California

  • October 29, 2024

    Pot Co. Neighbor Says He's Not Responsible for Transient Fire

    A property owner is looking to dismiss a cannabis company's lawsuit accusing him of allowing a transient person to spark a fire that destroyed $3.8 million of cannabis, saying landlords don't have to protect their neighbors from third parties.

  • October 29, 2024

    Retired Fed. Circ. Judge Backs Invisalign In Monopoly Cases

    Retired Federal Circuit Judge Paul R. Michel warned the Ninth Circuit on Tuesday that reversing a lower court's decision to toss a pair of class actions accusing Invisalign of monopolizing the clear braces and teeth scanners market by illegally refusing to deal with a rival would increase patent owners' legal uncertainties.

  • October 29, 2024

    Roku Invalidates Smart Alarm Claims At Patent Board

    Roku Inc. has persuaded an administrative board at the patent office to wipe out six claims in a "smart" alarm device patent developed by a subsidiary of Roku's longtime rival, Universal Electronics Inc.

  • October 29, 2024

    FCC, Calif. Agency To Team Up To Protect Privacy

    The Federal Communications Commission is going to be teaming up with one of California's consumer protection agencies to enforce privacy rights in the Golden State, the pair announced Tuesday.

  • October 29, 2024

    ByteDance's Sanctions Bid Against Ex-Worker Delays Trial

    A California federal judge delayed a trial in a wrongful termination lawsuit filed by an engineer formerly at TikTok's parent company ByteDance, directing the parties on Tuesday to instead submit briefing on the defendants' motion to terminate the case as a sanction for the plaintiff's alleged destruction of evidence and perjury.

  • October 29, 2024

    Epic Urges 9th Circ. Not To Pause Google Play Store Fixes

    Epic Games Inc. has fired back against Google's request the Ninth Circuit issue an emergency stay pausing a lower court's antitrust injunction that would require Google to open up its Play Store to competing app stores, slamming Google's arguments as "scattershot," misleading and legally unfounded.

  • October 29, 2024

    Developer Can't Revive COVID-19 App Suit Against Apple

    A California federal judge declined to revive an antitrust suit against Apple for not distributing a COVID-19 tracking app on its app store, saying a Ninth Circuit denial of the app maker's appeal after the case was dismissed in district court "is the law" of the case.

  • October 29, 2024

    Accellion Can't Nix Data Breach Suit Over Outdated Software

    A California federal judge refused to end a proposed data breach class action accusing Accellion of negligently failing to protect against cyberattacks on its file-sharing software, ruling that a special relationship exists between Accellion and its customers, such that it owed a duty of care to them.

  • October 29, 2024

    Patent Partner Moves From King & Spalding To Steptoe

    A former King & Spalding LLP partner has made the jump to Steptoe LLP, filling out the firm's team of California-based litigators who take on patent cases.

  • October 29, 2024

    Google Seeks To Toss Yelp's 'Self-Preferencing' Case

    Google urged a California federal court Monday to toss Yelp's case accusing the search giant of giving preference to its own local search offerings over Yelp and others, saying the review site has been "peddling these same claims to antitrust authorities around the world for over a decade."

  • October 29, 2024

    Beyond Abortion, 7 Ballot Questions Set To Shape Care

    While reproductive rights have led the healthcare debate this election season, voters across the country will shape state policies on a number of other hot issues, including a Medicaid work requirement and coverage for IVF. Law360 Healthcare Authority looks at seven ballot measures that go beyond abortion.

  • October 29, 2024

    Sports Betting Co. Sued For Spamming Consumers With Texts

    The Sports Prophets, a company that provides stats and predictions for sports gamblers to aid them in betting, has been slapped with a proposed class action accusing it of continuing to pelt customers with marketing text messages after they opted out.

  • October 29, 2024

    NYC Pet Leave Bill Marks 'Radical Departure' In Sick Time Use

    Legislation proposed by two New York City Council members that would require letting workers use sick leave to care for pets and service animals is an unprecedented move and an acknowledgment of the rising importance employees place on mental health, experts say.

  • October 29, 2024

    MoFo Adds Kirkland Capital Markets Ace In San Diego

    Morrison Foerster LLP is boosting its transactions team, announcing Tuesday that it is bringing in a Kirkland & Ellis LLP capital markets pro as a partner in its San Diego office as part of the firm's plan to increase high-level talent on the West Coast.

  • October 29, 2024

    EBay, Ex-Execs Deny Fault For Harassment Of Bloggers

    Online retailer eBay and a group of former executives say a 2019 harassment campaign against a pair of Massachusetts bloggers was solely the work of rogue employees, urging a Massachusetts federal court to rule they're not liable over the episode.

  • October 28, 2024

    Union Pacific Told To Face Injury Retrial With Reinstated Expert

    Railroad giant Union Pacific must face retrial against an injured worker after a California appeals court ruled that an expert with decades of rail experience but no formal accident-analysis training was wrongly blocked from telling a jury how a freight train behaves when starting up.

  • October 28, 2024

    Apple Withholding Docs In Monopoly Row, Epic Says

    Epic Games and Apple continued on in a discovery dispute in Epic's suit accusing Apple of monopolizing the iOS app distribution and in-app payment processing markets, with the video game company saying in a joint letter filed Friday that Apple is withholding "tens of thousands" of responsive documents.

  • October 28, 2024

    Hershey's 'Bubble Yum' Contains PFAS, Consumer Alleges

    The existence of "forever chemicals" in The Hershey Co.'s Bubble Yum brand bubblegum undermines the multinational candy company's commitment to transparency about the ingredients in its products, a new proposed false advertising class action filed in California state court alleges.

  • October 28, 2024

    Ontrak Founder Can't Wipe Novel Insider Trading Verdict

    A California federal judge has upheld Ontrak founder Terren Peizer's first-of-its-kind insider trading conviction, holding that jurors had "more than enough evidence" to determine he based a $20 million share sale on nonpublic information that the health tech company was about to lose its biggest client.

  • October 28, 2024

    9th Circ. Nixes Arbitration In Live Nation Ticket Sale Suit

    The Ninth Circuit affirmed Monday that Live Nation and Ticketmaster can't force consumer litigation over allegedly exorbitant ticket prices into arbitration, ruling in a published opinion that the underlying arbitration agreement linking to "borderline unintelligible" arbitral rules is unenforceable.

  • October 28, 2024

    Hermes Wants Antitrust Suit Over Birkins Tossed For Good

    Hermes again urged a California federal judge on Friday to toss a proposed class action accusing the French luxury design house of tying its exclusive Birkin and Kelly bags to the purchase of other items, saying the plaintiffs did not come close to proving antitrust law violations in a complaint now twice amended.

  • October 28, 2024

    Rebar Giant Pushed 'Hands-Off Calif.' Deal, Antitrust Jury Told

    Commercial Metals Co.'s ex-CEO conceded during a federal antitrust jury trial Monday that the Texas rebar giant pushed micromill-maker Danieli Corp. into a "hands-off California" exclusivity provision barring Danieli from developing most Golden State rival mills days after discovering Pacific Steel Group was planning to build a mill in Southern California with Danieli.

  • October 28, 2024

    Apple Says Section 230 Dooms ICloud Child Porn Claims

    Apple urged a California federal judge to throw out a proposed class action Friday alleging it has engaged in "privacy-washing" by ignoring a problem with child sexual abuse material on its iCloud storage platform, arguing that the claims are barred by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.

  • October 28, 2024

    Gov't Says No Duty To Pay $69M In COVID Testing Claims

    The Health Resources and Services Administration has urged the Court of Federal Claims to toss a lawsuit alleging the agency owes a laboratory $69 million in unpaid claims under a COVID-19 program for the uninsured, saying there was no contractual duty to pay.

  • October 28, 2024

    Parts Manufacturer Tells Pa. Jury Competitor Poached Stats

    A lawyer for hardware manufacturer Penn Engineering & Manufacturing Corp. told a federal jury in Philadelphia on Monday that one of its competitors used performance data from Penn's products to boost its own line of parts, creating confusion among consumers.

Expert Analysis

  • Latest 'Nuclear Verdict' Underscores Jury-Trial Employer Risk

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    A Los Angeles Superior Court jury's recent $900 million verdict in a high-profile sexual assault and harassment case illustrates the increase in so-called nuclear verdicts in employment cases, and the need for employers to explore alternative methods of resolving disputes, say Anthony Oncidi and Morgan Peterson at Proskauer.

  • Calif. Out-Of-State Noncompete Ban Faces Several Hurdles

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    California's attempt to bolster its noncompete law has encountered significant procedural and constitutional challenges, and litigating parties must carefully analyze not only the restrictive covenants contained in their agreements, but also the forum-selection and choice-of-law provisions, say Jennifer Redmond and Gal Gressel at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Addressing The Growing Hazards Of Mass Arbitration

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    Though retail companies typically include arbitration provisions in their terms of service, the recent trend of costly mass arbitrations filed by plaintiffs may cause businesses to rethink this conventional wisdom, say attorneys at BCLP.

  • Motion To Transfer Venue Considerations For FCA Cases

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    Several recent decisions highlight the importance for practitioners of analyzing as early as possible whether a False Claims Act case warrants a change of venue, and understanding how courts weigh certain factors for defendants versus whistleblowers, say Ellen London at London & Stout, and Li Yu and Corey Lipton at DiCello Levitt.

  • New NHTSA Fuel Economy Rule Adds Compliance Complexity

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    The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's recently announced final rule on new corporate average fuel economy standards for passenger cars and light trucks will create challenges for manufacturers, which must also comply with the EPA's multipollutant rule and California's zero-emission vehicle programs, say Joanne Rotondi and Hannah Graae at Hogan Lovells.

  • Autonomy Execs' Acquittal Highlights Good Faith Instruction

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    The recent acquittal of two former Autonomy executives demonstrates that a good faith jury instruction can be the cornerstone of an effective defense strategy in white collar criminal cases, in part because the concept of good faith is a human experience every juror can relate to, says Sara Kropf at Kropf Moseley.

  • Series

    Teaching Scuba Diving Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    As a master scuba instructor, I’ve learned how to prepare for the unexpected, overcome fears and practice patience, and each of these skills – among the many others I’ve developed – has profoundly enhanced my work as a lawyer, says Ron Raether at Troutman Pepper.

  • Navigating The Murky Waters Of Patent Infringement Damages

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    Recent cases show that there is no easy way to isolate an infringed patent’s value, and it would serve all sides well for courts to thoroughly examine expert opinions of this nature and provide consistent guidance for future cases, say Manny Caixeiro and Elizabeth Manno at Venable.

  • 3 Ways To Lower Insider Trading Risk After First 10b5-1 Case

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    In light of the U.S. Department of Justice's insider trading prosecution against the former CEO of Ontrack based on alleged abuse of a Rule 10b5-1 safe harbor plan — designed to allow executives to sell their companies' securities without liability — companies and individuals should take steps to avoid enacting similar plans in bad faith, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • Lawyers Can Take Action To Honor The Voting Rights Act

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    As the Voting Rights Act reaches its 59th anniversary Tuesday, it must urgently be reinforced against recent efforts to dismantle voter protections, and lawyers can pitch in immediately by volunteering and taking on pro bono work to directly help safeguard the right to vote, says Anna Chu at We The Action.

  • PE Firms Should Prepare For Increased False Claims Scrutiny

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    The impact private equity firms may have over medical decisions and care is increasingly attracting potential liability under the False Claims Act and attention from states and the federal government, so investors should follow best practices including conducting due diligence both before and after acquisitions, say attorneys at K&L Gates.

  • Proposed NIL Deal Leaves NCAA Antitrust Liability Door Open

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    The proposed House v. NCAA settlement filed in California federal court creates the possibility of significant direct payments to student-athletes for the first time, but the resulting framework is unlikely to withstand future antitrust scrutiny because it still represents an agreement among competitors to limit labor cost, says Yaman Desai at Lynn Pinker.

  • Series

    A Day In The In-House Life: Block CLO Talks Problem-Solving

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    Amid the busy summer months, Block Inc. Chief Legal Officer Chrysty Esperanza chronicles a typical Wednesday where she conquered everything from unexpected fintech regulatory issues and team building to Bay Area commutes and school drop-off.

  • Shipping Containers As Building Elements Require Diligence

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    With the shipping container market projected to double between 2020 and 2028, repurposing containers as storage units, office spaces and housing may become more common, but developers must make sure they comply with requirements that can vary by intended use and location, says Steven Otto at Crosbie Gliner.

  • Drip Pricing Exemption Isn't A Free Pass For Calif. Eateries

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    A new exemption relieves California bars and restaurants from the recently effective law banning prices that don't reflect mandatory fees and charges — but such establishments aren't entirely off the hook for drip pricing, due to uncertainty over disclosure requirements and pending federal junk fee regulations, say Alexandria Ruiz and Amy Lally at Sidley.

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