Commercial Contracts

  • February 14, 2025

    Carnegie Mellon Inks $4.8M Pandemic Tuition, Fees Settlement

    Carnegie Mellon University will pay $4.8 million to settle claims that it should have refunded tuition and fees to students whose classes were moved online at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a proposed class action settlement submitted to a Pittsburgh federal court for preliminary approval Friday.

  • February 14, 2025

    Uber Starts Antitrust Food Fight With DoorDash

    DoorDash Inc. has devised an unlawful scheme to stifle competition with its main rival, Uber Eats, by forcing restaurants to exclusively work with DoorDash to manage their in-house deliveries, which hikes costs for restaurants and customers, Uber Technologies Inc. alleges in a lawsuit filed Friday in Golden State court.

  • February 14, 2025

    Joy Dish Soap Deal Caused $12M Loss, Manufacturer Claims

    Alleging $12 million in losses, Michigan-based manufacturer N.V. Labs Inc., which does business as the Reforma Group, has sued Connecticut private equity firm Piney Lake Capital Management LP on allegations it dirtied a deal to produce Joy dish soap through a subsidiary after buying the brand from Procter & Gamble.

  • February 14, 2025

    'Not For Sale': OpenAI Rebuffs Musk's $97.4B Takeover Bid

    The board of directors for OpenAI voted unanimously on Friday to reject a $97.4 billion offer from Elon Musk and a consortium of investors to buy the artificial intelligence platform, with the board chair saying in a statement, "OpenAI is not for sale."

  • February 14, 2025

    Judge Partly Certifies Ex-Detainee Class In Debit Card Fee Suit

    A Washington federal judge has partially certified a class of former detainees suing the Central Bank of Kansas City, alleging the bank charged them debit card fees to regain access to their money after they were released.

  • February 14, 2025

    Trump Aims To End Limits On President's Power To Fire

    President Donald Trump has his sights set on taking down a 90-year-old U.S. Supreme Court ruling that protects certain government officials from being fired, a U.S. Department of Justice letter confirms, and he plans to leverage his prior legal victories to deliver the precedent's death knell and expand presidential power.

  • February 14, 2025

    Supreme Court Asked To Rule On Fee Award After TM Mistrial

    A cosmetics distributor that was sued for trademark infringement and lost has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to determine whether attorney fees and costs awarded to the prevailing party should have been trimmed to account for a default judgment that was reversed and a mistrial attributed to the plaintiff's counsel.

  • February 14, 2025

    NHL, CHL Ask Court to Toss Junior Players' Antitrust Lawsuit

    The National Hockey League has asked a Washington federal court to toss an antitrust lawsuit challenging a rule that dictates where junior athletes can play, arguing that most enforcement of the rule took place in Canada.

  • February 14, 2025

    Judge Says Class Waited Too Long For Home Depot Fee Suit

    A Georgia federal judge has granted Home Depot an early win over a proposed class action alleging overcharges on tool rentals, ruling that the plaintiffs waived their claims by failing to provide written notice of disputed charges within the contract's 25-day deadline.

  • February 14, 2025

    Houston Energy Co. Stiffed For Cleanup Costs, Court Told

    A Houston energy company refused to decommission a toppled oil and gas platform in the Gulf of Mexico and then failed to pay up when another party got stuck with the cleanup duty, an oil company has told a Texas federal court.

  • February 14, 2025

    Farm Asks Judge To 'Please' Add $5M Interest To $32M Verdict

    A cannabis farm is asking a Michigan federal judge to "please, please" award $5 million in prejudgment interest on a $31.8 million verdict reached last month in a contract dispute with Curaleaf units, saying the companies have refused to cooperate in post-judgment talks to resolve the issue.

  • February 14, 2025

    Calif. Insurance Chief Backs Wildfire Mitigation, Recovery Bills

    California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara announced his support Friday for a slew of bills aimed at addressing wildfire mitigation and recovery, including measures to maximize insurance claim payouts and stabilize the state's insurer of last resort.

  • February 14, 2025

    'New Facts' Improper In Penny Stock Action, 2nd Circ. Told

    A Connecticut federal judge violated controlling case law and the constitutional rights of a penny stock CEO when imposing a judgment in a U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission enforcement action, defense counsel told the Second Circuit, arguing that the SEC admitted post-trial that it could not find any victims of the allegedly false public statements at issue.

  • February 14, 2025

    Ben & Jerry's Says Owner Unilever Banned Anti-Trump Posts

    Ben & Jerry's told a New York federal judge overseeing its litigation accusing parent company Unilever of breaching an agreement allowing the ice cream company to take political stances that Unilever has now banned it "from issuing any posts criticizing President Trump" pending further review.

  • February 14, 2025

    Insurer Goes After Another In $3.5M Sewer Damage Suit

    A subcontractor's insurer lodged a third-party complaint against a Liberty Mutual unit in Colorado federal court, accusing it of reaching a "collusive" $730,000 consent agreement in an underlying sewer rupture dispute and arguing that the unit should've paid its full $2 million limit instead.

  • February 14, 2025

    Pashman Stein Gets Arbitration Award Against Atty Confirmed

    Pashman Stein Walder Hayden PC on Friday won confirmation for an $88,000 award against an intellectual property attorney and former client it sued over unpaid legal fees in New Jersey state court.

  • February 14, 2025

    UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London

    This past week in London has seen Spice Girls star Mel B's ex-husband bring a defamation claim against the publisher of The Sun, a hotel sue a former director convicted of embezzling its funds for breach of fiduciary duty, and comedian Russell Brand face a sexual abuse claim. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

  • February 13, 2025

    Mental Health Group Says Ga. Analyst Lied About Work

    Cheerful Therapy LLC filed suit against Georgia-based Anelyst Accounting LLC and Nicholas Hawkins in federal court, alleging they solicited it to pay for the creation of a mental health group practice with the intent of secretly transferring the group to a new limited liability company in which Cheerful had no rights or interest.

  • February 13, 2025

    Oil & Gas Co.'s Antitrust Suit Baseless, Insurers Say

    Insurers who hold surety bonds in an oil company and have been accused of colluding with other bondholders to demand additional collateral have urged a Texas federal court to dismiss the antitrust allegations against them, saying the dispute is contractual only.

  • February 13, 2025

    NC Biz Court Bulletin: Defaulted Notes, EB-5 Investor Fraud

    The North Carolina Business Court has been handed in the first half of February a receivership case involving a defaulted $17.5 million promissory note, a fraud suit by Chinese EB-5 investors and a request to depose the chief legal officer of Smithfield Foods Inc.

  • February 13, 2025

    Atty Can Keep Fees In Foreclosure Row, Mich. Panel Rules

    A trial court shouldn't have ordered an attorney to refund fees for representing a condominium association in its failed attempt to foreclose on unit owners because the attorney was not a party to the action or accused of conversion, a Michigan appellate panel found Wednesday.

  • February 13, 2025

    Buyer Seeks $3.5M Price Cut Over Bungled Conn. Mill Cleanup

    A property developer has asked a Connecticut Superior Court judge to lower the purchase price of a polluted industrial site in Branford from $6 million to $2.5 million, saying the seller failed to develop legitimate remediation plans and breached a settlement agreement that ended prior litigation.

  • February 13, 2025

    Insurers Say Adjuster Must Cover $66M Suit Over Boat Death

    Insurers told a North Carolina federal court that a company they contracted with failed to perform its agreed-upon adjustment duties on claims related to a 2021 fatal Florida boat accident and didn't pay legal fees when a more than $66 million suit erupted over the incident.

  • February 13, 2025

    Sidley Adds White & Case Litigators In Chicago

    Sidley Austin LLP has grown its litigation offerings in Chicago with the addition of two former White & Case LLP partners, one of whom served as the leader of that firm's Windy City office.

  • February 13, 2025

    Musk's $97B OpenAI Bid Dubbed A 'Stunt' Amid Other Rumors

    After a Wall Street Journal report on Monday revealed that a consortium of investors led by Elon Musk was offering $97.4 billion to buy the nonprofit that controls OpenAI, rumors began to swirl regarding the true intentions behind the billionaire's bid.

Expert Analysis

  • 5 Tips To Succeed In A Master Of Laws Program And Beyond

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    As lawyers and recent law school graduates begin their Master of Laws coursework across the country, they should keep a few pointers in mind to get the most out of their programs and kick-start successful careers in their practice areas, says Kelley Miller at Reed Smith.

  • Series

    Being An Opera Singer Made Me A Better Lawyer

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    My journey from the stage to the courtroom has shown that the skills I honed as an opera singer – punctuality, memorization, creativity and more – have all played a vital role in my success as an attorney, says Gerard D'Emilio at GableGotwals.

  • How Law Firms Can Avoid 'Collaboration Drag'

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    Law firm decision making can be stifled by “collaboration drag” — characterized by too many pointless meetings, too much peer feedback and too little dissent — but a few strategies can help stakeholders improve decision-making processes and build consensus, says Steve Groom at Miles Mediation.

  • Opinion

    Litigation Funding Disclosure Key To Open, Impartial Process

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    Blanket investor and funding agreement disclosures should be required in all civil cases where the investor has a financial interest in the outcome in order to address issues ranging from potential conflicts of interest to national security concerns, says Bob Goodlatte, former U.S. House Representative for Virginia.

  • What NFL Draft Picks Have In Common With Lateral Law Hires

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    Nearly half of law firm lateral hires leave within a few years — a failure rate that is strikingly similar to the performance of NFL quarterbacks drafted in the first round — in part because evaluators focus too heavily on quantifiable metrics and not enough on a prospect's character traits, says Howard Rosenberg at Baretz+Brunelle.

  • Considering Noncompete Strategies After Blocked FTC Ban

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    A Texas district court's recent decision in Ryan v. Federal Trade Commission to set aside the new FTC rule banning noncompetes does away with some immediate compliance obligations, but employers should still review strategies, attend to changes to state laws and monitor ongoing challenges, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • Replacing The Stigma Of Menopause With Law Firm Support

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    A large proportion of the workforce is forced to pull the brakes on their career aspirations because of the taboo surrounding menopause and a lack of consistent support, but law firms can initiate the cultural shift needed by formulating thoughtful workplace policies, says Barbara Hamilton-Bruce at Simmons & Simmons.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: August Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy considers certification cases touching on classwide evidence of injury from debt collection practices, defining coupon settlements under the Class Action Fairness Act, proper approaches for evaluating attorney fee awards in class action settlements, and more.

  • Planning Law Firm Content Calendars: What, When, Where

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    During the slower month of August, law firms should begin working on their 2025 content calendars, planning out a content creation and distribution framework that aligns with the firm’s objectives and maintains audience engagement throughout the year, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.

  • Notable Q2 Updates In Insurance Class Actions

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    Mark Johnson and Mathew Drocton at BakerHostetler discuss the muted nature of the property and casualty insurance class action space in the second quarter of the year, with no large waves made in labor depreciation and total-loss vehicle class actions, but a new offensive theory emerging for insurance companies.

  • Series

    Playing Golf Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Golf can positively affect your personal and professional life well beyond the final putt, and it’s helped enrich my legal practice by improving my ability to build lasting relationships, study and apply the rules, face adversity with grace, and maintain my mental and physical well-being, says Adam Kelly at Venable.

  • Law Firms Should Move From Reactive To Proactive Marketing

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    Most law firm marketing and business development teams operate in silos, leading to an ad hoc, reactive approach, but shifting to a culture of proactive planning — beginning with comprehensive campaigns — can help firms effectively execute their broader business strategy, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.

  • Opinion

    The Big Issues A BigLaw Associates' Union Could Address

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    A BigLaw associates’ union could address a number of issues that have the potential to meaningfully improve working conditions, diversity and attorney well-being — from restructured billable hour requirements to origination credit allocation, return-to-office mandates and more, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.

  • Opinion

    It's Time For A BigLaw Associates' Union

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    As BigLaw faces a steady stream of criticism about its employment policies and practices, an associates union could effect real change — and it could start with law students organizing around opposition to recent recruiting trends, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.

  • Look For Flags On Expert Claims After Sunday Ticket Reversal

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    A California federal judge’s recent reversal of a jury’s $4.7 billion antitrust verdict in the NFL Sunday Ticket case indicates that litigants may be inclined to challenge expert testimony admissibility under Rule 702 of the Federal Rules of Evidence, and that judges may increasingly accept such challenges, say attorneys at Kutak Rock.

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