Corporate

  • September 20, 2024

    Lawmakers Ask USPTO To Fix Patent Calculation Problem

    Federal patent officials need to change standards that could let drug companies hold on to patent rights beyond the time frame they are entitled to, according to federal lawmakers.

  • September 20, 2024

    Ex-Healthcare Exec Can't Sue GC Over Probe Advice

    A former Baxter International treasurer who was fired amid an investigation into improper foreign exchange transactions was correctly blocked from pursuing claims against the healthcare company and its general counsel over advice he received on navigating the probe, an Illinois appellate panel said Friday.

  • September 20, 2024

    2 SEC Commissioners Object To Whistleblower Award Secrecy

    U.S. Securities and Exchange Commissioners Mark Uyeda and Hester Peirce have objected to the agency's recent decision to hand out a total of $122 million in two awards to four whistleblowers and issued a statement taking issue with the regulator's policy of saying little to nothing about why the rewards are issued.

  • September 20, 2024

    Silvergate Wants Activist Investor's Board Seat Play Blocked

    The parent company of Silvergate Bank, a defunct bank that catered to the cryptocurrency industry, has asked the judge in its Delaware bankruptcy case to help head off what it described as an activist investor's effort to score a seat on the debtor's board so he can try to secure a payout for shareholders who are set to receive nothing under a Chapter 11 plan.

  • September 20, 2024

    J&J Makes Third Try At Handling Talc Claims In Bankruptcy

    A Johnson & Johnson talc unit filed for Chapter 11 protection in Texas bankruptcy court Friday, marking the third time the company has tried to deal with liability from alleged asbestos-contaminated talc with a bankruptcy filing.

  • September 20, 2024

    Microsoft Accused Of Racial Bias By Ex-Diversity Professional

    A former Microsoft employee tasked with helping advance diversity and inclusion efforts has filed a discrimination suit in Washington state court accusing the tech giant of an "ongoing campaign of intimidation, discrimination, and retaliation" against its Black female employees.

  • September 20, 2024

    Panera Can't Delay Trial Over Shook Hardy Attys' Schedule

    A Pennsylvania federal judge denied Panera Bread's repeated requests to delay a wrongful death trial, finding the restaurant chain will not be prejudiced if its desired Shook Hardy & Bacon LLP counsel cannot attend, as "plenty" of Shook Hardy lawyers can stand in, the judge said.

  • September 20, 2024

    Meruelo Group CLO Returns To Ballard Spahr As Partner

    A longtime Ballard Spahr attorney who spent the past three years as chief legal officer at the Meruelo Group this week began his second stint as a partner at the law firm.

  • September 20, 2024

    Ex-Stradley Ronon Securities Leader Joins Chapman In DC

    An attorney with more than two decades of experience in investment securities has moved his practice to Chapman and Cutler LLP's Washington, D.C., office after 22 years with Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young LLP.

  • September 20, 2024

    GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

    The SEC will likely need to clear up confusion about fiduciary investment advice standards after two judges halted new retirement security regulations from the Labor Department. Meanwhile, the changing cyberinsurance market heads for what could be a seismic shift, as more insurers scale back standard IT breach policies. These are among the stories in corporate legal news you may have missed in the past week.

  • September 20, 2024

    Steel Biz Investors Sue Atty Over 'Father-Son'-Like Conflict

    A Pennsylvania couple have filed a malpractice suit accusing a lawyer of helping a steel distribution company induce them into investing about $800,000 and defrauding them, saying the attorney didn't disclose his relationship with the company's owners and "father-son"-like bond with one of them.

  • September 20, 2024

    FTC Accuses Drug Middlemen Of Raising Insulin Prices

    The Federal Trade Commission on Friday accused the three largest pharmacy benefits managers, Caremark Rx, Express Scripts and OptumRx, of artificially inflating insulin prices by relying on unfair rebate schemes that hurt competition.

  • September 19, 2024

    Publishers 'Did Not Trust Google,' Former Ad Tech Exec Says

    A former Google executive acknowledged Thursday that at least some website publishers sought a workaround to the search giant's advertising placement technology because they didn't trust the company's consolidated control, which the Justice Department has challenged in a Virginia federal courtroom.

  • September 19, 2024

    Republicans Air Grievances At House Hearing on FTC Practices

    The Federal Trade Commission ought to stick to combating consumer scams and leave the competition regulation alone — that was the general tenor of Republicans on Wednesday morning at a House hearing about the agency's past and present practices.

  • September 19, 2024

    Chancery Fast-Tracks Suit Over Renewable Energy Co. Buyout

    Delaware's Court of Chancery on Thursday expedited a lawsuit accusing a Repsol SA subsidiary of breaching an agreement requiring it to buy out the remaining shares in a Chicago-based renewable energy venture the Repsol unit co-owns.

  • September 19, 2024

    Birkin Bag Lovers Must Rework Antitrust Suit, Judge Says

    A California federal judge said Thursday that consumers behind a proposed antitrust class action accusing Hermes of unlawfully tying the sale of its iconic Birkin handbag to other expensive items should amend their complaint, since the current version doesn't show how the luxury fashion retailer has foreclosed competition.

  • September 19, 2024

    Publishers Back Music Companies' Bid To Restore $1B Win

    Organizations that represent music publishers and songwriters urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to review a Fourth Circuit ruling that scrapped a $1 billion jury verdict against Cox Communications Inc. for ignoring online piracy, saying the three-judge appeal panel's conclusion "effectively immunizes internet service providers" from vicarious liability.

  • September 19, 2024

    Apple's $490M Deal Over China Sales OK'ed, Attys Get $110M

    A California federal judge approved Apple Inc.'s $490 million securities fraud settlement under which class counsel will receive $110.45 million in fees and costs plus interest, resolving years-old litigation alleging Apple and its top brass misled investors about iPhone sales in China.

  • September 19, 2024

    Potomac Law Group Adds Morgan Lewis Partner

    A former Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP real estate attorney has joined Potomac Law Group, framing the move as a strategic shift out of BigLaw amid a "sluggish" transactional environment.

  • September 19, 2024

    NC Justice Dept. Resolves Atty's Sex, Race Bias Suit

    The North Carolina Department of Justice agreed to settle a Black attorney's lawsuit alleging she was passed over for promotion in favor of a less qualified white man, according to court filings, just weeks after a federal judge refused to toss the case.

  • September 19, 2024

    Senate Panel Holds Steward CEO In Contempt After No-Show

    A U.S. Senate committee voted unanimously Thursday to hold Steward Health Care CEO Ralph de la Torre in civil and criminal contempt after he defied a subpoena to testify about the bankrupt health system's downfall.

  • September 19, 2024

    Insurance Mogul Takes $166M Arbitration Loss To 4th Circ.

    Convicted insurance mogul Greg Lindberg is looking to overturn a $166 million arbitral award favoring defunct Dutch life insurer Conservatrix after a North Carolina federal judge found the proceedings were conducted fairly.

  • September 19, 2024

    'Biblical Values' Firm To Pay $300K For Misleading Investors

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday order Idaho-based investment adviser Inspire Investing LLC to pay a $300,000 fine on allegations it made misleading statements and failed to institute compliance measures related to the firm's execution of its "biblically responsible investing" strategy.

  • September 19, 2024

    Hormel Foods Can't Beat Retirement Fund Management Suit

    Hormel Foods Corp. can't avoid a proposed class action claiming it failed to remove high-cost investment options with poor return rates from its $1.2 billion retirement plans, with a Minnesota federal judge ruling the worker leading the suit identified suitably comparable funds that performed better.

  • September 19, 2024

    Ex-Williams Sonoma Worker Bilked $11M In Scam, Feds Say

    A former Williams Sonoma employee was indicted in California federal court over a yearslong scheme in which he allegedly defrauded the company out of $11 million after submitting fraudulent invoices for work that was never performed by a fictitious staffing business he secretly owned, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced.

Expert Analysis

  • In Memoriam: The Modern Administrative State

    Author Photo

    On June 28, the modern administrative state, where courts deferred to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes, died when the U.S. Supreme Court overruled its previous decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council — but it is survived by many cases decided under the Chevron framework, say Joseph Schaeffer and Jessica Deyoe at Babst Calland.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Expect Limited Changes In USPTO Rulemaking

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling overturning Chevron deference will have limited consequences for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office given the USPTO's unique statutory features, but it is still an important decision for matters of statutory interpretation, especially those involving provisions of the America Invents Act, say Andrei Iancu and Cooper Godfrey at Sullivan & Cromwell.

  • Series

    After Chevron: EEOC Status Quo Will Likely Continue

    Author Photo

    As the legal landscape adjusts to the end of Chevron deference, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s rulemaking authority isn’t likely to shift as much as some other employment-related agencies, says Paige Lyle at FordHarrison.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Impact On Indian Law May Be Muted

    Author Photo

    Agency interpretations of Indian law statutes that previously stood the test of judicial review ​are likely to withstand new challenges even after the end of Chevron deference, but litigation in the area is all but certain, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.

  • How High Court Approached Time Limit On Reg Challenges

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Corner Post v. Federal Reserve Board effectively gives new entities their own personal statute of limitations to challenge rules and regulations, and Justice Brett Kavanaugh's concurrence may portend the court's view that those entities do not need to be directly regulated, say attorneys at Snell & Wilmer.

  • Series

    Florida Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2

    Author Photo

    The second quarter of 2024 brought two notable bills that will affect Florida's banking and finance community across many issues, including virtual currency abandonment, cancellation of financial services on the basis of political opinions, and the exemption amount of motor vehicles, say Joshua Prever and Andrew Balthazor at Holland & Knight.

  • First-Of-Its-Kind Chancery Ruling Will Aid SPAC Defendants

    Author Photo

    The Delaware Chancery Court's first full dismissal of claims challenging a special purpose acquisition company transaction under the entire fairness doctrine in the recent Hennessy Capital Acquisition Stockholder Litigation establishes useful precedent to abate the flood of SPAC litigation, say Lisa Bugni and Benjamin Lee at King & Spalding.

  • Series

    After Chevron: FTC's 'Unfair Competition' Actions In Jeopardy

    Author Photo

    While the U.S. Supreme Court's decision ending Chevron deference will have limited effect on the Federal Trade Commission's merger guidelines, administrative enforcement actions and commission decisions on appeal, it could restrict the agency's expansive take on its rulemaking authority and threaten the noncompete ban, say attorneys at Baker Botts.

  • How To Clean Up Your Generative AI-Produced Legal Drafts

    Author Photo

    As law firms increasingly rely on generative artificial intelligence tools to produce legal text, attorneys should be on guard for the overuse of cohesive devices in initial drafts, and consider a few editing pointers to clean up AI’s repetitive and choppy outputs, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Opportunities For Change In FHFA Practices

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of the Chevron doctrine should lead to better cooperation between the Federal Housing Finance Agency and Congress, and may give the FHFA a chance to embrace transparency and innovation and promote sustainable housing practices, says Mehdi Sinaki at Michelman & Robinson.

  • Supreme Court's ALJ Ruling Carries Implications Beyond SEC

    Author Photo

    In its recent Jarkesy opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court limited the types of cases that can be tried before the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's in-house administrative law judges, setting the stage for challenges to the constitutionality of ALJs across other agencies, say Robert Robertson and Kimberley Church at Dechert.

  • Opinion

    A Tale Of 2 Trump Cases: The Rule Of Law Is A Live Issue

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision this week in Trump v. U.S., holding that former President Donald Trump has broad immunity from prosecution, undercuts the rule of law, while the former president’s New York hush money conviction vindicates it in eight key ways, says David Postel at Henein Hutchison.

  • USPTO Disclaimer Rule Would Complicate Patent Prosecution

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's proposed changes to terminal disclaimer practice could lead to a patent owner being unable to enforce a valid patent simply because it is indirectly tied to a patent in which a single claim is found anticipated or obvious in view of the prior art, say attorneys at Sterne Kessler.

  • 2nd Circ. ERISA Ruling May Help Fight Unfair Arb. Clauses

    Author Photo

    The Second Circuit recently held that a plaintiff seeking planwide relief under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act cannot be compelled to individual arbitration, a decision that opens the door to new applications of the effective vindication doctrine to defeat onerous and one-sided arbitration clauses, say Raphael Janove and Liana Vitale at Janove.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Various Paths For Labor And Employment Law

    Author Photo

    Labor and employment law leans heavily on federal agency guidance, so the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to toss out Chevron deference will ripple through this area, with future workplace policies possibly taking shape through strategic litigation, informal guidance, state-level regulation and more, says Alexander MacDonald at Littler.

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 Corporate 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!