Appellate

  • September 26, 2024

    Causation Claim Came Early, BP Spill Workers Tell 11th Circ.

    Cleanup workers of BP's Deepwater Horizon spill who say they were sickened by exposure to crude oil urged the Eleventh Circuit Thursday to reverse a judgment in favor of the company, arguing a Florida judge jumped the gun in tossing expert testimony about the links between their work and the respiratory conditions the workers say they developed.

  • September 26, 2024

    Pa. Supreme Court Upholds Taxes On Like-Kind Exchanges

    A group of Pennsylvania real estate partners owe the state personal income tax assessed on their like-kind exchange, Pennsylvania's highest court ruled Thursday, with the majority upholding a lower court finding that the state Department of Revenue correctly issued the assessment.

  • September 26, 2024

    Insurer Tells NC Justices Not To Revive COVID Coverage Row

    An insurer urged North Carolina's top court not to revive a clothing company's COVID-19 coverage suit, saying there has been an "overwhelming" consensus among courts in the U.S. that commercial property insurance policies do not cover business losses caused by the pandemic.

  • September 26, 2024

    4th Circ. Judge Thrashes Vets' Argument In Citibank Fee Suit

    A Fourth Circuit judge on Thursday ripped military members' argument that they must be allowed under a military-members-lending law to proceed in federal court with a proposed class action alleging Citibank charged illegal fees, with the judge stressing that the statute is silent on forbidding arbitration.

  • September 26, 2024

    Fla. Court Affirms Loss For Boies' Film Co. In $20M Spat

    A Florida appeals court on Thursday affirmed a private judge's decision siding with an investment firm accused by Boies Schiller & Flexner LLP Chairman David Boies' film development company of making misrepresentations to secure a $20 million investment in a movie starring Natalie Portman that later flopped at the box office.

  • September 26, 2024

    5th Circ. Says Pair Can't Challenge Wi-Fi Program's New Rules

    The Fifth Circuit won't take up a challenge to the Federal Communications Commission's new rules allowing for subsidized Wi-Fi off campus through the E-Rate program for schools and libraries, granting the FCC's motion to dismiss the case for lack of jurisdiction while an in-house challenge from the petitioners proceeds.

  • September 26, 2024

    Ala. College Urges 11th Circ. To Grant Immunity In FMLA Suit

    The University of Alabama Board of Trustees urged the Eleventh Circuit on Thursday to reverse a lower court order allowing a former research associate's Family and Medical Leave Act complaint to proceed, arguing that it's entitled to sovereign immunity under the military caregiver provision of the law.

  • September 26, 2024

    Colo. Justices Pause Discovery In Hospital Lien Suit

    The Colorado Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed discovery in a class action against hospital company Centura Health, as it decides whether to take up the plaintiff's challenge to a Denver judge's second attempt at deciding what documents the plaintiff must produce.

  • September 26, 2024

    6th Circ. Upholds Philips' Win In Glass Plant Pollution Suit

    The Sixth Circuit on Wednesday stood by a Kentucky federal jury's verdict clearing Philips Electronics of proposed class claims brought by Bluegrass State property owners over pollution, agreeing with the jurors and the lower court that the claims over the company's former glass plant were filed too late.

  • September 26, 2024

    En Banc 9th Circ. Doubts Dismissal Of Shopify Privacy Suit

    Ninth Circuit judges sitting en banc Thursday appeared dubious of an earlier panel's conclusion that a California federal court lacked personal jurisdiction over Golden State consumers' privacy claims against Shopify Inc., questioning how internet companies could ever face tort claims if this were the law.

  • September 26, 2024

    Pa. Justices Reject New Tax Hearing For Charter School

    The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court erred in sending a charter school's retroactive property tax appeal back to a county board, because the charter school had failed to exhaust statutory remedies, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday.

  • September 26, 2024

    Bakery Wants Out Of $16M Payment To Pension Fund

    An Indiana wholesale bakery company asked the Eleventh Circuit on Thursday to reverse an order for the bakery to pay a union pension fund $15.6 million, arguing that the pension fund's interpretation of the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act conflicts with the plain text of the statute.

  • September 26, 2024

    Pa. Justices Say COVID Closures Aren't Covered Losses

    Pennsylvania's Supreme Court shut the door Thursday on COVID-19 pandemic loss insurance coverage for businesses closed by government mandate, ruling that requisite physical loss or damage required tangible alteration to property, reversing a lower court decision that stated loss of use was sufficient.

  • September 26, 2024

    11th Circ. Signals Fired Coach's Claim Can't Ride On Her Team

    An 11th Circuit panel signaled Thursday that the disparate funding of men's and women's collegiate athletic programs was likely not enough to sustain a fired Georgia Tech basketball coach's Title VII claim of sex-based discrimination against the program.

  • September 26, 2024

    9th Circ. Says Defense Owed In Salesforce Trafficking Row

    Travelers must defend Salesforce against consolidated underlying sex trafficking claims being litigated in Texas state court, the Ninth Circuit ruled, rejecting the insurer's position that because Salesforce's alleged violation of Texas sex trafficking statutes necessarily involved expected or intentional conduct, it had no defense obligation.

  • September 26, 2024

    11th Circ. Wary Of Ineffective-Counsel Claim In Salmonella Case

    Peanut Corp. of America's former president and a food broker convicted for their roles in a salmonella outbreak that killed nine people and sickened more than 700 in 2008 and 2009 urged the Eleventh Circuit on Thursday to overturn a district court order refusing to vacate their prison sentences.

  • September 26, 2024

    Nvidia Seeks 'Unworkable' Pleading Standard, Justices Told

    Nvidia Corp. shareholders asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to reject the company's "unworkable" reading of the pleading standards under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act, arguing that they've presented plenty of evidence to move forward with claims that the company hid its $1 billion exposure to the volatile cryptocurrency market.

  • September 26, 2024

    4th Circ. Hints Rocket Mortgage Class Cert. Is On Shaky Ground

    The Fourth Circuit on Thursday seemed skeptical that all potential class members who accused Rocket Mortgage of inflating their home values could prove they were injured under the U.S. Supreme Court's heightened pleading standard in TransUnion, putting the lower court's certification order on rocky footing.

  • September 26, 2024

    Pa. Justices Say State Lawmakers Can't Impeach Philly DA

    The clock ran out for the Pennsylvania Senate's planned trial on the impeachment of Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, the state's highest court ruled in an opinion published Thursday.

  • September 26, 2024

    Rutgers GC Moves Closer To NJ High Court Bench

    The New Jersey state Senate Judiciary Committee moved forward Rutgers general counsel John Hoffman's nomination to the state Supreme Court at a Thursday hearing marked by bipartisan support and virtually unanimous praise for his character.

  • September 26, 2024

    Fla. Bar Says Atty's 'False Narrative' Warrants Suspension

    The Florida Bar has fired back at a Georgia-based attorney's bid to avoid a suspension for disparaging an opponent running for 20th Judicial Circuit state attorney in 2018, urging the state Supreme Court to reject his First Amendment defense in the disciplinary matter.

  • September 26, 2024

    NY Appeals Court Casts Doubt On $489M Trump Judgment

    Judges on a New York state appeals court expressed skepticism Thursday of a $489 million civil fraud judgment against Donald Trump, his sons, companies and their executives, raising the prospect that the fine awarded to the attorney general could be reduced or vacated.

  • September 26, 2024

    GOP Senator Blocks Fast-Tracking Of DC Judges

    A Republican senator has blocked the fast-tracking confirmation of two nominees to become Washington, D.C., judges, even though former President Donald Trump previously nominated them.

  • September 25, 2024

    8th Circ. Told Student Debt Relief Should Remain Blocked

    Seven Republican-led states are asking the Eighth Circuit to finalize its court order blocking the Biden administration from implementing its second attempt at student loan forgiveness, accusing the White House of "hiding the ball" on the true cost of the plan.

  • September 25, 2024

    11th Circ. Reverses DOJ Defeat In $400M Kickback Case

    The Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday held that a lower court should've admitted prosecutors' evidence of alleged co-conspirators in a $400 million health insurance fraud case, finding that an exclusion to the hearsay rule was misapplied by the district court in the closely watched Anti-Kickback Statute litigation.

Expert Analysis

  • Revisiting Scalia's 'What's It To You?' After Kaiser Ruling

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    While the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Truck Insurance Exchange v. Kaiser allows insurers to be considered "parties in interest" in Chapter 11 cases, they still need to show they would face an injury in fact, answering the late Justice Antonin Scalia's "what's it to you?" question, say Brent Weisenberg and Jeff Prol at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Series

    After Chevron: FTC's 'Unfair Competition' Actions In Jeopardy

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    While the U.S. Supreme Court's decision ending Chevron deference will have limited effect on the Federal Trade Commission's merger guidelines, administrative enforcement actions and commission decisions on appeal, it could restrict the agency's expansive take on its rulemaking authority and threaten the noncompete ban, say attorneys at Baker Botts.

  • How To Clean Up Your Generative AI-Produced Legal Drafts

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    As law firms increasingly rely on generative artificial intelligence tools to produce legal text, attorneys should be on guard for the overuse of cohesive devices in initial drafts, and consider a few editing pointers to clean up AI’s repetitive and choppy outputs, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.

  • Calif. Ruling Heightens Medical Product Maker Liability

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    The California Supreme Court's decision in Himes v. Somatics last month articulates a new causation standard for medical product manufacturer liability that may lead to stronger product disclosures nationwide and greater friction between manufacturers and physicians, say attorneys at Cooley.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Opportunities For Change In FHFA Practices

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of the Chevron doctrine should lead to better cooperation between the Federal Housing Finance Agency and Congress, and may give the FHFA a chance to embrace transparency and innovation and promote sustainable housing practices, says Mehdi Sinaki at Michelman & Robinson.

  • Constitutional Protections For Cannabis Companies Are Hazy

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    Cannabis businesses are subject to federal enforcement and tax, but often without the benefit of constitutional protections — and the entanglement of state and federal law and conflicting judicial opinions are creating confusion in the space, says Amber Lengacher at Purple Circle.

  • Supreme Court's ALJ Ruling Carries Implications Beyond SEC

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    In its recent Jarkesy opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court limited the types of cases that can be tried before the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's in-house administrative law judges, setting the stage for challenges to the constitutionality of ALJs across other agencies, say Robert Robertson and Kimberley Church at Dechert.

  • Opinion

    A Tale Of 2 Trump Cases: The Rule Of Law Is A Live Issue

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision this week in Trump v. U.S., holding that former President Donald Trump has broad immunity from prosecution, undercuts the rule of law, while the former president’s New York hush money conviction vindicates it in eight key ways, says David Postel at Henein Hutchison.

  • 2nd Circ. ERISA Ruling May Help Fight Unfair Arb. Clauses

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    The Second Circuit recently held that a plaintiff seeking planwide relief under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act cannot be compelled to individual arbitration, a decision that opens the door to new applications of the effective vindication doctrine to defeat onerous and one-sided arbitration clauses, say Raphael Janove and Liana Vitale at Janove.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Various Paths For Labor And Employment Law

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    Labor and employment law leans heavily on federal agency guidance, so the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to toss out Chevron deference will ripple through this area, with future workplace policies possibly taking shape through strategic litigation, informal guidance, state-level regulation and more, says Alexander MacDonald at Littler.

  • Series

    Boxing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Boxing has influenced my legal work by enabling me to confidently hone the skills I've learned from the sport, like the ability to remain calm under pressure, evaluate an opponent's weaknesses and recognize when to seize an important opportunity, says Kirsten Soto at Clyde & Co.

  • Purdue Ch. 11 Ruling Reinforces Importance Of D&O Coverage

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Harrington v. Purdue Pharma, holding that a Chapter 11 reorganization cannot discharge claims against a nondebtor without affected claimants' consent, will open new litigation pathways surrounding corporate insolvency and increase the importance of robust directors and officers insurance, says Evan Bolla at Harris St. Laurent.

  • Fed. Circ. Percipient Gov't Contract Ruling Is Groundbreaking

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    The effects of the Federal Circuit's decision last month in Percipient.ai v. U.S. may be limited to commercial product and service suppliers, but it is significant for government procurement in opening the door to protests by suppliers who previously would have lacked standing and Court of Federal Claims jurisdiction, say attorneys at Haynes Boone.

  • Series

    After Chevron: No Deference, No Difference For SEC Or CFTC

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    The Chevron doctrine did not fundamentally alter the interplay between the courts and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission in the development of the securities and commodities laws — and its demise will not do so either, says Dan Berkovitz at Millennium Management.

  • Opinion

    Industry Self-Regulation Will Shine Post-Chevron

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's Loper decision will shape the contours of industry self-regulation in the years to come, providing opportunities for this often-misunderstood practice, says Eric Reicin at BBB National Programs.

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