Massachusetts

  • January 16, 2025

    IP Forecast: Mass. Court To Hear Inequitable Conduct Fight

    A federal judge in Massachusetts will hear arguments that a CEO’s “intentional misrepresentations, omissions and half-truths” at the patent office should sink his company’s infringement case over tamper-resistant plastic containers. Here's a spotlight on where that case stands — plus all the other major intellectual property matters on deck in the coming week.

  • January 16, 2025

    Boiler Co. Blamed For Carbon Monoxide Deaths In $18M Suit

    The home-heating boiler in a Massachusetts home where three people died of carbon monoxide poisoning last year lacked a sensor or switch that would have shut it down after water from condensation blocked an improperly installed vent pipe, a lawsuit filed in state court Wednesday alleges.

  • January 16, 2025

    Deal Ends Suit Over Deportation Of US Citizens' Spouses

    A federal judge signed off Thursday on a settlement in a long-running class action brought by New England-based immigrants and their U.S. citizen spouses, ending a suit that challenged the first Trump Administration's policy of separating families pursuing legal status for a spouse at risk of deportation.

  • January 16, 2025

    Mass. Bookkeeper Gets 2 Years For Embezzlement

    A longtime bookkeeper for a Cape Cod flooring business was sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to embezzling more than $1.3 million from her employer.

  • January 16, 2025

    S&C-Led Symbotic Buys Walmart's AI-Based Robotics Biz

    Artificial intelligence-enabled robotics technology company Symbotic Inc., advised by Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, on Thursday announced plans to acquire Walmart's Advanced Systems and Robotics, and the two will enter into a multiyear partnership under which Walmart will buy and deploy robotic systems to be used for 400 pickup and deliver centers at Walmart locations.

  • January 16, 2025

    'Complete Lack Of Respect' For Privilege DQs NH Prosecutor

    A New Hampshire judge has disqualified the lead prosecutor and a financial expert in the state attorney general's criminal case against a casino owner, finding that they had negligently viewed material protected under attorney-client privilege.

  • January 16, 2025

    Military Leaves Extended Fired Cop's Probation, Court Says

    A Boston police officer who was fired after his department-issued Glock handgun went missing was not entitled to written notice and a formal hearing before his termination, Massachusetts' intermediate-level appeals court said Thursday, finding the officer's two military leaves had extended his probationary employment status.

  • January 16, 2025

    Biden's Imprint On The Judiciary In 6 Charts

    President Joe Biden leaves office with 235 lifetime judges confirmed, just one more than President Donald Trump seated during his first term, and many firsts for diversity.

  • January 16, 2025

    1st Circ. Vacates Most Of Atty's Marijuana Bribe Conviction

    The First Circuit vacated a pair of fraud convictions for a Massachusetts attorney charged in a marijuana bribery scheme, finding that sending an iMessage through an Apple cellphone is not enough to satisfy the wire fraud element requiring interstate communication.

  • January 15, 2025

    GE Investors' $362.5M Settlement Gets Initial Greenlight

    Investors in manufacturing giant General Electric Co. have gotten an initial nod for their proposed $362.5 million eve-of-trial deal to end long-running claims that the company fraudulently concealed cash flow problems, allegedly resulting in plummeting shares after its fiscal woes were disclosed.

  • January 15, 2025

    Man Who Sued Ex-Girlfriend Over Nude Photo Keeps Trial Win

    A man who successfully sued his former girlfriend after she shared an "unflattering nude photograph" of him with her female friends can keep an award for emotional distress damages, a Massachusetts Appeals Court panel ruled Wednesday.

  • January 15, 2025

    Block Pays Regulators $80M Over Cash App AML Compliance

    Jack Dorsey's fintech company Block Inc. has reached an $80 million settlement over alleged anti-money laundering compliance failures by its mobile payments platform Cash App, a coalition of state banking regulators announced Wednesday.

  • January 15, 2025

    Former IRS Litigator Joins Jones Day In Boston

    Jones Day announced it added an experienced IRS litigator to its Boston office who will work as of counsel in the firm's tax practice.

  • January 15, 2025

    Nutter Hires New Partner For Boston Real Estate Team

    Law firm Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP has brought on real estate and corporate attorney Matthew E. Lane as a partner for its Boston real estate practice, the firm announced Tuesday.

  • January 15, 2025

    Mass. Justices Bolster Local Enforcement Of Tobacco Laws

    Massachusetts' highest court ruled Wednesday that local public health officials do not have to go to court to fine businesses caught violating the state's tobacco laws, including restrictions on the sale of flavored products.

  • January 15, 2025

    Mass. Atty Charged In $2.5M Embezzlement Schemes

    A Massachusetts attorney blamed an addiction to prostitutes and a failed spa investment for his embezzling a total of $2.5 million from a couple and their multiple businesses, according to federal prosecutors.

  • January 15, 2025

    Boston Lawyers Accused Of Bungling Exec's Bias Claim

    A former executive at roofing manufacturer GAF Materials is accusing her former lawyers of mishandling a potential age and gender discrimination case by failing to meet a key procedural deadline, according to a lawsuit filed in Massachusetts state court.

  • January 14, 2025

    Sig Sauer Settles Gun Defect Suit With Injured Mass. Officer

    Sig Sauer Inc. and a police officer who claims the gunmaker's P320 pistol spontaneously discharged and injured her without the trigger being touched have reached a deal ending the lawsuit she brought against the company, a Massachusetts federal judge announced Monday.

  • January 14, 2025

    Boston Globe Can't Ditch Exec's Wrongful Firing Suit

    The Boston Globe cannot escape the remainder of a lawsuit brought by its former president over his 2021 firing because there are still too many disputed issues on the table, including the reason why he was dismissed, a Massachusetts state court judge ruled.

  • January 14, 2025

    Jones Day-Led Wabtec Paying $1.8B For Evident Tech Unit

    Jones Day-led freight and rail equipment provider Wabtec Corp. said Tuesday it has agreed to acquire Ropes & Gray LLP-advised Evident's inspection technologies division for $1.78 billion.   

  • January 14, 2025

    Curaleaf's Ex-CEO Wants Out Of Ex-VP's Pay, Sex Bias Suit

    The former CEO of Curaleaf Holdings Inc. is urging a Massachusetts federal court to toss a former senior vice president's claims against him in a suit alleging the company discriminated against her for her gender and race, saying the state's courts don't have jurisdiction over him.

  • January 14, 2025

    1st Circ. Won't Revive Cape Cod Restaurants' Ordinance Case

    The First Circuit has declined to revive a case brought by two restaurants on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, that alleged they were selectively targeted with enforcement of a municipal noise ordinance and COVID-19 restrictions, saying the eateries failed to make a proper showing that their constitutional rights were violated.

  • January 14, 2025

    MIT Bio Lab Can't Use Anti-SLAPP To Duck Defamation Suit

    The Massachusetts Appeals Court on Tuesday ruled that the state's anti-SLAPP statute could not stop a suit brought by the former head of an MIT-affiliated biomedical research lab who stepped down amid a finding that he harassed a subordinate, though several of his claims were axed nonetheless.

  • January 14, 2025

    Mass. AG Says Insulin Makers, Middlemen Colluded On Costs

    Insulin makers Eli Lilly, Sanofi and Novo Nordisk conspired with pharmacy benefit managers OptumRX, Express Scripts and CVS Caremark to jack up prices by as much as 1,000%, the Massachusetts attorney general alleged in a suit.

  • January 14, 2025

    Feds Ask 2 Years For Ex-Pol On Tax, Pandemic Aid Charges

    A former Massachusetts state senator should spend two years in prison after being convicted of illegally obtaining unemployment assistance and filing a false tax return, the federal government argued, citing the "greed" at the heart of the politician's conduct.

Expert Analysis

  • Use The Right Kind Of Feedback To Help Gen Z Attorneys

    Author Photo

    Generation Z associates bring unique perspectives and expectations to the workplace, so it’s imperative that supervising attorneys adapt their feedback approach in order to help young lawyers learn and grow — which is good for law firms, too, says Rachael Bosch at Fringe Professional Development.

  • Opinion

    Congress Can And Must Enact A Supreme Court Ethics Code

    Author Photo

    As public confidence in the U.S. Supreme Court dips to historic lows following reports raising conflict of interest concerns, Congress must exercise its constitutional power to enact a mandatory and enforceable code of ethics for the high court, says Muhammad Faridi, president of the New York City Bar Association.

  • Series

    The Pop Culture Docket: Justice Lebovits On Gilbert And Sullivan

    Author Photo

    Characters in the 19th century comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan break the rules of good lawyering by shamelessly throwing responsible critical thought to the wind, providing hilarious lessons for lawyers and judges on how to avoid a surfeit of traps and tribulations, say acting New York Supreme Court Justice Gerald Lebovits and law student Tara Scown.

  • State Of The States' AI Legal Ethics Landscape

    Author Photo

    Over the past year, several state bar associations, as well as the American Bar Association, have released guidance on the ethical use of artificial intelligence in legal practice, all of which share overarching themes and some nuanced differences, say Eric Pacifici and Kevin Henderson at SMB Law Group.

  • Review Shipping Terms In Light Of These 3 Global Challenges

    Author Photo

    Given tensions in the Middle East, labor unrest at U.S. ports and the ongoing consequences of climate change, parties involved in maritime shipping must understand the relevant contract provisions and laws that may be implicated during supply chain disruptions in order to mitigate risks, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.

  • Defining All-Risk: Despite $30M Loss, Loose Bolt Not 'Damage'

    Author Photo

    A Massachusetts federal court’s recent ruling in AMAG Pharmaceuticals v. American Guarantee and Liability Insurance Co., denying coverage for $30 million in damages claimed when a loose bolt caused an air leak, highlights an ongoing debate over the definition of “direct physical loss or damage,” say Josh Tumen and Paul Ferland at Cozen O'Connor.

  • 8 Childhood Lessons That Can Help You Be A Better Attorney

    Author Photo

    A new school year is underway, marking a fitting time for attorneys to reflect on some fundamental life lessons from early childhood that offer a framework for problems that no legal textbook can solve, say Chris Gismondi and Chris Campbell at DLA Piper.

  • Opinion

    This Election, We Need To Talk About Court Process

    Author Photo

    In recent decades, the U.S. Supreme Court has markedly transformed judicial processes — from summary judgment standards to notice pleadings — which has, in turn, affected individuals’ substantive rights, and we need to consider how the upcoming presidential election may continue this pattern, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • The Complex Challenges Facing Sustainable Food Packaging

    Author Photo

    More and more states are requiring recycled content to be used in product packaging, creating complex technological and regulatory considerations for manufacturers who must also comply with federal food safety requirements, say Peter Coneski and Natalie Rainer at K&L Gates.

  • Series

    Playing Diplomacy Makes Us Better Lawyers

    Author Photo

    Similar to the practice of law, the rules of Diplomacy — a strategic board game set in pre-World War I Europe — are neither concise nor without ambiguity, and weekly gameplay with our colleagues has revealed the game's practical applications to our work as attorneys, say Jason Osborn and Ben Bevilacqua at Winston & Strawn.

  • Mental Health First Aid: A Brief Primer For Attorneys

    Author Photo

    Amid a growing body of research finding that attorneys face higher rates of mental illness than the general population, firms should consider setting up mental health first aid training programs to help lawyers assess mental health challenges in their colleagues and intervene with compassion, say psychologists Shawn Healy and Tracey Meyers.

  • Series

    Collecting Art Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    The therapeutic aspects of appreciating and collecting art improve my legal practice by enhancing my observation skills, empathy, creativity and cultural awareness, says attorney Michael McCready.

  • How Cos. Can Protect Supply Chains During The Port Strike

    Author Photo

    With dock workers at ports along the East and Gulf Coasts launching a strike that will likely cause severe supply chain disruptions, there are several steps exporters and importers can take to protect their businesses and mitigate increased costs, say attorneys at Thompson Hine.

  • Litigation Inspiration: Honoring Your Learned Profession

    Author Photo

    About 30,000 people who took the bar exam in July will learn they passed this fall, marking a fitting time for all attorneys to remember that they are members in a specialty club of learned professionals — and the more they can keep this in mind, the more benefits they will see, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.

  • Opinion

    AI May Limit Key Learning Opportunities For Young Attorneys

    Author Photo

    The thing that’s so powerful about artificial intelligence is also what’s most scary about it — its ability to detect patterns may curtail young attorneys’ chance to practice the lower-level work of managing cases, preventing them from ever honing the pattern recognition skills that undergird creative lawyering, says Sarah Murray at Trialcraft.

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 Massachusetts 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!