Appellate

  • January 07, 2025

    Surgeon Says Unprovided Report Should Nix Transplant Suit

    A lawsuit from the families of three patients who died on a Texas hospital's liver transplant waiting list should have been tossed because the families failed to provide an expert report to a surgeon accused of tampering with their data, the surgeon argued to a state appeals court Monday.

  • January 07, 2025

    9th Circ. To Let Feds Argue In Wash. ICE Inspection Law Fight

    The Ninth Circuit has said the U.S. government can participate in oral arguments over a blocked Washington law that allowed the state to inspect conditions at a privately-run immigration detention facility in Tacoma.

  • January 07, 2025

    AT&T, Biz Groups Urge Justices To Back Cornell's ERISA Win

    Top business and employee benefits industry lobbying groups along with telecommunications giant AT&T urged the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold Cornell University's victory over a federal benefits lawsuit alleging retirement plan mismanagement, in a flood of amicus briefs at the high court before arguments later this month.

  • January 07, 2025

    4th Circ. Says Farm Bill Does Not Preempt Va. Hemp Law

    The Fourth Circuit affirmed Tuesday that the federal farm bill legalizing hemp nationwide did not preempt Virginia's new law reining in intoxicating products containing THC derived from hemp.

  • January 07, 2025

    Detroit Flooding Class Quizzed On Decision To Skip Expert

    A Michigan appellate panel pressed flooding victims Tuesday to explain why they didn't use an expert to bolster their case that a regional water authority's neglect led to a mass flooding event in 2021, with the judges giving away little about whether they would ultimately revive the claims.

  • January 07, 2025

    'Unflattering' Story Not Defamatory, Gannett Says

    A tax firm's defamation suit against USA Today should be tossed, the newspaper's owner told Texas justices Monday, arguing that a 2021 investigative series was not defamatory even if its "gist" was "unflattering."

  • January 07, 2025

    Coinbase Judge Sends Crypto's Howey Question To 2nd Circ.

    A New York federal judge Tuesday waved through a request from Coinbase to have the Second Circuit weigh in on whether the cryptocurrency transactions on its platform are investment contracts, putting the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's ongoing registration suit against the crypto exchange on ice for now.

  • January 07, 2025

    Fla. Crash Victims Can't Get Insurer Payout In Revised Suits

    A Florida state appellate panel has blocked three vehicle crash victims' attempts to collect $16 million from an insurer, saying that the company wasn't properly joined as a party by the time settlements were reached and that final judgments were issued in two separate lawsuits over the same incident.

  • January 07, 2025

    Biotech Co. Urges NC Panel To Revive Legal Malpractice Suit

    A biotech company that lost a $22 million libel suit brought by a pharmaceutical executive has asked a North Carolina appeals panel for another shot at legal malpractice claims against its former legal counsel, arguing that a savings provision expands the statute of repose for the voluntarily dismissed claim to be revived.

  • January 07, 2025

    Texas Gov. Appoints District Judge To State Appellate Court

    Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has appointed a Hill County district judge to the Tenth Court of Appeals.

  • January 07, 2025

    Ga. Court Backs Trial Judge's Atty Fees Award In Crash Case

    The Georgia Court of Appeals has affirmed an award of $424,000 in additional attorney fees and costs in a car crash suit that ended in a $3 million verdict and $1.25 million in fees and costs, rejecting the plaintiff's argument that the trial court should have made a larger award but used the wrong legal standard.

  • January 07, 2025

    Ford Tells NJ Justices Car Group Can't Rely On Franchise Law

    Ford Motor Co. told the New Jersey Supreme Court during oral argument Tuesday that a coalition of car dealerships can't sue it under the state's franchising law, arguing the plain language of the law only allows for franchisees to bring a cause of action against franchisors.

  • January 07, 2025

    US Postal Service Faces 3rd Circ. Fight Over Philly Injury

    A woman who slipped and fell inside a Philadelphia post office more than six years ago told the Third Circuit that a federal judge erred in dismissing her lawsuit as untimely, arguing in a brief Monday that the court ignored factual disputes over the postal service's delays and missteps in issuing an administrative denial of her claim.

  • January 07, 2025

    Trump Names Classified Docs Case Atty For White House Role

    Stanley Woodward Jr. of Brand Woodward Law LP is the latest attorney from Trump world to be tapped for a role for the incoming administration.

  • January 07, 2025

    Law Firm Sought To Collect Expired Debts, 3rd Circ. Told

    A New Jersey woman has urged the Third Circuit to revive her proposed class action against Garden State law firm Cohn Lifland Pearlman Herrmann & Knopf LLP over its debt collection practices, arguing a lower court was too loose with its standard for the timeliness of the two lawsuits involved.

  • January 07, 2025

    No New Money For More Colo. Judges, Chief Justice Told

    Colorado budget leaders told the state's chief justice Tuesday that her $13 million ask for more judges and staff next year was a nonstarter unless she proposed offsetting cuts, with one lawmaker saying the requested increase was "not going to happen" amid the state's $750 million shortfall.

  • January 07, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Rejects Software Co.'s Bid For $86M From Navy

    A Federal Circuit panel affirmed a decision holding that the U.S. Navy owes a software company just $154,000 for its infringing use of a 3-D virtual reality program, and not the nearly $86 million the company sought based on installations on more than 429,000 computers.

  • January 07, 2025

    DC Circ. OKs FERC's Approval For Indiana Pipeline

    A D.C. Circuit panel on Tuesday rejected a challenge to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's approval of a 24-mile pipeline serving two new natural gas turbines in Indiana, ruling that an advocacy group wrongly suggested FERC could "second-guess" state regulators' choice of energy generation.

  • January 07, 2025

    Osage Nation Asks Court To Confirm Reservation Boundaries

    The Osage Nation has urged an Oklahoma federal court to acknowledge its reservation's continued existence, arguing that a conclusion the Tenth Circuit reached 15 years ago saying the tribe's boundaries were disestablished was based entirely on extratextual factors.

  • January 07, 2025

    NC Justices Pause Certification Of Contested Top Court Race

    North Carolina's top court on Tuesday stopped the state Board of Elections from certifying the results of a hotly contested associate justice race, granting a temporary stay to the losing Republican candidate in the midst of his ballot challenge seeking to throw out scores of votes.

  • January 07, 2025

    No Problem With $217M Dam Repair Tax, Mich. Panel Says

    A Michigan appellate panel on Monday said a $217 million special assessment levied on property owners for dam repairs and lake level restoration after devastating 2020 floods was established through a legally sound process, ruling the owners were never entitled to have a pseudo-judicial review of the tax.

  • January 07, 2025

    Ga. Judge's Ethics Case Gets March Hearing Date

    A hearing has been set for March in the ethics case against a Georgia state judge accused of improperly allowing her personal friendship with an attorney to influence her role as a judge during a child custody case and of initiating and participating in ex parte communications.

  • January 07, 2025

    Landowner Gets Pot Farm Transport Easement Nixed

    A California state appeals court has vacated a conditional use permit that the County of Santa Barbara issued to a cannabis farm, finding that a nearby landowner can deny the use of an easement on its property to transport the federally illegal goods.

  • January 07, 2025

    Religious Schools Ask 1st Circ. To Gut 'Poison Pill' Law

    Two religious schools in Maine asked a First Circuit panel on Tuesday to strike down a "poison pill" passed by state lawmakers to blunt a U.S. Supreme Court decision affirming that the schools may participate in a government tuition program.

  • January 07, 2025

    4th Circ. Revives Christian Vax Refuser's Religious Bias Suit

    The Fourth Circuit reinstated Tuesday a lawsuit from a Christian nurse who claimed she was unlawfully fired for refusing to get vaccinated against COVID-19, ruling a trial court jumped the gun when it tossed her case.

Expert Analysis

  • In SF Water Case, Justices Signal How Loper May Be Applied

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    Skeptical questions from U.S. Supreme Court justices during oral argument in San Francisco v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency offer hints of how the court intends to apply limits on agency regulatory autonomy established last term in Loper Bright, says Karen Cullinane at Goldberg Segalla.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: November Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy discusses six federal court decisions that touch on Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and when individual inquiries are needed to prove economic loss.

  • Notable Q3 Updates In Insurance Class Actions

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    Total loss valuation cases and labor depreciation cases dominated the past quarter of insurance class actions, with courts continuing to reject challenges to condition adjustments in the former, and a pro-insured trend persisting in the latter, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.

  • 2nd Circ. Halkbank Ruling Shifts Foreign Immunity Landscape

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    Following the Second Circuit’s recent common law immunity ruling in U.S. v. Halkbank, foreign state-owned banks, wealth funds and other entities now must seriously consider the risk of criminal liability for commercial activity that violates U.S. laws, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Justices Must Weigh Reach Of Civil RICO In Cannabis Case

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    Oral arguments in Medical Marijuana Inc. v. Horn suggest that a majority of the U.S. Supreme Court may agree that a truck driver's losing his job after unknowingly ingesting THC and failing a drug test does not merit a racketeering claim — but the court may not buy the other side's theory of the case either, say attorneys at Lewis Baach.

  • Patent Marking Steps After Fed. Circ. Opens Lanham Act Door

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    Following the Federal Circuit’s recent ruling in Crocs v. Effervescent, which seemingly revives private actors’ ability to bring false patent marking claims under the Lanham Act, marketing and legal teams should be careful to avoid advertisement language that implies nonexistent patent rights, says Jeffrey Ratinoff at Spencer Fane.

  • Litigation Strategies In View Of New Double Patenting Rulings

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    Recent Federal Circuit decisions, including in Allergan v. MSN, raise several issues that patent owners should understand and consider addressing proactively regarding obviousness-type double patenting, at least in their prosecution strategies, say attorneys at Dentons.

  • Promoting Diversity In The Selection Of ADR Neutrals

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    Choosing neutrals from diverse backgrounds is an important step in promoting inclusion in the legal profession, and it can enhance the legitimacy and public perception of alternative dispute resolution proceedings, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Series

    Playing Ultimate Makes Us Better Lawyers

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    In addition to being fun, ultimate Frisbee has improved our legal careers by emphasizing the importance of professionalism, teamwork, perseverance, enthusiasm and vulnerability, say Arunabha Bhoumik and Adam Bernstein at Regeneron. 

  • High Court 'Violent Crimes' Case Tangled Up In Hypotheticals

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    In Delligatti v. U.S., the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments next week on whether attempted murder constitutes a crime of violence, and because the court’s interpretive approach thus far has relied on hairsplitting legal hypotheticals with absurd results, Congress should repeal the underlying statute, say attorneys at Patterson Belknap.

  • Tracking The Slow Movement Of AI Copyright Cases

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    The tech community may be expecting a prompt resolution on whether products generated by artificial intelligence are a fair use of copyrighted works, but legal history shows that a response to this question — at the heart of over 30 pending cases — will take years, say attorneys at White & Case.

  • How Property Insurance Coverage Shrank After The Pandemic

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    Insurers litigating property claims are leveraging rulings that provided relief in the COVID-19 context to reverse the former majority rule on physical loss or damage in all contexts, say attorneys at Reed Smith.

  • Considering Chevron's End Through A State Tax Lens

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    States took the lead in encouraging Chevron's demise, turning away from Chevron-type deference in state tax administration ahead of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Loper Bright decision, a trend likely to accelerate as courts take a more active role in interpreting tax laws, say attorneys at Eversheds Sutherland.

  • Curious Case Of FTC's Amicus Brief In Teva Fed. Circ. Appeal

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    Attorneys at BCLP explore the Federal Trade Commission's backing of Amneal's Orange Book-delisting efforts on Teva ahead of a key Federal Circuit hearing in a case between the two pharmaceutical companies, and wonder if the FTC amicus brief indicates a future trend, especially in the next administration.

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On Metadata

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    Several recent rulings reflect the competing considerations that arise when parties dispute the form of production for electronically stored information, underscoring that counsel must carefully consider how to produce and request reasonably usable data, say attorneys at Sidley.

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