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Illinois
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May 31, 2024
Online Lenders Invoked Calif. Tribe As Usury Cover, Suit Says
Two online lenders that purport to be run by a Native American tribe in California face claims they violated both federal law barring racketeering and Illinois consumer financial protection laws by lending to the state's residents at excessive rates.
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May 31, 2024
Subaru Drivers Reach Class Deal Over Defective Fuel Pumps
A group of Subaru of America Inc. drivers asked a New Jersey federal judge Thursday to greenlight a settlement resolving proposed class claims that they bought or leased cars containing defective fuel pumps, saying the deal would provide "concrete, real-world benefits" via reimbursements and extended warranties.
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May 31, 2024
Real Estate Recap: Courthouse Facelifts, Appraisal Bias
Catch up on this week's key developments by state from Law360 Real Estate Authority — including how federal money will refresh seven courthouses around the country and what Freddie Mac's former multifamily appraisal chief thinks about appraisal bias and market distress.
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May 31, 2024
Vape Co. Can't Toss Breeze Smoke's Claims In IP Row
An Illinois federal judge has rejected vape pen maker Midwest Goods' bid to throw out counterclaims that it infringed competitor Breeze Smoke's trade dress and a design patent, while also denying a bid from Breeze Smoke for a preliminary injunction.
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May 31, 2024
DOL's Fund Mismanagement Suit Stayed For 7th Circ. Appeal
An Illinois federal judge pressed pause on a suit filed by the U.S. Department of Labor against the trustees of a union life insurance fund, saying she'll let two former trustees' appeal of an injunction she issued in the case play out before she resumes adjudicating.
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May 31, 2024
Edelson Calls Coach's Attack On Abuse Suit 'Meritless'
Edelson PC is urging a Cook County judge to toss a lawsuit from youth volleyball coach Rick Butler and his volleyball club looking to hold the firm liable for lodging allegedly "bogus" sex-abuse claims against the coach, calling it a "meritless" attempt to rehash their failed federal sanctions bid.
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May 31, 2024
Kroger's $6M BIPA Deal With 6K Workers Gets Final OK
An Illinois federal judge granted final approval to a class of about 6,000 Food4Less employees on their $6 million settlement resolving claims Kroger Co. subsidiary Ralphs unlawfully stored and used their biometric data after requiring them to scan their fingerprints to clock in and out of their shifts.
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May 31, 2024
Illinois Strengthens Atty Ethics Rules For Harassment, Bias
The Illinois Supreme Court has announced that the state's professional conduct rules for attorneys have been amended to deem the act of engaging in harassment or discrimination as professional misconduct, and not just in the event a court or administrative agency finds that a lawyer violated a law prohibiting such actions.
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May 30, 2024
Veradigm Execs Sued Over Company's Nasdaq Delisting
Current and former members of healthcare technology company Veradigm Inc.'s top brass were sued in Illinois federal court by shareholders alleging that the company suffered stock drops following a string of financial reporting blunders starting in 2021, which caused it to overstate roughly $40 million in revenue before facing a delisting notice from Nasdaq.
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May 30, 2024
Travelers Loses Dismissal Bid In BIPA Coverage Dispute
A New York federal judge declined to trim a software company's lawsuit seeking coverage from a Travelers unit for underlying claims that the company violated the Illinois Biometric Privacy Act, finding the company's declaratory relief and bad faith claims were not duplicative of a breach of contract claim.
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May 30, 2024
Ex-Chicago Mayor Dodges Atty's Lawsuit Over Zoom Tirade
An Illinois judge tossed a lawsuit brought by a former in-house attorney for the Chicago Park District accusing former Mayor Lori Lightfoot of unleashing a profane tirade laced with crude, insulting and defamatory comments during a Zoom call.
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May 30, 2024
Ill. Made 'Big Concession' In 3M PFAS Suit, 7th Circ. Judge Says
A Seventh Circuit judge observed Thursday that the state of Illinois made a "big concession" in its suit accusing 3M of polluting local waters with toxic "forever chemicals" when the state said 3M could avoid liability if Illinois can't prove contamination came exclusively from a particular facility.
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May 30, 2024
Chicago Kiosk Salesman Gets 1 Year For Filing False Returns
An electronic-sweepstakes kiosk salesman from Chicago was sentenced to a year in prison for filing false tax returns that included more than $500,000 in inflated business expenses, according to Illinois federal court documents.
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May 30, 2024
Divided FTC Won't Delay Kroger-Albertsons In-House Case
The Federal Trade Commission's three Democrats refused Wednesday to delay the agency in-house challenge to Kroger's $24.6 billion purchase of Albertsons, blaming the grocery giants for their scheduling challenges and drawing a sharp dissent from the FTC's two Republicans.
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May 30, 2024
Wine Distribution Giants Must Face Provi's Antitrust Suit
The nation's two largest wine and distilled spirits distributors must face unfair competition claims from an online marketplace accusing them of illegally trying to stifle competition and shut it out of the market, an Illinois federal judge determined Thursday.
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May 30, 2024
Target's Surveillance System Violates BIPA, Shoppers Say
Target faces a proposed class action in Illinois federal court filed Thursday accusing it of gathering shoppers' biometric data through surveillance systems and other sophisticated technology in its campaign to prevent organized retail theft, while failing to advise it is doing so or obtaining their permission.
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May 30, 2024
Christian Teacher Appeals Pronoun Case To 7th Circ.
An evangelical teacher who lost his job after he objected to using gender-affirming names and pronouns for his transgender students is asking the Seventh Circuit to take another look at his religious bias case.
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May 29, 2024
Foley & Lardner Sued For Axing Pro-Palestinian Atty's Offer
A former Foley & Lardner LLP summer associate on Wednesday lodged discrimination claims against the firm for pulling its job offer after she made comments supporting Palestine, alleging that the firm let her go because of her religion and ethnicity, according to the suit lodged in Illinois federal court.
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May 29, 2024
Amazon Shouldn't Escape BIPA Suit, Judge Recommends
A Washington federal magistrate judge on Wednesday recommended that the court should not toss a suit alleging Amazon.com Inc. collected facial scans of teens playing a popular video game without proper disclosures or consent, saying the plaintiff sufficiently alleges that Amazon knowingly obtained the data and disseminated it.
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May 29, 2024
PJM Watchdog Challenges FERC's Meeting Roadblock
Monitoring Analytics, the independent market monitor for regional transmission organization PJM Interconnection, is asking the D.C. Circuit to review a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission order from March allowing PJM to keep the monitor out of its liaison committee meetings.
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May 29, 2024
Makeup Co. BIPA Suit Trimmed As Arbitration Bid Denied
An Illinois federal judge on Tuesday said plaintiffs accusing e.l.f. Cosmetics of violating the state's biometric privacy law with its online virtual try-on tool lacked standing to bring two of their claims, while rejecting the company's arguments that the remaining claim should be arbitrated.
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May 29, 2024
P&G Mislabels Tampax Products As 'Pure Cotton,' Suit Says
Procter & Gamble's Tampax-brand "pure cotton" hygiene products are mislabeled and deceptive to customers since the tampons contain non-natural ingredients like polyester and titanium dioxide, according to a putative false advertising class action filed Tuesday in Illinois federal court.
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May 29, 2024
Chicago IP Firm Accused Of Botching Fetal Biotech Patent
A company that makes technology that can detect fetal asphyxia and distress has alleged in Illinois state court that Chicago law firm Fitch Even Tabin & Flannery LLP cost it millions when it registered the company's patents under one of its former employees, who then used its intellectual property to launch a competing company.
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May 29, 2024
Baker McKenzie Grows Tax Practice With Ex-KPMG Adviser
Baker McKenzie announced the hiring of an experienced Chicago-based tax adviser as a principal who most recently spent sixteen and a half years at Big Four accounting firm KPMG.
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May 28, 2024
Judge Hints Amazon Can't Avoid BIPA Suit For Stored Data
A Washington federal judge pushed back Tuesday against Amazon's claims it cannot be sued for data that merely passed through its servers, noting that Illinois' biometric privacy law doesn't just create liabilities for the original data collector.
Expert Analysis
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AGs' Distaste For Food Bill May Signal Other State Issues
States' recent opposition to a proposed federal law that would block them from regulating out-of-state agricultural production could affect issues beyond this narrow debate, such as the balance of state and federal regulatory power, reproductive rights post-Dobbs, and energy production and water use, say Christopher Allen and Stephen Cobb at Cozen O'Connor.
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Strategic Succession Planning At Law Firms Is Crucial
Senior partners' reluctance to retire, the rise of the nonequity partner tier and generational differences in expectations are all contributing to an increasing number of departures from BigLaw, making it imperative for firms to encourage retirement among senior ranks and provide clearer leadership pathways to junior attorneys, says Laura Leopard at Leopard Solutions.
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Insurance Rulings Continue Expansion Of Appraisal's Ambit
Two recent Illinois insurance cases allowing property damage appraisers to determine causation — Wysoczan v. Cambridge in federal court and Shelter v. Morrow in state appellate court — perpetuate a judicial trend that will result in a slower, more expensive and cumbersome appraisal process that resembles litigation, says Matthew Fortin at BatesCarey.
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2nd Circ. OT Ruling Guides On Pay For Off-The-Clock Work
While the Second Circuit’s recent holding in Perry v. City of New York reiterated that the Fair Labor Standards Act obligates employers to pay overtime for off-the-clock work, it recognized circumstances, such as an employee’s failure to report, that allow an employer to disclaim the knowledge element that triggers this obligation, say Robert Whitman and Kyle Winnick at Seyfarth.
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Autonomous Vehicles Must Navigate Patchwork Of State Regs
With only modest action by the federal government on the autonomous vehicle regulatory front in 2023, states and localities remain the predominant source of new regulations affecting AVs — but the result is a mix of rules that both help and hinder AV development and adoption, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.
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Maximizing Law Firm Profitability In Uncertain Times
As threats of an economic downturn loom, firms can boost profits by embracing the power of bottom-line management and creating an ecosystem where strategic financial oversight and robust timekeeping practices meet evolved client relations, says Shireen Hilal at Maior Strategic Consulting.
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Federal Policies Keeping Autonomous Vehicles In Slow Lane
In the first installment of this two-part article, attorneys at Faegre Drinker examine recent federal regulations and programs related to autonomous vehicles — and how the federal government's failure to implement a more comprehensive AV regulatory scheme may be slowing the progress of the industry.
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The Case For Culture Assessments In Sports Programs
As hazing allegations against collegiate sports teams and subsequent lawsuits become more prevalent, culture assessments can be implemented as a critical tool to mitigate risks including hazing, lack of gender equity and racism in athletic programs, say attorneys at Squire Patton.
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5th Circ. Ruling Reminds Attys That CBP Can Search Devices
The Fifth Circuit’s recent Malik v. Department of Homeland Security decision adds to the chorus of federal courts holding that border agents don’t need a warrant to search travelers’ electronic devices, so attorneys should consider certain special precautions to secure privileged information when reentering the U.S., says Jennifer Freel at Jackson Walker.
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Greenwashing And 'Greenhushing': Lessons For Fashion Cos.
While fashion companies continue to pursue improvements in the environmental impacts of the clothing they produce, they might be wise to note how businesses in other industries have attracted litigation over alleged greenwashing, and consider playing down environmental claims — a phenomenon known as "greenhushing," says Christopher Cole at Katten.
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Avoiding The Ethical Pitfalls Of Crowdfunded Legal Fees
The crowdfunding of legal fees has become increasingly common, providing a new way for people to afford legal services, but attorneys who accept crowdsourced funds must remember several key ethical obligations to mitigate their risks, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.
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Why There's No End In Sight For BIPA Litigation
As the law governing the Biometric Information Privacy Act remains underdeveloped, courts have struggled with applying BIPA consistently, and have suggested the Illinois Legislature must make the effort to provide guidance, though there seems to be no appetite to do so from the state body, say Joseph Kish and Erica Bury at Segal McCambridge.
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What Large Language Models Mean For Document Review
Courts often subject parties using technology assisted review to greater scrutiny than parties conducting linear, manual document review, so parties using large language models for document review should expect even more attention, along with a corresponding need for quality control and validation, say attorneys at Sidley.
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Checking In On How SuperValu Has Altered FCA Litigation
Four months after the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in U.S. ex rel. Chutte v. SuperValu, the decision's reach may be more limited than initially anticipated, with the expansion of the scienter standard counterbalanced by some potential defense tools for defendants, say Elena Quattrone and Olivia Plinio at Epstein Becker.
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7th Circ. Ruling May Steer ADA Toward Commuter Issues
Employers faced with commuting-accommodation requests from employees who do not require on-site modifications under the Americans with Disabilities Act should consider the Seventh Circuit's recent reopening of a lawsuit alleging unlawful refusal of a night-vision-challenged worker's request to extend a shift change, says Robin Shea at Constangy.