Appellate

  • August 20, 2024

    6th Circ. Refuses To Force Arbitration In ERISA Suit

    The Sixth Circuit refused Tuesday to let two auto part companies compel individual arbitration in a lawsuit alleging they allowed their employee retirement plan to be loaded with shoddy investment options, ruling that enforcing the pact would prevent workers from seeking planwide remedies allowed by benefits law.

  • August 20, 2024

    NC Panel Nixes Black Property Owners' Revived Bias Fight

    A North Carolina state appeals court handed the city of Kinston a win Tuesday for a second time in a discrimination lawsuit that the state Supreme Court recently revived, finding that Black property owners' claims that the city unfairly demolished their properties aren't viable because they never completed an "adequate" administrative appeals process.

  • August 20, 2024

    Duke Energy Wants 4th Circ. Rethink On Antitrust 'Haven'

    Duke Energy sought a full Fourth Circuit rehearing Monday against a panel decision reviving NTE Energy Services' antitrust lawsuit, arguing the panel upended decades of U.S. Supreme Court precedent and risked making the circuit a space for plaintiffs to "escape" those rules.

  • August 20, 2024

    SF Police Can't Sue Navy Over Toxic Shipyard, 9th Circ. Says

    A group of San Francisco police officers cannot pursue their suit alleging the U.S. Navy misled the city into leasing a former naval shipyard that was not properly decontaminated following its use during the Cold War, which led to the officers suffering health problems, the Ninth Circuit ruled Tuesday.

  • August 20, 2024

    Cox, Music Publishers Ask Justices To Review Copyright Row

    Cox Communications and music publishers led by Sony Music Entertainment have petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review a Fourth Circuit ruling — with music companies asking for clarity on the scope of liability for internet service providers for online piracy and Cox asking whether it can be responsible for copyright infringement for merely providing an internet connection.

  • August 20, 2024

    Wash. Judges Won't Upend Tobacco Payout Ruling

    A Washington appellate court on Monday rejected attempts by Philip Morris and other tobacco companies to pay the state less under a 1998 master settlement agreement, upholding an arbitrator's determination that the state was enforcing a law covering payment.

  • August 20, 2024

    Ga. Justices Weigh 'Malice' In Atty's Defamation Case

    An orthopedic surgeon urged the Georgia Supreme Court on Tuesday to revive his case against a defense attorney who allegedly tarnished the surgeon's reputation during settlement talks with his attorneys for his former patients, arguing his appellate defeat last year flew in the face of 160 years of Georgia defamation law.

  • August 20, 2024

    Utah Tells Justices Feds Must Relinquish Land In State

    The federal government is unconstitutionally hoarding and profiting from public lands in Utah, and the state is missing out on economic and development opportunities that are rightfully its own, it told the U.S. Supreme Court in a proposed lawsuit filed Tuesday.

  • August 20, 2024

    7th Circ. Reverses Sysco Win Over Teamsters Grievance

    The Seventh Circuit ordered arbitration Tuesday of a grievance over early retirement benefits that Sysco Indianapolis LLC wanted to be heard in federal court, reversing a trial judge who concluded the dispute was governed by terms outside the bargaining agreement.

  • August 20, 2024

    EPA Urges DC Circ. To Uphold Particulate Matter Rule

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is defending its decision to ratchet down a fine particulate matter air pollution standard, telling the D.C. Circuit that states and industry groups challenging it aren't seriously questioning the scientific support for the change and misread the Clean Air Act to argue that the agency overstepped.

  • August 20, 2024

    9th Circ. Trans Health Appeal Hints At Supreme Court Fight

    The Ninth Circuit will hear arguments Wednesday in an appeal from the state of Idaho seeking to preserve its ban on gender dysphoria treatment for minors, in a case that involves questions about trans health access that the U.S. Supreme Court is set to consider this fall, attorneys say.

  • August 20, 2024

    Fed Circ. Finds No Fault In Denial Of Flu Vaccine Claim

    The Federal Circuit on Tuesday affirmed the denial of a family's petition for compensation alleging their child developed narcolepsy as a result of the FluMist vaccine, saying the special master's determination that the family hasn't properly established the link was not arbitrary.

  • August 20, 2024

    Ga. Power Says Factory Redo Can't Free Nestle From Service

    Georgia's largest electricity provider tried to convince the state's high court Tuesday that a pet food manufacturer can't use its factory renovations to skirt a nearly 50-year-old state law requiring large electricity consumers to be wedded to a single provider in perpetuity.

  • August 20, 2024

    Split 6th Circ. Revives FCRA Claims Against Experian

    A partially divided Sixth Circuit has reversed a lower court's decision to toss a consumer's Fair Credit Reporting Act claims against Experian concerning alleged delinquent spousal support payments, ruling in part on Monday that Experian failed to properly investigate court orders acknowledging the man's compliance with the payments.

  • August 20, 2024

    Pa. Justices Say No Public Benefit To Railroad Land Grab

    The general public needed to be the primary beneficiary for a railroad to use eminent domain to take over part of a property and reactivate a siding, and that standard was harder to meet now compared with when a century-old precedent was set, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania ruled Tuesday.

  • August 20, 2024

    Pa. Panel Says Estate Is Entitled To Stacked UIM Coverage

    The estate of a Pennsylvania man who died assisting a motorist is entitled to stacked underinsured motorist benefits under a commercial policy issued to a trucking business the man controlled, a state appeals court ruled, noting the trucking company already paid higher premiums for such coverage.

  • August 20, 2024

    Power Plant Rule Stay Is Unwarranted, EPA Tells Justices

    U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth B. Prelogar called on the U.S. Supreme Court to reject industry groups' and Republican-led states' attempts to block the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's rule curbing greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, saying the agency did not exceed its statutory authority.

  • August 20, 2024

    Ohio Dance Teachers Can't Escape Suit Over Sex Assault

    Two Cleveland dance instructors cannot escape claims that they knowingly allowed a now-notorious sexual predator, who was also a teacher, to rape a student, an Ohio state appeals court has ruled, saying both were likely aware of the man's already sordid past.

  • August 20, 2024

    Feds Fight Ex-Pa. Town Official's Appeal Of CWA Conviction

    The federal government on Tuesday urged the Third Circuit to reject a former Pennsylvania township official's bid to undo his conviction for environmental and financial crimes committed during his time as director of the municipality's sewage authority.

  • August 20, 2024

    Fed. Circ. Flips Samsung's Win In 'Slide To Unlock' Patent Suit

    The Federal Circuit on Tuesday revived part of a small smartphone company's patent suit against Samsung over its "swipe to unlock" feature, saying that one of Neonode Smartphone's core patent claims was more definite in its scope than the lower court gave it credit for.

  • August 20, 2024

    DOD Tells DC Circ. It Can Set Criteria For Soldier Citizenship

    The U.S. Department of Defense is urging the D.C. Circuit to reverse a district court injunction permanently blocking the agency from setting service duration requirements for noncitizen soldiers to become citizens, saying Congress authorized it to do so.

  • August 20, 2024

    Fla. Attys' Licenses Suspended In Connection To Assault Case

    The Florida Supreme Court has suspended the licenses of a Tallahassee attorney couple after they pled no contest to charges related to a criminal case in which their former babysitter accused them of sexual assault during an incident at the couple's home.

  • August 20, 2024

    Ex-Client Opposes Amicus In McCarter & English Fee Fight

    A dietary supplement maker has asked Connecticut's highest court to reject a bid by the Connecticut Trial Lawyers Association to file a friend-of-court brief in a case questioning whether McCarter & English LLP can obtain punitive damages in a fee dispute, saying no additional input is necessary because no tort occurred.

  • August 20, 2024

    Ex-State's Atty Says Md. Trial Convictions Should Be Axed

    Former Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby is vying to upend her convictions for perjury and mortgage fraud, telling the Fourth Circuit the federal prosecution was riddled with errors from the outset.

  • August 20, 2024

    Mich. Judge Says She's Falsely Accused In Watchdog's Probe

    A Michigan state judge said she now knows the "injustice" of being falsely accused, urging a judicial watchdog to reject charges that she lied to investigators who were probing another judge's misconduct.

Expert Analysis

  • How Calif. Ruling Alters Worker Arb. Agreement Enforcement

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    The California Supreme Court’s recent ruling in Ramirez v. Charter Communications should caution employers that while workers’ arbitration agreements will no longer be deemed unenforceable based on their number of unconscionable provisions, they must still be fair and balanced, says Sander van der Heide at CDF Labor.

  • Opinion

    After Jarkesy, IRS Must Course-Correct On Captive Insurance

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy decision has profound implications for other agencies, including the IRS, which must stop ignoring due process and curtailing congressional intent in its policing of captive insurance arrangements, says Peter Dawson at the 831(b) Institute.

  • The Rise Of State And Local Environmental Leadership

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    While Congress is deadlocked, and a U.S. Supreme Court with a hostility toward the administrative state aggressively dismantles federal environmental oversight, state and local governments are stepping up with policies to shape a more sustainable future for all species, says Jonathan Rosenbloom at Albany Law School.

  • Questions Linger About DTSA's Scope After Motorola Ruling

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    The Seventh Circuit’s recent ruling in Motorola v. Hytera, which held that the Defend Trade Secrets Act applies extraterritorially, does not address whether an act that furthers misappropriation must be committed by the defendant in order to satisfy the law's extraterritoriality requirement, say Ilissa Samplin and Grace Hart at Gibson Dunn.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Slowing Down AI In Medical Research

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision overturning the Chevron doctrine may inhibit agencies' regulatory efforts, potentially slowing down the approval and implementation of artificial intelligence-driven methodologies in medical research, as well as regulators' responses to public health emergencies, say Ragini Acharya and Matthew Deutsch at Husch Blackwell.

  • What High Court TM Rulings Tell Us About Free Speech

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    Recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings show tension between free speech and trademark law, highlighting that while political mockery is protected, established brands may be forced to adapt to evolving cultural values, says William Scott Goldman at Goldman Law Group.

  • Series

    Being A Luthier Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    When I’m not working as an appellate lawyer, I spend my spare time building guitars — a craft known as luthiery — which has helped to enhance the discipline, patience and resilience needed to write better briefs, says Rob Carty at Nichols Brar.

  • Series

    After Chevron: Uncertainty In Scope Of ITC Oversight

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    The U.S. International Trade Commission's long-standing jurisprudence on some of the most disputed and controversial issues is likely to be reshaped by the Federal Circuit, which is no longer bound by Chevron deference in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Loper Bright decision, say Kecia Reynolds and Madeleine Moss at Paul Hastings.

  • Half-Truths Vs. Omissions: Slicing Justices' Macquarie Cake

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Macquarie v. Moab provides a road map for determining whether corporate reports that omit information should be considered misleading — and the court baked it into a dessert analogy that is key to understanding the guidelines, say Daniel Levy and Pavithra Kumar at Advanced Analytical Consulting Group.

  • Lead Like 'Ted Lasso' By Embracing Cognitive Diversity

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    The Apple TV+ series “Ted Lasso” aptly illustrates how embracing cognitive diversity can be a winning strategy for teams, providing a useful lesson for law firms, which can benefit significantly from fresh, diverse perspectives and collaborative problem-solving, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.

  • 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.

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