Commercial Contracts

  • July 22, 2024

    House Dems Urge Tai To End Investor-State Dispute Deals

    House Democrats are urging the U.S. Trade Representative to nix a mechanism allowing foreign investors to challenge government policies outside Western Hemisphere countries' judicial systems, saying corporations have used it as "ransom" to gain more industry-friendly results.

  • July 22, 2024

    Jury Delivers $138M Verdict In Bitcoin Mining Consultant Suit

    A California federal jury unanimously found bitcoin mining firm Marathon Digital Holdings Inc. liable for nearly $139 million in damages over allegedly breaching a consultant's contract when it cut him out of the deal he brought to the firm.

  • July 22, 2024

    Insurer Says Bank Must Pay Its $1.1M Drawdown Request

    A surety for an oil and gas operator that has recently sought Chapter 11 protection told a Washington federal court that a bank has repeatedly failed to hold up its end of an "irrevocable letter of credit," alleging the bank owes it over $1.1 million.

  • July 22, 2024

    Fifth Third Sued In $20M Escrow Dispute Over Dividend Solar

    A private equity seller of a solar panel fintech lender that Fifth Third Bank bought in 2022 has sued the bank in New York federal court to free up $20 million in indemnity escrow funds that it alleges the bank has tried improperly to withhold over state investigations tied to the fintech.

  • July 22, 2024

    Scanner Maker Tells 4th Circ. Contract Ends Honeywell Suit

    Laser technology company Opto Electronics urged the Fourth Circuit to overturn a jury finding that it was liable for ripping off Honeywell International over royalties for barcode scanners, arguing that a contract between the companies foreclosed the result as a matter of law.

  • July 22, 2024

    Anthem Blue Cross Wants Lab's $3.8M Suit Tossed

    Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield of Connecticut has asked a federal judge to toss a medical lab's lawsuit seeking nearly $3.8 million from it for refusing to pay for or underpaying for lab work and COVID-19 tests, arguing the claims are "baseless."

  • July 22, 2024

    Dispute Paused For Arbitration In $51M NOLA Airport Case

    A Louisiana federal judge has stayed litigation initiated by a group of insurance companies in a $51 million dispute stemming from alleged design defects in a $1 billion terminal project at the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, saying claims against the insured companies will be decided in arbitration.

  • July 22, 2024

    Royalty Co. Wins Bid To Confirm Award Against Utopia Music

    A New York federal judge has granted a petition by the former owners of artist royalties company Lyric Financial LLC to confirm an arbitral award against Lyric's buyers, Utopia Music Holdings (US) Inc. and its Swiss parent, Utopia Music AG.

  • July 22, 2024

    Energy Co. Accused Of Putting Off $5M Construction Project

    A Houston energy company has accused its Austin business partner of failing to build a more than $5 million liquid distillation machine over four years after executing a contract to do so.

  • July 22, 2024

    Lexitas Says IT Consulting Co. Didn't Finish $2M Project

    Litigation services company Depositions Solutions LLC, which does business as Lexitas, said in a Texas county complaint Monday that a Philadelphia-based information technology company hired to upgrade its web services failed to complete a more than $2 million project.

  • July 22, 2024

    'Wolf Of Airbnb' Gets 51 Mos. As Judge Sees Lack Of Remorse

    A Manhattan federal judge hit the Florida man who styled himself the "Wolf of Airbnb" with over four years in prison Monday, saying the risk is high that he will break the law again after scamming New York City landlords.

  • July 22, 2024

    1st Circ. Doubts Calif. Law Governs DraftKings Job Fight

    A former DraftKings executive seeking to undo his noncompete contract appeared to make little headway with the First Circuit on Monday as he argued that Massachusetts law should take a backseat in the dispute to California's more worker-friendly statute.

  • July 22, 2024

    Conn. AG Accuses Solar Cos. Of Illegal Sales Tactics

    Connecticut Attorney General William Tong took three solar companies and two individuals to court for allegedly deceiving consumers into signing long-term contracts without informed consent and impersonating some people who refused so they could enter fraudulent solar contracts on those consumers' behalf.

  • July 19, 2024

    9th Circ. Judge Open To Reversing Google's Privacy Win

    A Ninth Circuit judge appeared receptive Friday to reversing Google's summary judgment win in Chrome users' proposed privacy class action, telling Google's counsel that the standard is what a reasonable consumer would expect and "you have a much higher opinion of the average intelligence of the computer user than I."

  • July 19, 2024

    Class Seeks $1.5B Settlement In Payday Loan Dispute

    A class of borrowers has urged a Virginia federal court to approve what would be the largest settlement ever obtained in a challenge to participants in the tribal lending industry, arguing that the agreement would give significant relief to hundreds of thousands in the form of debt cancellations and cash payments.

  • July 19, 2024

    'Vanderpump' Stars Face Fresh Sandwich Shop Suit

    The former chef at a Los Angeles sandwich shop owned by "Vanderpump Rules" cast members Ariana Madix and Katie Maloney has accused the reality stars of refusing to honor a partnership agreement under which she was entitled to a 10% ownership stake, according to a suit filed in Los Angeles County.

  • July 19, 2024

    Judge Tosses Traders' Counterclaims In Trade Secrets Case

    A Manhattan federal judge has ruled that Millennium Management LLC and two of its employees cannot yet use the federal trade secrets law to claim attorney fees with their allegation that investment firm Jane Street Group LLC sued them in bad faith over a proprietary trading strategy.

  • July 19, 2024

    2nd Circ. Rejects Webuild Discovery Bid In Panama Arbitration

    The Second Circuit on Friday affirmed a Manhattan federal judge's order that quashed a subpoena from Italian builder Webuild SPA to engineering firm WSP USA for use in an arbitration related to an expansion of the Panama Canal.

  • July 19, 2024

    Co. Says La. Utility Ditched Millions In Restitution Claims

    A Louisiana utility company wrongfully refused to accept $42.3 million in restitution for deficiencies found by a consulting company in meter technology that collects energy usage data, the consulting company alleged in Louisiana federal court.

  • July 19, 2024

    Knitting Co. Tells NC Justices Ex-CEO Can't Shirk $3M Verdict

    A high-speed knitting machine manufacturer is looking to defend a $3 million trial victory against its onetime CEO who was fired for self-dealing, telling the North Carolina Supreme Court that he failed to preserve many of the arguments he now makes on appeal before the lower court.

  • July 19, 2024

    San Francisco Lawmaker Floats Rent Algorithm Software Ban

    A San Francisco lawmaker proposed a ban that would prohibit selling or using software that can be used for rent price fixing, and took aim at property management software companies such as RealPage and Yardi for their software allegedly being used for such a purpose.

  • July 19, 2024

    McCarter & English Pushes To End Biotech Malpractice Row

    McCarter & English LLP faced accusations Friday in New Jersey state court that it was making "fictitious" defenses in a malpractice suit by a biotechnology company, saying in response that it was being treated as a "scapegoat."

  • July 19, 2024

    Off The Bench: Trial Time For Jerry Jones, Sunday Ticket Row

    In this week's Off The Bench, Jerry Jones' legal battle with the woman claiming to be his daughter reaches a courtroom, Sunday Ticket subscribers clap back at the NFL, and soccer fans go after the stadium they could not enter for the Copa America final.

  • July 19, 2024

    FTC Says Microsoft Price Hike Shows Activision Deal Harm

    The Federal Trade Commission told the Ninth Circuit that Microsoft's recently announced Game Pass price increase is an example of the harm caused by the company's $68.7 billion acquisition of game developer Activision Blizzard Inc.

  • July 19, 2024

    Judge Recuses As Tech Firm Slams Dow Chemical's Request

    An Ohio federal judge has recused himself from a trade secrets case brought against Dow Chemical Co. after the technology firm that sued it showed the court a settlement offer without approval that would grant Dow Chemical's recusal motion, which the tech firm said was a "cavalier approach to a drastic remedy."

Expert Analysis

  • Managing Legal Risks After University Gaza Protests

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    Following the protests sparked by the war in Gaza, colleges and universities should expect a long investigative tail and take steps to mitigate risks associated with compliance issues under various legal frameworks and institutional policies, say Wiley's Diana Shaw and Colin Cloherty.

  • Debate Over CFPB Definition Of Credit Is Just Beginning

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    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has recently worked to expand the meaning of credit, so anyone operating on the edges of the credit markets, or even those who assumed they were safely outside the scope of this regulatory perimeter, should pay close attention as legal challenges to broad interpretations of the definition unfold, says John Coleman at Orrick.

  • Abu Dhabi Ruling Hints At More Arbitration-Friendly Approach

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    The international and comparative rationale an Abu Dhabi onshore court used to decide that an arbitration agreement referencing a defunct arbitration center was still enforceable suggests that the UAE judiciary may be adopting a more flexible, pro-arbitration framework and stabilizing Dubai's arbitration landscape, say attorneys at Reed Smith.

  • Series

    Fishing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Atop the list of ways fishing makes me a better lawyer is the relief it offers from the chronic stress of a demanding caseload, but it has also improved my listening skills and patience, and has served as an exceptional setting for building earnest relationships, says Steven DeGeorge​​​​​​​ at Robinson Bradshaw.

  • A Healthier Legal Industry Starts With Emotional Intelligence

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    The legal profession has long been plagued by high rates of mental health issues, in part due to attorneys’ early training and broader societal stereotypes — but developing one’s emotional intelligence is one way to foster positive change, collectively and individually, says attorney Esperanza Franco.

  • To Make Your Legal Writing Clear, Emulate A Master Chef

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    To deliver clear and effective written advocacy, lawyers should follow the model of a fine dining chef — seasoning a foundation of pure facts with punchy descriptors, spicing it up with analogies, refining the recipe and trimming the fat — thus catering to a sophisticated audience of decision-makers, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Circuit Judge Writes An Opinion, AI Helps: What Now?

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    Last week's Eleventh Circuit opinion in Snell v. United Specialty Insurance, notable for a concurrence outlining the use of artificial intelligence to evaluate a term's common meaning, is hopefully the first step toward developing a coherent basis for the judiciary's generative AI use, says David Zaslowsky at Baker McKenzie.

  • DC Circ. Ruling Heightens HHS Contract Pharmacy Challenges

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    The D.C. Circuit's recent ruling that the Section 340B program does not bar manufacturers from restricting deliveries of discounted drugs to contract pharmacies represents a second strike against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' current contract pharmacy policy and raises the stakes surrounding an upcoming Seventh Circuit ruling on the same issue, say attorneys at Foley Hoag.

  • Trending At The PTAB: Real Party In Interest And IPR

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    The Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s recent Luminex v. Signify decision, finding a complaint seeking indemnification may be treated as a public demand sufficient to establish a real party-in-interest, shows that the board continues to apply a broad and expansive definition to that term, say Yicong (Eve) Du and Yieyie Yang at Finnegan.

  • How Employers, Attorneys Can Respond To Noncompete Ban

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    As the Federal Trade Commission's recently issued noncompete ban faces ongoing legal challenges, now is a good time for employers to consider whether they want to take a wait-and-see approach before halting use of noncompetes and for practitioners to gain insight into other tools available to protect their clients' business interests, says Jennifer Platzkere Snyder at Dilworth Paxson.

  • Perspectives

    Trauma-Informed Legal Approaches For Pro Bono Attorneys

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    As National Trauma Awareness Month ends, pro bono attorneys should nevertheless continue to acknowledge the mental and physical effects of trauma, allowing them to better represent clients, and protect themselves from compassion fatigue and burnout, say Katherine Cronin at Stinson and Katharine Manning at Blackbird.

  • CFPB's Expanding Scope Evident In Coding Bootcamp Fine

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    The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's recent penalty against a for-profit coding bootcamp that misrepresented its tuition financing plans is a sign that the bureau is seeking to wield its supervisory and enforcement powers in more industries that offer consumer financing, say Jason McElroy and Brandon Sherman at Saul Ewing.

  • 4 Arbitration Takeaways From High Court Coinbase Ruling

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's May 23 decision in Coinbase v. Suski, which provides clarity to parties faced with successive contracts containing conflicting dispute resolution provisions, has four practical impacts for contracting parties to consider, say Charles Schoenwetter and Eric Olson at Bowman and Brooke.

  • Series

    Playing Music Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My deep and passionate involvement in playing, writing and producing music equipped me with skills — like creativity, improvisation and problem-solving — that contribute to the success of my legal career, says attorney Kenneth Greene.

  • How Attys Can Avoid Pitfalls When Withdrawing From A Case

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    The Trump campaign's recent scuffle over its bid to replace its counsel in a pregnancy retaliation suit offers a chance to remind attorneys that many troubles inherent in withdrawing from a case can be mitigated or entirely avoided by communicating with clients openly and frequently, says Christopher Konneker at Orsinger Nelson.

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