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Appellate
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December 10, 2024
3rd Circ. Reopens White Worker's Bias Suit Against Tech Firm
The Third Circuit revived a white former manager's lawsuit alleging an Indian information technology company unlawfully favored South Asian job candidates and employees, ruling Tuesday that a trial court was wrong to say his failed attempt to join a separate class action couldn't extend the time limit for his claims.
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December 10, 2024
7th Circ. Questions Reviving Harley-Davidson Warranty MDL
The Seventh Circuit on Tuesday flagged issues with not only Harley-Davidson's motorcycle warranty but also its customers' antitrust claims against it as the court considered reviving multidistrict litigation claiming the contract constitutes illegal tying.
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December 10, 2024
9th Circ. Upholds $850K Penalty In EPA Fine Suit
The Ninth Circuit on Tuesday upheld a $850,000 penalty against Multistar Industries Inc. for Clean Water Act violations related to chemical storage, saying it agrees with the Environmental Protection Agency's view that the company was not exempt from the rules for storing hazardous materials.
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December 10, 2024
BNSF Railway On The Hook For $2.7M Spinal Injury Verdict
BNSF Railway Co. can not escape a $2.75 million jury verdict that found it had negligently caused a worker's permanent spinal injuries, a Missouri appeals court ruled Tuesday, saying the trial court made no mistake when telling jurors to consider both the safety conditions of the train and reflective vest.
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December 10, 2024
2nd Circ. Revives Antitrust Suit Over Instagram Algorithm
A split Second Circuit Tuesday revived defunct app Phhhoto Inc.'s claims that Meta Platforms used anticompetitive means, including an algorithm for Instagram to suppress rival content, to squash its business, finding that Phhhoto adequately alleged Meta's fraudulent concealment of an anticompetitive scheme would stretch out the four-year statute of limitations.
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December 10, 2024
Fed. Circ. Says IT Cos. Can't Duck $4K H-1B Petition Fees
The Federal Circuit on Tuesday rejected software companies' attempt to secure a refund on H-1B visa petition fees for U.S.-based noncitizens, saying the fee is applicable regardless of whether the workers are already in the country or not.
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December 10, 2024
Fed. Circ. Backs PTAB Ruling That Wireless Tech IP Is Invalid
The Federal Circuit on Tuesday backed a Patent Trial and Appeal Board finding that a mobile communications patent owned by a unit of European patent-licensing company Sisvel was invalid, handing a win to challengers, including Honeywell International and Sierra Wireless.
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December 10, 2024
9th Circ. Says Idaho Can't 'Veto' Federal Law In Abortion Row
The Ninth Circuit seemed poised on Tuesday to turn away fresh arguments from Idaho officials claiming a state abortion ban does not conflict with a federal emergency stabilizing law, after the officials said the federal government can't impose conditions on private hospitals receiving Medicare funds.
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December 10, 2024
5th Circ. Asks ATF Where To 'Draw The Line' In Trigger Ban
A Fifth Circuit panel has pressed the government on how so-called "forced reset triggers" are different from bump stocks, asking where it was supposed to draw the line to determine whether the triggers turn semiautomatic firearms into federally banned machine guns.
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December 10, 2024
Kid Climate Activists Ask Justices To Save Twice-Nixed Case
Youth plaintiffs have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to revive their climate change lawsuit against the federal government but said the court should decide a key death penalty case first that involves a similar constitutional question.
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December 10, 2024
Great-Grandson Brings Nazi-Looted Art Case Back To Justices
A California man who has been trying for nearly two decades to get a Spanish museum to return a painting that the Nazis stole from his great-grandmother is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene for a second time after the Ninth Circuit again denied his request.
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December 10, 2024
Venezuela Oil Cos. Say $23M Suit Wasn't Properly Served
Two Venezuelan oil companies urged the Eleventh Circuit on Tuesday to undo a $23 million judgment for a Florida-based chemical distributor, arguing neither company was properly served the summons and complaint.
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December 10, 2024
Ohio Justices Undo Paint-Maker's Lead Paint Coverage Win
Insurers for Sherwin-Williams Co. don't have to cover the paint-maker's portion of a $305 million settlement to abate lead paint in California homes, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled Tuesday, finding the payment does not qualify as damages under its commercial general liability policies.
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December 10, 2024
2nd Circ. Backs Deloitte's Win In 401(k) Fee Suit
The Second Circuit said a trial court correctly tossed a proposed class action by a group of workers claiming Deloitte saddled its $7.3 billion retirement plan with excessive recordkeeping fees, stating they couldn't overcome concerns that their claims amounted to comparisons of apples to oranges.
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December 10, 2024
Ga. Justices Say Courts To Decide Whether Utilities Are Taxes
A Georgia trial court wrongly decided it could not judge whether a county's utility rates are a backdoor tax on property owners, the state's highest court said Tuesday, ruling that a restriction on the state Legislature's power to "regulate or fix" rates doesn't bar review by the judicial branch.
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December 10, 2024
Utah Counties' Narrow NEPA Test Meets High Court Critics
Utah counties looking to narrow courts' ability to review federal agencies' environmental analyses of proposed projects hit roadblocks Tuesday from skeptical U.S. Supreme Court justices and the U.S. Department of Justice, who said the proposed limits go too far.
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December 10, 2024
Michigan Tribe Asks High Court To Undo Land Trust Order
A Michigan tribe is asking the Supreme Court to overturn a decision that rejected its bid to compel the federal government to take land into trust for a casino venture outside Detroit, arguing that if the ruling is left to stand, it will forever impair its ability to achieve economic self-sufficiency.
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December 10, 2024
6th Circ. Wary Of Axing Fishing Pact Over Tribe's Objections
A Sixth Circuit panel gave an icy reception Tuesday to a tribe's request that it unwind a Great Lakes fishing decree because the tribe was excluded from late-stage negotiations and denied a trial on its objections.
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December 10, 2024
Split 9th Circ. Won't Revive Tesla Worker's Whistleblower Suit
A split Ninth Circuit refused to revive a terminated Tesla worker's Sarbanes-Oxley whistleblower claim alleging he was retaliated against for reporting unlawful activity, ruling on Tuesday the worker is precluded from re-litigating in district court whether he engaged in protected activity, since an arbitrator already decided that he did not.
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December 10, 2024
Ex-CEO Argues Arbitrator's Failure To Disclose Sinks Award
A former CEO of Canadian biopharmaceutical company FSD Pharma Inc. who sued after he was terminated is urging the Third Circuit to reverse a lower court's decision confirming an unfavorable Canadian arbitral award, asserting the arbitrator concealed an extensive prior relationship with the company.
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December 10, 2024
8th Circ. Remands Sexual Misconduct Removal Case
The Eighth Circuit sent a Minnesota man's removal case back to immigration court for further review after finding that the third-degree sexual misconduct statute that he pled guilty to doesn't fall within the federal definition of rape that would allow him to be removed.
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December 10, 2024
4th Circ. Casts Doubt On Broker's FINRA Challenge
A Fourth Circuit panel wondered Tuesday whether it was too soon to hear one North Carolina broker's constitutional challenge against the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, with the circuit judges pointing out that FINRA's case against the broker was not yet over.
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December 10, 2024
9th Circ. Judge Criticizes SF's 'Arbitrary' COVID Vax Mandate
A Ninth Circuit panel doubted Tuesday whether a district judge followed the appellate panel's prior order requiring him to reconsider ex-San Francisco public employees' injunction bid in their civil rights case challenging the city's COVID-19 vaccination mandate, with one judge criticizing the city's since-expired worker vax mandate as "arbitrary."
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December 10, 2024
6th Circ. Judges Doubt Engineers' Claims Avoid Labor Act
Sixth Circuit judges on Tuesday sounded skeptical that a group of auto engineers' claims over a bribery scheme between the United Auto Workers union and Fiat Chrysler, which the engineers allege negatively affected their employment, wouldn't be based on their collective bargaining agreement and thus preempted by federal labor law.
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December 10, 2024
Fed. Circ. Says VA Board Had The Power To Scrap Atty's Fee
The Federal Circuit has ruled that a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs administrative tribunal was within its rights to scrap a 20% fee awarded to an attorney dropped from a veteran's benefits challenge, saying the "tortured history" of the dispute does not reflect well on the department.
Expert Analysis
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Planning Law Firm Content Calendars: What, When, Where
During the slower month of August, law firms should begin working on their 2025 content calendars, planning out a content creation and distribution framework that aligns with the firm’s objectives and maintains audience engagement throughout the year, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.
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3 Presidential Privilege Questions After Trump Ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Trump v. U.S., carving out a new evidentiary privilege for presidents, leaves unanswered several key questions concerning whether this new privilege is waivable or subject to various exceptions, says Jeremy Bates at Frankfurt Kurnit.
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Notable Q2 Updates In Insurance Class Actions
Mark Johnson and Mathew Drocton at BakerHostetler discuss the muted nature of the property and casualty insurance class action space in the second quarter of the year, with no large waves made in labor depreciation and total-loss vehicle class actions, but a new offensive theory emerging for insurance companies.
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What To Know About Major Fla. Civil Procedure Rule Changes
The Florida Supreme Court recently amended the state's Rules of Civil Procedure, touching on pretrial procedure, discovery, motion and trial practice, and while the amendments are intended to streamline cases, the breadth of the changes may initially present some litigation growing pains, say Brian Briz, Benjamin Tyler and Yarenis Cruz at Holland & Knight.
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Prior Art Takeaways From Fed. Circ. Public Disclosure Ruling
While the Federal Circuit’s recent ruling in Sanho v. Kaijet clarified that a private sale is not a public disclosure under patent law, there remains significant room for advocacy, as the opinion lacked meaningful guidance on how to satisfy the public disclosure exception to prior art, says Derrick Carman at Robins Kaplan.
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Series
Playing Golf Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Golf can positively affect your personal and professional life well beyond the final putt, and it’s helped enrich my legal practice by improving my ability to build lasting relationships, study and apply the rules, face adversity with grace, and maintain my mental and physical well-being, says Adam Kelly at Venable.
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Perspectives
2 High Court Rulings Boost Protections Against Gov't Reprisal
The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decisions in Gonzalez v. Trevino and Chiaverini v. City of Napoleon significantly strengthen legal protections against retaliatory arrests and malicious prosecution, and establish clear precedents that promote accountability in law enforcement, say Corey Stoughton and Amanda Miner at Selendy Gay.
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Law Firms Should Move From Reactive To Proactive Marketing
Most law firm marketing and business development teams operate in silos, leading to an ad hoc, reactive approach, but shifting to a culture of proactive planning — beginning with comprehensive campaigns — can help firms effectively execute their broader business strategy, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.
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3 High Court Rulings May Shape Health Org. Litigation Tactics
Three separate decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court's most recent term — Loper Bright, Corner Post and Jarkesy — will likely strengthen healthcare organizations' ability to affirmatively sue executive agencies to challenge regulations governing operations and enforcement actions, say attorneys at McDermott.
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Opinion
The Big Issues A BigLaw Associates' Union Could Address
A BigLaw associates’ union could address a number of issues that have the potential to meaningfully improve working conditions, diversity and attorney well-being — from restructured billable hour requirements to origination credit allocation, return-to-office mandates and more, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.
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Opinion
It's Time For A BigLaw Associates' Union
As BigLaw faces a steady stream of criticism about its employment policies and practices, an associates union could effect real change — and it could start with law students organizing around opposition to recent recruiting trends, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.
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How Calif. Justices' Prop 22 Ruling Affects The Gig Industry
The California Supreme Court's recent upholding of Proposition 22 clarifies that Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and other companies in the gig industry can legally classify their drivers as independent contractors, but it falls short of concluding some important regulatory battles in the state, says Mark Spring at CDF Labor.
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What 7th Circ. Samsung Decision Means For Mass Arbitration
The Seventh Circuit's recent decision in Wallrich v. Samsung highlights the dilemma faced by mass arbitration filers in the face of nonpayment of arbitration fees by the defending party — but also suggests that there are risks for defendants in pursuing such a strategy, says Daniel Campbell at McDermott.
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Takeaways From Virginia's $2B Trade Secrets Verdict Reversal
The Virginia Court of Appeals' recent reversal of the $2 billion damages award in Pegasystems v. Appian underscores the claimant's burden to show damages causation and highlights how an evidentiary ruling could lead to reversible error, say John Lanham and Kamran Jamil at Morrison Foerster.
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How Justices Upended The Administrative Procedure Act
In its recent Loper Bright, Corner Post and Jarkesy decisions, the U.S. Supreme Court fundamentally changed the Administrative Procedure Act in ways that undermine Congress and the executive branch, shift power to the judiciary, curtail public and business input, and create great uncertainty, say Alene Taber and Beth Hummer at Hanson Bridgett.