Commercial Contracts

  • December 05, 2024

    Money Services Co.'s Arbitration Bid Revived In $9M Fraud Suit

    The Eighth Circuit on Thursday reversed an Arkansas federal judge's order denying money service business EZBanc Corp.'s motion to arbitrate financial services company BSI Group's $9 million fraud suit over alleged unauthorized withdrawals, finding there to be material factual disputes over whether an agreement to arbitrate was effectively communicated to BSI.

  • December 05, 2024

    Netgear Seeks Anti-Suit Injunction Over Huawei's Wi-Fi SEPs

    Netgear is urging a California federal judge to block Chinese router-maker Huawei Technologies from seeking injunctions through Wi-Fi patent infringement actions the company pursued in foreign courts, arguing that Huawei is trying to impose excessive royalty rates and is avoiding its commitment to license its patents on reasonable terms.

  • December 05, 2024

    Fla. Labs Say Cigna's Trial 'Confession' Erases $7.3M Verdict

    Three Florida drug testing laboratories have urged a Connecticut federal court to undo a $7.3 million jury verdict for Cigna Health and Life Insurance Co. over unjustified billings, arguing a new trial is warranted after the insurer allegedly made a "confession" during opening statements that it wasn't seeking damages for itself.

  • December 05, 2024

    Apple Beats ICloud Storage Consumer Claims At 9th Circ.

    The Ninth Circuit was unconvinced Wednesday that Apple Inc. traps computer users into paying for additional iCloud storage upon reaching a 5-gigabyte backup limit, declining to revive a putative consumer class action against the technology giant.

  • December 05, 2024

    Freddie Mac Beats Suit Over Payoff Statement Fees, For Now

    A Washington federal judge has tentatively let Freddie Mac off the hook in borrowers' proposed class action alleging loan servicer Nationstar Mortgage illegally charged fees for payoff statements, ruling Thursday that Freddie Mac can't be liable for conduct it didn't authorize — even if it did own one loan at issue.

  • December 05, 2024

    First Citizens Accused Of $3M High-Yield Bait-And-Switch

    First Citizens Bank & Trust Company faces claims from an agritourism nonprofit and its registered agent that they invested $3 million with the bank expecting a competitive rate of return before finding those funds were actually in products yielding a much lower interest rate.

  • December 05, 2024

    Chinese Bank Faces New Suit Alleging Reinsurance Fraud

    Another group of insurers has accused one of China's largest banks of participating in a "multi-billion-dollar fraud" in the reinsurance market, telling a New York federal court Thursday that the bank, including its New York branch, has refused to honor over $890 million worth of letters of credit.

  • December 05, 2024

    Judge Won't Toss German Tesla Supplier From Mich. Suit

    A German Tesla supplier must stay in a breach of contract lawsuit brought by an electronics manufacturer, a Michigan federal judge has ruled, finding the foreign entity was sufficiently intertwined with its North American affiliates to give the court jurisdiction.

  • December 05, 2024

    Macy's, Bank And Parking Garage Settle $2.7M Repair Fight

    Macy's Retail Holdings has resolved litigation against it by a bank and a parking lot operator over $2.7 million in repairs and maintenance fees needed at a nearby parking garage, according to a Thursday court filing.

  • December 05, 2024

    Colo. Panel Sides With Cannabis Atty In Former Client's Suit

    The Colorado Court of Appeals ruled on Thursday that a cannabis attorney cannot be held liable for a former marijuana cultivator client's business failing when they violated land use rules because the attorney was no longer representing them at the time.

  • December 05, 2024

    Airbnb Customers Drop 'Assistance Fee' Suit Against Insurers

    A proposed class of Airbnb customers permanently dropped a suit accusing two of the company's insurance providers of violating Washington state law by charging an "assistance fee" when selling travel coverage.

  • December 05, 2024

    Smith Gambrell And Data Breach Victims Agree To Suit's End

    International law firm Smith Gambrell & Russell LLP and two data breach victims have agreed to end a proposed class action against the firm in California federal court.

  • December 04, 2024

    Trump Taps Ex-Sen. Loeffler For SBA, Fiserv CEO For SSA

    President-elect Donald Trump has nominated former Sen. Kelly Loeffler, a Republican from Georgia, to lead the Small Business Administration and Fiserv Inc. CEO Frank Bisignano to serve as Social Security Administration commissioner, according to announcements made Wednesday.

  • December 04, 2024

    Hemp Farmers Say Bid To Nix $200M Suit Is A Smoke Screen

    Two Colorado hemp growers have urged a federal judge to keep alive their lawsuit alleging that a solar energy company's construction on nearby leased land caused more than $200 million in crop damage, arguing that contractors and subsidiaries involved in the construction don't have to be added to the suit.

  • December 05, 2024

    CORRECTED: No Error In RICO Dismissal, Softek Tells Court

    A computer management company sued by the Modoc Nation in a $14.6 million breach of contract suit has urged an Oklahoma federal judge to deny the tribe's request that he reconsider his opinion tossing racketeering claims against the company. Correction: A previous version of this article's headline mischaracterized the judge's opinion on the RICO claim. The error has been corrected.

  • December 04, 2024

    Intel, VLSI Agree To Pause Del. IP Fight Ahead Of Texas Trial

    Prodded by a federal judge in Delaware, Intel Corp. and VLSI Technology LLC agreed Wednesday to stay motions to dismiss or transfer an Intel Corp. suit over claims that it already holds licenses to patents that VLSI asserts it controls, as a similar patent battle moves forward in Texas.

  • December 04, 2024

    Insurer Owes Coverage In Florida Keys Property Sale Dispute

    A Florida state appeals court partially reversed a lower court's ruling that an insurer didn't owe two insureds a defense in an underlying suit accusing them of conspiring with a Key West property seller, finding Wednesday there were insufficient allegations to trigger a policy exclusion.

  • December 04, 2024

    Solar Co. Targeted By Conn. AG Denies Deceiving Consumers

    Bright Planet Solar Inc. has denied the Connecticut attorney general's claims that it lured unsuspecting consumers into signing long-term contracts without adequate consent and performed unauthorized home improvements, telling a court that it acted in concert with "reasonable commercial practices."

  • December 04, 2024

    Mich. Justices Doubt Shareholder Agreement Bars Debt

    A chorus of Michigan Supreme Court justices on Wednesday appeared skeptical that a sister could claim her brother's ski resort company breached an agreement for shareholder redemption by taking out debt that altered her share redemption price, pressing her attorney as to how the contract prevented the company from doing so.

  • December 04, 2024

    9th Circ. Won't Allow Bookseller Group In FTC's Amazon Suit

    An independent bookstore association can't join the government's antitrust lawsuit against Amazon, the Ninth Circuit said Wednesday, with the panel's majority agreeing with the Federal Trade Commission and e-commerce giant that the trade group's allegations involve different anticompetitive conduct in different markets.

  • December 04, 2024

    Colo. Co.'s Alleged Kickback Scheme Ends In $2M Settlements

    A Colorado neuromonitoring company, its founder and two others have agreed to pay more than $2 million to end a False Claims Act lawsuit alleging they participated in a kickback scheme to get surgeons to order neuromonitoring services covered by federal programs.

  • December 04, 2024

    5th Circ. Probes $8M Payout For Allegedly Undelivered Services

    An investment company on Wednesday found itself before the Fifth Circuit having to justify paying $7.7 million for allegedly undelivered services from an affiliate, as it appeals a $2.6 million bill it got hit with for prematurely ending a contract.

  • December 04, 2024

    Building Contractor Agrees To End No-Hire Pacts

    Guardian Service Industries Inc. has agreed to stop enforcing no-hire agreements in its contracts that prevent building owners and managers from hiring the service contractor's employees after pressure from the Federal Trade Commission and state enforcers.

  • December 04, 2024

    Chase Will Settle Calif. Atty's Mortgage Rate-Lock Suit

    JPMorgan Chase Bank NA has reached a tentative, individual settlement with an attorney suing it for allegedly gouging him and other borrowers with sham mortgage rate-lock deals, heading off a potential class action.

  • December 04, 2024

    Amazon Held To Prior Fights, Ongoing Rules In Antitrust Row

    Amazon.com Inc. can't duck updated consumer antitrust suits because it failed to raise some arguments against prior iterations and because plaintiffs adequately alleged substantial, ongoing anticompetitive conduct and effects from rules punishing sellers who offer their goods cheaper elsewhere, according to a decision unsealed in Washington federal court.

Expert Analysis

  • After Chevron

    Author Photo

    Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Chevron deference standard in June, this Expert Analysis series has featured attorneys discussing the potential impact across 37 different rulemaking and litigation areas.

  • Opinion

    Atty Well-Being Efforts Ignore Root Causes Of The Problem

    Author Photo

    The legal industry is engaged in a critical conversation about lawyers' mental health, but current attorney well-being programs primarily focus on helping lawyers cope with the stress of excessive workloads, instead of examining whether this work culture is even fundamentally compatible with lawyer well-being, says Jonathan Baum at Avenir Guild.

  • Contract Disputes Recap: Addressing Dispositive Motions

    Author Photo

    Stephanie Magnell and Bret Marfut at Seyfarth examine three recent decisions from the U.S. Court of Claims and the U.S. Civilian Board of Contract Appeals that provide interesting takeaways about the nuances of motion practice utilized by the government to dispose of cases brought under the Contract Disputes Act prior to substantive litigation

  • What 2 Rulings On Standing Mean For DEI Litigation

    Author Photo

    Recent federal court decisions in the Fearless Fund and Hello Alice cases shed new light on the ongoing wave of challenges to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, with opposite conclusions on whether the plaintiffs had standing to sue, say attorneys at Moore & Van Allen.

  • Series

    Skiing And Surfing Make Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    The skills I’ve learned while riding waves in the ocean and slopes in the mountains have translated to my legal career — developing strong mentor relationships, remaining calm in difficult situations, and being prepared and able to move to a backup plan when needed, says Brian Claassen at Knobbe Martens.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: June Lessons

    Author Photo

    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy considers two recent decisions from the Third and Tenth Circuits, and identifies practice tips around class action settlements and standing in securities litigation.

  • Unpacking The Circuit Split Over A Federal Atty Fee Rule

    Author Photo

    Federal circuit courts that have addressed Rule 41(d) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure are split as to whether attorney fees are included as part of the costs of a previously dismissed action, so practitioners aiming to recover or avoid fees should tailor arguments to the appropriate court, says Joseph Myles and Lionel Lavenue at Finnegan.

  • Arbitration Implications Of High Court Coinbase Ruling

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent Coinbase v. Suski ruling not only reaffirmed the long-standing principle that arbitration is a matter of contract, but also established new and more general principles concerning the courts' jurisdiction to decide challenges to delegation clauses and the severability rule, say Tamar Meshel at the University of Alberta.

  • A Look At Calif. Contract Considerations In Fiji Water Ruling

    Author Photo

    A California appellate court's recent decision in Carolina Beverage v. Fiji Water, that a party may not seek contractual recovery on the basis of constructive termination, offers a look at contract construction and other considerations on negotiating distribution agreements, says Michael Laszlo at Clark Hill.

  • After A Brief Hiccup, The 'Rocket Docket' Soars Back To No. 1

    Author Photo

    The Eastern District of Virginia’s precipitous 2022 fall from its storied rocket docket status appears to have been a temporary aberration, as recent statistics reveal that the court is once again back on top as the fastest federal civil trial court in the nation, says Robert Tata at Hunton.

  • Practical Private Equity Lessons From 2 Delaware Deals

    Author Photo

    A pair of Delaware Chancery Court cases remind private equity sponsors that specificity is crucial through the lens of deal certainty, particularly around closing conditions and agreement sections of acquisition agreements, say Robert Rizzo and Larissa Lucas at Weil Gotshal and William Lafferty at Morris Nichols.

  • Recruitment Trends In Emerging Law Firm Frontiers

    Author Photo

    BigLaw firms are facing local recruitment challenges as they increasingly establish offices in cities outside of the major legal hubs, requiring them to weigh various strategies for attracting talent that present different risks and benefits, says Tom Hanlon at Buchanan Law.

  • How Uyghur Forced Labor Law Affects Importing Companies

    Author Photo

    Amid a growing focus on forced labor in supply chains and a likely increase in enforcement under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, companies may face costly import delays unless they develop and implement compliance best practices, say Thad McBride and Lauren Gammer at Bass Berry.

  • Revisiting Morals Clauses In The Age Of Deepfakes

    Author Photo

    Deepfakes and other forms of misrepresentation powered by artificial intelligence have complicated the traditional process of reputation management for companies entering into talent agreements with celebrities, bringing new considerations for the morals clauses that usually shield against these risks, say attorneys at Pryor Cashman.

  • 4 Tips For Drafting Earnouts To Avoid Disputes

    Author Photo

    Amid slowed merger and acquisition activity, buyers and sellers are increasingly turning to earnout provisions to get deals done, but these must be carefully drafted to avoid interpretative differences that can lead to later disputes, say attorneys at Cooley.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Commercial Contracts archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!