Appellate

  • May 06, 2026

    Calif. Tribe Can't Get ATF's Cigarette Sales Decision Tossed

    A Ninth Circuit panel determined Wednesday that federal tobacco regulators acted appropriately when placing the Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians on a noncompliance list, concluding the tribe's remote cigarette sales to retailers of other tribes count as "off-reservation" activities covered by California state tax and licensing laws.

  • May 06, 2026

    Know 'The Record Below': Appellate Pros Talk Argument Prep

    A panel of appellate lawyers gave tips Wednesday on preparing for oral arguments at the 2026 Third Circuit Bench and Bar Conference in Hershey, Pennsylvania, encouraging lawyers to build an encyclopedic knowledge of their case and the relevant law, and to practice in front of others.

  • May 06, 2026

    Colo. Appeals Court Mulls POA's Authority On Arbitration

    A Colorado state appeals court considered Wednesday a nursing home's request for the court to find that a person holding a medical power of attorney could agree to arbitration, focusing counsel on the relationship between an arbitration agreement and healthcare.

  • May 06, 2026

    Roberts Says High Court's Job Is To Make Unpopular Rulings

    Chief Justice John Roberts said Wednesday that the U.S. Supreme Court often must issue "unpopular" opinions, as the high court faces widespread backlash over its recent ruling limiting the Voting Rights Act's use in challenging racial discrimination in congressional redistricting.

  • May 06, 2026

    Texas Panel Weighs Highland Sanctions After $1B Judgment

    A Texas appeals court on Wednesday pressed counsel for several former Highland Capital Management LLP executives to explain why they should get out of a contempt finding, asking what to do with an order compelling each of the executives to pay $500 in sanctions.

  • May 06, 2026

    NC Court No Place For Smoothie-Shop Stroke Suit, Panel Says

    A smoothie shop manager's negligence suit should leave North Carolina's state court system, an appellate panel ruled Wednesday, finding that injuries from a stroke that left him on a bathroom floor for hours occurred during the course of employment and that the North Carolina Industrial Commission has exclusive jurisdiction.

  • May 06, 2026

    4th Circ. Says 'Solvent Traps' Are Silencers Under NFA

    The Fourth Circuit has upheld the jury conviction of a Virginia man for possession of three unregistered firearm silencers, rejecting the man's arguments that the devices were actually used for cleaning guns and finding they were illegal under federal law.

  • May 06, 2026

    Igloo's Ads 'Uncool' But Not Unlawful, Split 9th Circ. Says

    It may have been "uncool" for ice chest company Igloo to wrongfully take credit for the first biodegradable cooler, but its claims are not unlawful under the Lanham Act, a split Ninth Circuit ruled Wednesday.

  • May 06, 2026

    Battery Patent Award Has Fed. Circ. Perusing Remand Options

    A Federal Circuit panel wrestled Wednesday with a Chinese battery cell manufacturer's challenge to the damages model supporting a competitor's award in a patent infringement case, with one judge asking if alternative calculations would even be available if the appeals court ordered a do-over.

  • May 06, 2026

    6th Circ. Says Michigan Man Can't Block Future Charge

    The Sixth Circuit has ruled that a Michigan man cannot receive an injunction to stop prosecutors from charging him with making terroristic threats in the future after he made remarks related to an elections official he believed was incorrectly conducting an election recount.

  • May 06, 2026

    OpenSky Appeal In VLSI Dispute Postponed At Fed. Circ.

    The Federal Circuit has rescheduled arguments in OpenSky's challenge to an attorney fee award that was part of a wide-ranging patent dispute with VLSI Technology after OpenSky's attorney asked for a delay because of the sudden onset of an illness and the death of a family member.

  • May 06, 2026

    'You're In The Weeds!' Fed. Circ. Grapples With Gun IP Decision

    A Federal Circuit panel on Wednesday appeared perplexed by a Wyoming judge's decisions finding a firearm patent invalid as indefinite and dissolving a preliminary injunction against an accused infringer, saying the invalidity holding seemed to be at odds with precedent.

  • May 06, 2026

    Ga. Panel Won't Overturn Verdict In HOA Pool Dispute

    The Georgia Court of Appeals on Wednesday refused to overturn a jury verdict in favor of a homeowners' association in a case it brought against a couple who built an outdoor kitchen and pool pavilion that were noncompliant with the association's design guidelines.

  • May 06, 2026

    NC Insurance Dept. Properly Revoked Appraiser's License

    A North Carolina state appeals court on Wednesday affirmed the state Department of Insurance's revocation of the license of a motor vehicle damage appraiser, finding he violated ethical standards by disparaging other appraisers.

  • May 06, 2026

    Full 11th Circ. Denies Medical Act Remedy In Discharge Suit

    The full Eleventh Circuit concluded that the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act does not provide a remedy for a woman's claims that she was improperly discharged from a Florida hospital without being treated for malnutrition.

  • May 06, 2026

    Unauthorized Immigrant Can Face Gun Charge, 1st Circ. Says

    The First Circuit has reversed the dismissal of an indictment against an unauthorized immigrant charged with firearm possession, holding that the federal ban on unauthorized immigrants possessing firearms is consistent with the nation's tradition of firearm regulation.

  • May 06, 2026

    Police Union Group Gets Ch. 11 OK To Pursue Fla. Appeal

    The International Union of Police Associations AFL-CIO received approval Wednesday in Florida bankruptcy court to modify the automatic stay in its Chapter 11 case to pursue its appeal of an adverse state court judgment in a sexual harassment case that drove it into bankruptcy last month.

  • May 06, 2026

    NJ Panel Frees Homeowner From 'Forced Arbitration' Contract

    A New Jersey state appeals court on Wednesday released a homeowner from an arbitration clause that Florida-based MV Realty had agreed not to enforce as part of a deal last year with authorities who sued over the company's allegedly predatory cash-advance agreements.

  • May 06, 2026

    Mass. Justices Uphold Jailing Despite Incompetency Finding

    The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled on Tuesday that under state precedent, a man who was accused of a violent home invasion and other crimes but found to be incompetent to stand trial was not improperly kept incarcerated when he could not post bail.

  • May 06, 2026

    Judge Won't Certify Minn. Fraud Question In Cancer Drug MDL

    A New Jersey federal judge won't ask the Supreme Court of Minnesota to weigh in on whether an insurer can pursue claims using a state law typically reserved for the attorney general in litigation alleging drugmaker Celgene used charitable donations to manipulate the price of cancer drugs.

  • May 06, 2026

    10th Circ. Orders Class Cert. In Kansas Gas Royalty Fight

    The Tenth Circuit has ordered the certification of a class action accusing driller Merit Energy Co. of underpaying Kansas gas royalty owners in violation of a previous settlement with Oxy USA Inc., reversing a lower court decision.

  • May 06, 2026

    Mich. Justices Weigh If House Must Send Stalled Bills To Gov.

    Michigan Supreme Court justices heard arguments Wednesday over whether the Republican-controlled House can refuse to present bills passed by the previous Democratic majority in the chamber to the governor, as attorneys for the House and Senate clashed over whether this presentment is a constitutional duty or a legislative process beyond judicial control.

  • May 06, 2026

    High Court Rejects Apple's Bid To Pause App Store Ruling

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected Apple's request to pause a mandate in the case from Epic Games that directs a lower court to determine what commission Apple can charge developers for purchases made outside of its app store through links.

  • May 06, 2026

    Calif. Justices Seem Divided On Gilead HIV Negligence Claim

    The California Supreme Court appeared split Wednesday over whether Gilead should face a negligence claim for allegedly withholding a safer HIV drug from the market to maximize profits from an older drug with more harmful side effects. 

  • May 06, 2026

    10th Circ. To Revisit Proving Native Status In Sex Abuse Cases

    Two men who were found guilty of sexually assaulting Native American children, but whose convictions were vacated over questions surrounding their Native American status, will have their cases reconsidered by the full Tenth Circuit, the court ruled.

Expert Analysis

  • Opinion

    BNP Paribas Case Could Upend Global Banking Norms

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    If upheld on appeal, a New York federal jury's multimillion-dollar verdict against BNP Paribas would create an unpredictable liability landscape for global financial institutions in which fully lawful services in foreign countries can give rise to civil liability in U.S. courts, in a manner contrary to federal law, say attorneys at White & Case.

  • Series

    Isshin-Ryu Karate Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My involvement in martial arts, specifically Isshin-ryu, which has principles rooted in the eight codes of karate, has been one of the most foundational in the development of my personality, and particularly my approach to challenges — including in my practice of law, says Kaitlyn Stone at Barnes & Thornburg.

  • Opinion

    CBP's $166B Tariff Refund Portal Needs 4 Safeguards

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    Before launching its automated web portal to process tariff-refund disbursements on April 20, U.S. Customs and Border Protection should apply the expensive lessons learned from the pandemic-era employee retention credit, says Peter Gariepy at RubinBrown.

  • Decoding Arbitral Disputes: Tracing Paths To Award Recovery

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    Recent subpoenas to Adidas and Hilton deployed in Blasket Renewables v. Spain, pending in D.C. federal court, show arbitration award recovery to be a disciplined exercise in constructing visibility, applying pressure and sequencing procedural advantage, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn Square.

  • 5 Key Questions Attys Should Ask About Statistical Analyses

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    Even attorneys without a background in statistics can effectively vet the general concepts of a statistical analysis by asking targeted questions and can thereby reinforce the credibility and relevance of expert testimony — or expose its weaknesses, say Katrina Schydlower and Christopher Cunio at Hunton and Kevin Cahill at FTI Consulting.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: April Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy identifies practice tips from three recent rulings involving allegations of racial discrimination in mortgage applications, health insurance networks and actual cash value losses.

  • 'Made In America' EO May Not Survive Section 230

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    President Donald Trump's recent executive order to combat fraudulent "Made in America" claims in advertising directs the Federal Trade Commission to deem online marketplaces' failure to verify third-party origin claims as unlawful, but such a rule would likely run into Section 230's publisher immunity doctrine, say attorneys at Blank Rome.

  • Assessing EcoFactor's Impact On Damages Experts' Opinions

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    Though the Federal Circuit's ruling in EcoFactor v. Google gave rise to concerns that damages experts would be forced to rely on undisputed facts, recent case law suggests that those concerns are unwarranted, says Christopher Loh at Venable.

  • High Court Cert Case Would Test Sovereign Award Immunity

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    The D.C. Circuit's July 2025 Amaplat Mauritius v. Zimbabwe Mining Development decision appears to create a circuit split while elevating form over substance in a manner that, if left unreviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court, could bar the courthouse doors for creditors holding arbitration awards against recalcitrant foreign sovereigns, says Jeff Newton at Omni Bridgeway.

  • CFTC Actions Show Prediction Market Insider Trading Risks

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    It is a myth that insider trading law does not apply in prediction markets, as the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's recent enforcement actions illustrate that it has full authority to pursue such cases federally — and intends to, says attorney Gregg Goldfarb.

  • 2nd Circ. Clarifies When Prior Good Acts May Be Admissible

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    The Second Circuit's recent ruling in U.S. v. Cardenas, vacating a drug conspiracy conviction over improperly excluded evidence, indicates that evidence of prior good acts may be admissible to corroborate a defendant's testimony about their understanding of events and intent, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • Opinion

    Apple Discovery Fight Could Revive DOJ's Antitrust Appetite

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    Winning discovery disputes in the ongoing federal antitrust litigation over Apple’s app store practices is a huge opportunity for the Justice Department to return to its once-vigorous pursuit of product tying by tech monopolies, catch up with foreign competition regulators and establish clear standards for digital markets, says Ediberto Roman at Florida International University.

  • Lockdown To Ledger: COVID Rulings Inform Crypto Coverage

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    As cryptocurrencies move deeper into mainstream financial markets, courts tasked with determining whether traditional insurance policies respond to digital asset losses have been evaluating coverage through the analytical framework of COVID-19 business interruption litigation, with one key recurring theme, say attorneys at Kennedys.

  • Opinion

    State Bars Need To Get Specific About AI Confidentiality

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    Lawyers need to put actual client information into artificial intelligence tools to get their full value, but they cannot confidently do so until state bars offer clear, formal authority on which plan tiers of the three most popular generative AI tools are safe to use when sharing specific client details, says attorney Nick Berk.

  • The Federal Circuit's Evolving View Of Trade Secrets

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    In recent years, the Federal Circuit's approach to defining "readily ascertainable" information and determining sufficiency of trade secret identification has shifted, trending away from other circuits and potentially presenting a higher bar for trade secrets plaintiffs, say attorneys at MoFo.

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