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June 13, 2024
Textualism Still Dominates Justices' Arbitration Decisions
The U.S. Supreme Court's approach to arbitration issues this past term has helped to exemplify a growing trend by the justices in favor of textualism and away from a less nuanced pro-arbitration mindset that had been favored in previous decades, experts say.
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June 13, 2024
Tribal Casino Tells 7th Circ. Ill. City Rigged Proposal Votes
A proposed tribal casino has asked the Seventh Circuit to undo a lower court ruling that found Waukegan, Ill., did not intentionally discriminate against it when the city chose three other competitors to operate casinos, saying the city ran a rigged review process.
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June 13, 2024
Justices Hand Abortion Advocates An Incomplete Win
The U.S. Supreme Court's rejection Thursday of a challenge to the abortion drug mifepristone will do little to safeguard long-term access to the medication while suggesting that it will be up to voters, not judges, to settle some of the nation's abortion debates, attorneys say.
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June 13, 2024
2nd Circ. Case Over NY Broadband Law Could Wrap Up
An agreement could soon be reached between internet providers and the New York attorney general's office that would avoid the need for further Second Circuit review of New York's controversial low-cost broadband law, court records show.
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June 13, 2024
Colo. News Station Must Face Claim Over Contractor Shooting
A Denver news station must face a man's vicarious liability claim over the actions of a plainclothes security guard who shot and killed a man during a police protest while working for the TV station, the Colorado Court of Appeals said Thursday.
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June 13, 2024
Youth Org. Not Covered For Ex-Worker's Claim, 6th Circ. Rules
A sexual misconduct exclusion bars a youth advocacy organization's bid for coverage of an ex-employee's claim that they were sexually harassed and assaulted by a supervisor, the Sixth Circuit affirmed Thursday, saying the organization's failure to raise certain arguments before the district court was fatal to its appeal.
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June 13, 2024
Thomas Targets Group Standing In Mifepristone Ruling
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas joined his colleagues Thursday to unanimously uphold broad access to the abortion medication mifepristone for now, but he wrote separately to challenge a standing rule that often serves as the key to the courthouse doors for litigants of all varieties.
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June 13, 2024
Ending Flores Settlement Won't Endanger Children, Feds Say
The Biden administration said a recent regulation it contends warrants winding down the 27-year-old Flores settlement governing health and safety standards for minors in immigration detention can address concerns that human rights organizations raised about the continued use of unlicensed facilities.
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June 13, 2024
9th Circ. Doubts SPAC Investors Can Sue Lucid Over Merger
A Ninth Circuit panel appeared skeptical Thursday of investors' bid to revive a proposed class action alleging that Lucid duped them into buying stock in a special-purpose acquisition company ahead of the electric-vehicle maker's $11.75 billion merger, with two of three judges doubting that the SPAC investors have standing to sue.
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June 13, 2024
NJ Justices Create New Liability Rule For Property Owners
The New Jersey Supreme Court on Thursday voted 4-3 to craft a new rule stating that owners of commercial vacant lots have a duty to maintain the public sidewalks abutting the lots, and reinstated a woman's trip-and-fall injury suit.
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June 13, 2024
Wawa Beats Suit By Man Who Lost Leg In Crash Outside Store
A New Jersey appellate court handed a victory to Wawa on Thursday, ruling that the convenience store didn't own the area outside the store where a customer lost his leg in a car accident while jaywalking and thus was not liable.
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June 13, 2024
Full Fed. Circ. Rejects Rehearing Bids In Xifaxan Case
The Federal Circuit has shot down bids for rehearing filed by both sides in a case involving an April decision that prevents an Alvogen unit from releasing a generic version of Bausch Health's diarrhea and brain disorder drug Xifaxan until 2029.
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June 13, 2024
Aggie Pride Doesn't Create Duty In Donor Football Ticket Row
A state appeals court said Thursday that loyalty to Texas A&M is not enough to establish a fiduciary relationship between a university foundation and its donors, partially dismissing the donors' suit over seating changes in the wake of 2013 football stadium renovations.
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June 13, 2024
Subway Can't Nix Arb. Award To Family Of Murdered Worker
A Texas appellate panel on Wednesday declined to vacate an arbitration award to the family of a woman killed while working at Subway after rejecting Subway's argument the neutral arbitrator's Facebook posts complaining about State Farm and its attorneys are evidence of bias, finding neither are involved in the underlying case in any way.
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June 13, 2024
Chamber Asks DC Circ. To Reject EPA's PFAS Designation
Three business groups, spearheaded by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, have gone to the D.C. Circuit to challenge the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recent decision to declare two "forever chemicals" to be hazardous materials under federal law.
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June 13, 2024
Lockheed Should Face Toxic Exposure Suit, 11th Circ. Told
A widower who sued Lockheed Martin Corp. claiming it exposed his wife to chemicals that ultimately killed her urged the Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday to reverse the dismissal of his lawsuit, saying a Florida federal court improperly excluded a key expert witness by not reviewing the evidence.
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June 13, 2024
1st Circ. Urged To Back TM Loss For Family Of Late MLB Star
A Puerto Rico agency planning a sports district in honor of late Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente has pressed the First Circuit to uphold the agency's dismissal from a trademark lawsuit filed by the baseball legend's family alleging unauthorized use of his name and likeness.
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June 13, 2024
Michigan Supreme Court Curbs Voter Interference Law
The Michigan Supreme Court narrowed the reach of a law criminalizing voter intimidation Thursday due to fears it could be used to chill political speech, sending prosecutions for robocalls that aimed to suppress Black voter turnout back to an appellate panel for more review.
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June 13, 2024
4th Circ. Revives Bacardi Fight Over Expired TM Renewal
The Fourth Circuit on Thursday revived Bacardi's lawsuit challenging the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's decision to renew an expired trademark registration for Havana Club rum, finding such registration renewals can be reviewed by the courts.
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June 13, 2024
Green Groups Challenge EPA Approval Of La. Well Authority
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's decision to give Louisiana authority over some underground injection wells, which can be used for carbon capture and sequestration, violated the Safe Drinking Water Act, green groups said in a new lawsuit.
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June 13, 2024
Ford Asks To Defend EPA's Heavy-Duty Truck Emissions Rule
Ford Motor Co. has urged the D.C. Circuit to let it intervene in defense of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's final rule establishing greenhouse gas emissions standards for heavy-duty vehicles such as delivery trucks, dump trucks, public utility trucks and buses.
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June 13, 2024
Immigrant Bond Co. Says Sale Complied With $811M Order
An immigrant bond company staring down an $811 million judgment for predatory lending practices is urging a Virginia federal court not to sanction it over its recent sale, saying the transaction complied with the judgment's restrictions on its operations.
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June 13, 2024
Pennsylvania Gov. Sued For More Public Defense Funding
Defendants facing charges in Pennsylvania sued Gov. Josh Shapiro and the state Legislature Thursday over their alleged failure to ensure that people who can't afford an attorney in their criminal cases receive effective and free representation.
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June 13, 2024
Mass. Court Blesses Broad Liability In BMW Dealer Wage Suit
An intermediate Massachusetts appellate panel on Thursday ruled that a BMW dealership employee can sue not only her direct employer for wage law violations, but also a separate company that manages the dealership.
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June 13, 2024
Georgia DA Willis Moves To Ax Trump Appeal In DQ Fight
A prosecutor from Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis' office wants a Georgia appellate court to nix an appeal that seeks to disqualify Willis from her election interference case against former President Donald Trump, claiming the appeal rests on flimsy evidence.
Expert Analysis
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Zero-Point Offender Eligibility May Hinge On Meaning Of 'And'
Some white collar defendants’ eligibility for the new zero-point offender sentencing adjustment comes down to whether the word “and” really means “and” — a question the U.S. Supreme Court is set to resolve in its upcoming Pulsifer v. U.S. decision, which could affect thousands of incarcerated people, say Brandon McCarthy and Nikita Yogeshwarun at Katten.
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Valeant Ruling May Pave Way For Patent-Based FCA Suits
The Ninth Circuit’s recent ruling in Silbersher v. Valeant marks a significant development in False Claims Act jurisprudence, opens new avenues for litigation and potentially raises the stakes for patent applicants who intend to do business with the government, say Joshua Robbins and Rick Taché at Buchalter.
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A Former Bankruptcy Judge Talks 'Undue Hardship'
Former U.S. bankruptcy judge Robert Gordon reflects on his journey from student borrower to judicial observer, highlighting the challenges faced by modern students burdened with student loan debt and advocating for reform in bankruptcy laws, particularly regarding the "undue hardship" element of discharge.
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Recent Rulings Add Dimension To Justices' Maui Decision
The U.S. Supreme Court's 2020 decision in County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund established new factual criteria for determining when the Clean Water Act applies to groundwater — and recent decisions from the Ninth and Tenth Circuits have clarified how litigants can make use of the Maui standard, says Steven Hoch at Clark Hill.
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Strategies For Single-Member Special Litigation Committees
The Delaware Supreme Court's recent order in the Baker Hughes derivative litigation allowing testimony from a single-member special litigation committee highlights the fact that, while single-member SLCs are subject to heightened scrutiny, they can also provide unique opportunities, says Josh Bloom at MoloLamken.
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10th Circ. Ruling Means More Okla. Oilfield Pollution Litigation
By applying Oklahoma's statutory definitions of pollution to a private landowner's claim for negligence for the first time, the Tenth Circuit's recent decision in Lazy S Ranch v. Valero will likely make it harder to obtain summary judgment in oilfield contamination cases, and will lead to more litigation, say attorneys at GableGotwals.
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Race Bias Defense Considerations After 11th Circ. Ruling
In Tynes v. Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, the Eleventh Circuit affirmed that the McDonnell Douglas test for employment discrimination cases is merely an evidentiary framework, so employers relying on it as a substantive standard of liability may need to rethink their litigation strategy, says Helen Jay at Phelps Dunbar.
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How Firms Can Ensure Associate Gender Parity Lasts
Among associates, women now outnumber men for the first time, but progress toward gender equality at the top of the legal profession remains glacially slow, and firms must implement time-tested solutions to ensure associates’ gender parity lasts throughout their careers, say Kelly Culhane and Nicole Joseph at Culhane Meadows.
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Fed. Circ. In Feb.: Using Prior Products To Invalidate A Patent
The Federal Circuit's recent Weber v. Provisu ruling, that prior-product operating manuals constituted printed publications that can be used to invalidate patents in an inter partes review proceeding, makes it easier for a petitioner to invalidate a patent, say Sean Murray and Jeremiah Helm at Knobbe Martens.
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7 Common Myths About Lateral Partner Moves
As lateral recruiting remains a key factor for law firm growth, partners considering a lateral move should be aware of a few commonly held myths — some of which contain a kernel of truth, and some of which are flat out wrong, says Dave Maurer at Major Lindsey.
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What's At Stake In Pending Fed. Circ. Design Patent Test Case
The full Federal Circuit recently heard argument in LKQ v. GM Global, a case concerning patent obviousness in the aftermarket for auto parts; the court's decision will likely influence how design patents are obtained, enforced and challenged, and affect the broader innovation ecosystem, says Larry DeMeo at Hunton.
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Series
Cheering In The NFL Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Balancing my time between a BigLaw career and my role as an NFL cheerleader has taught me that pursuing your passions outside of work is not a distraction, but rather an opportunity to harness important skills that can positively affect how you approach work and view success in your career, says Rachel Schuster at Sheppard Mullin.
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Perspectives
Compassionate Release Grants Needed Now More Than Ever
After the U.S. Sentencing Commission's recent expansion of the criteria for determining compassionate release eligibility, courts should grant such motions more frequently in light of the inherently dangerous conditions presented by increasingly understaffed and overpopulated federal prisons, say Alan Ellis and Mark Allenbaugh at the Law Offices of Alan Ellis.
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Args In APA Case Amplify Justices' Focus On Agency Power
In arguments last week in Corner Post v. Federal Reserve, the U.S. Supreme Court justices paid particular importance to the possible ripple effects of their decision, which will address when a facial challenge to long-standing federal rules under the Administrative Procedure Act first accrues and could thus unleash a flood of new lawsuits, say attorneys at Snell & Wilmer.
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After TikTok, Tiptoeing Toward Patent Transfer Alignment
Following the Fifth Circuit's TikTok decision, which aimed to standardize transfer analysis in patent cases, the Federal Circuit and Texas federal courts facing transfer requests have taken small steps to consider the practical realities of patent litigation, reinforcing the intensely factual focus of the analysis, says Charles Fowler at McKool Smith.