A former associate who claims DLA Piper unlawfully fired her after she announced she was pregnant told a Manhattan federal jury Tuesday that she got positive feedback as she worked with large corporate clients and was "shocked" when she was terminated.
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WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8, 2026 Law360 iOS App Law360 Android App Follow Law360 on Facebook Follow Law360 on LinkedIn Follow Law360 on Twitter

TOP NEWS

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Pregnant DLA Piper Atty Recounts Firing: 'This Feels Wrong'

By Pete Brush

A former associate who claims DLA Piper unlawfully fired her after she announced she was pregnant told a Manhattan federal jury Tuesday that she got positive feedback as she worked with large corporate clients and was "shocked" when she was terminated.

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11th Circ. Reinstates Ex-Pepsi Worker's Title VII Race Bias Suit

By Gina Kim

The Eleventh Circuit on Tuesday revived a Black former Pepsi-Cola Bottling Co. employee's suit alleging he was fired for complaining about racist harassment, saying the lower court relied too heavily on a long-established legal framework for analyzing workplace bias evidence when dismissing his case.

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1st Circ. Skeptical Of Ex-Dartmouth Prof's Bias Claims

By Julie Manganis

A First Circuit panel on Tuesday appeared unlikely to reverse a lower court's dismissal of discrimination and retaliation claims brought by a former Dartmouth College associate professor who says he was denied tenure because he is Arab-American and Muslim.

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Texas Panel Keeps Ex-GC's Suit Over Unpaid Bonuses Alive

By José Luis Martínez

A Texas appeals court on Tuesday kept in play a suit by a dairy equipment manufacturer's former general counsel over unpaid bonuses, holding that updated anti-SLAPP rules applied to newly added claims in the suit and that the company failed to meet procedural requirements in trying to dismiss them.

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MLB Players, DraftKings Settle Suit Over Use Of Player Images

By Tom Lotshaw

A Major League Baseball Players Association subsidiary and DraftKings Inc. have settled a suit that accused the sports betting company of using athletes' images without permission to promote its gambling platform, according to a Pennsylvania federal judge's order dismissing the case.

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Analysis

March Madness Ends, But College Athlete Pay Fights Rage On

By Chris Villani

The NCAA crowned its basketball champions this week, but college sports is no closer to sorting out thorny player compensation questions, causing some university leaders to rethink their opposition to collective bargaining for athletes.

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DISCRIMINATION

11th Circ. Faults Job Seeker's Atty But Upholds $3.4M Win

By Grace Elletson

The Eleventh Circuit declined Tuesday to grant a trucking company a new trial on a $3.4 million verdict handed to an applicant who claimed the business walked back a job offer after learning that he is Black, ruling his attorney's "improper" arguments didn't taint the trial's outcome.

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Labor Firm's Advice Isn't Malicious Prosecution, Court Told

By George Woolston

The Comegno Law Group has urged a New Jersey state court to grant its bid for summary judgment in a discrimination and malicious prosecution suit brought by a former school district administrator, arguing that the undisputed record shows it only acted as counsel to its client.

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Security Guard's Suit Alleging Gender Bias Fails At 10th Circ.

By Patrick Hoff

The Tenth Circuit refused Tuesday to revive a former security guard's lawsuit alleging he was fired for complaining that his supervisor gave female employees preferential treatment, finding he failed to show that managers knew about his report to human resources.

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DOJ Pushes To End Former Immigration Judge's Bias Suit

By Jake Maher

The U.S. Department of Justice moved to dismiss a former Ohio immigration judge's discrimination suit in D.C. federal court this week, calling the complaint "heavy on conclusory statements and speculation and light on allegations of fact."

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WAGE & HOUR

Chipotle Worker In Seattle Alleges Scheduling Law Violations

By Ben Adlin

Restaurant chain Chipotle violated two Seattle employment laws by failing to provide workers with adequate notice of scheduling adjustments and withholding additional pay owed to those affected by late scheduling changes, according to a proposed class action in Washington state court.

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'Bachelor' Editor Hits Warner Bros. With Wage Suit

By Benjamin Morse

Warner Bros. Television Group and related entities failed to pay required wages and premium compensation under an industry labor agreement, a former assistant editor on "The Bachelor" alleged in a California state court complaint.

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Sushi Chef Fights Restaurant's Bid For Quick Win In OT Suit

By Benjamin Morse

A sushi chef pushed back against a restaurant's contention that he is a "serial filer" of "baseless" wage suits whose experience in the restaurant industry precludes his wage claims, telling a Connecticut federal court that overtime liability turns on whether an employee performed uncompensated work, not prior experience.

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LABOR

CSX Shortchanged Workers On Meal Allowances, Union Says

By Katherine Smith

CSX Transportation shortchanged employees on meal allowances that were guaranteed under an arbitration award involving the company and a labor union, according to a complaint filed in D.C. federal court Tuesday.

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VA Must Honor CBA While Appealing Order, Judge Says

By Emily Brill

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs cannot ignore a Rhode Island federal judge's March order to resume complying with a union contract while it appeals the directive, the judge said, denying the agency's motion to stay.

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Coalition Urges DC Court To Enforce Voice Of America Order

By Katherine Smith

A coalition of journalists, federal employees and their unions has urged a D.C. federal judge to enforce an order requiring the Trump administration to share its plan for reinstating more than a thousand journalists and staff at Voice of America, arguing that the administration has "disregarded" its responsibility to do so.

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TRADE SECRETS

Brief

Conn. Finance Firm, Ex-Adviser Settle Trade Secrets Claims

By Aaron Keller

Connecticut financial firm Ridgeline Financial Partners LLC has settled a lawsuit accusing a former adviser of taking trade secrets and asking clients to join his own competing company, Crionna Wealth LLC.

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EXPERT ANALYSIS

Pivotal 6th Circ. Ruling Threatens Decades Of NLRB Decisions

The Sixth Circuit's recent decision in Brown-Forman v. National Labor Relations Board fundamentally challenged the NLRB's long-standing practice of establishing policies through adjudication rather than formal rulemaking, giving employers and unions a new avenue to procedurally attack the vast majority of its rules, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

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AI Recruiting Suit Shows Old Laws May Implicate New Tools

The Fair Credit Reporting Act allegations recently filed in Kistler v. Eightfold AI, are the latest example of broad definitional language in legacy statutes proving far more dangerous to companies deploying artificial intelligence – particularly in hiring – than any purpose-built artificial intelligence regulation, say attorneys at Ogletree.

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Axed Trade Secret Award Cautions Against Bundling Damages

The Fifth Circuit's recent ruling in Trinseo v. Harper, vacating a $75 million jury verdict for trade secret misappropriation due to a bundled damages model, offers a strong reminder to apportion damages so a jury can award a nonspeculative figure when it credits only some alleged secrets, say attorneys at Seyfarth.

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LEGAL INDUSTRY

DLA Piper Offered Pregnant Atty 'Dignified' Exit, Jury Told

By Pete Brush

A former DLA Piper associate who claims she was unlawfully fired after announcing her pregnancy was offered a chance to transition out of the firm "without anyone knowing that her work was subpar," a partner told a Manhattan federal jury Wednesday.

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Spencer Fane Adds 75 Attys Through Tie-Up With Okla. Firm

By Tracey Read

Missouri-headquartered Spencer Fane LLP announced Wednesday that it plans to combine with Southwest firm Conner & Winters LLP on July 1 in its largest tie-up to date and its third already in 2026.

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DOJ's Lead Google Attys Both Leave Agency Same Day

By Bryan Koenig

The lead attorneys on both of the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division's monopolization cases against Google left the agency Wednesday or said they would be doing so.

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Mich. Federal Judge Pleads No Contest In Drunk-Driving Case

By Gina Kim

A Michigan federal judge pled no contest Wednesday to a misdemeanor drunken-driving charge in Emmet County court in connection with an incident where he crashed his Cadillac and registered a 0.27% blood alcohol level, apologizing and saying he "looks forward" to continuing his judicial service.

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ABA, State Bars Blast DOJ Proposal To Block Bar Probes

By Emily Sawicki

The American Bar Association and a chorus of state and local bar groups have come out against a proposed rule that would allow the U.S. Department of Justice to pause and review state-level ethics complaints against its attorneys, calling the proposal "unlawful and unconstitutional."

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ABA Rates Montana Judicial Pick 'Not Qualified'

By Courtney Bublé

Katie Lane, senior legal counsel at the Republican National Committee who has been tapped for a federal judgeship in Montana, is the first nominee to receive a majority "not qualified" rating by the American Bar Association in the second Trump administration.

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NY Panel Backs DLA Piper's $482K Fee Win In Malpractice Suit

By Dorothy Atkins

A New York appellate court affirmed Tuesday the dismissal of a Chinese software company's legal malpractice suit against DLA Piper, along with a $482,000 sanctions order against the company and its counsel, noting that the company's frivolous claims also drew a $635,000 sanctions ruling in "mirror" federal court litigation.

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Bondi To Skip Epstein Deposition After DOJ Cites AG Exit

By Courtney Bublé

Former Attorney General Pam Bondi will not sit for her scheduled deposition next week on the Epstein files now that she has left the role, and the Justice Department has asked the House Oversight Committee to withdraw its subpoena.

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Trump Asks NY's Top Court To Toss AG's 'Flawed' Fraud Case

By Lauren Berg

President Donald Trump on Wednesday asked New York's highest court to throw out New York Attorney General Letitia James' "deeply flawed" civil fraud judgment entirely after a lower appellate court tossed what it called an "excessive" $489 million penalty against the president, his sons and his real estate companies.

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LAW FIRMS IN TODAY'S NEWS

Alden Law Group PLLC

Barrett & Farahany

Brown & Connery

Buck Keenan

Comegno Law Group

Conner & Winters

Consovoy McCarthy

DLA Piper

Debevoise & Plimpton

Devine Millimet

Duane Morris

Emery Celli

Emery Reddy

Faegre Drinker

Felicello Law

Fennemore

FordHarrison

Fox Rothschild

Friedman & Martin

Gibson Dunn

Global IP Counselors

Gordon Rees

Goulston & Storrs

Greenberg Traurig

Guerrieri Clayman

Herrick Feinstein

Holland & Knight

Hornstine Law LLC

Jones Day

K&L Gates

Keker Van

Langer Grogan

Lippes Mathias

Littler Mendelson

Margolis Edelstein

McAfee & Taft

Meritz Reddy

Morgan Brown & Joy LLP

Ogletree Deakins

Paul Weiss

Reiner & Reiner

Ropes & Gray

Royer Cooper

Saffren & Weinberg

Seyfarth Shaw

Spencer Fane

Sullivan & Cromwell

Troy Law PLLC

Wigdor LLP

Winget Spadafora

Winston & Strawn

Yetter Coleman

Zarwin Baum

COMPANIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

APC

American Bar Association

American Federation of Government Employees

American Foreign Service Association

Atlantic Coast Conference

Brown-Forman Corp.

CPI Corporation

CSX Corp.

Cemex, S.A.B. de C.V.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc.

Democracy Forward Foundation

DraftKings Inc.

Duke University

Eightfold AI

Finjan Holdings Inc.

Google LLC

Government Accountability Project

Halliburton Co.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co.

International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees

International Association of Sheet Metal Air Rail & Transportation Workers

International Brotherhood of Teamsters

KBR Inc.

LinkedIn Corp.

Live Nation Entertainment Inc.

Maine State Bar Association

Major League Baseball Inc.

Major League Baseball Players Association

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

National Collegiate Athletic Association

New York City Bar Association

North Carolina State Bar

Philadelphia Bar Association

Ridgeline Inc.

Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television & Radio Artists

Southeastern Conference

State Bar of California

The District of Columbia Bar

The University of Alabama System

Trinseo SA

Trump Organization Inc.

University of Miami

Voice of America

Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Weiser Security Services Inc.

eBay Inc.

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Court of Appeals of New York

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

European Union

Executive Office for Immigration Review

Federal Trade Commission

Los Angeles Superior Court

National Institute of Standards and Technology

National Labor Relations Board

New Jersey Court

New York Attorney General's Office

New York Supreme Court, New York County

State of Michigan

U.S. Attorney's Office

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit

U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

U.S. District & Bankruptcy Courts of Southern District of Texas

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia

U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut

U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

U.S. Supreme Court

United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana