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Appellate
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September 13, 2024
Trio Of BigLaw Mergers Expected To Drive More Deal Talks
After months of a relatively steady pace of law firm mergers and acquisitions, the trio of proposed BigLaw tie-ups announced in recent days will likely spur more firms toward entertaining similar deal talks, experts say. Here, Law360 offers a snapshot of the proposed deals.
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September 13, 2024
DC Circ. Gives EPA Chance To Review Good Neighbor Plan
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will have a chance to review its Good Neighbor Plan in-house before litigating it further, according to a D.C. Circuit ruling granting the agency's request to remand the rule, so it could respond to issues raised by the U.S. Supreme Court.
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September 13, 2024
Neb. Court Allows Competing Abortion Measures On Ballot
Nebraska's top court agreed on Friday to let two competing — and sharply contested — abortion initiatives on the November ballot.
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September 13, 2024
Ga. Lawyers Group Blast 'Chill' Of Young Thug Atty Contempt
A Georgia criminal defense lawyers group has called on the state Supreme Court to erase the contempt conviction of an attorney representing rapper Young Thug for the lawyer's refusal to reveal how he learned about a judge's closed-door meeting with prosecutors and a witness, saying the sanction could have a chilling effect on attorneys' ability to represent criminal defendants.
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September 13, 2024
3rd Circ. Won't Undo Philly DA's Immunity From Cop's Suit
The Third Circuit won't revive a Philadelphia police officer's lawsuit alleging that city District Attorney Larry Krasner violated his civil rights by hitting him with a murder charge that was ultimately tossed, finding that the officer couldn't overcome the immunity granted to prosecutors when advocating on behalf of the state.
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September 13, 2024
Mass. Justices Say Benefits Don't Accrue Under Leave Law
Massachusetts' top court ruled Friday that the state's Paid Family and Medical Leave Act doesn't allow a group of state troopers to accrue certain benefits while on leave.
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September 13, 2024
Wash. Biz Group Dues Weren't Deductible From Gross Income
The Better Business Bureau isn't entitled to a refund of business and occupation taxes paid to the Washington Department of Revenue in 2017, an appeals court affirmed, agreeing with the department that membership dues weren't deductible from gross income.
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September 12, 2024
8th Circ. Nixes $563M Verdict Against BMO Harris Over Ponzi
The Eighth Circuit on Thursday struck down a $563 million verdict against BMO Harris NA over claims that a bank it acquired had aided and abetted Thomas J. Petters' multibillion dollar Ponzi scheme, ruling that the bank should have been allowed to raise a defense that would have barred the suit in the first place.
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September 12, 2024
Trump Gets Counts Cut From Ga. Election Interference Case
Donald Trump and his co-defendants in the sprawling Georgia election interference case scored a partial victory Thursday when a judge dismissed three charges from the 41-count indictment, pointing to a 134-year-old U.S. Supreme Court holding that states can't pursue criminal conduct in connection with federal matters.
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September 12, 2024
2nd Circ. Rejects Another Trump Bid To Halt Hush Money Case
The Second Circuit on Thursday rejected former President Donald Trump's request for an emergency order pausing his criminal hush money case, citing New York state court Justice Juan M. Merchan's decision to push his sentencing hearing from Sept. 18 until after the election.
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September 12, 2024
FCC Tells 6th Circ To Affirm Net Neutrality
The Federal Communications Commission told the Sixth Circuit the agency acted well within the law when it reimposed net neutrality limits on broadband providers and urged the court to reject industry claims that the commission's authority to regulate high-speed internet service is a "major question" that only Congress may address.
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September 12, 2024
Towers Watson Can't Duck Bump-Up Exclusion, 4th Circ. Told
Towers Watson's latest effort to get its directors and officers insurers to fund a $75 million settlement in a shareholder suit over its merger with Willis should be tossed, the insurers told the Fourth Circuit, saying the bump-up exclusion unambiguously applies to bar coverage.
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September 12, 2024
McKinsey Partner Can't Undo $11M Music Piracy Judgment
An Eleventh Circuit panel Thursday upheld an $11 million federal default judgment against a McKinsey & Co. partner for pirating music, agreeing with the Georgia lower court that the motion to set aside the roughly 10-year-old order was untimely.
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September 12, 2024
Del. Justices Uphold Chancery Toss Of $1.2B NCino Deal Suit
The Delaware Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the Chancery's court's decision to throw out nCino investor claims against company directors and investment firm Insight Venture Partners challenging the financial technology company's $1.2 billion acquisition of mortgage loan platform SimpleNexus.
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September 12, 2024
6th Circ. Says Food Transporter Illegally Shuttered Warehouse
A bulk food delivery contractor for grocery giant Kroger violated federal labor law when it closed its Louisville, Kentucky, terminal after a union representation election and fired employees, the Sixth Circuit has ruled, upholding a National Labor Relations Board decision.
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September 12, 2024
DOL Has Authority To Issue Salary Regs, 5th Circ. Affirms
The U.S. Department of Labor has the authority to issue salary rules as part of its role in defining the overtime exemptions of the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Fifth Circuit affirmed, in a case that raised questions about the DOL's power to regulate a fundamental aspect of wage and hour law.
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September 12, 2024
9th Circ. Sends Salary Basis Case Back To Lower Court
San Francisco city nurses claiming they were not paid a true salary and are therefore entitled to overtime pay will have their day in court after the Ninth Circuit reversed a lower court's summary judgment and remanded the case for further proceedings.
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September 12, 2024
Biden Sets Record On Appointing Native American Judges
As part of his commitment to diversify the federal judiciary, President Joe Biden has appointed Native American judges in record strides. But stakeholders say there's more to be done for this vastly underrepresented population, and several judicial vacancies in states with large Native populations offer opportunity for continued progress.
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September 12, 2024
AGs Ask 2nd Circ. To Revive Their SALT Cap Workaround Suit
Attorneys general from New York, New Jersey and Connecticut asked the Second Circuit to revive their challenge to an IRS rule prohibiting workarounds to the federal cap on state and local tax deductions, saying the rule was arbitrary and contrary to congressional intent.
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September 12, 2024
Senate Preps Vote On 6th Circ. Nom Opposed By Tenn. GOP
The U.S. Senate is set to vote Monday on the nomination of Kevin Ritz to join the Sixth Circuit bench despite strong objection from the senior senator from Tennessee, one of the circuit's four states.
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September 12, 2024
Kids Ask Supreme Court To Revive Long-Running Climate Suit
A group of children accusing the federal government of creating policies that worsen climate change asked the U.S. Supreme Court to revive their case, arguing in a petition filed Thursday that the Ninth Circuit overstepped when it ordered the trial court to dismiss the case this spring.
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September 12, 2024
Convicted Fraudster Seeks To Challenge $21M Restitution
A Florida man convicted of defrauding hospitals in a payroll fraud scheme urged the Eleventh Circuit Thursday to allow him to challenge a $21 million restitution award while still in prison, saying he wasn't allowed to challenge inaccurate information during sentencing.
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September 12, 2024
Paxton Deputy Says Ethics Claim Is Dangerous To Other Attys
The Texas attorney general's office told the Texas Supreme Court Thursday that the State Bar of Texas had "transgressed the Constitution" by filing an ethics charge against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's first assistant, warning that allowing him to face action would put every attorney who files civil suits in danger.
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September 12, 2024
Pillsbury Hires King & Spalding Atty To Lead Appellate Team
Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP on Wednesday named a new leader for its U.S. appellate practice, tapping a veteran litigator and former prosecutor who joined the firm's Silicon Valley office from King & Spalding LLP.
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September 12, 2024
Medline Can't Force Arbitration In Transportation Wage Suit
Medical supply giant Medline can't compel a warehouse employee to arbitrate her wage-and-hour claims, the Ninth Circuit ruled, upholding a lower court's decision that she's exempted under the interstate-commerce exemption of the Federal Arbitration Act because she loads goods that cross state lines.
Expert Analysis
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Justices' Bump Stock Ruling Skirted Deference, Lenity Issues
Despite presenting a seemingly classic case on agency deference, the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling last week in Garland v. Cargill did not mention the Chevron doctrine, and the opinion also overlooked whether agency interpretations of federal gun laws should ever receive deference given that they carry criminal penalties, say Tess Saperstein and John Elwood at Arnold & Porter.
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Emerging Trends In ESG-Focused Securities Litigation
Based on a combination of shareholder pressure, increasing regulatory scrutiny and proposed rulemaking, there has been a proliferation of litigation over public company disclosures and actions regarding environmental, social, and governance factors — and the overall volume of such class actions will likely increase in the coming years, say attorneys at Mintz.
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Firms Must Rethink How They Train New Lawyers In AI Age
As law firms begin to use generative artificial intelligence to complete lower-level legal tasks, they’ll need to consider new ways to train summer associates and early-career attorneys, keeping in mind the five stages of skill acquisition, says Liisa Thomas at Sheppard Mullin.
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High Court's BofA Ruling Leaves State Preemption Questions
A recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in Cantero v. Bank of America sheds light on whether certain state banking regulations apply to federally chartered banks, but a circuit split could still force the Supreme Court to take a more direct position, says Brett Garver at Moritt Hock.
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Next Steps After 5th Circ. Nixes Private Fund Adviser Rules
The Fifth Circuit's recent toss of key U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rules regarding private fund advisers represents a setback for the regulator, but open questions, including the possibility of an SEC petition to the U.S. Supreme Court, mean it's still too early to consider the matter closed, say attorneys at Debevoise.
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Foreign Discovery Insights 2 Years After ZF Automotive
Although an Arizona federal court decision last month demonstrates that Section 1782 discovery may still be available to foreign arbitral parties, the scope of such discovery has narrowed greatly since the U.S. Supreme Court's 2022 decision in ZF Automotive, and there are a few potential trends for practitioners to follow, say attorneys at Venable.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Always Be Closing
When a lawyer presents their case with the right propulsive structure throughout trial, there is little need for further argument after the close of evidence — and in fact, rehashing it all may test jurors’ patience — so attorneys should consider other strategies for closing arguments, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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Deciphering SEC Disgorgement 4 Years After Liu
Since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2020 decision in Liu v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to preserve SEC disgorgement with limits, courts have continued to rule largely in the agency’s favor, but a recent circuit split over the National Defense Authorization Act's import may create hurdles for the SEC, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.
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Where Anti-Discrimination Law Stands 4 Years After Bostock
On the fourth anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark Bostock ruling, Evan Parness and Abby Rickeman at Covington take stock of how the decision, which held that Title VII protects employees from discrimination because of their sexual orientation and gender identity, has affected anti-discrimination law at the state and federal levels.
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8th Circ. Insurance Ruling Spotlights Related-Claims Defenses
The Eighth Circuit’s recent Dexon v. Travelers ruling — that the insurer must provide a defense despite the policy’s related-acts provision — provides guidance for how policyholders can overcome related-acts defenses, say Geoffrey Fehling and Jae Lynn Huckaba at Hunton.
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Series
Playing Chess Makes Me A Better Lawyer
There are many ways that chess skills translate directly into lawyer skills, but for me, the bigger career lessons go beyond the direct parallels — playing chess has shown me the value of seeing gradual improvement in and focusing deep concentration on a nonwork endeavor, says attorney Steven Fink.
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9th Circ. Clarifies ERISA Preemption For Healthcare Industry
The Ninth Circuit's recent ruling in Bristol SL Holdings v. Cigna notably clarifies the broad scope of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act's preemption of certain state law causes of action, standing to benefit payors and health plan administrators, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.
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Patent Lessons From 7 Federal Circuit Reversals In May
A look at recent cases where the Federal Circuit reversed or vacated decisions by the Patent Trial and Appeal Board or a federal district court provide guidance on how to succeed on appeal by clarifying the obviousness analysis of design patents, the finality of a judgment, and more, say Denise De Mory and Li Guo at Bunsow De Mory.
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Litigation Inspiration: Attys Can Be Heroic Like Olympians
Although litigation won’t earn anyone an Olympic medal in Paris this summer, it can be worthy of the same lasting honor if attorneys exercise focused restraint — seeking both their clients’ interests and those of the court — instead of merely pursuing every advantage short of sanctionable conduct, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.
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What To Know As CFPB Late Fee Rule Hangs In Limbo
Though the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's final credit card late fee rule faces an uncertain future due to litigation involving injunctions, emergency petitions and now a venue dispute, card issuers must understand how to navigate the interim period and what to do if the rule takes effect, say attorneys at Steptoe.