Law360 Names 2024's Top Attorneys Under 40

By Lakshna Mehta

Law360 is pleased to announce the Rising Stars of 2024, our list of 158 attorneys under 40 whose legal accomplishments belie their age.

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'Vanderpump' Star Fails 'Richard Simmons' Test, Judge Says

By Craig Clough

A California judge has declined to toss revenge porn claims against Ariana Madix brought by her former "Vanderpump Rules" co-star Rachel Leviss, finding the alleged behavior is not protected by the First Amendment because it is illegal, just as when a tabloid placed a GPS tracker on Richard Simmons' car.

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LA Judge Rebuked For Scolding Litigants, Calling Some 'Pigs'

By Gina Kim

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge received public admonishment by the Commission on Judicial Performance on Thursday for making insulting and gratuitous remarks to litigants, which included likening two of them to "pigs in the trough, fighting," comparing a dispute to a "Jerry Springer case" and warning another, "You're lucky you weren't shot."

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Judge Questions Zuckerberg's Bid To Dodge Liability In MDL

By Dorothy Atkins

A California federal judge voiced doubt Friday about Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg's arguments for axing corporate-officer liability claims from multidistrict litigation over the allegedly addictive designs of social media, saying that while many CEOs are hands-off, "it's not clear to me that Mr. Zuckerberg is one of them."

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Analysis

Loper Bright Is Shaking Up Dozens Of Regulatory Fights

By Hannah Albarazi

In the two weeks since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Chevron deference, the landmark decision has emerged as a live issue in dozens of administrative challenges, with federal courts already pausing agency regulations expanding LGBTQ+ rights in education and healthcare and with a wave of parties seeking to use the new decision to win their cases.

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Litigation Funding 'Abuses' Targeted By Federal Lawmakers

By Bonnie Eslinger

Federal lawmakers are seeking to put the reins on third-party investors bankrolling litigation, with Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., introducing legislation that would require disclosure of third-party financing deals in civil lawsuits, and Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., asking Chief Justice John Roberts on Friday to have the Judicial Conference review the practice.

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Roundup

Real Estate Recap: Mall Makeovers, Military Land, Fundraising

By Real Estate Authority Staff

Catch up on this week's key developments by state from Law360 Real Estate Authority, including one Big Four retail leader's take on mall potential, the U.S. Treasury's increasing scrutiny of land deals with national security concerns, and a midyear look at private real estate fundraising trends.

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Tire Cos. Can't Pause Fish-Harming Chemical Suit

By Jared Foretek

A California federal judge rejected a group of tire companies' efforts to stay an Endangered Species Act suit accusing the companies of killing fish on the West Coast with their use of a rubber additive, saying that waiting for a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rulemaking on the additive "makes little sense."

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Delta Slams Flyers' Facebook Data Sharing Class Action

By Linda Chiem

Delta Air Lines has asked a California federal judge to dump a proposed class action alleging it unlawfully shared customers' sensitive personal data with Meta's Facebook through online tracking tools embedded in its website, saying its contract of carriage clearly discloses its digital advertising practices.

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Winery Gets $666K Fees After Winning $666K Trademark Row

By Gina Kim

An Italian winemaker won $666,214 in fees and postjudgment interest for prevailing against a Napa Valley, California, rival in a trademark dispute over similarly named wines, after a New York federal judge said the case was "exceptional," considering the defendants' continued use of the infringing name even after being sued and agreeing to stop.

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9th Circ. Brings Back Boot-Up Pay Claims For 2nd Time

By Abby Wargo

The Ninth Circuit revived and sent back to lower court a suit seeking pay from a call center for minutes that workers spent booting up their computers before their shifts, ruling it is still disputed whether the preshift work was too brief and administratively difficult to track.

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Ex-Thermo Fisher Worker Fights For 401(k) Forfeiture Suit

By Grace Elletson

A Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. retirement plan participant told a California federal judge Friday she has standing to claim the company violated federal benefits law by using forfeited plan money to aid its own contributions instead of slimming expenses, arguments aimed at fending off the company's dismissal bid.

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Vicor Hit With Short Sellers' Suit Over Partnership Disclosure

By Sydney Price

Several short sellers have sued power systems manufacturer Vicor Corp. claiming the company misled the market when it announced it would enter a significant partnership with one of its major customers, but later told investors the partnership would never come to fruition, damaging short sellers.

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Brief

First Republic Settles $7M Scholarship Fund Loss Suit

By Katryna Perera

A philanthropist couple have reached an agreement to resolve their $7 million breach of fiduciary duty allegations against the now-failed First Republic Bank, telling a California federal judge that they reached a deal during a private mediation session.

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DHS Says Recent High Court Rulings Doom CBP App Claims

By Hailey Konnath

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said Friday that a pair of recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings addressing the issue of standing mean that two organizations lack the standing to challenge its requirement that migrants use a smartphone app to submit applications.

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Saul Ewing Adds Entertainment, Real Estate Litigator In LA

By Nate Beck

Saul Ewing LLP has added as a partner in its Los Angeles office a trial attorney with a nearly 30-year track record of representing public and private companies, along with executives and investors in entertainment and real estate disputes.

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JD Vance's Wife Leaves Munger Tolles As Campaign Launches

By Aaron Keller

Usha Chilukuri Vance, the wife of vice presidential candidate J. D. Vance, has resigned as a litigator at Munger Tolles & Olson LLP, her now-former law firm told Law360 on Monday afternoon, presumably to trade her Washington, D.C.- and San Francisco-based litigation career for the campaign trail.

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Trump Running Mate Is Foe Of DOJ 'Political Prosecutions'

By Courtney Bublé

Donald Trump announced Monday that his running mate will be Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, who over the last year has gone after the U.S. Department of Justice and Attorney General Merrick Garland for what he deems are political prosecutions of the former president.

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Many Attorneys Of Color Are Feeling Used

By Aebra Coe

Many lawyers of color say they are included in their law firm's client pitches but are not assigned to the resulting work, pointing to some firms' "window dressing" approach to diversity and inclusion, according to a report reviewed by Law360 Pulse that will be released publicly on Tuesday.

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Firms Fall Short On Occupancy Goals Amid Downsizing Trend

By Xiumei Dong

U.S. law firms have been working to reduce the amount of office space allocated per attorney. Despite these efforts, a recent report by the real estate services company Savills Inc. found that the average square footage per attorney still remains higher than the occupancy ratios most firms aim for.

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Trump Classified Docs Case Canned Over Special Counsel Law

By Carolina Bolado

A Florida federal judge on Monday tossed the criminal case against former President Donald Trump over his allegedly illegal retention of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate, ruling that the appointment of a special prosecutor for the case is unconstitutional.

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Clark Hill Breaks Into Atlanta With 8 Taylor English Attys

By Emily Johnson

International law firm Clark Hill PLC has made its first foray into Atlanta, announcing Monday that it has brought on eight lawyers from Taylor English Duma LLP, including a former real estate practice co-chair and former employment practice chair, to help establish the new outpost, its 29th office.

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Seyfarth Adds 5-Atty Labor Team From Hunton In Calif., Texas

By Lynn LaRowe

Seyfarth Shaw LLP announced Monday that it has brought on a five-member team of labor and employment lawyers who previously practiced with Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP.

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Judge DQ'd From Young Thug's Trial Over Ex Parte Convo

By Chart Riggall

The judge presiding over the Atlanta racketeering trial of rapper Young Thug has been booted from the case over charges that he held a closed-door meeting with prosecutors and a key witness, accusations that ended with the musician's attorney being placed into handcuffs last month.

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Judge Says Attys Must Hash Out Conflict In Twitter Row

By Emily Sawicki

A California federal judge has rebuked both sides of a suit alleging Twitter violated federal labor laws amid a mass layoff in late 2022, ordering lead attorneys to attend a meet and confer session in August to work through ongoing conflicts that have arisen since the claims were filed in April 2023.

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Dow Chemical Seeks Recusal After Settlement Offer Gaffe

By Ryan Harroff

The Dow Chemical Co. asked an Ohio federal judge to recuse himself from a trade secrets suit brought by a Cleveland technology firm accusing it of misappropriating confidential information to recreate the firm's copyrighted software after the tech company showed the court a settlement offer without Dow Chemical's approval.

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JetBlue-Spirit Flyers Seek $20M Atty Fees Following DOJ Win

By Lauren Berg

The private plaintiffs who challenged the failed JetBlue-Spirit merger asked a Massachusetts federal judge to award their counsel at least $20 million in fees, saying they "substantially contributed" to the U.S. Department of Justice successfully squashing the deal and are the prevailing party in their case.

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No Sanctions For Milberg In Visa, Mastercard MDL

By Andrea Keckley

A New York federal judge on Friday declined to order sanctions against Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman LLC after the firm admitted to mistakenly registering fraudulent clients in long-running multidistrict litigation that accused Visa and Mastercard of charging improper merchant fees.

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Opinion

Post-Chevron, Good Riddance To The Sentencing Guidelines

The U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of the Chevron doctrine may signal the end of the U.S. sentencing guidelines, which is good news given that they have accomplished the opposite of Congress’ original intent to bring certainty, proportionality and uniformity to sentencing, say attorneys Mark Allenbaugh, Doug Passon and Alan Ellis.

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Series

After Chevron: A Sea Change For Maritime Sector

The shipping industry has often looked to the courts for key agency decisions affecting maritime interests, but after the U.S. Supreme Court's Loper Bright ruling, stakeholders may revisit important industry questions and coordinate to bring appropriate challenges and shape rulemaking, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

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Series

After Chevron: Impact On CFPB May Be Limited

The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo is likely to have a limited impact on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's regulatory activities, and for those who value due process, consistency and predictability in consumer financial services regulation, this may be a good thing, says John Coleman at Orrick.

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A Midyear Forecast: Tailwinds Expected For Atty Hourly Rates

Hourly rates for partners, associates and support staff continued to rise in the first half of this year, and this growth shows no signs of slowing for the rest of 2024 and into next year, driven in part by the return of mergers and acquisitions and the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence, says Chuck Chandler at Valeo Partners.

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