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Massachusetts
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June 26, 2024
Jury Backs Mass. City In Firefighters' Race Bias Suit
A Massachusetts federal jury sided with the city of Springfield on Tuesday in a suit brought by nonwhite firefighters who claimed the city failed to enforce residency requirements for its employees and stifled their opportunities for advancement.
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June 26, 2024
Nantucket Festival Owner Sues Over Alleged Imposter Event
The longtime operator of Nantucket's Wine and Food Festival says a former vendor has set up a competing event with a similar name, misleading potential participants into believing the original event was acquired and that the new name was merely a "rebrand."
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June 26, 2024
Mass. Dunkin' Managers Can Sue For OT As Collective
A Massachusetts federal judge granted an unopposed request to certify a collective action brought by managers at 60-plus Dunkin' Donuts locations who claim they were required to work more than 40 hours a week without overtime pay.
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June 26, 2024
Macy's Email Demand Violates Privacy Law, Shopper Says
A requirement that Massachusetts consumers making online purchases from Macy's provide an email address to complete a transaction violates the state's consumer privacy law, a proposed class action filed Tuesday alleges.
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June 25, 2024
PTAB Wipes Out UMass Skin Disease Treatment Patent
The Patent Trial and Appeal Board has sided with Forte Biosciences in invalidating a University of Massachusetts patent on treating the skin disease vitiligo, ruling that the patent does not adequately describe the invention or enable a skilled person to make and use it.
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June 25, 2024
Sarissa Capital, Founder Settle Bioverativ Suit In Del. For $40M
Remaining parties in a Delaware Court of Chancery class action over the $11.6 billion sale of biotech venture Bioverativ Inc. to Sanofi Inc. in 2018 have agreed to settle their outstanding claims for $40 million in cash, according to a stipulation filed with the court Tuesday.
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June 25, 2024
$3M Broker Commission Deal Stayed To Await NAR Settlement
A Massachusetts federal court will not consider a $3 million settlement reached between home sellers and a multiple listing service over broker commission rules until after a decision on a much larger settlement in the separate sprawling case against the National Association of Realtors.
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June 25, 2024
Oil Co. Accused Of Duping Consumers With Biodiesel Product
A Massachusetts home heating oil dealer falsely told consumers they were purchasing an environmentally friendly biodiesel product, a proposed class action filed in state court on Monday alleges.
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June 25, 2024
Exxon Bid For Avangrid Docs In Greenwash Case Faces Doubt
A Massachusetts judge on Tuesday questioned the relevance of potentially millions of wind energy company Avangrid's documents being sought by ExxonMobil in its defense of a greenwashing case brought by the state.
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June 25, 2024
Healthcare Co. Inks $1.5M Deal To End Pension Fund Suit
A Massachusetts healthcare company has agreed to pay $1.5 million to end a class action alleging it loaded its $500 million pension plan with costly investments and failed to keep administrative fees in check, plan participants leading the suit told a federal court.
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June 25, 2024
Feds Stonewalling Immigration Fee Record Request, Suit Says
A civil rights group in Boston filed suit Tuesday to force the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to hand over records about how the government decides requests to waive fees for people seeking immigration protections.
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June 25, 2024
Wynn Casino Can't Undo Rehiring Of Worker Fired For Slur
Wynn Resort's Encore Boston Harbor Casino has lost its effort to overturn an arbitrator's decision to reinstate and issue back pay to a call center reservation worker it fired for allegedly calling a Black colleague a racial slur.
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June 24, 2024
Bill Aimed At Native Boarding School Policies Heads To Senate
A bipartisan bill that would help to illuminate the federal government's past efforts to erase Indigenous culture by sending Native American children to assimilation-oriented Christian boarding schools is headed to the U.S. Senate for consideration after being stalled in committee for a year.
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June 24, 2024
AI Cos. Hit With Copyright Claims From Music Labels
Two artificial intelligence startups are facing copyright litigation by Sony Music Entertainment and a group of major record labels, claiming they rip off artists' songs without getting consent.
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June 24, 2024
Harvard Prof Calls NFL Sunday Ticket 'Highly Anticompetitive'
A Harvard law professor testified Monday in a multibillion-dollar antitrust lawsuit over the NFL's Sunday Ticket that pooling teams' television rights into exclusive deals is not like Beyoncé having an exclusive music distributor — as an NFL expert testified — but like Beyoncé, Rihanna, Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish pooling rights.
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June 24, 2024
Illinois, Other States Back FTC Bid To Affirm Intuit Ad Ruling
Illinois, along with 20 other states and the District of Columbia, defended the Federal Trade Commission in tax software giant Intuit's Fifth Circuit constitutional challenge to the agency's findings that the company engaged in deceptive advertising, saying in an amicus brief that the FTC's conclusion was correct.
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June 24, 2024
Justices Undo Terror Victims' Win, Citing Twitter Decision
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday swept aside a D.C. Circuit ruling that threatened to expose major pharmaceutical companies to liability for terrorist attacks that injured or killed hundreds of U.S. soldiers and civilians in Iraq.
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June 24, 2024
Harvard Fertility Doctor Settles Secret-Impregnation Claim
A fertility doctor and longtime Harvard Medical School professor has settled claims that he secretly used his own sperm to impregnate a patient in 1980, according to a Monday court filing.
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June 24, 2024
Waste Management Co. Will Pay $395K To End 401(k) Fee Suit
Waste management company Clean Harbors Environmental Services Inc. will pay $395,000 to resolve a proposed class action alleging it mismanaged its $813 million employee retirement plan by failing to look for less expensive funds, according to a Friday filing.
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June 24, 2024
Construction Super Says Name Was Secretly Used On Permits
A unit of construction engineering firm Structural Group Inc. improperly used the name of a licensed construction supervisor on at least half a dozen Massachusetts projects in which he was not involved, according to a lawsuit filed Monday in Norfolk County Superior Court.
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June 21, 2024
NCAA Says Hoops Union Order Creates 'Destructive' Division
A National Labor Relations Board regional director's decision finding men's basketball players at Dartmouth College are employees under federal labor law pits students against each other, the NCAA argued, urging the board not to assert jurisdiction over student-athletes.
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June 21, 2024
Union Tells 1st Circ. It's Fit To Bring Debt Cap Challenge
A U.S. government workers' union challenging the constitutionality of the debt ceiling urged the First Circuit to ignore the Biden administration's argument that union members couldn't explain how it harms them, saying it's reasonable to expect their paychecks will be suspended when it is reimposed.
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June 21, 2024
Atty Convicted Of Pot Bribe Wins Bail At 1st Circ.
A suspended Massachusetts attorney convicted last fall of attempting to bribe a police chief to help his client secure a cannabis license will remain free pending his appeal, the First Circuit ruled Friday, reversing a district judge's decision.
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June 21, 2024
Ex-Mass. Pol Hit With New Charges In COVID Fraud Case
A former Massachusetts state senator already accused of pandemic-related fraud has been charged alongside his sister with attempting to cover up a scheme to make him eligible for unemployment benefits, the U.S. attorney's office announced Friday.
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June 21, 2024
Attys Eye $1.4M Slice Of State Street Retirement Plan Deal
Class counsel are requesting a one-third cut from a $4.3 million settlement with State Street Corp. to resolve claims the bank stocked its employees' 401(k) plan with imprudent funds that it managed or that were run by its subsidiaries or affiliates.
Expert Analysis
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Lessons From This Year's Landmark Green Energy IP Clash
In this year's Siemens v. General Electric wind turbine patent dispute, a Massachusetts federal court offers a cautionary tale against willful infringement, and highlights the balance between innovation, law and ethics, as legal battles like this become more frequent in the renewable energy sector, say John Powell and Andrew Siuta at Sunstein.
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Series
The Pop Culture Docket: Judge D'Emic On Moby Grape
The 1968 Moby Grape song "Murder in My Heart for the Judge" tells the tale of a fictional defendant treated with scorn by the judge, illustrating how much the legal system has evolved in the past 50 years, largely due to problem-solving courts and the principles of procedural justice, says Kings County Supreme Court Administrative Judge Matthew D'Emic.
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Series
Performing Music Makes Me A Better Lawyer
The discipline of performing live music has directly and positively influenced my effectiveness as a litigator — serving as a reminder that practice, intuition and team building are all important elements of a successful law practice, says Jeff Wakolbinger at Bryan Cave.
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Expect CFPB Flex Over Large Nonbank Payment Cos.
A recent enforcement action and a new rule proposal from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau indicate a growing focus on the nonbank payment ecosystem, especially larger participants, in 2024, say Felix Shipkevich and Jessica Livingston at Shipkevich.
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Breaking Down High Court's New Code Of Conduct
The U.S. Supreme Court recently adopted its first-ever code of conduct, and counsel will need to work closely with clients in navigating its provisions, from gift-giving to recusal bids, say Phillip Gordon and Mateo Forero at Holtzman Vogel.
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Rockport Ch. 11 Highlights Global Settlement Considerations
A Delaware bankruptcy court’s recent rejection of Rockport’s proposed settlement serves as a reminder that there is a risk that a global settlement executed outside of a plan may be rejected as a sub rosa plan, but shouldn’t dissuade parties from seeking relief when applicable case law supports approval, says Kyle Arendsen at Squire Patton.
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Opinion
Legal Profession Gender Parity Requires Equal Parental Leave
To truly foster equity in the legal profession and to promote attorney retention, workplaces need to better support all parents, regardless of gender — starting by offering equal and robust parental leave to both birthing and non-birthing parents, says Ali Spindler at Irwin Fritchie.
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'Manufacturing' Amid Mass. Adoption Of Single-Sales Factor
Massachusetts’ recent adoption of single-sales-factor apportionment will benefit companies that have a greater in-state physical presence, reinforce the importance of understanding market-sourcing rules, and reduce the manufacturing classification's importance to tax apportionment, though the classification continues to be significant to other aspects of taxation, say attorneys at McDermott.
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1st Circ. Ruling Helps Clarify Test For FLSA Admin Exemption
The First Circuit’s recent decision in Marcus v. American Contract Bridge League will help employers navigate the Fair Labor Standards Act's "general business operations" exemption and make the crucial and often confusing decision of whether white collar employees are overtime-exempt administrators or nonexempt frontline producers of products and services, says Mark Tabakman at Fox Rothschild.
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How Cannabis Cos. Are Adapting In Shifting Bankruptcy Arena
Recent bankruptcy cases show that federal courts have begun to demonstrate more openness to downstream businesses in the cannabis industry, and that even though receivership can be a viable option for those denied access to the bankruptcy system, it is not without its own risks and complexities, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.
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Series
Writing Thriller Novels Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Authoring several thriller novels has enriched my work by providing a fresh perspective on my privacy practice, expanding my knowledge, and keeping me alert to the next wave of issues in an increasingly complex space — a reminder to all lawyers that extracurricular activities can help sharpen professional instincts, says Reece Hirsch at Morgan Lewis.
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What Lawyers Must Know About Calif. State Bar's AI Guidance
Initial recommendations from the State Bar of California regarding use of generative artificial intelligence by lawyers have the potential to become a useful set of guidelines in the industry, covering confidentiality, supervision and training, communications, discrimination and more, say attorneys at Debevoise.
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Industry Must Elevate Native American Women Attys' Stories
The American Bar Association's recent research study into Native American women attorneys' experiences in the legal industry reveals the glacial pace of progress, and should inform efforts to amplify Native voices in the field, says Mary Smith, president of the ABA.
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A Look At Mass. Sports Betting Data Privacy Regulations
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission recently approved data privacy regulations under the state's sports wagering act to promote responsible gaming, showing a trend of regulators directing companies on how to protect personal information used by artificial intelligence systems, say Liisa Thomas and Kathryn Smith at Sheppard Mullin.
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And Now A Word From The Panel: Tracking MDL Geography
In recent years, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation has predominantly selected states east of the Mississippi River as venues for new MDLs — but with half of the proceedings it has created in recent months venued in Arizona and California, the panel is not neglecting the western part of the country, says Alan Rothman at Sidley.