9th Circ. Urged To Rehear Cannabis Dormant Commerce Case

By Sam Reisman

A California attorney who has challenged cannabis social equity programs in numerous jurisdictions asked the entire Ninth Circuit on Tuesday to reconsider whether the U.S. Constitution's dormant commerce clause applies to federally illegal marijuana.

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Judge Preserves CBD Co.'s Contract Breach Spat

By Jonathan Capriel

A hemp and CBD company run by North Carolina State Rep. John Bell won't get a default win on its $1.6 million counterclaim against Texas-based ex-business partners who accused it of stealing trade secrets and using political connections to threaten their executives with jail time, a North Carolina federal judge has ruled.

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ADA Challenge to Oregon Psilocybin Law Can Proceed

By Sam Reisman

An Oregon federal judge Tuesday rejected the state's health regulator's bid for a favorable judgment in a suit brought under federal antidiscrimination law, seeking to broaden access for homebound patients to the state's regulated psilocybin program.

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Illinois Court Rejects Challenge To Chicago Dispensary Permit

By Mike Curley

An Illinois appeals court has rejected a neighbors group's challenge to a special-use permit granted to a Chicago dispensary, finding that a lower court correctly found that the group lacked standing to challenge the zoning board's decision.

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FDA Can't 'Refuse To File' Tobacco Applications, Suit Says

By Mike Curley

The maker and a seller of Zone nicotine pouches are suing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in Texas federal court, alleging the agency stalled and eventually refused to file their marketing application, despite federal law requiring the FDA to either approve or deny such applications.

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Series

Law School's Missed Lessons: The Human Element

Law school teaches you to quickly apply intellect and logic when handling a legal issue, but every fact pattern also involves a person, making the ability to balance expertise with empathy critical to the growth of relationships with clients, colleagues and adversaries, says Rachel Adcox at Adcox Strategies.

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Analysis

Texas Biz Court's Likely Role In Patent Fights Becoming Clear

By Dani Kass

The Texas Business Court has released its first opinion exploring when intellectual property can be used to create jurisdiction, and attorneys say the decision involving state trade secret law offers insight into when patent matters can be pursued there.

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Conn. Justices Won't Hear Ex-Alex Jones Atty's Ethics Case

By Andrea Keckley

The Connecticut Supreme Court will not hear a challenge to the two-week suspension of Alex Jones' former lawyer, leaving intact an intermediate Appellate Court decision affirming the pared-down punishment surrounding his law firm's handling of Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre victims' personal information.

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Calif. Bills Would Reform Litigation Funding, Client Recruiting

By Emily Sawicki

Two new bills introduced to the California Assembly this week seek to impose reforms on the state's legal industry, including adding mandatory disbarment for attorneys convicted of felony "capping" — or illegally paying for client recruitment — and blocking corporate litigation funders from influencing cases.

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Senator Unveils Draft AI Bill Intended To Wipe Out State Regs

By Hailey Konnath

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., on Wednesday released a draft of proposed legislation that would override a "patchwork" of state artificial intelligence regulations, touting the proposal as protecting "children, creators, conservatives and communities" and slamming the state regulations as hindering "AI innovation."

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Biotech Investor Blames Pierce Atwood For Messy Asset Sale

By Julie Manganis

A Ukrainian billionaire who was recently ordered to pay other investors in a failed genetic testing company more than $1.8 million in damages is blaming the Pierce Atwood LLP lawyers who advised him on what a court later found to be a "fundamentally unfair" forced asset sale.

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Powell Says He Won't Make Fed Exit While Facing DOJ Probe

By Jon Hill

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that he will stay on as a board member of the central bank if he remains under U.S. Department of Justice investigation when his term as Fed chairman runs out this spring.

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