A Georgia federal judge declined to grant a win to a mineral products company trying to compel a Travelers unit to defend it against an underlying suit claiming that it supplied asbestos-containing talc products.
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MONDAY, JULY 22, 2024 Law360 iOS App Law360 Android App Follow Law360 on Facebook Follow Law360 on LinkedIn Follow Law360 on Twitter

TOP NEWS

Ga. Mineral Co. Can't Nab Win In Row Over Talc Suit Coverage

By Tom Lotshaw

A Georgia federal judge declined to grant a win to a mineral products company trying to compel a Travelers unit to defend it against an underlying suit claiming that it supplied asbestos-containing talc products.

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GSK, Boehringer Face Jurors Again On Zantac Cancer Claims

By Celeste Bott and Lauraann Wood

GlaxoSmithKline and Boehringer Ingelheim returned to Illinois state court Thursday, where they face separate juries to defend against Zantac users' claims that the drug caused them to develop cancer.

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Conn. Lawyer Group Wants In On Baby Injury Case

By Emily Field

A group of Connecticut defense lawyers Wednesday told the state supreme court that they should be allowed to address issues in a suit involving a car seat that allegedly injured a child since its decision will affect whether state law holds that companies can be held liable for the absence of a child's relationship with their parents.

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Docs Get Same Hefty Opioid Sentences Despite Top Court Win

By Elliot Weld

Two Alabama doctors accused of unlawfully prescribing patients fentanyl and other opioids failed to shave time off their lengthy prison sentences despite a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that raised the bar for such prosecutions.

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FDA Sends More Warnings Over THC 'Copycat' Snacks

By Jonathan Capriel

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned six companies to stop selling delta-8 edibles that resemble brand-name snacks such as Skittles, Chips Ahoy, Cheetos and Oreos, saying the lookalikes can fool "children or unsuspecting adults" and pose a real health hazard.

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5th Circ. Upholds Tossing Of Ship Captain's Toxic Injury Suit

By Jonathan Capriel

A former offshore supply vessel captain, who claims chemicals aboard caused his cancer and kidney failure, must sue his U.S. employer in England, the Fifth Circuit has ruled, saying the employment contract's forum selection clause is enforceable even after considering Louisiana's law which largely prohibits such clauses.

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Pool Co. Wants To Dig Into Rival's Alter Egos For $16M Verdict

By Hayley Fowler

Pool supply company Hayward Industries Inc. is looking to force responses from the alter egos of bankrupt rival Blueworks Corp. regarding their assets, bank accounts and property so that Hayward can collect on its $16 million false advertising and unfair business practices judgment.

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ENERGY

Miner Seeks Atty Fees After 4th Circ. DOL Judges Ruling

By Irene Spezzamonte

A former miner urged the Fourth Circuit to approve approximately $21,000 in attorney fees in his case seeking benefits for his black lung disease, saying he has been unable to reach a settlement with an engineering company that challenged the appointment of two U.S. Department of Labor administrative law judges.

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TECHNOLOGY

Avatar-Maker Draws Facial-Scan BIPA Suit

By Lauraann Wood

Avatar company Ready Player Me Inc. has been hit with proposed class claims that it creates Illinois users' digital characters by scanning, storing and using their facial data without first obtaining informed consent.

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LEGAL INDUSTRY

BCLP Seeks Merger Partner As Departures Continue

By Aebra Coe

Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP's headcount has declined by more than 20% since the law firm's seminal combination, according to firm data, with a surge of lateral departures this spring and summer. Sources have told Law360 Pulse that firm leaders are currently seeking a merger partner.

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Several State Courts Impacted By Global Tech Outage

By Sarah Martinson

Several state courts have been impacted by a global Microsoft Windows outage Friday morning causing operational challenges and courthouse closures.

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DOJ Seeks Probe Of Conflicts In Ex-Fed. Judge's Cases

By Jack Karp

The U.S. Department of Justice has asked its internal watchdog to look into why federal prosecutors kept quiet about the fact that they allegedly knew now-resigned Alaska federal Judge Joshua Kindred had inappropriate relationships with several attorneys appearing before him, the DOJ confirmed to Law360 Friday.

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NASCAR Names New General Counsel Amid Shake-Up

By Sue Reisinger

NASCAR Holdings' has named a new general counsel and a new deputy general counsel and head of privacy to fill out the team of chief legal officer Amanda Oliver.

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Calif. Bar Backs Creating New Virtual Bar Exam To Cut Costs

By Hailey Konnath

The State Bar of California's Board of Trustees has signed off on plans to negotiate a potentially $8 million, five-year deal with Kaplan North America LLC to replace the Multistate Bar Exam with its own state exam that could be taken remotely, according to a statement issued Friday.

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Kavanaugh Murder-Attempt Suspect Set To Face Trial

By Rae Ann Varona

A man charged with attempting to kill U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh has failed to reach a plea deal after nearly two years of negotiations, setting his case up for trial in Maryland federal court, federal prosecutors said Friday.

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2nd Circ. Upholds Ax Of Ex-Ropes & Gray Clerk's Bar Exam Suit

By Ryan Boysen

A former Ropes & Gray LLP attorney who was fired after twice failing the New York bar exam can't sue the state agency that administers the test for failing to accommodate her disabilities, the Second Circuit ruled Friday, finding the agency is protected by sovereign immunity.

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Apple Wants Litigation Funder To Explain Role In Patent Row

By Rose Krebs

Apple Inc. wants a Delaware federal judge to order litigation funder Omni Bridgeway LLC to turn over documents explaining its relationship with Finnish company MPH Technologies Oy and its financial interest in MPH's ongoing patent litigation against Apple in California.

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NYC Bar OKs Attys' Financial Stakes In Alternative Biz Entities

By Andrea Keckley

A new ethics committee report says a New York City lawyer may hold a financial interest in alternative business structures in jurisdictions that let them provide legal services, provided the lawyer is merely a financial investor, not practicing law through the entity.

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Judge Recuses As Tech Firm Slams Dow Chemical's Request

By Ryan Harroff

An Ohio federal judge has recused himself from a trade secrets case brought against Dow Chemical Co. after the technology firm that sued it showed the court a settlement offer without approval that would grant Dow Chemical's recusal motion, which the tech firm said was a "cavalier approach to a drastic remedy."

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Class Seeks $1.5B Settlement In Payday Loan Dispute

By Crystal Owens

A class of borrowers has urged a Virginia federal court to approve what would be the largest settlement ever obtained in a challenge to participants in the tribal lending industry, arguing that the agreement would give significant relief to hundreds of thousands in the form of debt cancellations and cash payments.

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Law Profs Throw Flag On NFL's 'Unconscionable' Arbitration

By David Steele

Allowing the NFL's arbitration system, with commissioner Roger Goodell as the arbitrator, to prevail in Brian Flores' discrimination dispute with the league is "unconscionable" and "egregious," a dozen law professors have told the Second Circuit in an amicus brief supporting the former Miami Dolphins head coach.

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Calif. Firm Beats Rival's Claims In 'Sweet Justice' TM Fight

By Rachel Rippetoe

A California federal court on Thursday nixed a personal injury firm's countersuit against its rival in a battle over the trademark use of the term "Sweet Justice," ruling that the firm's counterclaims are a "mirror-image" of the underlying suit.

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'Texit' Atty Sues State Rep., Judge Over Defamation Fees

By Catherine Marfin

A civil rights attorney who has represented the group behind the "Texit" movement filed a lawsuit against a state representative and court officials in a North Texas county, accusing the group of colluding to run up attorney fees against him in a defamation case connected to the pro-Texas-secession group.

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Colo. Federal Judges Point Out Recent High Turnover

By Daniel Ducassi

Colorado's chief federal judge on Friday observed "there has been a lot of turnover" on the bench in the district over the past several years, noting five out of the seven active district court judges were nominated by President Joe Biden. 

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Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

By Kevin Penton

Blanche Law PLLC and Continental PLLC lead this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after a Florida federal judge tossed the criminal case against former President Donald Trump over his allegedly illegal retention of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate.

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GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

By Michele Gorman

A kidney care company has asked a federal judge to throw out a former in-house counsel's lawsuit that claims she was fired for raising concerns about violations of federal anti-kickback statutes, and a study showed the world's most extensive public country-by-country tax reporting rules would require 51% of large U.S. multinational corporations to disclose tax arrangements. These are among the stories in corporate legal news you may have missed in the past week.

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

By Max Austin

This past week in London has seen a libel clash between comedian Paul Currie and the Soho Theatre Company over allegations of anti-semitism, technology giant Huawei face a patents claim by Mediatek, Westfield Europe pursue action against Clearpay Finance for contract breaches and tour operating company Carnival hit chartered airline Maleth Aero for significant flight delays. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

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In Case You Missed It: Hottest Firms And Stories On Law360

For those who missed out, here's a look back at the law firms, stories and expert analyses that generated the most buzz on Law360 last week.

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LAW FIRMS IN TODAY'S NEWS

A&O Shearman

Alston & Bird

BBB Attorneys

Baker Donelson

Baker McKenzie

Bernstein Litowitz

Blake Cassels

Bryan Cave

Bursor & Fisher

Clark Hill

Clyde & Co

Continental PLLC

Covington & Burling

Cox Byington

DAC Beachcroft

DLA Piper

Davis Polk

Dentons

Deutsch Kerrigan

Dorsey & Whitney

Eggleston King

Elefterakis Elefterakis

Fieldfisher

Freeman Mathis

Gfeller Laurie

Gibson Dunn

Goldman Ismail

Gordon Rees

Gowling WLG

Hahn Loeser

Hogan Lovells

Hogen Adams

Holland & Knight

Howes Percival

Jo Anne Simon PC

Jones Day

Keller Postman

Kelly Guzzo

King & Spalding

Kirkland & Ellis

Latham & Watkins

Lightfoot Franklin

Loeb & Loeb

Madden & Soto

McCarter & English

McCarthy Tetrault

Mishcon de Reya

Morgan Lewis

Morris Nichols

Morrison Foerster

Munger Tolles

Nelson Mullins

Norton Rose

Osborne Clarke

Parafinczuk Wolf

Paul Hastings

Paul Weiss

Perkins Coie

Pirkey Barber

Quinn Emanuel

Rayburn Cooper

Richards Layton

Robinson Bradshaw

Ropes & Gray

Rutan & Tucker

Seyfarth Shaw

Shumaker Loop

Sidley Austin

Simmons & Simmons

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP

Siri & Glimstad

Spencer Fane

Stein & Vargas

Street Law Firm

Sullivan & Cromwell

Sweet James LLP

Thompson Hine

Troutman Pepper

Ward Hadaway

Washington & Washington

Wigdor LLP

Wolfe Williams

Womble Bond

Wright Hassall

gunnercooke LLP

COMPANIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

AXA SA

Adobe Inc.

Aegon NV

Amazon.com Inc.

American Arbitration Association

Apple Inc.

Aviva SA

Boehringer Ingelheim

Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica Inc.

Carnival Corp. & PLC

Chevron Corp.

Cimbar Performance Minerals Inc.

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc.

Colorado Bar Association

Comerica Inc.

CrowdStrike Holdings Inc.

Denver Broncos Football Club

Dow Inc.

EMI Group Ltd.

Google LLC

Houston Texans

Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd.

Larsen & Toubro Ltd.

Lenovo Group Ltd.

Leo Burnett Worldwide Inc.

Liberty Mutual Insurance Group

LinkedIn Corp.

Loyola University New Orleans

Mercedes-Benz USA LLC

Miami Dolphins

Microsoft Corp.

Morningstar, Inc.

NASDAQ Inc.

NFL Enterprises LLC

NVIDIA Corp.

Nascar Digital Media LLC

National Hockey League

New York City Bar Association

New York Football Giants Inc.

New York University

Newell Brands Inc.

Omni Bridgeway Ltd.

Panoramic Health

Pfizer Inc.

Purdue Pharma LP

Sanofi

SolarWinds Corp.

Solicitors Regulation Authority Ltd.

State Bar of California

Syngenta AG

The Tennessee Titans

Tidewater, Inc.

Twitter Inc.

Union Pacific Corp.

University of Southern California

Valeo Partners LLC

Vodafone Group PLC

Walmart Inc.

Woodruff-Sawyer & Co.

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

Companies House

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Cook County Circuit Court

European Union

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Federal Bureau of Prisons

Federal Trade Commission

Food and Drug Administration

HM Revenue & Customs

Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians

New York Attorney General's Office

Supreme Court of Nevada

Texas Legislature

U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Alaska

U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Alabama

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit

U.S. Department of Commerce

U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. Department of Labor

U.S. District Court for the Central District of California

U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware

U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland

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

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

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

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

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

U.S. Supreme Court

United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of North Carolina

United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio

United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama

World Health Organization