Appellate

  • November 08, 2024

    Biden Announces SDNY Judicial Pick As Lame Duck Kicks Off

    President Joe Biden announced judicial nominees for the Southern District of New York and the District Court of Guam on Friday night.

  • November 08, 2024

    Facts In Emails Aren't Confidential For Deposition, Judge Says

    A government contractor implicated in allegations that the U.S. infringed patents for contactless data carriers must turn over portions of a former employee's emails because the correspondence contains facts not protected by attorney-client privilege, the U.S. Court of Federal Claims has ruled.

  • November 08, 2024

    Sullivan & Cromwell Fees Questioned In Kidde-Fenwal Ch. 11

    Sullivan & Cromwell LLP and the attorney general of California clashed in Delaware bankruptcy court over the firm's interim fee requests for its representation of debtor chemical company Kidde-Fenwal Inc., with the state alleging overbilling and Sullivan & Cromwell claiming California is seeking "payback" for the results of a recent mediation.

  • November 08, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Wonders If Italian Pasta Duties Are Bad Math

    The Federal Circuit had semolina on its mind Friday, and it didn't seem convinced the U.S. Department of Commerce had made the right call when relying on what two pasta manufacturers have said are faulty calculations to set antidumping duties for their imports.

  • November 08, 2024

    Justices Urged To Review Amazon Patent Program Case

    A company alleging patent infringement through Amazon's patent evaluation program is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to take up its appeal of a Federal Circuit ruling that said it had to face a declaratory judgment suit in the purported infringer's home state.

  • November 08, 2024

    9th Circ. Says Univ. Wrongly Deprived Of Tax-Exempt Status

    The Ninth Circuit on Friday reversed a decision by an Arizona district court backing the U.S. Department of Education's determination that the privately owned Grand Canyon University didn't qualify as a nonprofit institution for classification related to federal loan and grant programs.

  • November 08, 2024

    NC Forest Service Workers Defend OT Wage Suit Win

    A group of state foresters urged the North Carolina Court of Appeals to affirm a trial court order requiring they be paid overtime for work combating forest fires, saying state agencies clearly agreed to compensate them at a rate of time-and-a-half of their regular pay under a reimbursement deal with the federal government.

  • November 08, 2024

    9th Circ. Doubts Weight Loss Doc's Fraud Conviction Appeal

    A Ninth Circuit panel appeared skeptical Friday of a former Hollywood doctor's bid to undo his conviction for conning insurance companies into covering his famous 1-800-GET-THIN lap-band weight loss surgeries, with one appellate judge saying there was "overwhelming" evidence that the physician directed subordinates to falsify sleep studies.

  • November 08, 2024

    Kentucky Utility Asks High Court To Stay EPA Coal Ash Rule

    A Kentucky electric utility called on the U.S. Supreme Court to halt the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's rule strengthening federal regulations requiring safe management of coal ash dumped at operating and retired power plants, while it appeals the D.C. Circuit's refusal to block the rule.

  • November 08, 2024

    'Love Is Blind' Producer Urges Arbitration For Assault Case

    A producer behind the Netflix reality show "Love Is Blind" has asked the Texas Supreme Court to send a former contestant's sexual assault suit to arbitration, arguing that her allegations do not apply to a federal act that invalidates arbitration agreements victims enter into before allegations are made.

  • November 08, 2024

    Mich. Court Of Claims Defeats Constitutional Challenge, Again

    The Sixth Circuit has rejected Michigan residents' attempt to reopen what the panel called a centuries-old debate about the constitutionality of judges reviewing their colleagues' opinions, upholding the dismissal of residents' claims their lawsuits suffered because of appellate judges' hesitance to disagree with each other.

  • November 08, 2024

    5th Circ. Remands Texas Social Media Law Challenge

    The Fifth Circuit remanded to the district court a challenge to Texas' social media law prohibiting platforms from employing certain content moderation practices, ruling that the record on the case is still too undeveloped to resolve.

  • November 08, 2024

    Attys Ask 11th Circ. To Affirm Arbitration Denial In ERISA Case

    The American Association for Justice has urged the Eleventh Circuit to find that a legal technology company's arbitration clauses are unenforceable, arguing that the company should face workers' Employee Retirement Income Security Act suit in court.

  • November 08, 2024

    Mass. Auditor Ready For Beacon Hill Oversight Rumble

    The Massachusetts state auditor told Law360 she's ready to scrap with Beacon Hill over expansive new powers that a majority of voters handed her office to scrutinize the legislature, a constitutional clash that seems destined for the state's highest court.

  • November 08, 2024

    Gov't Union Continues Organizing Push For DOJ Attys

    Attorneys in the U.S. Department of Justice's civil rights and environment divisions are stepping up their efforts to organize with the National Treasury Employees Union, the union confirmed Friday, as federal workers brace for coming changes under President-elect Donald Trump's new administration.

  • November 08, 2024

    NJ Appeals Panel Rejects Convicted Ex-Atty's Bid For Relief

    The New Jersey Appellate Division turned down on Friday a former attorney's bid for review of her conviction on participating in an $873,000 mortgage fraud scheme, in which she claimed she was barred from the full range of cross-examination at trial that she should have had the right to.

  • November 08, 2024

    3rd Circ. Unsure Progressive Can Undo Car Value Suit Cert.

    A Third Circuit panel on Friday grappled with whether an adjustment that Progressive Specialty Insurance Co. did every time it calculated the value of a totaled vehicle was enough to warrant class certification for a lawsuit claiming the adjustment was unfair, or if classwide treatment was inappropriate when each class member could have a different outcome of that assessment.

  • November 08, 2024

    Mass. Hay Farm Not Eligible For Ag Tax Break, Court Affirms

    A Massachusetts land parcel that is used for growing and harvesting hay is not eligible for a reduced tax assessment as agricultural land because not enough of the parcel is devoted to the haying operation, the state Court of Appeals affirmed Friday.

  • November 08, 2024

    DC Judge Freezes Election Subversion Case Against Trump

    A D.C. federal judge on Friday wiped out the schedule in the case accusing President-elect Donald Trump of plotting to overturn the 2020 election, granting a postelection request from the special counsel's office prosecuting the case.

  • November 08, 2024

    Mass. Justices Order Return Of Failed Engagement Ring

    Massachusetts' highest court on Friday told a jilted bride seeking to hold on to a $70,000 Tiffany diamond engagement ring that she must return it to her former fiancé, calling it quits on a 65-year-old precedent concerning who gets to keep a ring after a breakup.

  • November 07, 2024

    Man Gets 2 Yrs. For Illegally Accessing Ginsburg's Health Info

    A former healthcare industry worker who was accused of illegally accessing U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's healthcare records and posting them online was sentenced Thursday in Virginia federal court to two years in prison, the U.S. Department of Justice said.

  • November 07, 2024

    7th Circ. Affirms Warrantless Use of Surveillance Cameras

    The Seventh Circuit is standing by its decision that putting a pole up to observe someone's home without a warrant doesn't trample their Fourth Amendment rights because it doesn't constitute a search.

  • November 07, 2024

    3rd Circ. Says Tainted Bayer Antifungals Clearly 'Worth Less'

    Four of the nine named plaintiffs in a proposed class action over Bayer's 2021 recall of potentially benzene-tainted antifungal sprays can revive their claims against the company on the grounds that they'd paid for an effectively worthless product, a Third Circuit panel ruled Thursday.

  • November 07, 2024

    Trans Patients Say Fla. Ban On Care Should Be Bias Tested

    A proposed class of transgender individuals asking for the reversal of a ruling blocking Florida's ban on Medicaid coverage for gender-affirming care told the Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday that hostile discrimination analysis of statutes applies to classes beyond those recognized as "suspect" or "quasi-suspect."

  • November 07, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Questions Gov't Analysis For Omani Nail Duties

    A Federal Circuit panel wrestled Thursday with an Omani steel nail producer's claims that the U.S. Department of Commerce used distorted data to calculate its anti-dumping duties, with judges contemplating whether the alleged agency error was an innocuous one.

Expert Analysis

  • Strategies To Avoid Patent Issues In AI Drug Discovery

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    Artificial intelligence has the potential to improve drug discovery and design, but companies should consider a variety of factors when patenting drugs created using AI systems, including guidance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and methods for protecting patent eligibility, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.

  • What Being An 'Insider' Means In Ch. 11, And Why It Matters

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    As borrowers grapple with approaching near-term maturities on corporate debt, lenders should be proactive in mitigating the risks of being classified as an insider in potential bankruptcies, including heightened scrutiny, preference risk, plan voting and more, say David Hillman and Steve Ma at Proskauer.

  • How Cos. Can Build A Strong In-House Pro Bono Program

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    During this year’s pro bono celebration week, companies should consider some key pointers to grow and maintain a vibrant in-house program for attorneys to provide free legal services for the public good, says Mary Benton at Alston & Bird.

  • Series

    Home Canning Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Making my own pickles and jams requires seeing a process through from start to finish, as does representing clients from the start of a dispute at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board through any appeals to the Federal Circuit, says attorney Kevin McNish.

  • Navigating The Bankruptcy Terrain After Purdue Pharma

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s June ruling in Harrington v. Purdue Pharma is having a significant impact on bankruptcies, with recent cases addressing nonconsensual third-party releases and opt-out mechanisms, and highlighting strategies practitioners can employ to avoid running afoul of the decision, say Brett Axelrod and Agostino Zammiello at Fox Rothschild.

  • 5 Considerations For Obviousness-Type Double Patenting

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent denial of certiorari for In re: Cellect highlights the current state of obviousness-type double patenting based on that case and another recent Federal Circuit decision, including that ODP is not fatal, that divisional applications are protected from ODP and more, says Fabian Koenigbauer at Ice Miller.

  • How To Avoid Risking Arbitration Award Confidentiality In NY

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    Though a Second Circuit decision last year seemed to create a confidentiality safe harbor for arbitration awards that had no ongoing compliance issues, a recent New York federal court ruling offers further guidance on the meaning of "ongoing compliance issues," says Matthew Iverson at Nelson Mullins.

  • How Project 2025 Could Upend Federal ESG Policies

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    If implemented, Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation's policy playbook for a Republican presidential administration, would likely seek to deploy antitrust law to target ESG initiatives, limit pension fund managers' focus to pecuniary factors and spell doom for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's climate rule, say attorneys at Mintz.

  • E-Signature Best Practices For Employers After Calif. Ruling

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    In Garcia v. Stoneledge Furniture, a California appellate court found an arbitration agreement invalid after an employee raised doubts about the authenticity of its e-signature, underscoring the importance of employers implementing additional measures to verify the authenticity of electronically signed documents, say Ash Bhargava and Reece Bennett at Atkinson Andelson.

  • Patent Lessons From 7 Federal Circuit Reversals In August

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    The Federal Circuit’s seven vacated or reversed cases from August provide helpful clarity on obviousness-type double patenting, written description and indefiniteness, and suggest improved practices for petitioners and patent owners in inter partes review, say Denise De Mory and Li Guo at Bunsow De Mory.

  • Smith's New Trump Indictment Is Case Study In Superseding

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    Special counsel Jack Smith’s recently revised Jan. 6 charges against former President Donald Trump provide lessons for prosecutors on how to effectively draft superseding indictments in order to buttress or streamline their case, as necessary, says Jessica Roth at Cardozo Law School.

  • Key Insurance Implications Of Hawaii's Historic GHG Ruling

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    In Aloha Petroleum v. National Union Fire Insurance, the Hawaii Supreme Court became the first state court to classify greenhouse gasses as pollutants barred from insurance coverage, a ruling likely to be afforded great weight by courts across the country, say Scott Seaman and Gar Lauerman at Hinshaw & Culbertson.

  • Use The Right Kind Of Feedback To Help Gen Z Attorneys

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    Generation Z associates bring unique perspectives and expectations to the workplace, so it’s imperative that supervising attorneys adapt their feedback approach in order to help young lawyers learn and grow — which is good for law firms, too, says Rachael Bosch at Fringe Professional Development.

  • What To Expect As Worker Bias Suit Heads To High Court

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    The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services, which concerns how courts treat discrimination claims brought by majority group plaintiffs, and its decision could eliminate the background circumstances test, but is unlikely to significantly affect employers' diversity programs, say Victoria Slade and Alysa Mo at Davis Wright.

  • Opinion

    Congress Can And Must Enact A Supreme Court Ethics Code

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    As public confidence in the U.S. Supreme Court dips to historic lows following reports raising conflict of interest concerns, Congress must exercise its constitutional power to enact a mandatory and enforceable code of ethics for the high court, says Muhammad Faridi, president of the New York City Bar Association.

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