Appellate

  • March 07, 2025

    Off The Bench: NASCAR Feud Grows, ACC Peace, NCAA Wins

    In this week's Off The Bench, NASCAR insists that the two teams suing it are the real antitrust bullies, the ACC keeps two valued and valuable members in the fold, and a baseball player ends his court fight to play another year in college.

  • March 07, 2025

    2nd Circ. Backs Warrantless Utility Pole Surveillance

    The Second Circuit on Friday ruled that police using cameras mounted to utility poles to observe potential criminal activity without a warrant does not amount to an illegal search under the Fourth Amendment, comporting with other circuits that have pondered the same issue.

  • March 07, 2025

    NC High Court Hopeful Fights Judge's Recusal Over Donation

    A Republican judge challenging ballots cast in the North Carolina Supreme Court race he lost by 734 votes said his colleague on the state Court of Appeals shouldn't be recused from hearing his case because he contributed to the GOP jurist's campaign, noting the panel hasn't even been selected yet.

  • March 07, 2025

    Mich. Justices Kick PFAS Rule Challenge Back To Panel

    The Michigan Supreme Court on Friday punted 3M Co.'s challenge to state regulations limiting PFAS in tap water to a lower court to address subsequent regulatory developments and answer whether the company should have pursued an administrative appeal before suing.

  • March 07, 2025

    10th Circ. Urged To Reject Bid To Nix Microcaptive Notice

    The federal government urged the Tenth Circuit to affirm a ruling that rejected a plumbing supply company's request to invalidate an IRS notice that added reporting requirements for certain microcaptive insurance arrangements, saying the lower court correctly found the suit would illegally hinder tax collection.

  • March 07, 2025

    Goldstein Must Be Tracked Amid 'Ongoing' Crimes, Feds Say

    The federal government has doubled down on allegations that U.S. Supreme Court advocate and SCOTUSblog publisher Tom Goldstein has been secretly moving cryptocurrency, urging a federal judge to keep monitoring his electronic devices to prevent him from fleeing tax evasion charges.

  • March 07, 2025

    Retrial In Landmark Graft Case Faces Potential Roadblocks

    A retrial in a public corruption case tied to an infrastructure initiative under former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo faces possible obstacles after being returned to a federal judge by the U.S. Supreme Court, with the parties awaiting further legal guidance from the justices and the defense saying the Trump administration's priorities may sink the case.

  • March 06, 2025

    Amid Court Setbacks, Trump Wants Foes To Foot Legal Bills

    With judges hitting the brakes on the White House's aggressive agenda, President Donald Trump on Thursday vowed to up the ante with his legal adversaries by seeking legal costs and damages if his administration ultimately prevails after initial setbacks in litigation.

  • March 06, 2025

    Ariz. Firm Urges Justices To Hear Suit Over Ad Search Terms

    A Phoenix personal injury firm is going to the U.S. Supreme Court after losing its trademark lawsuit over Google advertising search terms, warning the justices that a rival's online "bait and switch" advertising tactics have "confused hundreds, if not thousands, of potential clients."

  • March 06, 2025

    Feds Say 11th Circ. Should Affirm Value Of Ex-Braves' Farm

    Despite dropping a bid for civil fraud penalties this week against two former Atlanta Braves players accused of overvaluing a conservation easement donation, the federal government has told the Eleventh Circuit it still stands by a U.S. Tax Court ruling that the players' valuation of the property was "firmly planted in the realm of fantasy."

  • March 06, 2025

    Crypto Cos. Want Justices To Settle Venue Statute Circuit Split

    A Binance-branded U.S. exchange and affiliated crypto data site CoinMarketCap have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to settle what they call a circuit split over whether a trader must show the firms had contacts in their state, or if ties to the country as a whole are enough to press a manipulation claim under the Commodity Exchange Act.

  • March 06, 2025

    High Court Urged To Toss $22M SEC Disgorgement Order

    An investment advisory firm has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a First Circuit ruling that upheld an order for the firm to pay $22 million in disgorgement to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, arguing that courts cannot impose disgorgement when investors have not suffered any financial harm.

  • March 06, 2025

    9th Circ. Shreds 'Muddled' Argument In Amazon Antitrust Case

    A panel of the Ninth Circuit on Thursday picked apart arguments from consumers in their lawsuit alleging Amazon violated antitrust law through the e-commerce giant's fulfillment services, with the judges saying an amended complaint was "extraordinarily light on any actual evidence" and the arguments appeared "muddled."

  • March 06, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Judge Stresses Unknown Software To Fintiv, Apple

    A Federal Circuit panel expressed frustration Thursday as it struggled to get straight answers regarding whether Apple's products have a "widget" that would infringe Fintiv's contactless payment patent, with one judge ending arguments by saying that "after 45 minutes here, I'm still not clear what the widget does."

  • March 06, 2025

    Wheeling & Appealing: The Latest Must-Know Appellate Action

    Believe it or not, there's still important litigation happening that doesn't involve President Donald Trump, and the proof exists in this month's circuit court calendars. During the remaining weeks of March, arguments will explore numerous high-profile topics, including a law firm's severe punishment for alleged misconduct in 9/11 litigation and a judicial rebuke of Trader Joe's for "an attempt to weaponize the legal system."

  • March 06, 2025

    6th Circ. Backs $100K For Ky. Couple Denied Marriage License

    The Sixth Circuit upheld $100,000 in damages awarded to a couple denied a marriage license by Kentucky clerk Kim Davis on Thursday, affirming that she is liable for ignoring the U.S. Supreme Court's recognition of same-sex couples' right to marry. 

  • March 06, 2025

    California City Abandons Battle Over Affordable Housing

    A wealthy Southern California city wants to drop its appeal of a legal nonprofit's suit that was filed over the city's opposition to a mixed-income affordable-housing project, according to a filing in a state appellate court.

  • March 06, 2025

    Insurer's 9th Circ. Procedural Win Highlights Appraisal Rules

    A Ninth Circuit panel affirmed that a property owner could not litigate its insurer's failure to pay for losses before a required appraisal to resolve disagreements, highlighting the importance of appraisal provisions and how they could limit potential policyholder challenges. Here, Law360 speaks to Colin Kemp, an insurance recovery attorney for Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, about Mount Vernon Specialty Insurance Co.'s procedural victory and its implications for coverage challenges.

  • March 06, 2025

    Texas Court Orders 400-Mile Transfer For Discrimination Suit

    A Texas appeals court has granted a Fort Worth-based energy company's request to have a former employee's lawsuit accusing it of discrimination and libel transferred hundreds of miles from Hidalgo County to Tarrant County, where it is located.

  • March 06, 2025

    Del. Corporate Law Rework Under Pressure At Tulane

    An attorney whose firm largely represents investors and consumers told a corporate law conference in New Orleans on Thursday that the list of plaintiff-friendly rulings that would be effectively overturned by a pending corporation law bill in Delaware "will probably be just as long as the bill itself."

  • March 06, 2025

    9th Circ. Nixes Challenge To Wash. Abortion Coverage Law

    A split Ninth Circuit panel on Thursday rejected a Christian church's challenge to a Washington state law requiring employer health plans to cover abortion services, saying the church could invoke its religious beliefs to skirt the challenged obligations.

  • March 06, 2025

    Mich. Supreme Court Preview: Sex Offender Tracking, Rentals

    The Michigan Supreme Court is gearing up to hear arguments next week on the constitutionality of making sex offenders wear location-tracking devices for life, whether short-term vacation rentals fit into the definition of residential use of a property and whether political parties have standing to sue when a community's election workers are overwhelmingly from the same political party.

  • March 06, 2025

    Insurance Mogul Can Pursue $8.2M Battle Over NC Office Park

    Convicted insurance mogul Greg Lindberg and his company Global Growth Holdings Inc. will have another shot at counterclaims in an unpaid rent lawsuit against another company once owned by Lindberg, a North Carolina state appeals court ruled Wednesday.

  • March 06, 2025

    Texas Panel Says Police Dept. Must Face Pregnancy Bias Suit

    A Texas appeals court on Thursday said a police department cannot escape a former employee's lawsuit accusing it of firing her after she asked to take unpaid leave to recover from a cesarean section, but ruled the city encompassing the police department was not involved in employment decisions.

  • March 06, 2025

    Diverse Judiciary Is Crucial, Justice Jackson Tells Attys

    U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson told attorneys in Miami on Thursday at the American Bar Association's annual White Collar Crime Institute that her judicial philosophy is "still under development" and said diversity in the judiciary is necessary to help instill confidence in the judicial branch of government.

Expert Analysis

  • What To Expect From Federal Cybersecurity Policy In 2025

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    There are 12 cyber policy questions to keep an eye on as the new administration and Republican control of Congress present an opportunity to advance less regulatory approaches and revisit some choices from the prior administration, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • Bid Protest Spotlight: Certification, Lateness, SBA Eligibility

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    In this month's bid protest roundup, Cody Fisher at MoFo examines three recent decisions from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the U.S. Government Accountability Office that address the treatment of a proposal that was timely submitted but received late, and highlight nuances of certification and small business eligibility requirements.

  • How Decline Of Deference Will Affect Trump Policymaking

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    An administrative law regime without Chevron deference may limit the Trump administration’s ability to implement new policies in the short term, but ultimately help it in the long term, and all parties with an interest in regulatory changes will have to take a fresh approach to litigation, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Series

    Ohio Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q4

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    Ohio's banking and financial services sector saw several significant developments in the fourth quarter of 2024, including a landmark Uniform Commercial Code ruling, adjustments to the state's Homebuyer Plus Program and the launch of the state's first women-led bank, says attorney Alex Durst.

  • 6 Predictions For Cyber Risk And Insurance In 2025

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    This year is likely to bring with it some thorny and expensive cyber challenges, including increased ransomware activity, more data breach class actions and continued efforts to define business interruption loss calculations, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • 7 Ways 2nd Trump Administration May Affect Partner Hiring

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    President-elect Donald Trump's return to the White House will likely have a number of downstream effects on partner hiring in the legal industry, from accelerated hiring timelines to increased vetting of prospective employees, say recruiters at Macrae.

  • Opinion

    Courts Must Curb The Drug Price Negotiation Program

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    The Inflation Reduction Act's drug price negotiation program upends incentive structures that drive medical innovation, and courts must act appropriately to avoid devastating consequences for American healthcare and the pharmaceutical industry, says Jeff Stier at the Consumer Choice Center.

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Rulings On Custodian Selection

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    Several recent rulings make clear that the proportionality of additional proposed custodians will depend on whether the custodians have unique relevant documents, and producing parties should consider whether information already in the record will show that they have relevant documents that otherwise might not be produced, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Opinion

    Section 230 Debates Will Continue, With Or Without TikTok

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    Regardless of whether TikTok is forced to shut down in the U.S. in the coming weeks, legal disputes will continue over social media platforms' responsibility under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act for harms allegedly caused by content shared on their apps, says Carla Varriale-Barker at Segal McCambridge.

  • Surprise NC COVID Ruling Revises Reasonable Expectations

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    The North Carolina Supreme Court's recent finding in favor of policyholders in a suit for business interruption coverage due to COVID-19 shutdown orders runs contrary to most other state and federal courts' holdings on the issue, and may revitalize the reasonable expectations doctrine in the state, say attorneys at Goldberg Segalla.

  • Impact Of Successful Challenges To SEC's Rulemaking Ability

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    In 2024, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission faced significant legal challenges to its aggressive rulemaking agenda as several of its rules were vacated by the Fifth Circuit, which could hinder the SEC's ability to enact rules extending beyond express statutory authority in the future, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • 5 Transition Tools Trump Could Use To Implement His Agenda

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    President-elect Donald Trump will have several tools available to him to halt or otherwise claw back federal regulations promulgated during the Biden administration, including reconciliation, executive orders and memoranda, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

  • When Judging Product Label Claims, Follow The Asterisk

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    A recurring question in false advertising class actions is whether misleading or ambiguous statements on a product's front label can be cured by information on the back label — but recent decisions from the Ninth Circuit suggest that a front-label asterisk can help alert consumers to seek further clarification, say attorneys at Hunton.

  • Justices Seem Focused On NEPA's Limits In Utah Rail Case

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    After last month's oral argument at the U.S. Supreme Court in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, Colorado, the court appears poised to forcefully reiterate that the National Environmental Policy Act requires federal agencies to review only those environmental impacts within their control, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

  • Fed. Circ. Patent Decisions In 2024: An Empirical Review

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    Despite an ever-increasing backlog of argument-ready cases, the Federal Circuit issued fewer decisions in 2024 than in previous years, and the decisions' overall friendliness toward patent owners and applicants was low, says Dan Bagatell at Perkins Coie.

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