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July 10, 2024
House Panel Votes To Nix Biden's Retirement Advice Rule
A Republican-controlled panel of U.S. House lawmakers advanced legislation Wednesday to block recently finalized regulations from the U.S. Department of Labor that expand the definition of a fiduciary under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, after a brief debate on retirement policy that clearly split along party lines.
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July 09, 2024
With Chevron's End, LGBTQ+ Healthcare Regs Face New Risk
The end of Chevron deference is already disrupting regulation meant to protect LGBTQ+ access to healthcare, with three federal judges blocking enforcement of a Biden administration rule prohibiting discrimination based on gender identity in healthcare.
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July 09, 2024
Healthcare Cases To Watch: A 2024 Midyear Report
Courts across the U.S. this year will oversee key cases to the healthcare industry, from multidistrict litigation over the Change Healthcare hack to a challenge of a state gender-affirming care ban at the Supreme Court. Here are the healthcare cases to watch in the second half of 2024.
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July 09, 2024
Miracle-Gro Scores Early Win In Benefits Cutoff Suit
Scotts Miracle-Gro notched an early win in a former worker's lawsuit alleging she was forced out when her health benefits were cut after she asked to work remotely following a bout of COVID-19, with a Georgia federal judge ruling Tuesday her position necessitated in-person attendance.
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July 09, 2024
Aetna Beats Blue Cross In NC Health Plan Contract Battle
An administrative judge affirmed North Carolina's switch of its employee and retiree health plan to Aetna, reasoning Blue Cross Blue Shield failed to prove state officials made errors favoring the competitor when evaluating bids.
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July 09, 2024
3rd Circ. Questions DuPont Family Trust's ERISA Status
In a hearing Tuesday about a dispute between the DuPont family and its domestic workers over trust money, Third Circuit judges quizzed both sides on the level of involvement needed from trustees or the family for the fund to be considered a plan covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.
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July 09, 2024
NFL Says Ex-Pro's Benefits Row Belongs At Bargaining Table
The National Football League has pushed back against a Fifth Circuit appeal by a former player whose benefits suit was tossed, arguing his issue is not with the plan's board but the plan's design, which can only be resolved through bargaining, not in court.
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July 09, 2024
Tampa Atty Accused Of Fraud In Long-Running House Dispute
A Tampa-area estate lawyer has been accused of fraud conspiracy in a state court lawsuit brought by a former tax attorney who alleges that her house was taken to collect fees stemming from a false guardianship case, saying a court order that revoked possession of the property violated the Florida Constitution.
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July 09, 2024
5th Circ. Skeptical Of Nixing ESG Rule Despite Chevron's End
A Fifth Circuit panel appeared unlikely Tuesday to knock out a Biden administration rule allowing retirement plan advisers to consider environmental, social and governance factors when choosing investments, although one judge seemed to support vacating a lower court's decision upholding the regulation in light of the Chevron doctrine's demise.
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July 08, 2024
Class Attys Seek 24.4M Tesla Shares For Musk Pay Suit Win
A stockholder attorney whose team won an order voiding Tesla CEO Elon Musk's $56 billion, stock-based, 10-year compensation package in January urged Delaware's Court of Chancery on Monday to reject as "inherently wrong" the electric vehicle manufacturer's attacks on winning-side, stock-based attorney fee proposals ranging in value from $1.44 billion to more than $7 billion.
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July 08, 2024
9th Circ. Denies Northrop Retirees' Bid For New Judge
A Ninth Circuit panel on Monday shot down Northrop Grumman pensioners' bid to have their proposed ERISA class action tried before another judge, after two different appellate court panels overturned a lower court judge's two previous dismissals in the matter.
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July 08, 2024
NJ Says State Temp Worker Law Doesn't Conflict With ERISA
The State of New Jersey urged a federal judge to keep in place the equal benefits provision of its law codifying protections for temporary workers, arguing it is not superseded by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act because employers can satisfy the state law without altering ERISA plans.
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July 08, 2024
UnitedHealth's Cross-Plan Offsetting Affirmed By 8th Circ.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed Monday a Minnesota federal judge's decision to toss a suit from patients insured by UnitedHealth Group alleging a billing practice known as cross-plan offsetting violated federal benefits law, finding the lower court properly concluded the patients hadn't sufficiently established injury.
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July 08, 2024
Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court
Prince's heirs were left standing alone in a cold world last week after Delaware's Court of Chancery found their attempts to gain control of the late musician's estate too demanding. Delaware's court of equity also waved a wand for Walt Disney and slashed nearly $10 million from a damages award for Sears stockholders. In case you missed anything, here's a recap of all the latest news from Delaware's Chancery Court.
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July 05, 2024
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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July 05, 2024
Breaking Down The Vote: The High Court Term In Review
The U.S. Supreme Court's lethargic pace of decision-making this term left the justices to issue a slew of highly anticipated and controversial rulings during the term's final week — rulings that put the court's ideological divisions on vivid display. Here, Law360 takes a data dive into the numbers behind this court term.
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July 05, 2024
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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July 05, 2024
The Sharpest Dissents From The Supreme Court Term
The U.S. Supreme Court's session ended with a series of blockbuster cases that granted the president broad immunity, changed federal gun policy and kneecapped administrative agencies. And many of the biggest decisions fell along partisan lines.
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July 05, 2024
5 Moments That Shaped The Supreme Court's Jan. 6 Decision
When the high court limited the scope of a federal obstruction statute used to charge hundreds of rioters who stormed the Capitol, the justices did not vote along ideological lines. In a year marked by 6-3 splits, what accounts for the departure? Here are some moments from oral arguments that may have swayed the justices.
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July 05, 2024
The Funniest Moments Of The Supreme Court's Term
In a U.S. Supreme Court term teeming with serious showdowns, the august air at oral arguments filled with laughter after an attorney mentioned her plastic surgeon and a justice seemed to diss his colleagues, to cite just two of the term's mirthful moments. Here, we look at the funniest moments of the term.
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July 05, 2024
$125M Deal To End Discovery-AT&T Merger Suit In Chancery
A $125 million settlement is in the works for a nearly two-year-old, now-consolidated Delaware Court of Chancery suit filed by former Discovery Inc. stockholders challenging the company's $43 billion merger with AT&T in April 2022, according to a court filing Friday.
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July 05, 2024
Manufacturing Co., Trustee Can't Escape ESOP Fight
An Arkansas federal judge refused Friday to toss a lawsuit against a manufacturing company and the trustee of its employee stock ownership plan from ESOP participants alleging mismanagement, finding allegations that a $40 million debt-financed purchase of company stock violated federal benefits law should proceed to discovery.
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July 05, 2024
The Firms That Won Big At The Supreme Court
This U.S. Supreme Court term featured high-stakes oral arguments on issues including gerrymandering, abortion and federal agency authority, and a hot bench ever more willing to engage in a lengthy back-and-forth with advocates. Here's a look at the law firms that argued the most cases and how they fared.
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July 05, 2024
Ex-Schnader Harrison Atty Fights Bid To Ax Class Action
A motion by Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis LLP seeking to toss a putative class action used "linguistic alchemy" to argue for the case's dismissal, according to a filing opposing the motion.
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July 05, 2024
Black & Decker Can't Ax Suit Challenging BlackRock Funds
A Connecticut federal judge said Black & Decker can't escape a suit claiming it failed to trim underperforming BlackRock investment funds from its 20,000-member $2.2 billion retirement plan, ruling that the retirees behind the suit put forward enough evidence of potential imprudence to dodge dismissal.
Expert Analysis
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Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World
As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.
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General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI
With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.
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Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information
As generative artificial intelligence tools become increasingly ubiquitous, companies must make sure to preserve generative AI data when there is reasonable expectation of litigation, and to include transcripts in litigation hold notices, as they may be relevant to discovery requests, say Nick Peterson and Corey Hauser at Wiley.
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Finding Focus: Strategies For Attorneys With ADHD
Given the prevalence of ADHD among attorneys, it is imperative that the legal community gain a better understanding of how ADHD affects well-being, and that resources and strategies exist for attorneys with this disability to manage their symptoms and achieve success, say Casey Dixon at Dixon Life Coaching and Krista Larson at Stinson.
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AI Use May Trigger False Claims Act's Public Disclosure Bar
The likely use of publicly available artificial intelligence tools to detect government fraud by combing through large data sets will raise complex questions about a False Claims Act provision that prohibits the filing of claims based on previously disclosed information, say Nick Peterson and Spencer Brooks at Wiley Rein.
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Attorneys, Law Schools Must Adapt To New Era Of Evidence
Technological advancements mean more direct evidence is being created than ever before, and attorneys as well as law schools must modify their methods to account for new challenges in how this evidence is collected and used to try cases, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.
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The Self-Funded Plan's Guide To Gender-Affirming Coverage
Self-funded group health plans face complicated legal risks when determining whether to cover gender-affirming health benefits for their transgender participants, so plan sponsors should carefully weigh how federal nondiscrimination laws and state penalties for providing care for trans minors could affect their decision to offer coverage, say Tim Kennedy and Anne Tyler Hall at Hall Benefits Law.
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Tips For Litigating Against Pro Se Parties In Complex Disputes
Litigating against self-represented parties in complex cases can pose unique challenges for attorneys, but for the most part, it requires the same skills that are useful in other cases — from documenting everything to understanding one’s ethical duties, says Bryan Ketroser at Alto Litigation.
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How Justices' Disclosure Ruling May Change Corp. Filings
In the upcoming Macquarie Infrastructure v. Moab Partners case, the U.S. Supreme Court will resolve a circuit split over whether a company may be sued for private securities fraud if they fail to disclose certain financial information in public filings, which may change the way management analyzes industry risks and trends for investors, says Paul Kisslinger at Lewis Brisbois.
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Pro Bono Work Is Powerful Self-Help For Attorneys
Oct. 22-28 is Pro Bono Week, serving as a useful reminder that offering free legal help to the public can help attorneys expand their legal toolbox, forge community relationships and create human connections, despite the challenges of this kind of work, says Orlando Lopez at Culhane Meadows.
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Series
Playing In A Rock Cover Band Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Performing in a classic rock cover band has driven me to hone several skills — including focus, organization and networking — that have benefited my professional development, demonstrating that taking time to follow your muse outside of work can be a boon to your career, says Michael Gambro at Cadwalader.
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Series
The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Espinosa On 'Lincoln Lawyer'
The murder trials in Netflix’s “The Lincoln Lawyer” illustrate the stark contrast between the ethical high ground that fosters and maintains the criminal justice system's integrity, and the ethical abyss that can undermine it, with an important reminder for all legal practitioners, say Judge Adam Espinosa and Andrew Howard at the Colorado 2nd Judicial District Court.
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What ESG Investing Ruling Means For Fiduciaries
A Texas federal court’s recent ruling — upholding a U.S. Department of Labor rule allowing retirement plan fiduciaries to consider ESG factors in certain investment decisions — provides welcome clarity for plans governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act that have long been buffeted by partisan noise and misinformation, say attorneys at Covington.
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Opinion
Newman Suspension Shows Need For Judicial Reform
The recent suspension of U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman following her alleged refusal to participate in a disability inquiry reveals the need for judicial misconduct reforms to ensure that judges step down when they can no longer serve effectively, says Aliza Shatzman at The Legal Accountability Project.
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How 2 Cases Could Undermine The Anti-ESG Movement
A decision from a federal court in Texas and another case currently making its way through Missouri federal court signal an emerging judicial recognition of the link between environmental, social and governance considerations and maximizing financial returns, say Amy Roy and Robert Skinner at Ropes & Gray.