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High Court Enviro Shadow Docket Could Diminish DC Circ.
The U.S. Supreme Court's "shadow docket" is full of pleas from environmental rule opponents who want the justices to overturn D.C. Circuit rulings that allowed the regulations to go into effect, and recent history shows the challengers have some chance for success — but experts say the high court's willingness to step in at this stage risks diminishing lower courts' voices.
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September 26, 2024
Insurer Tells NC Justices Not To Revive COVID Coverage Row
An insurer urged North Carolina's top court not to revive a clothing company's COVID-19 coverage suit, saying there has been an "overwhelming" consensus among courts in the U.S. that commercial property insurance policies do not cover business losses caused by the pandemic.
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September 26, 2024
4th Circ. Judge Thrashes Vets' Argument In Citibank Fee Suit
A Fourth Circuit judge on Thursday ripped military members' argument that they must be allowed under a military-members-lending law to proceed in federal court with a proposed class action alleging Citibank charged illegal fees, with the judge stressing that the statute is silent on forbidding arbitration.
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September 26, 2024
Fla. Court Affirms Loss For Boies' Film Co. In $20M Spat
A Florida appeals court on Thursday affirmed a private judge's decision siding with an investment firm accused by Boies Schiller & Flexner LLP Chairman David Boies' film development company of making misrepresentations to secure a $20 million investment in a movie starring Natalie Portman that later flopped at the box office.
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September 26, 2024
5th Circ. Says Pair Can't Challenge Wi-Fi Program's New Rules
The Fifth Circuit won't take up a challenge to the Federal Communications Commission's new rules allowing for subsidized Wi-Fi off campus through the E-Rate program for schools and libraries, granting the FCC's motion to dismiss the case for lack of jurisdiction while an in-house challenge from the petitioners proceeds.
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September 26, 2024
Ala. College Urges 11th Circ. To Grant Immunity In FMLA Suit
The University of Alabama Board of Trustees urged the Eleventh Circuit on Thursday to reverse a lower court order allowing a former research associate's Family and Medical Leave Act complaint to proceed, arguing that it's entitled to sovereign immunity under the military caregiver provision of the law.
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September 26, 2024
Colo. Justices Pause Discovery In Hospital Lien Suit
The Colorado Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed discovery in a class action against hospital company Centura Health, as it decides whether to take up the plaintiff's challenge to a Denver judge's second attempt at deciding what documents the plaintiff must produce.
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September 26, 2024
6th Circ. Upholds Philips' Win In Glass Plant Pollution Suit
The Sixth Circuit on Wednesday stood by a Kentucky federal jury's verdict clearing Philips Electronics of proposed class claims brought by Bluegrass State property owners over pollution, agreeing with the jurors and the lower court that the claims over the company's former glass plant were filed too late.
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September 26, 2024
En Banc 9th Circ. Doubts Dismissal Of Shopify Privacy Suit
Ninth Circuit judges sitting en banc Thursday appeared dubious of an earlier panel's conclusion that a California federal court lacked personal jurisdiction over Golden State consumers' privacy claims against Shopify Inc., questioning how internet companies could ever face tort claims if this were the law.
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September 26, 2024
Pa. Justices Reject New Tax Hearing For Charter School
The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court erred in sending a charter school's retroactive property tax appeal back to a county board, because the charter school had failed to exhaust statutory remedies, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday.
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September 26, 2024
Bakery Wants Out Of $16M Payment To Pension Fund
An Indiana wholesale bakery company asked the Eleventh Circuit on Thursday to reverse an order for the bakery to pay a union pension fund $15.6 million, arguing that the pension fund's interpretation of the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act conflicts with the plain text of the statute.
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September 26, 2024
Pa. Justices Say COVID Closures Aren't Covered Losses
Pennsylvania's Supreme Court shut the door Thursday on COVID-19 pandemic loss insurance coverage for businesses closed by government mandate, ruling that requisite physical loss or damage required tangible alteration to property, reversing a lower court decision that stated loss of use was sufficient.
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September 26, 2024
11th Circ. Signals Fired Coach's Claim Can't Ride On Her Team
An 11th Circuit panel signaled Thursday that the disparate funding of men's and women's collegiate athletic programs was likely not enough to sustain a fired Georgia Tech basketball coach's Title VII claim of sex-based discrimination against the program.
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September 26, 2024
9th Circ. Says Defense Owed In Salesforce Trafficking Row
Travelers must defend Salesforce against consolidated underlying sex trafficking claims being litigated in Texas state court, the Ninth Circuit ruled, rejecting the insurer's position that because Salesforce's alleged violation of Texas sex trafficking statutes necessarily involved expected or intentional conduct, it had no defense obligation.
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September 26, 2024
11th Circ. Wary Of Ineffective-Counsel Claim In Salmonella Case
Peanut Corp. of America's former president and a food broker convicted for their roles in a salmonella outbreak that killed nine people and sickened more than 700 in 2008 and 2009 urged the Eleventh Circuit on Thursday to overturn a district court order refusing to vacate their prison sentences.
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September 26, 2024
Nvidia Seeks 'Unworkable' Pleading Standard, Justices Told
Nvidia Corp. shareholders asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to reject the company's "unworkable" reading of the pleading standards under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act, arguing that they've presented plenty of evidence to move forward with claims that the company hid its $1 billion exposure to the volatile cryptocurrency market.
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September 26, 2024
4th Circ. Hints Rocket Mortgage Class Cert. On Shaky Ground
The Fourth Circuit on Thursday seemed skeptical that all potential class members who accused Rocket Mortgage of inflating their home values could prove they were injured under the U.S. Supreme Court's heightened pleading standard in TransUnion, putting the lower court's certification order on rocky footing.
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September 26, 2024
Pa. Justices Say State Lawmakers Can't Impeach Philly DA
The clock ran out for the Pennsylvania Senate's planned trial on the impeachment of Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, the state's highest court ruled in an opinion published Thursday.
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September 26, 2024
Rutgers GC Moves Closer To NJ High Court Bench
The New Jersey state Senate Judiciary Committee moved forward Rutgers general counsel John Hoffman's nomination to the state supreme court at a Thursday hearing marked by bipartisan support and virtually unanimous praise for his character.
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September 26, 2024
Fla. Bar Says Atty's 'False Narrative' Warrants Suspension
The Florida Bar has fired back at a Georgia-based attorney's bid to avoid a suspension for disparaging an opponent running for 20th Judicial Circuit state attorney in 2018, urging the state Supreme Court to reject his First Amendment defense in the disciplinary matter.
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September 26, 2024
NY Appeals Court Casts Doubt On $489M Trump Judgment
Judges on a New York state appeals court expressed skepticism Thursday of a $489 million civil fraud judgment against Donald Trump, his sons, companies and their executives, raising the prospect that the fine awarded to the attorney general could be reduced or vacated.
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September 26, 2024
GOP Senator Blocks Fast-Tracking Of DC Judges
A Republican senator has blocked the fast-tracking confirmation of two nominees to become Washington, D.C., judges, even though former President Donald Trump previously nominated them.
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September 25, 2024
8th Circ. Told Student Debt Relief Should Remain Blocked
Seven Republican-led states are asking the Eighth Circuit to finalize its court order blocking the Biden administration from implementing its second attempt at student loan forgiveness, accusing the White House of "hiding the ball" on the true cost of the plan.
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September 25, 2024
11th Circ. Reverses DOJ Defeat In $400M Kickback Case
The Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday held that a lower court should've admitted prosecutors' evidence of alleged co-conspirators in a $400 million health insurance fraud case, finding that an exclusion to the hearsay rule was misapplied by the district court in the closely watched Anti-Kickback Statute litigation.
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September 25, 2024
Wash. Judge Says Co., Firm Seem To Share Sanctions Blame
A Washington appeals court judge said Wednesday that a climbing equipment manufacturer and its former trial counsel, Sinars Slowikowski Tomaska LLC, appear to share blame for discovery violations in a product liability lawsuit and that a trial court appeared to have the authority to issue sanctions.
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September 25, 2024
8th Circ. Probes Lawmakers' Intent In FCC Anti-Redlining Rule
Eighth Circuit judges on Wednesday dissected exactly how far Congress wanted the Federal Communications Commission to go when carrying out a tightly drafted provision to prevent digital discrimination in the thousand-page infrastructure law three years ago.
Editor's Picks
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How Reshaped Circuit Courts Are Faring At The High Court
Seminal rulings from the U.S. Supreme Court's latest term will reshape many facets of American society in the coming years. Already, however, the rulings offer glimpses of how the justices view specific circuit courts, which have themselves been reshaped by an abundance of new judges.
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High Court Flexes Muscle To Limit Administrative State
The U.S. Supreme Court's dismantling of a 40-year-old judicial deference doctrine, coupled with rulings stripping federal agencies of certain enforcement powers and exposing them to additional litigation, has established the October 2023 term as likely the most consequential in administrative law history.
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Law360's Guide To Biden's Judicial Picks
UPDATED September 25, 2024 | President Joe Biden is shaping the federal judiciary by adding to the courts' professional and demographic diversity — a sharp break from former President Donald Trump, who made the judiciary more homogeneous as the judges confirmed under him were 84% white and 76% male.
Expert Analysis
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Opinion
Law Firm Reactions To Campus Protests May Chill DEI Efforts
Law firm decisions to rescind or withhold job offers based on candidates' pro-Palestine activism could negatively affect diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the legal profession, compounding existing hiring and retention challenges, say Noor Shater at Penn Carey Law School, and Peter Farah and Jalal Shehadeh at the Palestinian American Bar Association.
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IP Concerns For Manufacturing Semiconductors In Low Orbit
With space habitation companies working to launch private space stations in the near future, semiconductor manufacturers aiming to execute research and development in low or microgravity must consider the unique claim drafting and patent protection issues that will emerge, says Greg Miraglia at Quinn Emanuel.
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How NLRB Memo Balances Schools' Labor, Privacy Concerns
Natale DiNatale at Robinson & Cole highlights the recent National Labor Relations Board advice memorandum that aims to help colleges reconcile competing obligations under the National Labor Relations Act and the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act as university students flock toward unionization.
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3 Coverage Tips As 2nd Circ. 'Swipes Left' On Tinder Claim
The Second Circuit's recent opinion in Match Group v. Beazley Underwriting, overturning Tinder's victory on its insurer's motion to dismiss a coverage action, reinforces three best practices policyholders purchasing claims-made coverage should adhere to in order to avoid late-notice defenses, say Lynda Bennett and Alexander Corson at Lowenstein Sandler.
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How Loper Bright Is Affecting Pending FCC Litigation
Pending challenges against Federal Communications Commission orders at the Sixth and Eleventh Circuits following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Loper Bright highlight that counsel must be familiar with the statutes, regulations and precedent relevant to the FCC to best navigate the rapidly changing compliance landscape, say attorneys at Davis Wright.
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Series
Round-Canopy Parachuting Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Similar to the practice of law, jumping from an in-flight airplane with nothing but training and a few yards of parachute silk is a demanding and stressful endeavor, and the experience has bolstered my legal practice by enhancing my focus, teamwork skills and sense of perspective, says Thomas Salerno at Stinson.
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7 Takeaways For Companies After Justices' Bribery Ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court’s Snyder v. U.S. decision this summer, holding that a federal law does not criminalize after-the-fact gratuities made to public officials, raises some key considerations for companies that engage with state, local and tribal governments, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.
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Why Now Is The Time For Law Firms To Hire Lateral Partners
Partner and associate mobility data from the second quarter of this year suggest that there's never been a better time in recent years for law firms to hire lateral candidates, particularly experienced partners — though this necessitates an understanding of potential red flags, say Julie Henson and Greg Hamman at Decipher Investigative Intelligence.
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Series
After Chevron: Courts Will Still Defer To Feds On Nat'l Security
Agencies with trade responsibilities may be less affected by Chevron’s demise because of the special deference courts have shown when hearing international trade cases involving national security, foreign policy or the president’s constitutional authority to direct such matters, say attorneys at Venable.
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What 7th Circ. Collective Actions Ruling Means For Employers
With the Seventh Circuit’s recent Fair Labor Standards Act ruling in Vanegas v. Signet Builders, a majority of federal appellate courts that have addressed the jurisdictional scope of employee collective actions now follow the U.S. Supreme Court's limiting precedent, bolstering an employer defense in circuits that have yet to weigh in, say attorneys at Jackson Lewis.
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Considering Possible PR Risks Of Certain Legal Tactics
Disney and American Airlines recently abandoned certain litigation tactics in two lawsuits after fierce public backlash, illustrating why corporate counsel should consider the reputational implications of any legal strategy and partner with their communications teams to preempt public relations concerns, says Chris Gidez at G7 Reputation Advisory.
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DC Circ. Seizure Ruling Deepens 4th Amendment Circuit Split
The D.C. Circuit’s recent Asinor v. District of Columbia decision, holding that the government’s continued possession of seized property must be reasonable, furthers a split among circuit courts and portends how the text, history and tradition method might influence Fourth Amendment cases, say Ty Howard and Wayne Beckermann at Bradley Arant.
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Defamation Law Changes May Be Brewing At Supreme Court
The U.S. Supreme Court's significant rightward shift has produced dramatic changes in many areas of the law, and the long-standing "actual malice" standard protecting speech about public figures could be the next precedent to fall, say attorneys at Paul Hastings.
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It's No Longer Enough For Firms To Be Trusted Advisers
Amid fierce competition for business, the transactional “trusted adviser” paradigm from which most firms operate is no longer sufficient — they should instead aim to become trusted partners with their most valuable clients, says Stuart Maister at Strategic Narrative.
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Breaking Down Director Review Timing At The PTAB
Attorneys at Fish & Richardson examine the complexities of director review of a Patent Trial and Appeal Board ruling, including timelines for requests and decisions, and how these factors influence related district court cases.