Courts

Conn. Judge Cites Day Pitney Ties In Lego Settlement Recusal

By Emily Sawicki

U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas O. Farrish has recused himself from presiding over settlement talks between Lego and a New York artist who is suing the toy company over a play set based on the Netflix series "Queer Eye," citing the fact that his former firm, Day Pitney LLP, represents the defendants.

High Court Says Va. Can Keep Purging 'Noncitizen' Voters

By Katie Buehler

A divided U.S. Supreme Court wiped out a federal court order Wednesday that prohibited Virginia from removing suspected noncitizens from its voting rolls this close to Election Day, a program the U.S. Department of Justice and advocacy groups claim has erroneously stripped eligible voters of their constitutional rights.

Justices Won't Let RFK Jr. Off Mich., Wis. Ballots

By Lauren Berg

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s emergency requests to have his name removed from the presidential ballots in the key battleground states of Wisconsin and Michigan.

Feds Tell High Court To Deny Va.'s Bid To Revive Voter Purge

By Katie Buehler

The U.S. Supreme Court must leave in place a court order prohibiting Virginia from removing suspected noncitizens from its voting rolls this close to Election Day, the federal government and advocacy groups argued Tuesday, contending the risk of erroneously stripping eligible voters of their rights outweighs any purported harm to the state.

Cannon Won't Recuse In Trump Shooting Suspect's Fla. Case

By Craig Clough

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon declined Tuesday to recuse herself from overseeing the case of a man charged with attempting to shoot former President Donald Trump, saying Trump's praise of her and reports that he would consider her for attorney general if elected are not enough to disqualify her.

Justice, Challenger Split On Backgrounds For The Bench

By Carolyn Muyskens

Judge Patrick O'Grady, campaigning for the Michigan Supreme Court, says the current bench is sorely lacking the type of prior judicial experience he would bring. But sitting Justice Kyra Bolden argues the diversity of backgrounds among justices makes the court stronger.

Fla. Judge Modifies Order Requiring News Articles Takedown

By Carolina Bolado

A Florida state judge on Monday revised an order requiring the deletion of various online news stories about a real estate dispute after a constitutional law scholar, who had written about the case, told the court he would not comply with what he called an unconstitutional order. 

Mich. Top Court Won't Halt Ethics Claims Against Trump Allies

By Rose Krebs

Michigan's Supreme Court has refused to stop disciplinary proceedings against Sidney Powell and other lawyers who advanced former President Donald Trump's election fraud claims.

Bannon Released From Prison As Election, NY Trial Loom

By Rachel Scharf

Former President Donald Trump ally Steve Bannon was released from federal prison Tuesday after serving a four-month sentence for contempt of Congress, a week before Election Day and a month and a half ahead of his next criminal trial in New York.

GOP Rep. Roy Opposes Efforts To Stop 'Judge Shopping'

By Courtney Bublé

A Republican on the House Judiciary Committee is threatening to withhold support for legislation bolstering the operation of the federal courts if the Administrative Office of the Courts doesn't stop considering measures aimed at ending "judge shopping."

Former Morgan Lewis Partner Sworn In To DC Federal Bench

By Ali Sullivan

A former Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP partner has been sworn in to serve as a magistrate judge in Washington, D.C., federal court.

NJ Judge Exits Disbarred Atty's Suits Over Ties To State Bar

By Jake Maher

A disbarred New Jersey civil rights attorney persuaded a New Jersey federal judge to recuse herself from cases he has pending before her due to the "slim, but conceivable chance" of an appearance of impropriety stemming in part from her time as president of the New Jersey State Bar Association.

Besieged NJ Prosecutor Keeps Suit Over Resignation Alive

By Jake Maher

The former county prosecutor in Warren County, New Jersey, has partially defeated a motion to dismiss from Gov. Phil Murphy and Attorney General Matthew Platkin, and can pursue a state court claim that he never technically resigned before being replaced.

4th Circ. Unclear On LeClairRyan Founder's Tax Liability

By Ryan Boysen

A Fourth Circuit panel appeared confused and noncommittal Tuesday as it wrestled with a narrow question of contract interpretation that could determine whether Gary LeClair of defunct LeClairRyan PLLC is on the hook for massive tax bills tied to the firm's collapse.

Approach The Bench: Judge Rosenthal Praises Zoom Hearings

While U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal calls the pandemic a disaster that "discombobulated" the federal courts, she thinks there was also a silver lining to the experience.

Kirkland Partner Appointed US Bankruptcy Judge In Chicago

By Emlyn Cameron

Michael B. Slade, a Kirkland & Ellis LLP litigation partner with restructuring experience assisting debtors like Yellow Corp., will join Illinois' bankruptcy bench in late November, the Seventh Circuit's chief judge announced.

Military Reservist Not Exempt From Extra Pay, Justices Told

By Emmy Freedman

Military reservists are owed top-up pay if they're called to serve during a war or national emergency, regardless of whether they're directly serving in those events, a U.S. Coast Guard reservist told the U.S. Supreme Court.

Calif. High Court Says Judicial DQ Bids Must Be Timely

By Bonnie Eslinger

The California Supreme Court on Monday held that an appellate court got it wrong by determining a timeliness requirement doesn't apply when a party alleges that a judge is disqualified due to bias, in a case that resulted in a $43.5 million judgment for hundreds of title company employees.

Judge Leaves Patent Case After Fed. Circ. Undoes Ruling

By Ryan Davis

A Minnesota federal judge has recused himself from a patent dispute between Teleflex and Medtronic he has handled since 2019, saying he was "at a loss" on how to proceed after the Federal Circuit faulted his interpretation of terms in Teleflex's catheter patents.

Colo. Will Decide How Judges Are Judged

By Daniel Ducassi

The Colorado Supreme Court could soon lose some of its control over judicial discipline, from the rules governing the process to who doles out punishment, as voters decide whether to adopt constitutional reforms following a scandal over hush-money allegations that ensnared a former chief justice and other top judiciary officials.

NC Swaps Checks For Prepaid Debit Cards To Pay Jurors

By Hayley Fowler

North Carolina state court officials announced Monday that they've changed the payment method for jurors in an effort to cut down on paper and will instead issue prepaid debit cards to compensate citizens for jury duty.

Supreme Court Keeps 5th Circuit Horse Racing Ruling On Ice

By David Steele

A Fifth Circuit ruling that declared the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority's oversight of federal horse safety regulation to be unconstitutional was put on hold by the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday while it decides whether to hear the authority's appeal.

Ga. Appeals Judge Miller Reflects On Trailblazing Career

By Emily Johnson

As she approaches the end of her roughly 25-year tenure on the Georgia Court of Appeals, Presiding Judge M. Yvette Miller joined Law360 Pulse to discuss her career, her decision to retire and how her parents have served as strong role models throughout her life.

Ozy Media CEO Wants Conviction Nixed Over Judge's Assets

By Jack Karp

The New York federal judge who presided over the fraud and identity theft trial of former Ozy Media CEO Carlos Watson should be disqualified from the case because he failed to disclose that he had investments in four of the companies victimized by Watson, according to the onetime executive, who is trying to get his conviction overturned.

Longtime New York Federal Judge John F. Keenan Dies At 94

By Andrea Keckley

U.S. District Judge John Fontaine Keenan of the Southern District of New York, a jurist of more than four decades who presided over major cases — like the litigation stemming from one of the world's deadliest industrial disasters in Bhopal, India, and the trial of former Filipino first lady Imelda Marcos — died on Sunday, according to a district source. He was 94.