Appellate

  • October 21, 2024

    High Court Takes Case On Sentencing For Release Infractions

    The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to address a circuit split over what factors judges can consider when sentencing a person for violating conditions of supervised release, an issue estimated to affect thousands of defendants each year.

  • October 21, 2024

    High Court Won't Revisit New-Deal Removal Ruling Yet

    The U.S. Supreme Court declined Monday to review a case challenging presidential removal protections for commissioners of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, passing up the opportunity to revisit a New Deal-era precedent at the center of the modern regulatory system.

  • October 21, 2024

    High Court Will Review Clean Air Act Jurisdiction Cases

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to review Tenth Circuit and Fifth Circuit rulings that reached different conclusions about whether legal challenges to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency air pollution rules belong in the D.C. Circuit.

  • October 21, 2024

    Justices Turn Away Ex-Raytheon Workers' Vaccine Bias Suit

    The U.S. Supreme Court declined Monday to review the dismissal of a lawsuit alleging Raytheon Technologies Corp. harassed and forced out employees who received religious exemptions from its COVID-19 vaccine policy, despite workers' assertion that the Ninth Circuit applied erroneously narrow standards.

  • October 21, 2024

    Justices Nix GOP States' Intervention In Asylum Rule Talks

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday denied a group of Republican states' attempt to intervene in settlement talks between immigrant rights groups and the Biden administration over a rule limiting asylum at the southern border.

  • October 18, 2024

    Law360 MVP Awards Go To Top Attys From 74 Firms

    The attorneys chosen as Law360's 2024 MVPs have distinguished themselves from their peers by securing hard-earned successes in high-stakes litigation, complex global matters and record-breaking deals.

  • October 18, 2024

    Justices Urged To Undo Ruling Against Horse Racing Law

    The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority has pressed the U.S. Supreme Court to vacate a Fifth Circuit ruling against a federal law delegating horse safety regulation to the horse-racing authority, arguing that the law's framework is regularly upheld by other courts, according to a petition.

  • October 18, 2024

    Oklahoma Brings Title X Funding Cut Fight To Justices

    Oklahoma is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review the Tenth Circuit's decision allowing the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to cut Title X funding over the state's refusal to refer family planning patients for abortion care following the high court's Dobbs decision last year.

  • October 18, 2024

    Colo. County, Enviros Back DC Ruling In High Court Rail Fight

    Conservation groups and a Colorado county are urging the U.S. Supreme Court to affirm a D.C. Circuit ruling that overturned federal approval of a rail project proposed to haul crude oil out of Utah's Uinta Basin, as justices set arguments for a challenge to that ruling for Dec. 10.

  • October 18, 2024

    How Texas Legislators Blocked 1st 'Shaken Baby' Execution

    A bipartisan group of Lone Star State legislators stopped what would have been the nation's first execution for a conviction based on a "shaken baby syndrome" diagnosis by raising a novel separation-of-powers question about whether legislative subpoenas or death warrants carry more authority.

  • October 18, 2024

    Jan. 6 Witness Said Trump Speech May Have Been 'Political'

    Donald Trump's speech at a rally before the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol may have been "political" rather than in his official capacity as president, witness testimony unsealed Friday in his D.C. election interference case said.

  • October 18, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Sinks BofA's Fight Over Image Recognition Patents

    Bank of America had no luck Friday in an appeal seeking to revive a handful of challenges targeting patents owned by companies run by billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong that are suing the bank in California federal court.

  • October 18, 2024

    Timeshare Co. Preyed On Fla. Servicemember, High Court Told

    A Florida U.S. Army soldier and his wife petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday to review their case against Bluegreen Vacations Unlimited Inc., disputing that his contract isn't legal under the Military Lending Act because the company used predatory tactics to sell him a timeshare.

  • October 18, 2024

    Ill. Justices Find Broad COVID Immunity For Health Facilities

    The Illinois Supreme Court on Friday read broad immunity into an emergency order that immunized healthcare facilities aiding the state's COVID-19 response, saying the order shields those facilities from ordinary negligence claims during that time, not just ones directly relating to their pandemic care.

  • October 18, 2024

    States, Public Health Groups Defend EPA Power Plant Rule

    A group of 21 states and the District of Columbia called on the D.C. Circuit on Friday to reject myriad challengers' attempts to unravel the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's plan to control greenhouse gas emissions from power plants.

  • October 18, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Says HUD Owes No More For Canceled Contracts

    The Federal Circuit on Friday refused to grant a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development contractor costs and damages for the cancelation of contracts to sell foreclosed properties, saying HUD owed no more than the contractual minimums already paid.

  • October 18, 2024

    Tech Cos. Ask 9th Circ. To Skip DMCA Probe In GitHub IP Suit

    Microsoft, GitHub and OpenAI have told the Ninth Circuit to rebuff an interlocutory appeal petition from a group of anonymous software developers who want clarity on whether the Digital Millennium Copyright Act requires an infringing copy to be identical to the original to claim a DMCA violation, saying the injury the group alleges is theoretical.

  • October 18, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Won't Question Reviving Vascepa Skinny Label Row

    The Federal Circuit has said the full appellate court will not rethink a panel's decision reinstating Vascepa maker Amarin Pharma Inc.'s skinny label patent case against rival U.K. drugmaker Hikma.

  • October 18, 2024

    5th Circ. Partially Upholds $2M Win In Hurricane Coverage Suit

    The Fifth Circuit has upheld in part a Louisiana church's more than $2 million judgment win against an insurer that was accused of not paying enough for the church's hurricane damage claims.

  • October 18, 2024

    5th Circ. Won't Revive Immigrant Investors' RICO Suit

    The Fifth Circuit refused to revive a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act lawsuit brought by foreign investors who claim they were offered fraudulent franchise opportunities in the United States as a way to obtain residency visas, finding that the plaintiffs didn't allege a cognizable enterprise.

  • October 18, 2024

    1st Circ. OKs Prosecution Of Alleged Illicit Medical Pot Grow

    The First Circuit has determined that the federal prosecution of two Mainers accused of running an unlawful marijuana cultivation operation can continue despite a federal policy that bans the U.S. Department of Justice from bringing cases against medical cannabis entities.

  • October 18, 2024

    Ohio High Court Restores Developer's FHA Penalty Suit

    The Ohio Supreme Court has revived a developer's attempt to recoup some of a Fair Housing Act penalty from franchisees who built inaccessible multifamily housing, finding Friday the lower courts jumped the gun when they found the developer's claims were preempted by the FHA.

  • October 18, 2024

    Crypto Coder Asks 2nd Circ. To Delay Expert Witness Reveal

    The founder of cryptocurrency service provider Tornado Cash urged the Second Circuit on Friday to pause a district court judge's order for him to disclose who he might call as an expert witness at an upcoming money laundering and sanctions trial.

  • October 18, 2024

    Feds Defend Bribery Charge Against NYC Mayor Adams

    Federal prosecutors pushed back Friday on New York City Mayor Eric Adams' attempt to erase a bribery charge from his indictment, arguing that while Adams claims his acts were "routine" and allowed under a recent U.S. Supreme Court precedent, a jury could still find his alleged favor trading illegal.

  • October 18, 2024

    AGs Slam 4th Circ. Bid To Restore NC Abortion Drug Limits

    In a joint amicus brief to the Fourth Circuit, a coalition of 17 states and the District of Columbia has said the abortion drug mifepristone is a part of women's reproductive healthcare, assailing the "needless" limits that states including North Carolina have sought to impose on the drug's access.

Expert Analysis

  • Chevron's End Puts Target On CFPB's Aggressive BNPL Rule

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    A recent interpretative rule by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, subjecting buy-now, pay-later loans to the same regulations as credit cards, is unlikely to survive post-Chevron challenges of the rule's partisan and shaky logic, say Scott Pearson and Bryan Schneider at Manatt.

  • Justices' Ch. 11 Ruling Is A Big Moment For Debtors' Insurers

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Truck Insurance v. Kaiser Gypsum ruling upends decades of Chapter 11 bankruptcy jurisprudence that relegated a debtor’s insurer to the sidelines, giving insurers a new footing to try and avoid significant liability, say Stuart Gordon and Benjamin Wisher at Rivkin Radler.

  • Justices' Starbucks Ruling May Limit NLRB Injunction Wins

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Starbucks v. McKinney, adopting a more stringent test for National Labor Relations Board Section 10(j) injunctions, may lessen the frequency with which employers must defend against injunctions alongside parallel unfair labor practice charges, say David Pryzbylski and Colleen Schade at Barnes & Thornburg.

  • Justices' Criminal Law Decisions: The Term In Review

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    Each of the 11 criminal decisions issued in the U.S. Supreme Court’s recently concluded term is independently important, but taken together, they reveal trends in the court’s broader approach to criminal law, presenting both pitfalls and opportunities for defendants and their counsel, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: July Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy considers cases touching on pre- and post-conviction detainment conditions, communications with class representatives, when the American Pipe tolling doctrine stops applying to modified classes, and more.

  • 7th Circ. Motorola Ruling Raises Stakes Of DTSA Litigation

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    The Seventh Circuit’s recent ruling in Motorola v. Hytera gives plaintiffs a powerful tool to recover damages, greatly increasing the incentive to bring Defend Trade Secrets Act claims against defendants with large global sales because those sales could generate large settlements, say attorneys at MoFo.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Bid Protest Litigation Will Hold Steady For Now

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    Though the substantive holding of Loper Bright is unlikely to affect bid protests because questions of statutory interpretation are rare, the spirit of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision may signal a general trend away from agency deference even on the complex technical issues that often arise, say Kayleigh Scalzo and Andrew Guy at Covington.

  • Challenging Prosecutors' Use Of Defendants' Jail Phone Calls

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    Although it’s an uphill battle under current case law, counsel for pretrial detainees may be able to challenge prosecutors’ use of jail-recorded phone calls between the defendant and their attorney by taking certain advance measures, say Jim McLoughlin and Fielding Huseth at Moore & Van Allen.

  • How NJ Worker Status Ruling Benefits Real Estate Industry

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    In Kennedy v. Weichert, the New Jersey Supreme Court recently said a real estate agent’s employment contract would supersede the usual ABC test analysis to determine his classification as an independent contractor, preserving operational flexibility for the industry — and potentially others, say Jason Finkelstein and Dalila Haden at Cole Schotz.

  • 3 Policyholder Tips After Calif. Ruling Denying D&O Coverage

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    A California decision from June, Practice Fusion v. Freedom Specialty Insurance, denying a company's claim seeking reimbursement under a directors and officers insurance policy for its settlement with the Justice Department, highlights the importance of coordinating coverage for all operational risks and the danger of broad exclusionary policy language, says Geoffrey Fehling at Hunton.

  • Opinion

    Now More Than Ever, Lawyers Must Exhibit Professionalism

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    As society becomes increasingly fractured and workplace incivility is on the rise, attorneys must champion professionalism and lead by example, demonstrating how lawyers can respectfully disagree without being disagreeable, says Edward Casmere at Norton Rose.

  • Opinion

    High Court Made Profound Mistake In Tossing Purdue Deal

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision to throw out Purdue Pharma's Chapter 11 plan jeopardizes a multistate agreement that would provide approximately $7 billion in much-needed relief to help fight the opioid epidemic, with states now likely doomed to spend years chasing individual defendants across the globe, says Swain Wood at Morningstar.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Piercing FEMA Authority Is Not Insurmountable

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    While the Federal Emergency Management Agency's discretionary authority continues to provide significant protection from claims under the Administrative Procedure Act, Loper Bright is a blow to the argument that Congress gave FEMA unfettered discretion to administer its own programs, says Wendy Huff Ellard at Baker Donelson.

  • What Happens After Hawaii Kids' Historic Climate Deal

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    Implications of the Hawaii Department of Transportation's first-of-its-kind settlement with youth plaintiffs over constitutional climate claims may be limited, but it could incite similar claims, says J. Michael Showalter and Robert Middleton at ArentFox Schiff.

  • Series

    Serving In The National Guard Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My ongoing military experience as a judge advocate general in the National Guard has shaped me as a person and a lawyer, teaching me the importance of embracing confidence, balance and teamwork in both my Army and civilian roles, says Danielle Aymond at Baker Donelson.

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