Appellate

  • March 07, 2025

    Texas High Court Passes On 1 Of 3 'Love Is Blind' Fights

    The Texas Supreme Court on Friday declined to take up a dispute between the producers behind the Netflix reality series "Love Is Blind" and a former contestant, passing on one of three appeals that stem from the show's fifth season.

  • March 07, 2025

    9th Circ. Probes Ax Of Trader Joe's IP Suit Against Union

    Ninth Circuit judges on Friday questioned a federal judge's decision to toss Trader Joe's trademark suit against a union selling merchandise with the grocers' name, with one saying it was "a little bit unusual" to have a determination about the likelihood of confusion decided at the motion to dismiss stage.

  • March 07, 2025

    Utah Court Affirms Walmart's Collective $52M Property Value

    A trio of Utah-based Walmart retail properties were correctly assessed at a collective $52 million for property tax, a Utah appeals court said, finding that a lower court didn't make any errors when valuing the three properties.

  • March 07, 2025

    Prison Phone Co. Floats New FCC Rate Cap Plan

    Prison phone company NCIC Correctional Services is hoping to kill several birds with one stone by presenting the Federal Communications Commission with a proposal it says would fix issues with a 2024 order changing how the phone prison payment system works and resolve some issues it has on appeal at the First Circuit.

  • March 07, 2025

    Mich. Justices Ax Bid To Sue Pizza Delivery Driver's Employer

    The Michigan Supreme Court on Friday dismissed an appeal from a woman who argued her settlement with a Jet's Pizza delivery driver who rear-ended her did not bar vicarious liability claims against his employer, while a dissenting justice called on the court to rethink the "counterintuitive" rule that prohibited her claims.

  • March 07, 2025

    Honda, Class Spar Over Defect Verdict And Fees At 9th Circ.

    Class counsel representing a certified class of Illinois Honda owners urged the Ninth Circuit on Friday to reverse their partial summary judgment loss, along with a $1.5 million fee and cost award for securing a $1.4 million valve defect verdict, while Honda argued that the verdict should be tossed entirely.

  • March 07, 2025

    Conn. Justice Questions Fairness Of Water Rate Hike Rebuff

    Connecticut's utility regulator may have treated an Eversource subsidiary unfairly when it told the company it could not increase consumers' water rates to make up for $42 million in capital expenditures, a state Supreme Court justice said Friday.

  • March 07, 2025

    Dem AGs Back NLRB In Appeal Over Board Functionality

    Nearly two dozen Democratic attorneys general have backed the National Labor Relations Board in a Sixth Circuit fight over the agency's ability to adjudicate unfair labor practice cases, saying workers' rights under labor law would be trampled if the agency is restrained from performing its duties.

  • March 07, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Says Judge Misconstrued Term In Tactical Vest Row

    A Federal Circuit ruling on Friday reversed a finding from a Florida federal judge on constructing the phrase ​​"pull cord," reviving a fight over a patented system for making tactical vests easier to take off.

  • March 07, 2025

    Judicial Impeachment Calls Could Drive Anger At Bench

    Twenty-nine years ago, then-U.S. Chief Justice William Rehnquist laid out a cautionary tale on impeachments of judges.

  • March 07, 2025

    Greenspoon Marder Beats Fla. Suit After Missed Arbitration

    Greenspoon Marder LLP has secured a Florida state appellate decision that upheld the dismissal of a malpractice suit against the firm over its representation of a luxury concierge service because the business failed to comply with a court order to engage in arbitration.

  • March 07, 2025

    Off The Bench: NASCAR Feud Grows, ACC Peace, NCAA Wins

    In this week's Off The Bench, NASCAR insists that the two teams suing it are the real antitrust bullies, the ACC keeps two valued and valuable members in the fold, and a baseball player ends his court fight to play another year in college.

  • March 07, 2025

    2nd Circ. Backs Warrantless Utility Pole Surveillance

    The Second Circuit on Friday ruled that police using cameras mounted to utility poles to observe potential criminal activity without a warrant does not amount to an illegal search under the Fourth Amendment, comporting with other circuits that have pondered the same issue.

  • March 07, 2025

    NC High Court Hopeful Fights Judge's Recusal Over Donation

    A Republican judge challenging ballots cast in the North Carolina Supreme Court race he lost by 734 votes said his colleague on the state Court of Appeals shouldn't be recused from hearing his case because he contributed to the GOP jurist's campaign, noting the panel hasn't even been selected yet.

  • March 07, 2025

    Mich. Justices Kick PFAS Rule Challenge Back To Panel

    The Michigan Supreme Court on Friday punted 3M Co.'s challenge to state regulations limiting PFAS in tap water to a lower court to address subsequent regulatory developments and answer whether the company should have pursued an administrative appeal before suing.

  • March 07, 2025

    10th Circ. Urged To Reject Bid To Nix Microcaptive Notice

    The federal government urged the Tenth Circuit to affirm a ruling that rejected a plumbing supply company's request to invalidate an IRS notice that added reporting requirements for certain microcaptive insurance arrangements, saying the lower court correctly found the suit would illegally hinder tax collection.

  • March 07, 2025

    Goldstein Must Be Tracked Amid 'Ongoing' Crimes, Feds Say

    The federal government has doubled down on allegations that U.S. Supreme Court advocate and SCOTUSblog publisher Tom Goldstein has been secretly moving cryptocurrency, urging a federal judge to keep monitoring his electronic devices to prevent him from fleeing tax evasion charges.

  • March 07, 2025

    Retrial In Landmark Graft Case Faces Potential Roadblocks

    A retrial in a public corruption case tied to an infrastructure initiative under former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo faces possible obstacles after being returned to a federal judge by the U.S. Supreme Court, with the parties awaiting further legal guidance from the justices and the defense saying the Trump administration's priorities may sink the case.

  • March 06, 2025

    Amid Court Setbacks, Trump Wants Foes To Foot Legal Bills

    With judges hitting the brakes on the White House's aggressive agenda, President Donald Trump on Thursday vowed to up the ante with his legal adversaries by seeking legal costs and damages if his administration ultimately prevails after initial setbacks in litigation.

  • March 06, 2025

    Ariz. Firm Urges Justices To Hear Suit Over Ad Search Terms

    A Phoenix personal injury firm is going to the U.S. Supreme Court after losing its trademark lawsuit over Google advertising search terms, warning the justices that a rival's online "bait and switch" advertising tactics have "confused hundreds, if not thousands, of potential clients."

  • March 06, 2025

    Feds Say 11th Circ. Should Affirm Value Of Ex-Braves' Farm

    Despite dropping a bid for civil fraud penalties this week against two former Atlanta Braves players accused of overvaluing a conservation easement donation, the federal government has told the Eleventh Circuit it still stands by a U.S. Tax Court ruling that the players' valuation of the property was "firmly planted in the realm of fantasy."

  • March 06, 2025

    Crypto Cos. Want Justices To Settle Venue Statute Circuit Split

    A Binance-branded U.S. exchange and affiliated crypto data site CoinMarketCap have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to settle what they call a circuit split over whether a trader must show the firms had contacts in their state, or if ties to the country as a whole are enough to press a manipulation claim under the Commodity Exchange Act.

  • March 06, 2025

    High Court Urged To Toss $22M SEC Disgorgement Order

    An investment advisory firm has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a First Circuit ruling that upheld an order for the firm to pay $22 million in disgorgement to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, arguing that courts cannot impose disgorgement when investors have not suffered any financial harm.

  • March 06, 2025

    9th Circ. Shreds 'Muddled' Argument In Amazon Antitrust Case

    A panel of the Ninth Circuit on Thursday picked apart arguments from consumers in their lawsuit alleging Amazon violated antitrust law through the e-commerce giant's fulfillment services, with the judges saying an amended complaint was "extraordinarily light on any actual evidence" and the arguments appeared "muddled."

  • March 06, 2025

    Fed. Circ. Judge Stresses Unknown Software To Fintiv, Apple

    A Federal Circuit panel expressed frustration Thursday as it struggled to get straight answers regarding whether Apple's products have a "widget" that would infringe Fintiv's contactless payment patent, with one judge ending arguments by saying that "after 45 minutes here, I'm still not clear what the widget does."

Expert Analysis

  • What To Expect From Federal Cybersecurity Policy In 2025

    Author Photo

    There are 12 cyber policy questions to keep an eye on as the new administration and Republican control of Congress present an opportunity to advance less regulatory approaches and revisit some choices from the prior administration, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • Bid Protest Spotlight: Certification, Lateness, SBA Eligibility

    Author Photo

    In this month's bid protest roundup, Cody Fisher at MoFo examines three recent decisions from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the U.S. Government Accountability Office that address the treatment of a proposal that was timely submitted but received late, and highlight nuances of certification and small business eligibility requirements.

  • How Decline Of Deference Will Affect Trump Policymaking

    Author Photo

    An administrative law regime without Chevron deference may limit the Trump administration’s ability to implement new policies in the short term, but ultimately help it in the long term, and all parties with an interest in regulatory changes will have to take a fresh approach to litigation, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Series

    Ohio Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q4

    Author Photo

    Ohio's banking and financial services sector saw several significant developments in the fourth quarter of 2024, including a landmark Uniform Commercial Code ruling, adjustments to the state's Homebuyer Plus Program and the launch of the state's first women-led bank, says attorney Alex Durst.

  • 6 Predictions For Cyber Risk And Insurance In 2025

    Author Photo

    This year is likely to bring with it some thorny and expensive cyber challenges, including increased ransomware activity, more data breach class actions and continued efforts to define business interruption loss calculations, say attorneys at Wiley.

  • 7 Ways 2nd Trump Administration May Affect Partner Hiring

    Author Photo

    President-elect Donald Trump's return to the White House will likely have a number of downstream effects on partner hiring in the legal industry, from accelerated hiring timelines to increased vetting of prospective employees, say recruiters at Macrae.

  • Opinion

    Courts Must Curb The Drug Price Negotiation Program

    Author Photo

    The Inflation Reduction Act's drug price negotiation program upends incentive structures that drive medical innovation, and courts must act appropriately to avoid devastating consequences for American healthcare and the pharmaceutical industry, says Jeff Stier at the Consumer Choice Center.

  • E-Discovery Quarterly: Rulings On Custodian Selection

    Author Photo

    Several recent rulings make clear that the proportionality of additional proposed custodians will depend on whether the custodians have unique relevant documents, and producing parties should consider whether information already in the record will show that they have relevant documents that otherwise might not be produced, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Opinion

    Section 230 Debates Will Continue, With Or Without TikTok

    Author Photo

    Regardless of whether TikTok is forced to shut down in the U.S. in the coming weeks, legal disputes will continue over social media platforms' responsibility under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act for harms allegedly caused by content shared on their apps, says Carla Varriale-Barker at Segal McCambridge.

  • Surprise NC COVID Ruling Revises Reasonable Expectations

    Author Photo

    The North Carolina Supreme Court's recent finding in favor of policyholders in a suit for business interruption coverage due to COVID-19 shutdown orders runs contrary to most other state and federal courts' holdings on the issue, and may revitalize the reasonable expectations doctrine in the state, say attorneys at Goldberg Segalla.

  • Impact Of Successful Challenges To SEC's Rulemaking Ability

    Author Photo

    In 2024, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission faced significant legal challenges to its aggressive rulemaking agenda as several of its rules were vacated by the Fifth Circuit, which could hinder the SEC's ability to enact rules extending beyond express statutory authority in the future, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • 5 Transition Tools Trump Could Use To Implement His Agenda

    Author Photo

    President-elect Donald Trump will have several tools available to him to halt or otherwise claw back federal regulations promulgated during the Biden administration, including reconciliation, executive orders and memoranda, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

  • When Judging Product Label Claims, Follow The Asterisk

    Author Photo

    A recurring question in false advertising class actions is whether misleading or ambiguous statements on a product's front label can be cured by information on the back label — but recent decisions from the Ninth Circuit suggest that a front-label asterisk can help alert consumers to seek further clarification, say attorneys at Hunton.

  • Justices Seem Focused On NEPA's Limits In Utah Rail Case

    Author Photo

    After last month's oral argument at the U.S. Supreme Court in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, Colorado, the court appears poised to forcefully reiterate that the National Environmental Policy Act requires federal agencies to review only those environmental impacts within their control, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

  • Fed. Circ. Patent Decisions In 2024: An Empirical Review

    Author Photo

    Despite an ever-increasing backlog of argument-ready cases, the Federal Circuit issued fewer decisions in 2024 than in previous years, and the decisions' overall friendliness toward patent owners and applicants was low, says Dan Bagatell at Perkins Coie.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the Appellate archive.
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!