Judge Fumes As Live Nation Antitrust Trial Remains In Limbo

By Stewart Bishop

The status of Live Nation Entertainment's antitrust trial and proposed settlement over federal and state government claims of anticompetitive conduct remained up in the air Tuesday amid pushback by several states, while the Manhattan federal judge overseeing the case upbraided the parties for keeping him out of the loop about negotiations.

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11th Circ. Torn On Ga.'s Social Media Restrictions For Children

By Chart Riggall

An Eleventh Circuit panel appeared conflicted Tuesday over a Georgia law that placed new restrictions on children's use of social media, suggesting that some provisions were "clearly constitutional" while others likely won't clear First Amendment scrutiny.

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C-SPAN Shakes Suit Over Video Data Sharing With Facebook

By Allison Grande

A D.C. federal judge tossed a proposed class action accusing C-SPAN of illegally collecting and sharing information about website visitors' video-viewing habits, finding that the plaintiffs had neither proven they were "consumers" protected by federal video privacy law nor that their "personally identifiable information" had been divulged. 

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Social Media Jury Told Of Plaintiff's 'Embarrassing Sexual Act'

By Craig Clough

A psychiatrist who assessed a bellwether plaintiff alleging a harmful addiction to Instagram and YouTube told a California jury Tuesday that the plaintiff's turbulent home life, genetic factors and even an alleged "embarrassing sexual act" that got her suspended from school supports a conclusion the plaintiff does not have a social media addiction.

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Instagram's Advertisers Influence Safety Focus, Head Testifies

By Cara Salvatore

Instagram's head took the stand in New Mexico on Tuesday in Meta's defense case against the state attorney general's claims that its social media platforms harm mental health, telling a jury that one of the biggest economic reasons for the company's safety focus is pressure exerted by its advertisers.

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J&J Opposes Beasley Allen Reinstatement Bid In NJ Talc Fight

By Emily Sawicki

Johnson & Johnson is urging the New Jersey Supreme Court to not take the "extraordinary step" of intervening in an appellate panel ruling that disqualified Beasley Allen from representing hundreds of women in product liability litigation against the pharmaceutical giant after the Georgia-based firm "knowingly collaborated" with a former Johnson & Johnson outside counsel.

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Fla. Defends Social Media Teen Ban As Content-Neutral

By Carolina Bolado

Florida defended its restrictions on social media for children before the Eleventh Circuit on Tuesday, arguing that the law is content-neutral and does not violate the First Amendment, and urged the appeals court to undo an injunction blocking its enforcement.

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Apple AirTag Plaintiffs Can't Get Class Cert. In Tracking Suit

By Dorothy Atkins

A California federal judge refused to certify a class of stalking victims suing Apple for designing AirTags that were susceptible to abuse by stalkers, after comparing the case during a hearing last week to mass tort litigation against Uber Technologies Inc. over driver sexual assaults.

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Keep CBRS Rule Framework Intact, Supporters Tell FCC

By Christopher Cole

Regulators shouldn't mess with the rules and device power levels that have made the Citizens Broadband Radio Service run smoothly over the last decade, supporters of the tiered system for farming out critical midband spectrum say.

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Pole Upgrades Too Often Lead To Sticker Shock, FCC Told

By Christopher Cole

The Federal Communications Commission needs to put guardrails on the cost of adding broadband gear to utility poles because bills often take years to show up and in some cases far exceed the pole owners' estimates, a cable industry group said.

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Wash. To Set Its Own Vaccine Schedule Under New State Law

By Dan McKay

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson has signed legislation that requires health plans to cover vaccines and other preventive care recommended by the state rather than the federal government, joining a movement toward states setting their own recommendations.

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Feds Ask DC Circ. Not To Halt Immigrant Truck Driver Rule

By Linda Chiem

The Trump administration urged the D.C. Circuit to reject an attempt by unions and workers to block the U.S. Department of Transportation from implementing new restrictions next week on so-called nondomiciled commercial driver's licenses for immigrants, saying the crucial regulation addresses known public safety risks.

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Dem Says 'Compromise' Can Thread Stablecoin Yield Needle

By Jon Hill

A key U.S. Senate Democrat called Tuesday for closing what bankers say is a stablecoin interest "loophole" that could siphon deposits from traditional lenders, stressing that compromise may be needed to avoid letting the "perfect be the enemy of good."

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Brief

CenturyLink Ready To Retire Legacy Networks In 3 Areas

By Nadia Dreid

CenturyLink is ready to drop legacy voice services entirely in two parts of Iowa and one section of Utah, it has told the Federal Communications Commission, saying that there are less than 100 people in those areas still using them.

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Calif. Atty Gets Over 11 Years For Solar $1B Ponzi Scheme

By Dorothy Atkins

A California federal judge has sentenced a corporate attorney to 11 years and five months behind bars after he pled guilty to nearly two dozen charges for his role in DC Solar's $912 million Ponzi scheme, which duped major investors including Berkshire Hathaway, Progressive and SunTrust Equipment Finance & Leasing.

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Feds Want October Retrial For Tornado Cash Founder

By Aislinn Keely

Federal prosecutors have requested an October retrial for the alleged operator of the Tornado Cash crypto mixer in a letter that told the Manhattan federal court the government intends to take another crack at bringing money laundering and sanctions charges that deadlocked a jury in August.

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Iowa Defends 5th Circ. Appeal Of Schwab Antitrust Settlement

By Sydney Price

Iowa's attorney general told the Fifth Circuit that its appeal of a Texas federal judge's final approval of a settlement ending an antitrust class action over The Charles Schwab Corp.'s merger with TD Ameritrade is proper, arguing the state's duty to protect consumers allows it to challenge the deal.

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CVS Can't 'Relitigate' Price-Gouging Class Cert.

By Bryan Koenig

A Rhode Island federal judge refused to narrow the certified classes of health plans alleging CVS schemed with pharmacy benefit managers to overcharge insured health plans for generic drugs, finding that PBM Express Scripts' refusal to produce its contracts changes nothing about how the classes will be assessed.

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NY Truckers' Congestion Pricing Lawsuit Is Tossed For Good

By Linda Chiem

A New York federal judge on Tuesday dismissed for good an amended lawsuit claiming congestion pricing tolls wrongfully discriminate against commercial truckers, saying a trade group representing New York motor carriers presented no new facts or evidence suggesting the tolls were unreasonable or unconstitutional.

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Chinese Vape Maker The Focus In Exploding Battery Suit

By Jonathan Capriel

A man who alleged he suffered second- and third-degree burns after a battery for his vape exploded while in his pocket has agreed to drop his claims against the vape's domestic distributor, but will pursue his claims against the Chinese manufacturer of the e-cigarette, according to a notice filed in North Carolina federal court.

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Judge Blocks Perplexity AI Assistant From Amazon Shopping

By Elliot Weld

A California federal judge has granted Amazon's request for a temporary injunction that could block Perplexity AI Inc. from using its artificial intelligence assistant Comet to purchase things on the retail site, an order that Perplexity has already appealed.

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Fla. Asks 11th Circ. To Send Snap Suit Back To State Court

By Carolina Bolado

Florida urged an Eleventh Circuit panel Tuesday to send the state's enforcement action against social media company Snap Inc. for violations of restrictions for children back to state court, arguing Snap is trying to leverage advertisements it runs for federal agencies into status as a federal officer.

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Calif. Judge Says EFTA Doesn't Cover Wires In Discover Suit

By Sydney Price

Discover Bank has escaped a proposed class action accusing it of failing to reimburse consumers for wire fraud, ruling that a key federal payments law does not make Discover liable for the fraudulent $110,000 transfer made from the plaintiff's account.

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Uber Says $8.5M Bellwether Sex Assault Verdict Can't Stand

By Y. Peter Kang

Uber has urged a California federal judge to wipe out an $8.5 million bellwether verdict putting it on the hook for a Phoenix driver's alleged sexual assault of a passenger, arguing that Arizona law bars a finding that the company can be liable for an ostensible employee's actions.

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Insurer's Cyber Liability Capped At $250K, Texas Court Finds

By Gianna Ferrarin

A Texas federal court ruled that an insurer has no further liability beyond a $250,000 policy limit it paid to a construction company for its losses stemming from a social engineering cyber theft incident.

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Grill Co. Failed To Warn Of Brush Risk, Class Action Says

By Zak Kostro

Grill maker Weber failed to warn U.S. consumers that metal bristles could detach from its grill brushes and cause internal injuries, according to a proposed class action in Illinois federal court that follows a recall of more than 3 million brushes.

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Mortgage Biz Mr. Cooper Can Fight User Data Claims In Texas

By Emilie Ruscoe

Mortgage servicer Mr. Cooper can fight claims over its customer data use practices in its preferred federal district court in Texas, a California federal judge has ruled, finding its website gives "reasonably conspicuous" notice of its terms of use that include a forum selection clause.

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Colo. High Court Considers Debt Collector's Compliance

By Rachel Konieczny

The Colorado Supreme Court grappled Tuesday with the requirements and limits of a state debt collection practices law in an appeal brought by a consumer arguing a debt collector did not comply with the law when seeking to collect her $671.29 credit card debt.

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Drug Wholesaler's DPA Shows Imperfect Efforts Still Count

Atlantic Biologicals’ recent deferred prosecution agreement with federal prosecutors for allegedly distributing controlled substances to pill mill pharmacies demonstrates that even subpar cooperation, when combined with genuine remediation and strategic advocacy, can yield outcomes that protect a company's long-term interests, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.

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Lessons From Justices' Split On Major Questions Doctrine

The justices' varied opinions in Learning Resources v. Trump, which held the International Emergency Economy Powers Act did not confer the power to impose tariffs, offer a meaningful window into the U.S. Supreme Court's perspective on the major questions doctrine that will likely shape lower courts' approach to executive action challenges, say attorneys at Venable.

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Ill. Swipe Fee Ruling Sets Stage For A High-Stakes Appeal

In Illinois Bankers Association v. Raoul, an Illinois federal court upheld the state's ban on credit and debit card swipe fees on tax and tip payments, while permanently enjoining the statute's data usage limitation, but an imminent appeal could significantly influence the trajectory of state-level payments regulation, say attorneys at Latham.

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Military Attys In DOJ 'Erodes Democratic Norms,' Ex-JAGs Say

By Lauren Berg

Nearly a dozen former military lawyers raised the alarm about the Trump administration appointing judge advocate officers to U.S. attorneys' offices, urging a Minnesota federal judge Tuesday to bar an Army lawyer from prosecuting a case that accuses a civilian of assaulting federal immigration enforcement agents.

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DOJ Official Faces Ethics Case Over Georgetown DEI Letters

By Alison Knezevich

U.S. Pardon Attorney Ed Martin has been hit with disciplinary charges in the nation's capital over threatening letters he sent to Georgetown University Law Center last year while he was interim U.S. attorney for Washington, D.C.

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Dems Confront Roberts At Wide-Ranging Judiciary Gathering

By Jeff Overley

The federal judiciary's top administrator voiced "serious and urgent concerns" Tuesday regarding threats of retribution against judges, a warning that coincided with a judicial gathering where Democrats discussed security fears and controversial U.S. Supreme Court rulings.

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Prosecutor Resigns, Judge Shows Slide Deck On AI Errors

By Abigail Harrison

A federal prosecutor told a North Carolina federal court Tuesday that he was separating from the office after admitting in open court to using artificial intelligence to help draft a response brief, what he called "the worst decision I've ever made in my 30-year career."

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Ex-Moses & Singer Partner Admits Tax Crimes, Will Pay $2.8M

By Aaron Keller

A former Moses & Singer LLP partner admitted to practice in New York and North Carolina courts has pled guilty to three counts of failing to file personal income tax returns and will pay $2.8 million in restitution, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut announced Monday.

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Judiciary Approves Supreme Court Public Defender Office

By Katie Buehler

The federal judiciary approved a new office Tuesday aimed at improving the quality of representation for indigent defendants with cases in front of the U.S. Supreme Court. 

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DOJ Unveils Superseding Policy For Corporate Criminal Cases

By Sarah Jarvis

The U.S. Department of Justice on Tuesday released its first-ever, department-wide, corporate enforcement policy for criminal matters, outlining how it will decline to prosecute companies that voluntarily disclose misconduct, cooperate with investigators and remediate wrongdoing.

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DLA Piper Can't Rep Itself At Bias Trial, Fired Atty Says

By Pete Brush

DLA Piper should not be permitted to represent itself at trial in a pregnancy discrimination case brought by a senior associate who was fired in 2022, lawyers for the plaintiff told a Manhattan federal judge.

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Judge Nixed Over MAGA Op-Ed Seeks Reinstatement

By Emily Sawicki

A retired Illinois state trial court judge pursuing First Amendment claims against the state Supreme Court after his right-wing opinion column resulted in his removal from a temporary judgeship has moved for immediate reinstatement to the Cook County Circuit Court.

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Wisconsin Judges Decline To Extend Interim US Atty's Term

By Courtney Bublé

A majority of judges in the Eastern District of Wisconsin have declined to extend the tenure of interim U.S. Attorney Brad Schimel, according to an announcement Tuesday.

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