Media & Entertainment

  • July 29, 2026

    Disney Says 'Avatar' Likeness Suit Came 16 Years Late

    Director James Cameron and Disney have asked a California federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit brought by actor Q'orianka Kilcher alleging her face was used to craft the face of a main character in the 2009 film "Avatar," saying Kilcher had waited an unreasonable 16 years to make her claim.

  • July 29, 2026

    PBS Station Sues Data Co. Over 70 Years Of Archived Footage

    A St. Louis public television station has sued a data storage company in Colorado state court to recover 50 terabytes of irreplaceable archival footage and programming spanning seven decades, alleging the company has wrongfully refused to return the data after the station's cloud storage provider ceased operations.

  • July 29, 2026

    Film Producer Charged In $100M Alleged Ponzi Scheme

    A film producer has been charged with seven counts of wire fraud in Illinois federal court, with prosecutors claiming in an indictment unsealed Tuesday that he bilked more than $100 million from investors in a Ponzi scheme.

  • July 29, 2026

    Enforcers Defend Google Search Win, Seek Payment Ban

    The U.S. Department of Justice and state enforcers urged the D.C. Circuit not to disturb a trial court's ruling that found Google illegally maintained its search monopoly, while also asking the appeals court to consider banning Google from paying to be the default search engine.

  • July 29, 2026

    Lawyer Sues Pro Se Litigant Over 'Defamatory' Court Remarks

    A well-known entertainment lawyer who represented a defendant in a small claims lawsuit in Boston last year is now suing the pro se plaintiff in that case over her comments to a clerk magistrate calling him a “bully” and accusing him of being bigoted against women.

  • July 29, 2026

    'Vibe Coding' Pushes Cos. To Rethink Copyright Protection

    As artificial intelligence takes on more software development projects, businesses embracing “vibe coding” are adapting to uncertain copyright protection by documenting engineers’ contributions, keeping humans involved in high-value projects and leaning more heavily on trade secrets.

  • July 29, 2026

    Tech Company Gets Sex Bias Suit Kicked To Arbitration

    A California federal judge said an ex-Tencent worker must arbitrate her claims that the company fired her after she complained that a male colleague sexually harassed her, ruling that the behavior she protested wasn't sufficiently severe or sexual in nature to trigger a law that could have kept her case in court.

  • July 29, 2026

    Christian Song Doesn't Infringe Copyright, Ore. Judge Finds

    An Oregon federal judge has agreed with a jury's advisory verdict that a Christian music songwriter did not infringe the copyright on singer Vincent Ambrosetti's song "Emmanuel," noting Ambrosetti himself was not a reliable witness.

  • July 28, 2026

    Trump Asks Supreme Court To Upend $83M Carroll Verdict

    President Donald Trump urged the U.S. Supreme Court Tuesday to wade in and overturn a jury's $83.3 million verdict finding he defamed writer E. Jean Carroll after she accused him of a decades-old sexual assault, pointing to the justices' decision giving presidents sweeping immunity for official acts.

  • July 28, 2026

    Randy Quaid Loses Bid To Undo $3.5M Calif. Property Ruling

    Actor Randy Quaid and his wife cannot overturn a $3.5 million judgment awarded to a California couple who bought a Santa Barbara property that once belonged to the Quaids, an appeals court ruled Tuesday, finding substantial evidence supporting claims that the Quaids' false ownership assertions damaged the property's marketability.

  • July 28, 2026

    FCC Pulls Major Provider From Lifeline, Citing Violations

    The Federal Communications Commission says it has banned one of the nation's biggest Lifeline providers from participating in the subsidy program after uncovering widespread violations of the program's rules, including a practice of transferring people back after they switched their service to another provider.

  • July 28, 2026

    Baldoni's Studio Owes NYT $170K For Failed Defamation Suit

    "It Ends With Us" director and star Justin Baldoni's production company must pay The New York Times more than $170,000 after it defeated the studio's defamation claims, a New York state judge has ruled, saying the newspaper is entitled to recoup its legal fees.

  • July 28, 2026

    Ariana Grande Says Hackers Leaked Songs, Photos For Years

    Ariana Grande filed a privacy invasion suit in California state court Monday alleging unknown hackers have been stealing and leaking her unreleased masters and demos, behind-the-scene photos, and other content after gaining backdoor access to accounts belonging to people she worked with over the years. 

  • July 28, 2026

    FCC Says Starlink Routers Exempt From Nat'l Security Ban

    The Federal Communications Commission has banned virtually all foreign-made routers from the United States, citing national security concerns, but it isn't worried about ones made by billionaire Elon Musk's satellite internet company Starlink.

  • July 28, 2026

    Digital Ad Co. Beats Investor Suit Over Client Loss Claims

    Digital advertising firm PubMatic has escaped a shareholder's suit accusing it of concealing the loss of a key customer for its digital marketing business, with a California federal court ruling that the suit's claims are too vague as-is.

  • July 28, 2026

    Musk's XAI Wants Minn. Ban On Image 'Nudification' Blocked

    Elon Musk's artificial intelligence company xAI asked a federal court to shut down Minnesota's ban on image "nudification" technology, claiming the new law is an "overbroad, content-based ban on free speech" that runs afoul of the First Amendment.

  • July 28, 2026

    How A Casino Analogy Helped Win A Short-Swing Profits Trial

    To win a first-of-its-kind securities trial over short-swing profits, attorneys at Freshfields LLP knew they needed to find the right analogy to showcase their argument, even if it meant comparing the case to a craps table at a casino.

  • July 28, 2026

    Albright Preserves Verdict Clearing Roku On Streaming Patents

    A Texas federal judge on Tuesday said he wouldn't grant a new trial or a favorable judgment to a company that asserted two patents against Roku after a jury cleared the streaming device maker in 2024.

  • July 28, 2026

    Writer Must Post $150K Bond During Romantasy IP Appeal

    A New York federal judge on Tuesday said a writer has to put up a bond of $150,000 while she appeals the dismissal of her suit accusing a best-selling fiction author of stealing her romance-fantasy book drafts to create the popular "Crave" series.

  • July 28, 2026

    Penske Accused Of Scheming To Buy Golden Globes

    The Hollywood Foreign Press Association sued Penske Media Corp. in California federal court Tuesday, accusing the company and owner Jay Penske of orchestrating a scheme to fraudulently acquire the Golden Globe Awards as part of a bid to dominate the market.

  • July 28, 2026

    3 Firms Steer Media-Focused SPAC's $200M IPO

    Special purpose acquisition company Catalyst Acquisition Corp., which plans to target traditional and digital media businesses, hit the public markets Tuesday after raising $200 million in its initial public offering steered by three law firms.

  • July 28, 2026

    Ticket Broker Pays $300K To Settle Concert Resale Claims

    A Georgia ticket broker has agreed to pay $300,000 to settle allegations that it used a fleet of intermediaries and proxies to hoard concert tickets for artists like Metallica and Benson Boone and resell them for inflated prices.

  • July 28, 2026

    Humanoids, Other Robotics Added To FCC's Nat'l Security List

    The Federal Communications Commission said Tuesday that humanoids and other advanced robotics newly produced in foreign countries will be included on the "covered list" of products restricted from U.S. importation and marketing.

  • July 28, 2026

    Papaya Owes $719M, Atty Fees In Gaming False Ad Case

    A New York federal judge has granted Firy Inc.'s request to order Papaya Gaming Ltd. to disgorge $719 million and pay $10.1 million in attorney fees to Firy on top of a $420 million jury verdict in April for alleged misrepresentations about its mobile games being based on skill and not using bots.

  • July 28, 2026

    Ex-FCC Officials Call Agency's ABC Station Probe 'Retaliatory'

    Several former top officials at the Federal Communications Commission called on FCC Chair Brendan Carr on Tuesday to abandon an early review of eight Disney-owned ABC stations' licenses, calling the action a "grave violation" of federal law and free speech protections.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Intentional Career-Building

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    A successful legal career is built through intention: understanding expectations, assessing strengths honestly and proactively seeking opportunities to grow and cultivating relationships that support your development, say Erika Drous and Hillary Mann at Morrison Foerster.

  • The Video Privacy Protection Act's Future In 2026

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent denial of certiorari petitions in two Video Privacy Protection Act cases, Salazar v. National Basketball Association and Solomon v. Flipps Media, deepens a circuit split on how to apply the decades-old statute to modern technology, but the underlying interest in privacy protection hasn't changed, say attorneys at Janove.

  • Reviewing 2025's Artificial Intelligence Disputes Over IP

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    2025 brought the first major fair use rulings involving generative artificial intelligence, and in 2026 courts will weigh in on more discovery disputes, renewed motions to dismiss, class certification challenges and fair use defenses that could shape the course of future AI litigation, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Preparing For Congressional Investigations In A Midterm Year

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    2026 will be a consequential year for congressional oversight as the upcoming midterm elections may yield bolder investigations and more aggressive state attorneys general coalitions, so companies should consider adopting risk management measures to get ahead of potential changes, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • 3 Securities Litigation Trends To Watch In 2026

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    Pending federal appellate cases suggest that 2026 will be a significant year for securities litigation, with long-standing debates about class certification, new questions about the risks and value of artificial intelligence features, and private plaintiffs' growing role in cryptocurrency enforcement likely to be major themes, say attorneys at Willkie.

  • Top 5 Antitrust Issues For In-House Counsel To Watch In 2026

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    With Trump administration enforcement policy having largely taken shape last year, antitrust issues that in-house counsel should have on the radar range from scrutiny of technology-assisted pricing to the return of merger remedies, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

  • 4 Developments That Defined The 2025 Ethics Landscape

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    The legal profession spent 2025 at the edge of its ethical comfort zone as courts, firms and regulators confronted how fast-moving technologies and new business models collide with long-standing professional duties, signaling that the profession is entering a period of sustained disruption that will continue into 2026, says Hilary Gerzhoy at HWG Law.

  • Navigating AI In The Legal Industry

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    As artificial intelligence becomes an increasingly integral part of legal practice, Law360 guest commentary this year examined evolving ethical obligations, how the plaintiffs bar is using AI to level the playing field against corporate defense teams, and the attendant risks of adoption.

  • The Major Securities Litigation Rulings And Trends Of 2025

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    The past 12 months saw increased regulator focus on disclosures concerning artificial intelligence, signs of growing judicial scrutiny at the class certification stage, and shifting regulatory priorities at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission — all major developments that may significantly affect securities litigation strategy in 2026 and beyond, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • A 6th Circ. Snapshot: 3 Cases That Defined 2025

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    With more than a thousand opinions issued this year, three rulings from the Sixth Circuit stood out for the impact they'll have on the practice of civil procedure, including a net neutrality decision, a class certification standards ruling and an opinion about vulgarity in school, say attorneys at Ice Miller.

  • How Fractional GCs Can Manage Risks Of Engagement

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    As more organizations eliminate their in-house legal departments in favor of outsourcing legal work, fractional general counsel roles offer practitioners an engaging and flexible way to practice at a high level, but they can also present legal, ethical and operational risks that must be proactively managed, say attorneys at Boies Schiller.

  • Reviewing 2025's Most Pertinent Wiretap Developments

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    2025 was a remarkable year in the world of web tracking wiretapping litigation, not only for the increased caseload but also because of numerous developing theories of liability, with disputes expected to continue unabated in 2026, say attorneys at Squire Patton.

  • 7 Strategies To Optimize Impact Of Direct Examination

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    Direct examination is a make-or-break opportunity to build a witness’s credibility, so attorneys should adopt a few tactics — from asking so-called trust-fall questions to preemptively addressing weaknesses — to drive impact and retention with the fact-finder, says Allison Rocker at Baker McKenzie.

  • Del. Dispatch: Key 2025 Corporate Cases And Trends To Know

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    The Delaware corporate legal landscape saw notable changes in 2025, spurred by amendments to the Delaware General Corporation Law, ubiquitous artificial intelligence fervor, boardroom discussion around DExit, record shareholder activism activity and an arguably more expansive view of potential Caremark liability, say attorneys at Fried Frank.

  • Series

    Nature Photography Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Nature photography reminds me to focus on what is in front of me and to slow down to achieve success, and, in embracing the value of viewing situations through different lenses, offers skills transferable to the practice of law, says Brian Willett at Saul Ewing.

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