California

  • March 04, 2025

    Anthropic CEO Must Sit For Depo In Authors' OpenAI Suit

    A California federal magistrate judge overseeing discovery in authors' high-stakes copyright suit against OpenAI ruled Tuesday that the CEO of AI startup Anthropic must sit for a six-hour deposition, after the authors argued that he previously worked at OpenAI and was responsible for the datasets used to train its machine-learning model.

  • March 04, 2025

    Volkswagen Settling Drivers' Suit Over Turbocharger

    Volkswagen and Audi drivers who claim their cars contained defective turbochargers have asked a New Jersey federal judge to preliminarily approve a proposed class settlement that would have the automaker cover as much as half of certain out-of-pocket expenses the vehicle owners paid during the first 85,000 miles.

  • March 04, 2025

    Calif. PBM Opioid Suit Belongs In Federal Court, 9th Circ. Told

    Pharmacy benefit managers Express Scripts Inc. and OptumRx Inc. urged the Ninth Circuit on Tuesday to require California to litigate its public nuisance claims over their opioid dispensing practices in federal court, arguing that allowing the state to litigate in state court would create a circuit split.

  • March 04, 2025

    Special Master Recommends Win For UnitedHealth In FCA Suit

    A massive False Claims Act case targeting Medicare Advantage plans operated by UnitedHealth relies on "speculation and assumptions," according to a special master's report that recommends ruling in the company's favor and ending the lawsuit.

  • March 04, 2025

    9th Circ. Questions UPS' Teamster Election Challenge

    A Ninth Circuit panel appeared skeptical Tuesday of UPS' argument that Teamsters representatives tainted a union representation election by chatting with workers in a warehouse parking lot while a union vote went on inside.

  • March 04, 2025

    FCC Dismisses Bid To Revisit Local Unbundling Rules

    The Federal Communications Commission has dismissed a petition to restore local telecom unbundling rules, reiterating the agency's 2020 reasons for lifting a number of restrictions on local incumbents and restating that those limitations are no longer necessary.

  • March 04, 2025

    Athletes 'Overwhelmingly' Support NCAA NIL Deal, Attys Say

    The response by the class of college athletes to the NCAA's settlement providing name, image and likeness compensation and revenue sharing has been "overwhelmingly positive,'' the attorneys for the athletes told a California federal judge as part of their bid for final approval of the $2.78 billion settlement next month.

  • March 04, 2025

    Calif. Bar Staff Asks Board To Ditch Meazure's July Exam

    The State Bar of California recommended to its board of trustees to forgo its current partnership with bar exam administer ProctorU Inc., doing business as Meazure Learning, ahead of the July 2025 test following the disastrous rollout of its February exam, which prompted a nationwide class action filed in California federal court last week.

  • March 04, 2025

    Clorox Can't Escape Novel ERISA Suit Over 401(k) Forfeitures

    Clorox must face a proposed class action claiming it unlawfully used forfeited 401(k) funds to cover its employer contributions rather than defray plan participants' costs, with a California federal judge ruling a plan participant's allegations were detailed enough to stay in court.

  • March 04, 2025

    Justices Doubt Mexico Can Pin Cartel Deaths On US Gun Cos.

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday appeared highly skeptical of a suit by the Mexican government that seeks to hold Smith & Wesson and other American gunmakers liable for cartel violence, with justices from both sides of the ideological spectrum suggesting that the claims are too speculative.

  • March 04, 2025

    Court Can't Review Nix Of Venezuela Protected Status, DHS Says

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security told a California federal court it lacks authority to review a recent decision to scrap existing deportation protections for hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans, and urged the court to reject a push to have it put on hold.

  • March 04, 2025

    Paul Hastings Real Assets Pro Jumps To Proskauer In LA

    Proskauer Rose LLP is expanding its California team, bringing in a Paul Hastings LLP real assets ace as a partner in its Los Angeles office.

  • March 04, 2025

    High Court Says EPA Went Too Far With SF Water Permit

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday sided with San Francisco in its attempt to escape the terms of a federal sewer and wastewater system permit that the city challenged as too vague and difficult to comply with.

  • March 03, 2025

    Aspiration Founder Arrested For Alleged $145M Fraud Scheme

    Joseph Sanberg, co-founder of the celebrity-backed and sustainability-focused financial services company Aspiration Partners Inc., was arrested Monday over federal criminal allegations he schemed to defraud investor funds out of at least $145 million, federal prosecutors in California announced.

  • March 03, 2025

    Calif. Jury Struggling To Reach Verdict In Judge's Murder Trial

    The murder trial of Orange County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Ferguson took a dramatic turn on the fourth day of jury deliberations when jurors indicated they were at an impasse on whether Judge Ferguson is guilty of second-degree murder for shooting his wife to death in August 2023.

  • March 03, 2025

    Calif. Court OKs Slash Of $30M Med Mal Verdict To $250K

    A California appeals court has agreed with the decimation of a $29.5 million wrongful death verdict against a chiropractor who cleared a teen with a heart condition for strenuous physical activity, saying the state's damages cap applies.

  • March 03, 2025

    9th Circ. Rejects Redo Of Antitrust Case Against Zillow, NAR

    The Ninth Circuit on Monday said it would not revive a defunct brokerage platform's case accusing Zillow and the National Association of Realtors of deception related to the online real estate company's website, saying there was no conspiracy in the way changes were made to how listings were displayed.

  • March 03, 2025

    Ruling Nixing $1.3B Award May Be In Jeopardy At High Court

    The U.S. Supreme Court appeared poised during oral arguments on Monday to overturn a Ninth Circuit decision refusing to enforce a $1.3 billion arbitral award issued to an Indian satellite communications company, as the justices grappled with a new argument from a unit of India's space agency.

  • March 03, 2025

    Ultragenyx Loses Bid To Toss Suit Over Henrietta Lacks' Cells

    A Maryland federal judge on Monday refused to toss a lawsuit lodged by the family of the late Henrietta Lacks against biotechnology company Ultragenyx for allegedly profiting off her stolen "immortal" cells, saying proof Ultragenyx engaged in intrastate business in Maryland would thwart its contention the lawsuit was filed too late.

  • March 03, 2025

    Another Kirkland Private Equity Pro Joins Weil's LA Office

    Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP has welcomed yet another Kirkland & Ellis LLP alumnus and private equity veteran to join its U.S. Equity Group in Los Angeles, the firm announced Monday. 

  • March 03, 2025

    Apple Gets ICloud Monopoly Suit Tossed For Now

    Apple has convinced a California federal judge to toss a proposed class action accusing it of flouting federal antitrust laws by blocking third-party cloud storage services from accessing and storing certain files on its smartphones, at least temporarily.

  • March 03, 2025

    Wrongful Death Claims Go Ahead In Social Media MDL

    A California federal judge overseeing the multidistrict litigation over claims Facebook and other social media companies purposefully addict minors to their platforms has allowed certain allegations, including negligence and wrongful death claims, to go forward in a final ruling.

  • March 03, 2025

    ICE Contractor Loses Immunity Bid In Family Separation Suit

    A California federal judge Monday largely denied a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement contractor's attempt to escape litigation that a father and son brought against the transportation company for its role in a policy that separated them and thousands of other immigrant families during the first Trump administration.

  • March 03, 2025

    Credit Bureaus Look To Duck Renewed Medical Debt Claims

    Equifax, Experian and TransUnion asked a California federal judge Monday to toss an updated case accusing the credit reporting agencies of violating antitrust law by agreeing to exclude medical debt under $500 from consumer credit reports.

  • March 03, 2025

    Tobacco, Cannabis Cos. Score Partial Wins In TM Fight

    An Arizona federal court judge has issued a mixed ruling on dueling summary judgment bids in a trademark lawsuit over a tobacco company and a cannabis company's shared use of the word "Raw" in branding.

Expert Analysis

  • And Now A Word From The Panel: How MDLs Fared In 2024

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    A significant highlight of the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation's practice during 2024 was the increase in the percentage of new MDL petitions granted by the panel, with 25 granted and only eight denied — one of the highest grant rates in years, says Alan Rothman at Sidley.

  • Opinion

    Legal Personhood Can Give Natural Entities Their Day In Court

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    Granting legal personhood to natural entities like the River Thames, or vulnerable species like the Pacific bearded seal and Arctic ringed seal, could protect them from ecological threats and the vagaries of politics, and help us transform our relationship with nature, says Sachin Nandha at the International Centre for Sustainability.

  • Calif. Cannabis Decision Deepens Commerce Clause Divide

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    In Peridot Tree v. Sacramento, the Eastern District of California joined a growing minority of courts that have found the dormant commerce clause inapplicable to state-regulated marijuana, and the Ninth Circuit will soon provide important guidance on this issue, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

  • A Defendant's Guide To 4 Common CFPB Discovery Tactics

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    With the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recent flurry of new lawsuits showing no signs of stopping, defendants should know the bureau's most relied-upon discovery strategies — and be prepared to resist them, say attorneys at Goodwin.

  • Insurance Considerations For LA Wildfire Recovery

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    Businesses and homeowners affected by the destructive Southern California wildfires must act swiftly and strategically to navigate the complexities of the insurance recovery process, including by identifying all applicable policies, documenting damage thoroughly and keeping abreast of relevant state law, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • 10 Key Worker-Friendly California Employment Law Updates

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    New employment laws in California expand employee rights, transparency and enforcement mechanisms, and failing to educate department managers on these changes could put employers at risk, says Melanie Ronen at Stradley Ronon.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: Nov. And Dec. Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy discusses five federal court decisions and identifies practice tips from cases involving takings clause violations, breach of contract with banks, life insurance policies, employment and automobile defects.

  • Mentorship Resolutions For The New Year

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    Attorneys tend to focus on personal achievements or career milestones when they set yearly goals, but one important area often gets overlooked in this process — mentoring relationships, which are some of the most effective tools for professional growth, say Kelly Galligan at Rutan & Tucker and Andra Greene at Phillips ADR.

  • Trump's Energy Plans For Generation, Transmission And More

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    The executive orders and presidential memoranda issued by President Donald Trump on the day of his inauguration, unwinding the Biden administration's energy policies and encouraging development of fossil fuels, may have significant impacts on the generation mix, electric transmission construction and the state regulatory environment, say attorneys at Polsinelli.

  • LA Wildfires' Effect On Calif. Insurer Of Last Resort

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    Attorneys at Willkie discuss the background of California's insurer of last resort — known as the Fair Access to Insurance Requirements Plan — and examine the process of assessing member insurers and relevant recent property insurance market developments in light of the destruction from the ongoing Los Angeles wildfires.

  • How PAGA Reform Can Inform Employer Strategies In 2025

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    While recent changes to California's Private Attorneys General Act will not significantly reduce PAGA claims, employers can use the new law to potentially limit their future exposure, by taking advantage of penalty reduction opportunities and more, say attorneys at Thompson Coburn.

  • Key Trends In PFAS Regulation And Litigation For 2025

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    The critical policy milestones for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances expected in 2025 will not only shape the trajectory of PFAS regulation, but also set key precedents for environmental accountability, potentially reshaping the corporate approach to these "forever chemicals" for decades to come, say attorneys at MG+M.

  • California's New Homeowner Law Could Hamper Foreclosures

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    While A.B. 2424, which took effect this month in California, gives homeowners in default additional protections, it also provides loopholes that can be used to delay foreclosure auctions, and the cost of these delays will likely be passed on to the borrower, says Stephen Britt at Severson & Werson.

  • Series

    Coaching Little League Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    While coaching poorly played Little League Baseball early in the morning doesn't sound like a good time, I love it — and the experience has taught me valuable lessons about imperfection, compassion and acceptance that have helped me grow as a person and as a lawyer, says Alex Barnett at DiCello Levitt.

  • UK Lawyers Can Access Broad US Discovery To Win Cases

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    Given its breadth, U.S. discovery can be a powerful tool in litigation in the U.K. and other jurisdictions outside the U.S., and a survey of recent cases indicates that discovery requests made in the U.S. are likely to be granted — with many applications even proceeding without contest, say lawyers at Miller & Chevalier.

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