Northern Calif. Deputy Criminal Chief As Partner

    The deputy chief of the criminal division of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California has joined Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP's Bay Area office as a partner in the Americas litigation practice, the firm said Monday.

  • October 28, 2024

    Va. Asks High Court To Reinstate Voter Rolls Purge

    Virginia asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to pause a district court order prohibiting the state from continuing a systematic removal of suspected noncitizens from its voting rolls this close to Election Day, arguing a federal "quiet period" law only protects citizens from last-minute changes to their voting status.

  • October 25, 2024

    5th Circ. Punts Musk Tweet Lawfulness, But Axes NLRB Order

    An en banc Fifth Circuit majority on Friday overturned a National Labor Relations Board decision that a tweet Tesla CEO Elon Musk sent during a United Auto Workers unionization campaign violated federal labor law, while the court's dissenting members criticized the majority's decision as "logically incoherent."

  • October 25, 2024

    Entergy Struggles To Challenge FERC Decision At DC Circ.

    The D.C. Circuit is set to decide whether or not utility giant Entergy will be allowed to challenge the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's rejection of a plan that would change capacity market rules, after finding that it would give Entergy too much market power.

  • October 25, 2024

    NEPA Rail Ruling Backers Flood Justices With Amicus Briefs

    Former federal officials, states, Colorado cities, two law schools and 30 members of Congress are all urging the U.S. Supreme Court to affirm a ruling overturning federal approval for a rail project to haul crude oil out of Utah, rather than reinvent the National Environmental Policy Act as project supporters propose.

  • October 25, 2024

    Va. Takes Block Of Voter Purge Program Straight To 4th Circ.

    The state of Virginia lodged an immediate appeal at the Fourth Circuit on Friday after a federal judge said the state can't continue a voter removal program so close to Election Day and must re-register those already purged.

  • October 25, 2024

    2nd Circ. Denies BNP Quick Appeal In Sudan Refugee Suit

    The Second Circuit rejected BNP Paribas SA's attempt to immediately appeal a New York federal judge's May ruling certifying a class of Sudanese refugee plaintiffs in litigation accusing the bank of funding the former Sudan government's human rights violations.

  • October 25, 2024

    Apple-Google Pact Plaintiff Stuck With 9th Circ. Appeal

    A Ninth Circuit panel has refused to let a training school send its case accusing Google of paying Apple to refrain from developing its own search engine back to district court in light of a recent D.C. federal judge's decision that Google monopolizes the search market.

  • October 25, 2024

    9th Circ. Backs 7-Year Sentence Over Chip Exports To China

    The Ninth Circuit on Friday upheld the seven-year prison sentence imposed on a former University of California, Los Angeles, electrical engineering professor convicted of illegally exporting high-powered semiconductor chips to China, saying the district court did not err in holding that the conduct amounted to an evasion of national security controls.

  • October 25, 2024

    Fla. Bar Seeks 2-Year License Suspension Against Klayman

    The Florida Bar is asking the state's high court for a two-year license suspension of conservative activist attorney Larry Klayman due to alleged ethical violations in another jurisdiction, saying a more than reciprocal term of punishment is needed in the Sunshine State because Klayman continues to dispute the findings.

  • October 25, 2024

    DC Circ. Could Nix OK Of $8M Equatorial Guinea Award

    The D.C. Circuit on Friday appeared willing to consider nixing enforcement of an $8 million arbitral award against Equatorial Guinea issued in a dispute over an ill-fated hospital operating contract, even as the panel spent much of a hearing focusing on the impact of a decade-old U.S. Supreme Court decision.

  • October 25, 2024

    Shoplifter's Probation Pot Ban Upheld By Mich. Appeals Court

    A Michigan appeals court on Thursday ruled that, notwithstanding the state's legalization of recreational cannabis, a woman who pled guilty to shoplifting violated the terms of her probation by smoking marijuana while it remains federally illegal.

  • October 25, 2024

    Yale, Travelers Beat Conn. Age Bias Appeals

    A Connecticut appeals court on Friday declined to revive claims that Yale University and Travelers Indemnity Co. committed age discrimination with job postings seeking "recent" college graduates, reasoning that the court that threw out the cases properly interpreted state high court precedent.

  • October 25, 2024

    AT&T Unit Continues To Argue FCA Does Not Apply To E-Rate

    Congress could have designed the E-rate program to be distributed by the government using its own money, but it didn't, and that's why reimbursements under the program don't qualify as claims under the False Claims Act, an AT&T subsidiary has told the U.S. Supreme Court.

  • October 25, 2024

    'Open AI' TM Owner Asks 9th Circ. To Nix Injunction

    A man accused by OpenAI of preventing the ChatGPT-maker from registering its name as a trademark urged the Ninth Circuit on Friday to vacate an injunction blocking him from using the "Open AI" mark while his case is pending, arguing he's the mark's senior holder and calling the injunction "extraordinary and unprecedented."

  • October 25, 2024

    VLSI Urges Fed. Circ. To Punish OpenSky After Vidal Didn't

    U.S. Patent Trademark Office Director Kathi Vidal vowed to sanction OpenSky Industries "to the fullest extent of [her] power" for filing a bad faith patent challenge, but then imposed sanctions that, if anything, rewarded the misconduct, VLSI Technology has told the Federal Circuit.

  • October 25, 2024

    Split Mich. Panel Won't Revive Janitor's Burn Injury Suit

    A divided Michigan appellate panel has declined to revive a former manufacturing plant janitor's lawsuit over a workplace explosion that left him severely injured, with the majority saying the case is time-barred by a statute of limitations clause in his employment agreement.

  • October 25, 2024

    Premera Rejection Seems Sparse, 9th Circ. Judges Say

    A Ninth Circuit judge pressed Premera Blue Cross on Friday to defend refusing coverage for a Washington teen's lengthy mental health residential treatment, questioning if the insurer engaged in a meaningful dialogue as required with the youth's family in letters explaining why the treatment was medically unnecessary.

Expert Analysis

  • The Fed. Circ. In June: More Liability For Generic-Drug Makers

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    The Federal Circuit’s June ruling in Amarin v. Hikma will likely result in more allegations of induced infringement by generic drugs postapproval, with more of those cases proceeding to at least the summary judgment stage instead of being cut off at the outset, say Jeremiah Helm and Sean Murray at Knobbe Martens.

  • 7th Circ. Ruling Expands CFPB Power In Post-Chevron Era

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    The Seventh Circuit’s recent ruling in Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v. Townstone Financial interprets the Equal Credit Opportunity Act broadly, paving the way for increased CFPB enforcement and hinting at how federal courts may approach statutory interpretation in the post-Chevron world, say attorneys at Saul Ewing.

  • Series

    After Chevron: ERISA Challenges To Watch

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    The end of Chevron deference makes the outcome of Employee Retirement Income Security Act regulatory challenges more uncertain as courts become final arbiters of pending lawsuits about ESG investments, the definition of a fiduciary, unallocated pension forfeitures and discrimination in healthcare plans, says Evelyn Haralampu at Burns & Levinson.

  • Menendez Corruption Ruling Highlights Attorney Proffer Risks

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    The recent admission of slides used in a preindictment presentation as evidence during U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez’s corruption trial highlights the potential pitfalls of using visual aids in attorney proffers, and the increasing importance of making disclaimers regarding information presented at the outset of proffers, say Carrie Cohen and Savanna Leak at MoFo.

  • Opinion

    Expert Witness Standards Must Consider Peer Review Crisis

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    For nearly two decades, the so-called replication crisis has upended how the scientific community views the reliability of peer-reviewed studies, and it’s time for courts to reevaluate whether peer review is a trustworthy proxy for expert witness reliability, say Jeffrey Gross and Robert LaCroix at Reid Collins.

  • Analyzing Advance Notice Bylaws On 'Clear' Or 'Cloudy' Days

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    In Kellner v. AIM ImmunoTech, the Delaware Supreme Court recently clarified the framework for judicial review of advance notice bylaws adopted, amended or enforced on "clear" or "cloudy" days, underscoring the responsibility of boards to ensure that their scope does not overreach or prevent the possibility of a contested election, say attorneys at Venable.

  • 2nd Circ. Ruling May Limit Discovery In Int'l Arbitration

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    The Second Circuit's recent Webuild v. WSP decision, affirming a discovery order's nullification in arbitration between Webuild and the government of Panama, demonstrates courts' unwillingness to find that arbitral tribunals in investor-state cases fall within the scope of the discovery statute, say attorneys at Cleary.

  • Takeaways From High Court's Tribal Health Admin Cost Ruling

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent determination that the government must reimburse two Native American tribes for administrative healthcare costs will help tribes maintain equal footing with the Indian Health Service when administering programs, and continues a pattern of how the current court aligns on tribal concerns, say attorneys at Lewis Roca.

  • Justices' Intent Witness Ruling May Be Useful For Defense Bar

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    At first glance, the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Diaz v. U.S. decision, allowing experts to testify to the mental state of criminal defendants in federal court, gives prosecutors a new tool, but creative white collar defense counsel may be able to use the same tool to their own advantage, say Jack Sharman and Rachel Bragg at Lightfoot Franklin.

  • How To Grow Marketing, Biz Dev Teams In A Tight Market

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    Faced with fierce competition and rising operating costs, firms are feeling the pressure to build a well-oiled marketing and business development team that supports strategic priorities, but they’ll need to be flexible and creative given a tight talent market, says Ben Curle at Ambition.

  • High Court's Expert Ruling May Help Health Fraud Defendants

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Diaz v. U.S. appears to give the government a powerful new tool in calling its own agents as expert witnesses, but it could also benefit defense counsel in criminal healthcare fraud and other white collar criminal cases that arise in complex legal or regulatory environments, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Patent Lessons From 5 Federal Circuit Reversals In June

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    A look at June cases where the Federal Circuit reversed or vacated decisions by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board or a federal district court highlights a potential path for branded drugmakers to sue generic-drug makers for off-label uses, potential downsides of violating a pretrial order offering testimony, and more, say Denise De Mory and Li Guo at Bunsow De Mory.

  • Jarkesy's Impact On SEC Enforcement Will Be Modest

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    Though the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy decision found that fraud defendants have a constitutional right to a jury trial, the ruling will have muted impact on the agency’s enforcement because it’s already bringing most of its cases in federal court, say Jeremiah Williams and Alyssa Fixsen at Ropes & Gray.

  • Series

    Rock Climbing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Rock climbing requires problem-solving, focus, risk management and resilience, skills that are also invaluable assets in my role as a finance lawyer, says Mei Zhang at Haynes and Boone.

  • NY Ruling Offers A Foreclosure Road Map For Lenders

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    A New York appellate court recently upheld a summary judgment ruling in favor of a commercial lender's foreclosure in U.S. Bank v. 1226 Evergreen Bapaz, illustrating the proofs lenders will need to prosecute a foreclosure action, especially where the plaintiff is an assignee of the originating lender, say attorneys at Sherman Atlas.

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