Calif. Judge Blasts Ex-Venture Capitalist In Axing SVB Suit

By Lauren Berg

Convicted venture capitalist and self-described "Silicon Valley's party animal" Michael Rothenberg's conduct in his lawsuit against the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., acting on behalf of the failed Silicon Valley Bank, "consisted almost entirely of ignoring or frustrating" his litigation obligations, a California federal judge ruled in throwing out the case.

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Pasqal's $2B SPAC Merger Marks Latest Quantum Tech Deal

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

French quantum computing startup Pasqal Holding SAS is set to go public through a merger with special purpose acquisition company Bleichroeder Acquisition Corp. II at an estimated $2 billion valuation, marking the latest quantum computing firm to go public through a SPAC merger in recent months.

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Trump Media Can't Block Financial Testimony In WaPo Suit

By Carolina Bolado

A Florida federal court denied President Donald Trump's social media company's bid to prevent The Washington Post from asking Trump Media corporate representatives about the company's financial information, finding it is relevant in the $2.78 billion defamation suit against the newspaper.

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Roundup

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

By Laura Stewart Liberty

This past week in London has seen British American Tobacco sued by more than 100 investors, the government bring a claim against a COVID-19 supplier of personal protective equipment, Annington Funding sue its new corporate trustees on the Financial List, and Piers Morgan hit with a defamation claim from a pro-Israel barrister he interviewed on his YouTube channel. 

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Ex-Software CFO Gets 2 Years For $35M Crypto Fraud Scheme

By Ben Adlin

The former chief financial officer of a Seattle software startup will spend two years behind bars after being found guilty of bilking $35 million from his ex-employer, according to the terms of a sentence handed down by a Washington federal judge.

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Roundup

Taxation With Representation: Slaughter And May, Kirkland

By Zak Kostro

In this week's Taxation With Representation, British insurer Beazley accepts a cash takeover offer from Zurich Insurance Group, a consortium of investors led by Blackrock's Global Infrastructure Partners and the EQT Infrastructure VI fund buys energy company AES, and private equity firm Thoma Bravo acquires third-party logistics provider WWEX.

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The Cautionary Tale Of A Supply Chain Inquiry 'Made In Italy'

Legal probes into the Italian luxury fashion supply chain reflect the need for effective buy-side diligence with a variety of tools and through a variety of lenses to avoid an issue after an M&A transaction, says Jesse Silvertown at Hesparus.

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Kavanaugh, Jackson Debate High Court Emergency Orders

By Katie Buehler

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh pushed back Monday against critiques that the high court is ruling in favor of President Donald Trump in emergency appeals more often than it did for prior presidents, saying people who believe those allegations have "short" memories. 

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Ex-DLA Piper Atty Alleging Rape Can't Remain Anonymous

By Lauren Berg

A former Boston-based DLA Piper associate cannot use a pseudonym to pursue a lawsuit alleging she was raped by one of the firm's former partners, a Massachusetts judge ruled, noting that she already publicly revealed her identity in a related suit against the accused attorney.

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Employment Law Cases Have Rebounded Except For FLSA

By Max Kutner

Employment law cases overall have bounced back from pandemic-era lows, especially discrimination and disability accommodation suits, though a slump has continued for Fair Labor Standards Act claims, according to a report by legal analytics provider Lex Machina.

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NJ US Atty Trio Booted In 2nd Leadership Ouster

By George Woolston

A federal judge on Monday disqualified the three assistant attorneys overseeing the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey, finding the "byzantine" leadership structure is unconstitutional.

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Brief

SCOTUSblog Founder Goldstein To Be Sentenced In June

By Emily Sawicki

SCOTUSblog founder Thomas Goldstein, currently under home confinement in Washington, D.C., after a Maryland jury convicted him on tax evasion and mortgage fraud charges, will face sentencing in June.

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Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court's docket last week featured disputes spanning alleged forged board approvals at a telecom startup, evidence-destruction claims tied to WWE's blockbuster merger with UFC and investor scrutiny of a multibillion-dollar deal between Intel and the U.S. government.

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McGuireWoods Beats Sun Pharma's DQ Bid In NJ Suit

By George Woolston

A New Jersey federal court has denied Sun Pharmaceutical's bid to disqualify McGuireWoods LLP from representing pharmaceutical company Biofrontera in litigation over the alleged breach of a settlement agreement, ruling the firm's continued representation won't harm Sun Pharmaceutical and will avoid significant harm to Biofrontera.

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Lewis Brisbois Renews Bid To Force Paralegal To Arbitrate

By Adrian Cruz

Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP asked a Florida state judge on Friday to have a former paralegal arbitrate her defamation claims that its actions tarnished her reputation and cost her a job at another firm.

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K&L Gates IP Atty Tapped For Wash. Supreme Court Seat

By Rachel Riley

A K&L Gates intellectual property litigator will become the Washington State Supreme Court's first justice of Middle Eastern descent, Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson said Monday, announcing his pick to replace veteran retiring Justice Barbara Madsen.

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