Commercial Contracts

  • July 10, 2024

    2nd Circ. Won't Rethink Arbitration Denial In ERISA Suit

    The Second Circuit declined to reconsider its May ruling that a group of financial services companies can't compel individual arbitration of a proposed class action accusing them of overcharging an employee stock ownership plan, rejecting one company's argument that the panel unfairly displayed "hostility to arbitration."

  • July 10, 2024

    NC County Can't Join AG's Suit Over HCA Healthcare Lapses

    A county in western North Carolina can't intervene in the attorney general's lawsuit accusing a for-profit health network of reneging on promises it made when it bought an Asheville hospital, the state Business Court has said, finding the county's interference would only delay the case.

  • July 10, 2024

    Wash. Condo Assoc. Wants Allstate To Cover $9.7M In Repairs

    A Washington condominium association is suing Allstate Insurance Co. in federal court, saying it broke their coverage agreement by refusing to cover $9.7 million in repairs for "hidden damage" to the buildings' exteriors.

  • July 09, 2024

    CFPB's Latest Rules Agenda Includes Blast From Fed Past

    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau may try to resurrect part of a defunct Federal Reserve regulation that banned banks from employing some consumer credit contract terms, according to a new rulemaking agenda from the agency that also hints at a plan B for its $8 credit card late-fee rule.

  • July 09, 2024

    Nirvana, Marc Jacobs Reach Deal In Smiley Face Logo Fight

    The rock band Nirvana, the fashion brand Marc Jacobs International LLC and a former record company employee have reached a settlement resolving a yearslong dispute over Nirvana's "smiley face" logo, according to a joint report filed in California federal court Tuesday.

  • July 09, 2024

    Bard Fights 'Patent Misuse' Ruling In $53M Suit At 9th Circ.

    Bard urged the Ninth Circuit on Tuesday to reverse a lower court's finding that its attempt to collect $53 million in licensing payments from a medical-device company was a clear case of "patent misuse," arguing that the parties' licensing agreement allows for Bard to collect payments even after the patents-in-suit expired.

  • July 09, 2024

    Fla. Judge Won't Nix Antitrust Claims Against Alcon

    The Florida federal judge presiding over the multidistrict litigation alleging disposable contact lens sellers conspired to fix prices refused Tuesday to let Alcon escape antitrust claims by an online contact lens reseller and sent the suit back to New York.

  • July 09, 2024

    Judge Says Alaska Tribal Healthcare Provider Can Access Info

    The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium can't limit one of its member's governance and participation rights in seeking legally privileged information involving sexual misconduct allegations against the consortium's former president, a federal judge has said, while also enforcing a previous judgment that allows access to some of the group's documents.

  • July 09, 2024

    Judge Greenlights New Defamation Claims In Sabotage Suit

    A couple accused of sabotaging a North Carolina software company can countersue its co-founder and his wife for defamation, a state Business Court judge ruled Tuesday, casting aside concerns that allowing new claims at this late stage will delay the upcoming trial.

  • July 09, 2024

    FTC Is Denied Amazon's Instructions On Signal Use, For Now

    A Washington federal judge refused Tuesday to give the Federal Trade Commission a peek into what it contends is the extensive use of Signal by Jeff Bezos and other top Amazon.com executives to hide communications relevant to a monopolization lawsuit, preferring to order deposition testimony on that use first.

  • July 09, 2024

    NJ Panel Revokes Coverage For Pharma Co. In Fraud Row

    A pharmaceutical company isn't covered for underlying accusations that it was a middleman in a self-dealing scheme orchestrated by its now-deceased board chairman, a New Jersey state appeals court ruled Tuesday, reversing a decision that a capacity exclusion in the company's directors and officers policy didn't apply.

  • July 09, 2024

    Del. Chancellor Sends SwervePay Merger Suit Toward Trial

    Delaware's Court of Chancery on Tuesday rejected dismissal for an amended complaint filed by e-payment venture SwervePay accusing buyers affiliated with payment collection business Ontario Systems LLC of overstating by tens of billions revenue-producing transactions expected under a proposed 2020 tie-up.

  • July 09, 2024

    Chancery Gives X Corp. One Week To Redact Twitter Docs

    X Corp. has a little over a week to prepare public versions of sealed court documents from Twitter Inc.'s 2022 battle with Elon Musk over his $44 billion acquisition bid, after a legal research website challenged the ongoing confidential treatment of the Delaware Chancery Court filings.

  • July 09, 2024

    Fight Over Golf-Aid Sales Puts Amazon In RICO Hot Seat

    A pair of golf marketing companies conspired with Amazon to cash in on the sale of popular equipment endorsed by top-ranked golfer Scottie Scheffler after tricking the manufacturer into selling it to them wholesale, the equipment-maker claimed in a fraud and RICO suit filed in California federal court on Tuesday.

  • July 09, 2024

    BP Unit Slams 'Farfetched' $300M Franchise Termination Suit

    The trio of companies that sued a BP subsidiary for terminating their truck stop franchise agreement have no claim to make, the BP unit has told an Ohio federal court, arguing that by their own admission the companies failed to hold up their end of the agreement at issue.

  • July 08, 2024

    Emergent, J&J Reach $50M Deal In COVID Vax Supply Fight

    Johnson & Johnson has agreed to pay Emergent BioSolutions $50 million to resolve claims stemming from a now-terminated COVID-19 vaccine manufacturing deal, according to a disclosure filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday.

  • July 08, 2024

    Would-Be Pot Co. Rainmaker Still Not Liable For Alleged Fraud

    A Colorado Court of Appeals panel has affirmed the outcome of a jury trial in which a businessman was found not liable for defrauding a cannabis company, concluding that it would have been highly prejudicial to tell jurors the businessman was sanctioned in the case for fabricating evidence.

  • July 08, 2024

    2nd Circ. Lets Rail Co. Retool Suit Against Big Banks

    The Second Circuit on Monday restored Eddystone Rail Co. LLC's lawsuit targeting Bank of America NA and other banks for their alleged roles helping an oil transportation and logistics company evade liability in a roughly $140 million contract dispute, reasoning that the rail company still has time to amend its complaint.

  • July 08, 2024

    Ex-Worker Under Protective Order Stole Gym's Name, Suit Says

    A former mixed martial arts gym employee with a protective order against him for threatening his boss and several other workplace misconduct violations stole the company's name to use in opening a competing gym and luring co-workers and clients away, according to a suit filed Friday in Colorado state court.

  • July 08, 2024

    Carriers Seek Reimbursement For $1.3B LNG Explosion

    Insurers for the owner of a liquefied natural gas export facility have accused a bankrupt contractor and its joint-venture partners of negligently causing a costly explosion by failing to implement proper safety instrumentation, seeking reimbursement for their coverage payments after the facility owner said it lost over $1.3 billion.

  • July 08, 2024

    Biotech Co. Alleges Arbitrator Conflict In Patent Award Fight

    Pennsylvania-based biotechnology company Renmatix Inc. is urging the Delaware Court of Chancery to nix an arbitral award favoring Finnish company UPM-Kymmene Corp. in a long-running patent dispute, pointing to an allegedly undisclosed conflict of interest involving the Finnish company's counsel at DLA Piper.

  • July 08, 2024

    Justices Told To Ignore 'Hopeless' Challenge To Antitrust Test

    A group of wholesalers who say the makers of 5-Hour Energy illegally favored Costco in distributing the energy drink shots told the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to reject the drink-maker's certiorari petition, saying it asks the justices to take on the role of fact-finders.

  • July 08, 2024

    'Amazon Of Hemp' Wants Early Exit From NC Pot Farm Fight

    An online hemp retailer is looking to ditch claims that it's passing off a North Carolina farm's hemp products as its own and has otherwise doctored THC test reports, calling the suit "fatally defective" and saying that other parts of the complaint contradict those claims.

  • July 08, 2024

    Ga. County Won't 'Sit On Its Hindquarters' In Battery Fire Fight

    A Georgia county suing a battery manufacturer for a massive fire allegedly sparked by the illegal dumping of lithium-ion cells urged a Georgia federal judge Friday to spike the company's "absurd" bid to dismiss the suit, calling the effort "premature and meritless."

  • July 08, 2024

    Academic Handbook Can't Be Contract, Mich. School Says

    The University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry has urged a Michigan federal judge to toss a lawsuit from a student who was kicked out for violating a no-contact order, saying the handbook the student's breach of contract claim relies on does not amount to an enforceable agreement.

Expert Analysis

  • Weisselberg's Perjury At Trial Spotlights Atty Ethics Issues

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    Former Trump Organization executive Allen Weisselberg’s recent guilty plea for perjury in the New York attorney general's civil fraud trial should serve as a reminder to attorneys of their ethical duties when they know a client has lied or plans to lie in court, and the potential penalties for not fulfilling those obligations, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.

  • Practicing Law With Parkinson's Disease

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    This Parkinson’s Awareness Month, Adam Siegler at Greenberg Traurig discusses his experience working as a lawyer with Parkinson’s disease, sharing both lessons on how to cope with a diagnosis and advice for supporting colleagues who live with the disease.

  • Series

    Playing Hockey Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Nearly a lifetime of playing hockey taught me the importance of avoiding burnout in all aspects of life, and the game ultimately ended up providing me with the balance I needed to maintain success in my legal career, says John Riccione at Taft.

  • A Snapshot Of The Evolving Restrictive Covenant Landscape

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    Rachael Martinez and Brooke Bahlinger at Foley highlight recent trends in the hotly contested regulation and enforcement of noncompetition and related nonsolicitation covenants, and provide guidance on drafting such provisions within the context of stand-alone employment agreements and merger or acquisition transactions.

  • For Lawyers, Pessimism Should Be A Job Skill, Not A Life Skill

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    A pessimistic mindset allows attorneys to be effective advocates for their clients, but it can come with serious costs for their personal well-being, so it’s crucial to exercise strategies that produce flexible optimism and connect lawyers with their core values, says Krista Larson at Stinson.

  • Handling Customer Complaints In Bank-Fintech Partnerships

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    As regulators mine consumer complaint databases for their next investigative targets, it is critical that fintech and bank partners adopt a well-defined and monitored process for ensuring proper complaint handling, including by demonstrating proficiency and following interagency guidance, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • Trump's NY Civil Fraud Trial Spotlights Long-Criticized Law

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    A New York court’s recent decision holding former President Donald Trump liable for fraud brought old criticisms of the state law used against him back into the limelight — including its strikingly broad scope and its major departures from the traditional elements of common law fraud, say Mark Kelley and Lois Ahn at MoloLamken.

  • What NAR Settlement Means For Agent Commission Rates

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    If approved, a joint settlement agreement between the National Association of Realtors and a class of home sellers will likely take the onus off home sellers to compensate buyers' agents, affecting considerations for all parties to real estate transactions, say attorneys at Jones Foster.

  • Opinion

    Requiring Leave To File Amicus Briefs Is A Bad Idea

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    A proposal to amend the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure that would require parties to get court permission before filing federal amicus briefs would eliminate the long-standing practice of consent filing and thereby make the process less open and democratic, says Lawrence Ebner at the Atlantic Legal Foundation and DRI Center.

  • 4 Ways To Motivate Junior Attorneys To Bring Their Best

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    As Gen Z and younger millennial attorneys increasingly express dissatisfaction with their work and head for the exits, the lawyers who manage them must understand and attend to their needs and priorities to boost engagement and increase retention, says Stacey Schwartz at Katten.

  • How 3 Unfolding Cases Could Affect The Energy Industry

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    Three judicial decisions now in the pipeline — Texas' challenge to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's methane regulations, Delaware's climate suit against big energy companies, and a case before the Supreme Court of Texas on royalty lease interpretation — could have important implications for the energy industry, say Michelle Scheffler and Rachael Cox at Skadden.

  • Flexibility Is Key In Hybrid Capital Investment Strategies

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    Flexible or hybrid capital funds have become a solution for some owners adverse to private debt or requiring short-term capital support not otherwise available in the market, but the complexity and possible range of structures available means that principals need to consider how they may work in different scenarios and outcomes, says Daniel Mathias at Cohen Gresser.

  • Contract Negotiation Prep Checklist For In-House Ad Lawyers

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    Barriers for in-house lawyers and procurement professionals persist in media and ad tech contract negotiations — but a pre-negotiation checklist can help counsel navigate nuances and other industry issues that need to be considered before landing a deal, including supplier services, business use cases and data retrieval, says Keri Bruce at Reed Smith.

  • Calif. Ruling Shows Limits Of Exculpatory Lease Clauses

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    A California court's recent decision in Epochal Enterprises v. LF Encinitas Properties, finding a landlord liable for failing to disclose the presence of asbestos on the subject property, underscores the limits of exculpatory clauses' ability to safeguard landlords from liability where known hazards are present, say Fawaz Bham and Javier De Luna at Hunton.

  • Series

    Serving As A Sheriff's Deputy Made Me A Better Lawyer

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    Skills developed during my work as a reserve deputy — where there was a need to always be prepared, decisive and articulate — transferred to my practice as an intellectual property litigator, and my experience taught me that clients often appreciate and relate to the desire to participate in extracurricular activities, says Michael Friedland at Friedland Cianfrani.

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