Media & Entertainment

  • July 12, 2024

    'Willful Withholding' Of Evidence Dooms Baldwin 'Rust' Case

    Alec Baldwin wept and hugged his attorneys Friday after a New Mexico state judge threw out involuntary manslaughter charges against the actor in the "Rust" shooting case, finding that prosecutors willfully withheld key ammunition evidence from the defense. 

  • July 12, 2024

    UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

    This past week in London has seen the owner of the Lambretta scooter brand Innocenti SA embroiled in a trademark dispute with a property developer, a clash between two art dealers over a collection of tapestries, Telecom Italia pursue a debt claim against a competing telecommunications company, and performing arts trade union Equity hit a casting directory for charging unfair subscription fees on actors. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • July 11, 2024

    Ah, Geez! Fox Sues Pop-Up For Copying 'The Simpsons' Pub

    Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp. slapped a Philadelphia special event company with a federal lawsuit Thursday claiming infringement of intellectual property rights it holds in "The Simpsons" animated series and movie, saying JMC Pop Ups is creating unauthorized replicas of Moe's Tavern from the popular show.

  • July 11, 2024

    Trump Says Immunity Ruling Means Conviction Must Be Axed

    Donald Trump has officially lodged his request for his conviction to be vacated in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's presidential immunity decision, arguing that prosecutors' evidence in the hush money case rests on official acts he took as president, according to a redacted motion made public Thursday.

  • July 11, 2024

    Sens. Say AI Fuels Need For Data Privacy Law But Fail To Act

    Members of a key U.S. Senate committee Thursday largely agreed that companies' growing efforts to amass private information to fuel artificial intelligence technologies are accelerating the need for a federal data privacy framework, but they failed to make progress on a bipartisan proposal opposed by the committee's top Republican.

  • July 11, 2024

    Sens. Pitch COPIED Act To Fight AI-Content, Empower Artists

    A bipartisan group of U.S. senators introduced legislation dubbed the COPIED Act on Thursday to fight the growth of AI-generated "deepfakes," proposing a framework that would give journalists and artists control over their work via a watermarking process and allow them to sue those who use their work without permission.

  • July 11, 2024

    Beastie Boys Want Chili's To Stop Playing 'Sabotage'

    The Beastie Boys can't stand it. Chili's parent company, Brinker International Inc., has allegedly been using the band's 1990s hit "Sabotage" in social media videos to promote the restaurant chain without permission, and the band wants it to stop, according to a complaint filed in Manhattan federal court.

  • July 11, 2024

    Disney Beats Suit Over Post-Pandemic Park Pass Restrictions

    A Florida federal judge Thursday tossed a lawsuit accusing Disney World of cheating customers who held pricey "Platinum" passes for its Sunshine State parks by imposing new restrictions on their use after the pandemic hit, saying the two women who sued could have canceled their passes and received a refund.

  • July 11, 2024

    Apple Ducks iPhone Web App Antitrust Suit, For Now

    Consumers will have to rejigger their proposed antitrust class action alleging Apple anticompetitively prevents iPhones from running web-based apps that don't need to be downloaded, after a California federal judge said Thursday that they've failed to show a conspiracy or connect the dots from company rules to customer injury.

  • July 11, 2024

    Ozy Media CEO Urges Jury To Reject 'Shady' Fraud Case

    Counsel for Carlos Watson on Thursday told a Brooklyn federal jury not to trust prosecutors' "shady" claims that the Ozy Media founder and CEO defrauded lenders and investors by falsely inflating the news and entertainment startup's bottom line.

  • July 11, 2024

    Social Media Arbitration Row Not For La. Court, 5th Circ. Told

    A coalition of researchers told the Fifth Circuit that a Louisiana court was wrong to rule that a proposed class of plaintiffs who claim the group was behind social media censorship in 2020 did not have to arbitrate their claims, arguing that the court should have weighed whether it could even hear the case before considering arbitration.

  • July 11, 2024

    9th Circ. Won't Cancel Chubb's 'Morning Show' COVID-19 Win

    The Ninth Circuit affirmed a lower court's ruling Thursday that a Chubb unit does not owe the production company behind "The Morning Show" $44 million in pandemic-related losses, ruling that the policy's provision for "imminent direct physical loss or damage" did not apply to the "potential presence" of coronavirus in the facility.

  • July 11, 2024

    NFL Arbitration Clause Is Still No Good, Flores Tells 2nd Circ.

    Former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores implored the Second Circuit to keep his racial discrimination suit against the NFL out of arbitration Thursday, telling the court that the closed-door process is "highly oppressive" and tramples over federal law.

  • July 11, 2024

    Feds Seek Input On 37 GHz Sharing Plans

    Federal regulators intend to ask for the public's input in August about a possible revamp of the lower 37 gigahertz airwaves, the U.S. Department of Commerce said.

  • July 11, 2024

    NASL Said Soccer Orgs. Have No Legal Basis For Ruling Redo

    The North American Soccer League told a New York federal court that it should not revisit its decision to keep alive an antitrust lawsuit against MLS and the sport's U.S. governing body because not liking the outcome is not a valid reason for a review.

  • July 11, 2024

    ISP Group Says FCC Remote Learning Plan On Shaky Ground

    Internet service providers say the Federal Communications Commision needs to revisit a proposal to fund Wi-Fi hot spots for students after the U.S. Supreme Court recently overturned the Chevron doctrine, which gave wide judicial deference to agencies.

  • July 11, 2024

    Media Matters Fights Texas AG's Bid To Revive X Probe

    Media Matters for America is urging the D.C. Circuit to keep intact a court order prohibiting Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton from investigating the media watchdog over its reporting about the social media platform X, asserting that the D.C. courts are the correct place to litigate the "retaliatory" probe.

  • July 11, 2024

    Clemson Can't Toss ACC's Media Rights Suit From NC Court

    Clemson University has come up short in its attempt to end the Atlantic Coast Conference's suit over media rights and conference exit fees after a North Carolina state judge ruled that as an ACC member, the university had given conference leaders the right to sue in the state.

  • July 11, 2024

    Baldwin Wasn't Only 'Rust' Actor With Live Rounds, Jury Told

    Alec Baldwin's counsel established Thursday during a contentious second day of testimony in the "Rust" trial in New Mexico that he wasn't the only actor unknowingly carrying live ammunition on the film's set before the 2021 fatal shooting of a cinematographer.

  • July 11, 2024

    YSL Prosecutors Oppose Judge's Recusal Amid Mistrial Bid

    Prosecutors on Wednesday argued there is no reason Fulton County Superior Court Judge Ural Glanville should stop overseeing the ongoing racketeering trial against Atlanta rapper Young Thug and his associates, approximately an hour after the rapper moved for a mistrial.

  • July 11, 2024

    Top Atty At Army Center Of Military History Joins Shook Hardy

    The former chief counsel for the U.S. Army Center of Military History has joined Shook Hardy & Bacon LLP as co-chair of the firm's growing art law practice, the firm announced Thursday.

  • July 11, 2024

    Bally Sports Parent Axes TV Deal With NHL's Dallas Stars

    A Texas bankruptcy judge on Thursday approved a request by Bally Sports parent company Diamond Sports Group to reject a broadcast agreement with the NHL's Dallas Stars, the latest professional team to part ways with DSG.

  • July 11, 2024

    Deals Rumor Mill: Saudi Aramco, Paramount Global, Carlyle

    The Carlyle Group is considering acquiring Baxter International's kidney-care spinoff Vantive for about $4 billion, Aramco attracted more than $31 billion in orders for its $6 billion bond sale, and Paramount Global plans to cut more jobs before its merger with Skydance Media closes. Here, Law360 breaks down these and other notable deal rumors from the past week.

  • July 10, 2024

    Santa Clara Hospital Can't Fully Shake Online Tracking Suit

    A California federal judge has refused to toss a proposed class action accusing Santa Clara Valley Medical Center of unlawfully sharing sensitive data with Meta and Google through online tracking tools embedded in its website and patient portal, rejecting the contention that the plaintiff had consented to these disclosures by agreeing to policies required to use the services. 

  • July 10, 2024

    Film Company Gets $190K In Atty Fees In Distribution Dispute

    A California federal judge has awarded nearly $190,000 in attorney fees to a U.S. film production company that successfully enforced an arbitral award worth approximately $537,000 against a Mexican film distributor over "Ava," a 2020 movie starring Jessica Chastain and Colin Farrell.

Expert Analysis

  • How AI Cos. Can Cope With Shifting Copyright Landscape

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    In the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence, recent legal disputes have focused on the utilization of copyrighted material to train algorithms, meaning companies should be aware of fair use implications and possible licensing solutions for AI users, say Michael Hobbs and Justin Tilghman at Troutman Pepper.

  • How Attys Can Avoid Pitfalls When Withdrawing From A Case

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    The Trump campaign's recent scuffle over its bid to replace its counsel in a pregnancy retaliation suit offers a chance to remind attorneys that many troubles inherent in withdrawing from a case can be mitigated or entirely avoided by communicating with clients openly and frequently, says Christopher Konneker at Orsinger Nelson.

  • How Real Estate Cos. Can Protect Their IP In The Metaverse

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    The rise of virtual and augmented reality creates new intellectual property challenges and opportunities for real estate owners, but certain steps, including conducting a diligence investigation to develop an understanding of current obligations, can help companies mitigate IP issues in the metaverse, says George Pavlik at Levenfeld Pearlstein.

  • Using A Children's Book Approach In Firm Marketing Content

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    From “The Giving Tree” to “Where the Wild Things Are,” most children’s books are easy to remember because they use simple words and numbers to tell stories with a human impact — a formula law firms should emulate in their marketing content to stay front of mind for potential clients, says Seema Desai Maglio at The Found Word.

  • Influencer Considerations As FINRA Initiates Crackdown

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    To avert risks when evaluating influencer and referral programs, firms should assess the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority's recent settlements involving the supervision of social media tastemakers, as well as recent FINRA guidance in this area, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.

  • Series

    Being An EMT Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    While some of my experiences as an emergency medical technician have been unusually painful and searing, the skills I’ve learned — such as triage, empathy and preparedness — are just as useful in my work as a restructuring lawyer, says Marshall Huebner at Davis Polk.

  • 15 Quick Tips For Uncovering And Mitigating Juror Biases

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    As highlighted by the recent jury selection process in the criminal hush money trial against former President Donald Trump, juror bias presents formidable challenges for defendants, and attorneys must employ proactive strategies — both new and old — to blunt its impact, say Monica Delgado and Jonathan Harris at Harris St. Laurent.

  • Legal Issues To Watch As Deepfake Voices Proliferate

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    With increasingly sophisticated and accessible voice-cloning technology raising social, ethical and legal questions, particularly in the entertainment industry and politics, further legislative intervention and court proceedings seem very likely, say Shruti Chopra and Paul Joseph at Linklaters.

  • Car Apps, Abuse Survivor Safety And The FCC: Key Questions

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    A recent request for comment from the Federal Communications Commission, concerning how to protect the privacy of domestic violence survivors who use connected car services, raises key questions, including whether the FCC has the legal authority to limit access to a vehicle's connected features to survivors only, say attorneys at Davis Wright.

  • Lessons On Challenging Class Plaintiffs' Expert Testimony

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    In class actions seeking damages, plaintiffs are increasingly using expert opinions to establish predominance, but several recent rulings from California federal courts shed light on how defendants can respond, say Jennifer Romano and Raija Horstman at Crowell & Moring.

  • Exploring An Alternative Model Of Litigation Finance

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    A new model of litigation finance, most aptly described as insurance-backed litigation funding, differs from traditional funding in two key ways, and the process of securing it involves three primary steps, say Bob Koneck, Christopher Le Neve Foster and Richard Butters at Atlantic Global Risk LLC.

  • Businesses Should Take Their AI Contracts Off Auto-Renew

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    When subscribing to artificial intelligence tools — or to any technology in a highly competitive and legally thorny market — companies should push back on automatic renewal contract clauses for reasons including litigation and regulatory risk, and competition, says Chris Wlach at Huge Inc.

  • Trump Hush Money Case Offers Master Class In Trial Strategy

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    The New York criminal hush money trial of former President Donald Trump typifies some of the greatest challenges that lawyers face in crafting persuasive presentations, providing lessons on how to handle bad facts, craft a simple story that withstands attack, and cross-examine with that story in mind, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

  • What The Justices' Copyright Damages Ruling Didn't Address

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    While the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Warner Chappell v. Nealy clarified when a copyright owner may recover damages in jurisdictions that apply the so-called discovery rule, it did not settle the overriding question of whether the Copyright Act even permits applying the rule, say Ivy Estoesta and William Milliken at Sterne Kessler.

  • Series

    Teaching Yoga Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Being a yoga instructor has helped me develop my confidence and authenticity, as well as stress management and people skills — all of which have crossed over into my career as an attorney, says Laura Gongaware at Clyde & Co.

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