California

  • March 04, 2025

    Calif. Bar Staff Asks Board To Ditch Meazure's July Exam

    The State Bar of California recommended to its board of trustees to forgo its current partnership with bar exam administer ProctorU Inc., doing business as Meazure Learning, ahead of the July 2025 test following the disastrous rollout of its February exam, which prompted a nationwide class action filed in California federal court last week.

  • March 04, 2025

    Clorox Can't Escape Novel ERISA Suit Over 401(k) Forfeitures

    Clorox must face a proposed class action claiming it unlawfully used forfeited 401(k) funds to cover its employer contributions rather than defray plan participants' costs, with a California federal judge ruling a plan participant's allegations were detailed enough to stay in court.

  • March 04, 2025

    Justices Doubt Mexico Can Pin Cartel Deaths On US Gun Cos.

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday appeared highly skeptical of a suit by the Mexican government that seeks to hold Smith & Wesson and other American gunmakers liable for cartel violence, with justices from both sides of the ideological spectrum suggesting that the claims are too speculative.

  • March 04, 2025

    Court Can't Review Nix Of Venezuela Protected Status, DHS Says

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security told a California federal court it lacks authority to review a recent decision to scrap existing deportation protections for hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans, and urged the court to reject a push to have it put on hold.

  • March 04, 2025

    Paul Hastings Real Assets Pro Jumps To Proskauer In LA

    Proskauer Rose LLP is expanding its California team, bringing in a Paul Hastings LLP real assets ace as a partner in its Los Angeles office.

  • March 04, 2025

    High Court Says EPA Went Too Far With SF Water Permit

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday sided with San Francisco in its attempt to escape the terms of a federal sewer and wastewater system permit that the city challenged as too vague and difficult to comply with.

  • March 03, 2025

    Aspiration Founder Arrested For Alleged $145M Fraud Scheme

    Joseph Sanberg, co-founder of the celebrity-backed and sustainability-focused financial services company Aspiration Partners Inc., was arrested Monday over federal criminal allegations he schemed to defraud investor funds out of at least $145 million, federal prosecutors in California announced.

  • March 03, 2025

    Calif. Jury Struggling To Reach Verdict In Judge's Murder Trial

    The murder trial of Orange County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Ferguson took a dramatic turn on the fourth day of jury deliberations when jurors indicated they were at an impasse on whether Judge Ferguson is guilty of second-degree murder for shooting his wife to death in August 2023.

  • March 03, 2025

    Calif. Court OKs Slash Of $30M Med Mal Verdict To $250K

    A California appeals court has agreed with the decimation of a $29.5 million wrongful death verdict against a chiropractor who cleared a teen with a heart condition for strenuous physical activity, saying the state's damages cap applies.

  • March 03, 2025

    9th Circ. Rejects Redo Of Antitrust Case Against Zillow, NAR

    The Ninth Circuit on Monday said it would not revive a defunct brokerage platform's case accusing Zillow and the National Association of Realtors of deception related to the online real estate company's website, saying there was no conspiracy in the way changes were made to how listings were displayed.

  • March 03, 2025

    Ruling Nixing $1.3B Award May Be In Jeopardy At High Court

    The U.S. Supreme Court appeared poised during oral arguments on Monday to overturn a Ninth Circuit decision refusing to enforce a $1.3 billion arbitral award issued to an Indian satellite communications company, as the justices grappled with a new argument from a unit of India's space agency.

  • March 03, 2025

    Ultragenyx Loses Bid To Toss Suit Over Henrietta Lacks' Cells

    A Maryland federal judge on Monday refused to toss a lawsuit lodged by the family of the late Henrietta Lacks against biotechnology company Ultragenyx for allegedly profiting off her stolen "immortal" cells, saying proof Ultragenyx engaged in intrastate business in Maryland would thwart its contention the lawsuit was filed too late.

  • March 03, 2025

    Another Kirkland Private Equity Pro Joins Weil's LA Office

    Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP has welcomed yet another Kirkland & Ellis LLP alumnus and private equity veteran to join its U.S. Equity Group in Los Angeles, the firm announced Monday. 

  • March 03, 2025

    Apple Gets ICloud Monopoly Suit Tossed For Now

    Apple has convinced a California federal judge to toss a proposed class action accusing it of flouting federal antitrust laws by blocking third-party cloud storage services from accessing and storing certain files on its smartphones, at least temporarily.

  • March 03, 2025

    Wrongful Death Claims Go Ahead In Social Media MDL

    A California federal judge overseeing the multidistrict litigation over claims Facebook and other social media companies purposefully addict minors to their platforms has allowed certain allegations, including negligence and wrongful death claims, to go forward in a final ruling.

  • March 03, 2025

    ICE Contractor Loses Immunity Bid In Family Separation Suit

    A California federal judge Monday largely denied a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement contractor's attempt to escape litigation that a father and son brought against the transportation company for its role in a policy that separated them and thousands of other immigrant families during the first Trump administration.

  • March 03, 2025

    Credit Bureaus Look To Duck Renewed Medical Debt Claims

    Equifax, Experian and TransUnion asked a California federal judge Monday to toss an updated case accusing the credit reporting agencies of violating antitrust law by agreeing to exclude medical debt under $500 from consumer credit reports.

  • March 03, 2025

    Tobacco, Cannabis Cos. Score Partial Wins In TM Fight

    An Arizona federal court judge has issued a mixed ruling on dueling summary judgment bids in a trademark lawsuit over a tobacco company and a cannabis company's shared use of the word "Raw" in branding.

  • March 03, 2025

    Film Exec Testifies She Felt 'Set Up' By 'Moana' IP Claims

    A movie executive told a California federal jury on Monday that she never shared a distant family member's script with The Walt Disney Co., and that she later felt "set up" and pressured to lie for this relative's copyright suit over the blockbuster animated film "Moana."

  • March 03, 2025

    VLSI Maintains Intel Doesn't Have A Free License To Its IP

    VLSI Technology has urged U.S. District Judge Alan Albright to reinstate his 2022 decision that Intel Corp. doesn't have a license to its patents, saying no facts impacting a potential license have changed in the interim.

  • March 03, 2025

    Insurer Seeks Exit After Doctor Rejects Mistaken Surgery Deal

    An insurer for a doctor accused of performing the wrong surgery should no longer have a duty to indemnify him after his refusal to ink a settlement, the carrier told a California federal court, noting the doctor's underlying counsel already obtained settlement authority from the insurer.

  • March 03, 2025

    Ex-Adecco Worker Can't Protest PAGA Deal, Calif. Panel Rules

    A worker suing a staffing agency under California's Private Attorneys General Act cannot intervene in a settled case lodging similar claims because the challenge is based purely on her private interests, a California panel ruled.

  • March 03, 2025

    NYT Seeks To Ax Baldoni's 'It Ends With Us' Defamation Suit

    The New York Times urged a New York federal court to toss defamation claims made by Justin Baldoni over the news organization's coverage of the "It Ends With Us" actor-director's legal battle with Blake Lively over the actress's sexual harassment complaints, saying it is legally protected reporting and opinion made without malice.

  • March 03, 2025

    Sutter Settles Years-Old Antitrust Suit On Courthouse Steps

    Attorneys for a class of millions of health insurance premium payors announced an eleventh hour deal staving off a new antitrust trial Monday in California federal court over claims that hospital chain Sutter Health drives up costs by pushing all-or-nothing network deals on insurers.

  • March 03, 2025

    9th Circ. Won't Revive Black Ex-Boeing Engineer's Bias Suit

    The Ninth Circuit on Monday backed Boeing's defeat of a former engineer's lawsuit claiming he was disciplined for minor issues and ultimately terminated because he's Black, ruling he hadn't provided evidence that the company's actions were based on his race.

Expert Analysis

  • Notable 2024 Trademark Cases And What To Watch In 2025

    Author Photo

    Emerging disputes between established tech giants and smaller trademark holders promise to test the boundaries of trademark protection in 2025, following a 2024 marked with disputes in areas ranging from cybersquatting to geographic marks, says Danner Kline at Bradley Arant.

  • How A 9th Circ. Identicality Ruling Could Affect AI Cos.

    Author Photo

    If the Ninth Circuit agrees to settle a district court split over whether the Digital Millennium Copyright Act requires a copy to be identical to an original to support an actionable claim for removing copyright management information, the decision could have important ramifications for artificial intelligence businesses, says Maria Sinatra at Venable.

  • Why Class Cert. Is Unlikely In Cases Like Mattel 'Wicked' Suit

    Author Photo

    A proposed class action recently filed in California federal court against Mattel over the company's "Wicked" doll boxes accidentally listing a pornographic website illustrates the uphill battle plaintiffs face in certifying a class when many consumers never saw or relied on the representation at issue, says Alex Smith at Jenner & Block.

  • What 2024 Trends In Marketing, Comms Hiring Mean For 2025

    Author Photo

    The state of hiring in legal industry marketing, business development and communications over the past 12 months was marked by a number of trends — from changes in the C-suite to lateral move challenges — providing clues for what’s to come in the year ahead, says Ben Curle at Ambition.

  • California's New AV Law May Steer Policy Nationwide

    Author Photo

    California's new law establishing various requirements for autonomous vehicles is something other states should pay close attention to — especially because the Golden State's policies may become a de facto mandate for manufacturers due to its market size, says Vineet Dubey at Custodio Dubey.

  • Series

    Group Running Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    The combination of physical fitness and community connection derived from running with a group of business leaders has, among other things, helped me to stay grounded, improve my communication skills, and develop a deeper empathy for clients and colleagues, says Jessica Shpall Rosen at Greenwald Doherty.

  • Marketing Messages Matter In State AG Consumer Protection

    Author Photo

    Attorneys general interpret marketing claims far more broadly than many companies may realize, so to mitigate potential risk, businesses should be vigilant about all consumer messaging, including communications that may not traditionally be considered advertising in the colloquial sense, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • How White Collar Defense Attys Can Use Summary Witnesses

    Author Photo

    Few criminal defense attorneys have successfully utilized summary witnesses in the past, but several recent success stories show that it can be a worthwhile trial tactic to help juries understand the complex decision-making at issue, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.

  • Cos. Must Brace For New PFAS Regulations And Litigation

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently proposed adding over 100 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances to the Toxic Release Inventory — and with increasing scrutiny of PFAS from the states and the plaintiffs bar as well, companies should take steps to reduce risks in this area, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Opinion

    6 Changes I Would Make If I Ran A Law School

    Author Photo

    Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner identifies several key issues plaguing law schools and discusses potential solutions, such as opting out of the rankings game and mandating courses in basic writing skills.

  • Firms Still Have The Edge In Lateral Hiring, But Buyer Beware

    Author Photo

    Partner mobility data suggests that the third quarter of this year continued to be a buyer’s market, with the average candidate demanding less compensation for a larger book of business — but moving into the fourth quarter, firms should slow down their hiring process to minimize risks, say officers at Decipher Investigative Intelligence.

  • Reviewing 2024's State Consumer Privacy Law Enforcement

    Author Photo

    While we are still in the infancy of state consumer privacy laws, a review of enforcement activity this year suggests substantial overlaps in regulatory priorities across the most active states and gives insight into the likely paths of future enforcement, says Thomas Nolan at Quinn Emanuel.

  • What May Have Led Calif. Voters To Reject Min. Wage Hike

    Author Photo

    County-specific election results for California’s ballot measure that would have raised the state’s minimum wage to $18 show that last year's introduction of a $20 minimum wage for fast-food workers may have influenced voters’ narrow rejection of the measure, says Stephen Bronars​​​​​​​ at Edgeworth Economics.

  • AV Compliance Is Still A State-By-State Slog — For Now

    Author Photo

    While the incoming Trump administration has hinted at new federal regulations governing autonomous vehicles, for now, AV manufacturers must take a state-by-state approach to compliance with safety requirements — paying particular attention to states that require express authorization for AV operation, say attorneys at Frost Brown.

  • Think Like A Lawyer: 1 Type Of Case Complexity Stands Out

    Author Photo

    In contrast to some cases that appear complex due to voluminous evidence or esoteric subject matter, a different kind of complexity involves tangled legal and factual questions, each with a range of possible outcomes, which require a “sliding scale” approach instead of syllogistic reasoning, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.

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 California 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!