Commercial Contracts

  • January 24, 2025

    Musk Can't Yet Appeal Twitter Investors' Cert., 9th Circ. Says

    The Ninth Circuit on Friday rebuffed Elon Musk's request to immediately appeal a California federal judge's decision to certify a class of thousands of Twitter investors over claims the billionaire businessman fraudulently tweeted about the social media company's alleged bot problem to get out of his $44 billion acquisition.

  • January 24, 2025

    CSU, Mountain West Seek To Escape Suit Over Trans Athlete

    The California State University system and Mountain West Conference urged a Colorado federal court to free them from a lawsuit challenging a conference policy that allowed a transgender athlete's participation, saying precedent, including from the U.S. Supreme Court, recognized that discrimination based on one's transgender status was impermissible sex discrimination.

  • January 24, 2025

    Anschutz Gets Trade Secrets Trial Delayed Amid Sale Dispute

    A Colorado state judge on Friday delayed an upcoming trial in a trade secrets suit brought by Anschutz Exploration Corp., giving the parties more time to deal with a discovery fight over a recent sale that left the jurist "totally dumbfounded" and "furious" at a Denver oil prospector earlier this week.

  • January 24, 2025

    Justices Urged To Review Souvenir Store's TM Fraud Case

    A Florida souvenir store chain has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to consider its challenge to a Second Circuit decision foreclosing its arguments that a bankrupt beachwear company fraudulently procured a trademark registration to secure a $3.5 million settlement in yearslong litigation between the competitors.

  • January 24, 2025

    11th Circ. Upholds $23M Ruling Against Venezuelan Oil Cos.

    The Eleventh Circuit ruled Friday that two Venezuelan oil companies can't reverse a $23 million judgment over breach of contract for the sale of chemicals, saying they waived challenges to personal jurisdiction at key points in the litigation, and the record shows no genuine factual issues surrounding the broken agreements.

  • January 24, 2025

    Scorned Hot Dog Biz Buyer Urges NC Justices To Revive Suit

    A businessman who claims he was cut out of a deal to buy a chain of Ohio hot dog eateries urged the North Carolina Supreme Court to revive his suit against a man who the businessman said was supposed to be his partner, arguing only a jury can resolve the matter.

  • January 24, 2025

    EEOC Disability Bias Suit Tossed Following Nixed Evidence

    A mortgage and financial services company on Friday defeated a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lawsuit alleging it unlawfully refused to hire a woman because she took pain medication, after a Washington federal judge ruled midtrial that a key piece of evidence shouldn't have been shown to jurors.

  • January 24, 2025

    NJ Judge Rejects Bid For New Trial In Red Roof Inn Deal

    A New Jersey state judge has rejected a bid for a new trial over a deal gone wrong to purchase a Red Roof Inn, ruling two witnesses who asserted their Fifth Amendment rights outside of the jury's presence had no bearing on the jury's verdict.

  • January 24, 2025

    9th Circ. Renews Billing Co.'s Suit Against Texas Data Firm

    A Ninth Circuit panel on Friday partly revived a Washington billing services company's lawsuit over a soured business deal with bankrupt Addison Data Services, finding a bankruptcy settlement agreement and the statute of limitations can't keep the plaintiff from pursuing its breach of fiduciary duty claims.

  • January 24, 2025

    Boston Firm Says IT Vendor Holding Computers 'Hostage'

    Boston-based law firm Melick & Porter LLP says a company it hired to manage its information technology is now holding its computer network and data "hostage" by refusing to cooperate with the transition to a new vendor unless Melick pays it $380,000.

  • January 24, 2025

    Dow Argues Tech Firm's IP Suit Over Software Is Time-Barred

    The Dow Chemical Co. has urged an Ohio federal judge to rule in its favor in a dispute over proprietary polyethylene manufacturing software, arguing that ControlSoft Inc.'s suit ignores their more than 20-year business relationship and that the technology firm waited too long to bring trade secrets and copyright infringement claims.

  • January 24, 2025

    Capital One Named In Action Over Early-Year Service Outage

    Capital One has been hit with a proposed class action in Virginia federal court focused on a January service disruption that allegedly left consumers locked out of its systems.

  • January 24, 2025

    Baldoni Rebuts Atty Ethics Claims In 'It Ends With Us' Fight

    A lawyer representing Justin Baldoni has told a New York federal judge that statements his counsel has made to the press regarding the actor and director's thorny litigation with Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds over the film "It Ends With Us" didn't violate ethical rules or prejudice proceedings.

  • January 24, 2025

    UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

    This past week in London has seen Axa Insurance and Admiral face a claim from a former lawyer recently exposed for personal injury fraud, the owner of Reading Football Club sue a prospective buyer and mobile network Lycamobile tackle action by Spanish network Yogio. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • January 24, 2025

    Judge To Inspect Winston & Strawn Docs In Malpractice Row

    A Texas state judge said Friday that he plans to personally review more than 100 Winston & Strawn LLP documents to determine whether the firm must turn them over to Houston-based energy companies in connection with their $175 million malpractice suit.

  • January 24, 2025

    'Secret Plot' Drove Perella Weinberg Split, Judge Hears

    A New York state judge heard dueling claims of deception on Friday as counsel for investment banking firm Perella Weinberg and a group of former partners each accused the other of a "secret plot" that violated their partnership agreement, kicking off a trial centering on a sudden split in the firm a decade ago.

  • January 23, 2025

    Wash. Justices Back Workers' View On Moonlighting Law

    Washington's highest court clarified on Thursday that the state's moonlighting protections shield low-wage workers from noncompete terms that would outright ban them working for any competitor in any capacity, concluding that employers must narrowly tailor such restrictions to be line with employees' common-law duty of loyalty.

  • January 23, 2025

    Conn. High Court Snapshot: Atty's Bonus, Burn Verdict

    In its next term starting Monday, the Connecticut Supreme Court will hear an appeal from an acupuncturist who doesn't want to share liability for a judgment paid to a burn victim, and consider whether to reverse a seven-figure verdict for a private equity management firm's founder, who claims other members improperly cut him out.

  • January 23, 2025

    4th Circ. Unwinds Rocket Mortgage Borrowers' Class Cert.

    A split Fourth Circuit on Thursday reversed the class certification of borrowers who accused Rocket Mortgage of inflating their home values, finding that not all potential class members could prove they were injured under the U.S. Supreme Court's heightened pleading standard in TransUnion.

  • January 23, 2025

    Ex-Tribal Chair Seeks High Court Review Of Extortion Verdict

    A former tribal chair in Massachusetts told the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday that the First Circuit was wrong and stands alone in ruling that federal extortion laws apply to Native American officials as it reinstated his convictions tied to the development of a casino project.

  • January 23, 2025

    Catholic University, Students' $2M Deal Wraps Up COVID Suit

    A D.C. federal judge gave final approval to a $2 million settlement between Catholic University and a class of students who say they lost opportunities when the school shut down in-person learning at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

  • January 23, 2025

    Wells Fargo Prevails In $25M Mortgage Default Dispute

    A Pennsylvania state court sided with Wells Fargo in a foreclosure suit accusing a Philadelphia property owner of defaulting on a nearly $25 million mortgage loan, finding the owner failed to abide by the loan agreement.

  • January 23, 2025

    Judge Throws Out Minor League Owners' Suit Against Rival

    A New Jersey federal judge dismissed a suit brought against a minor league baseball team owner by a rival company over his alleged moves to undermine its position in financial negotiations with Major League Baseball, ruling that the owner had no duty to his rival during those talks.

  • January 23, 2025

    Fla. Insurer Tries To Toss Suit Blaming It For Black Mold Death

    A Sunshine State insurer accused of wrongfully causing the death of a woman who died from black mold contamination after it didn't send a promised team to her home to fix hurricane damage has urged a Florida judge to dismiss the suit, calling it a bad-faith case in disguise trying to get around an already pending contract dispute.

  • January 23, 2025

    7th Circ. Says Ex-Manager's Noncompete Allowed Clawback

    The Seventh Circuit reopened an auto parts company's lawsuit seeking to recover proceeds a plant manager got from selling shares he was granted, saying Delaware's top court has made clear that a lower court shouldn't have analyzed whether the forfeiture-for-competition provisions of the stock agreements were reasonable.

Expert Analysis

  • FTC Report On AI Sector Illuminates Future Enforcement

    Author Photo

    The Federal Trade Commission's report on cloud service providers and their partnerships with developers of artificial intelligence's large language models suggests that the agency will move to rein in Big Tech with antitrust enforcement to protect startups, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

  • Mentorship Resolutions For The New Year

    Author Photo

    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.

  • Series

    Coaching Little League Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    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.

  • 5 Litigation Funding Trends To Note In 2025

    Author Photo

    Lawyers and their clients must be prepared to navigate an evolving litigation funding market in 2025, made more complicated by a new administration and the increasing overall cost of litigation, says Jeffery Lula at GLS Capital.

  • The Fed. Circ. In 2024: 5 Major Rulings To Know

    Author Photo

    In 2024, the Federal Circuit provided a number of important clarifications to distinct areas of patent law – including design patent obviousness, expert testimony admissions and patent term adjustments – all of which are poised to have an influence going forward, say attorneys at Knobbe Martens.

  • Rethinking Litigation Risk And What It Really Means To Win

    Author Photo

    Attorneys have a tendency to overestimate litigation risk before summary judgment and underestimate risk after it, but an eight-stage litigation framework can clarify risk at different points and help litigators reassess what true success looks like in any particular case, says Joshua Libling at Arcadia Finance.

  • Mass Arbitration Procedures After Faulty Live Nation Ruling

    Author Photo

    Despite the Ninth Circuit's flawed reasoning in Heckman v. Live Nation, the exceptional allegations of collusive conduct shouldn't be read to restrict arbitration providers that have adopted good faith procedures to ensure that consumer mass arbitrations can be efficiently resolved on the merits, says Collin Vierra at Eimer Stahl.

  • Proactively Managing Tariff Impacts On Megaprojects

    Author Photo

    President-elect Donald Trump's proposed tariffs may compound the complexity, duration and risks associated with financing and building large-scale infrastructure projects — so owners and contractors should plan to take possible tariff-related cost and schedule overruns into account when drafting contracts, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • US-China Deal Considerations Amid Cross-Border Uncertainty

    Author Photo

    With China seemingly set to respond to the incoming U.S. administration's call for strategic decoupling and tariffs, companies on both sides of the Pacific should explore deals and internal changes to mitigate risks and overcome hurdles to their strategic plans, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Considering The Status Of The US Doctrine Of Patent Misuse

    Author Photo

    A recent Ninth Circuit decision and a U.K. Court of Appeal decision demonstrate the impact that the U.S. Supreme Court's 2015 decision in Kimble v. Marvel Entertainment has had on the principle that post-patent-expiration royalty payments amount to patent misuse, not only in the U.S. but in English courts as well, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Series

    Playing Rugby Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    My experience playing rugby, including a near-fatal accident, has influenced my legal practice on a professional, organizational and personal level by showing me the importance of maintaining empathy, fostering team empowerment and embracing the art of preparation, says James Gillenwater at Greenberg Traurig.

  • Reviewing 2024's Evolving EdTech Privacy Regulations

    Author Photo

    Lawmakers are trying to keep up with the privacy and security risks of the increasingly prevalent education technology, with last year's developments including the Federal Trade Commission's proposed amendments to the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, and the U.S. Senate passing two new children's privacy acts, say attorneys at McDermott.

  • Opinion

    No, Litigation Funders Are Not 'Fleeing' The District Of Del.

    Author Photo

    A recent study claimed that litigation funders have “fled” Delaware federal court due to a standing order requiring disclosure of third-party financing, but responsible funders have no problem litigating in this jurisdiction, and many other factors could explain the decline in filings, say Will Freeman and Sarah Tsou at Omni Bridgeway.

  • Top 10 Noncompete Developments Of 2024

    Author Photo

    Following an eventful year in noncompete law at both state and federal levels, employers can no longer rely on a court's willingness to blue-pencil overbroad agreements and are proceeding at their own peril if they do not thoughtfully review and carefully enforce such agreements, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

  • 5 E-Discovery Predictions For 2025 And Beyond

    Author Photo

    In the year to come, e-discovery will be shaped by new and emerging trends, from the adoption of artificial intelligence provisions in protective orders, to the proliferation of emojis as a source of evidence in contemporary litigation, say attorneys at Littler.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
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!