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Commercial Contracts
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August 07, 2024
5th Circ. Pushes DOL On Salary Thresholds For OT Eligibility
A Fifth Circuit panel told the government during oral arguments Wednesday that the Labor Department needed to provide more substantial reasoning as to how it determines workers' overtime eligibility, saying that just because it has set salary thresholds for nearly a century doesn't mean it gets carte blanche.
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August 07, 2024
Hemp Cos. Owner Says Cousin Ripped Off Formula, Trademarks
The owner of Florida-based CBD and hemp companies White Lab LLC and GS Distribution LLC is suing a company owned by his cousin, saying the cousin has failed to pay up on a distribution agreement and is now trying to steal the trademarks to one of White Lab's product lines.
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August 07, 2024
NC Court Tosses Resort's Appeal Over Tree-Cutting Loss
The North Carolina Court of Appeals threw out a resort owner's appeal arguing that Dominion Energy North Carolina cannot remove trees on its property, holding instead that the resort owner abandoned its arguments when it failed to analyze the trial court's final judgment on appeal.
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August 07, 2024
Shuttered Firm Partner Pulls $9.5M Fee Fight Out Of Arbitration
An Illinois appeals court has reversed the transfer to partial arbitration of a suit accusing a personal injury firm name partner of defrauding the other name partner by collecting $9.5 million in fees shortly before the firm's dissolution, saying the firm's operating agreement with an arbitration clause was superseded by the dissolution agreement.
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August 07, 2024
Advocates Tell 9th Circ. To Revive Invisalign Monopoly Suit
Competition advocates are backing the revival of a class action accusing the makers of Invisalign of monopolizing the market for clear dental aligners, telling the Ninth Circuit in a new amicus brief that a district court summary judgment ruling for Align Technology creates a dangerous precedent for refusal-to-deal cases.
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August 07, 2024
SEC Accuses Urban Commons REIT Founders Of $70M Fraud
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has accused the founders of the Urban Commons real estate investment trust of running a pair of fraud schemes involving investments in U.S.-based hotels that the regulator said collectively cost investors $70 million.
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August 07, 2024
NC Biz Court Bulletin: The Battles Making Summer Sizzle
A 1983 championship basketball team's intellectual property rights and a public feud between Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft LLP and its insurer are among the legal battles that have kept North Carolina Business Court judges and Tar Heel state private practice attorneys busy this summer. In case you missed those and others, here are the highlights.
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August 07, 2024
Fund Seeks Forced Sale Of Long-Stalled Baltimore Project
A Boston-based investment fund that backs development projects in disadvantaged communities is seeking to recoup $13 million it poured into a stalled mixed-use project in Baltimore, including through a forced sale, according to a complaint filed in Massachusetts state court.
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August 07, 2024
Lender Says Mogul's Privacy Concerns Stymying Trial Prep
Attorneys for a lending agent pursuing a $127 million judgment from an auto parts mogul asked a Michigan federal judge Tuesday to deny the mogul and his bankrupt company's attempts to keep key documents private, saying the inability to share relevant information with their clients is hindering their ability to prepare for trial.
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August 07, 2024
WWE Accuser May Be Liable For Defamation, Doctor Says
The woman who accused World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. and former executives including ex-CEO Vince McMahon of sexually trafficking and abusing her may be liable for defaming a celebrity doctor that she targeted with a bid for discovery in Connecticut Superior Court, according to a complaint from Dr. Carlon Colker and his company.
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August 07, 2024
2nd Circ. Affirms Yale's Win In COVID-19 Tuition Refunds Fight
The Second Circuit on Wednesday affirmed Yale University's win in a student's proposed class action challenging the university's refusal to issue tuition refunds after switching to virtual classes during the COVID-19 pandemic, finding the student's implied contract with Yale gave the university discretion to respond to such "force majeure" public-health events.
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August 07, 2024
6 Swipe Fee Plaintiffs 'Arbitrarily' Picked For 2025 Trial
Six retailers including department store giant Target will go to trial in 2025 on claims that Visa and Mastercard overcharged them, a Manhattan federal judge said Wednesday, explaining that he arbitrarily chose from among 60 plaintiffs in a long-running, multibillion-dollar antitrust battle.
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August 07, 2024
Chancery Urges Bickering Journey Bandmates To Open Arms
Attorneys for deadlocked Journey band members Jonathan Cain and Neal Schon should keep the focus on "counseling rather than litigating" and go to trial in September only if they can't find another way to resolve their dispute over company management, a Delaware Chancery Court judge said Wednesday.
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August 07, 2024
5th Circ. Grapples With 'Ridiculous' $100M Arbitration
A Fifth Circuit panel struggled to make sense out of a "ridiculous" arbitration proceeding that produced four contradictory arbitration awards in a legal malpractice dispute, one awarding $100 million, pressing both sides during oral arguments Wednesday to give answers about how the "spectacle" unfolded.
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August 07, 2024
CFPB Backs Homeowners In Nationstar Mortgage Fee Suit
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau asked a Washington federal court to allow it to file a brief in support of a proposed class action accusing Nationstar Mortgage of illegally charging fees whenever homeowners request payoff statements for their loans.
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August 07, 2024
5th Circ. Tosses Passengers' Suit Over Southwest TSA Fees
The Fifth Circuit has sided with Southwest Airlines Co. in a suit alleging it breached passengers' contracts by giving them travel credits instead of refunds for Transportation Security Administration security fees, finding the claims were correctly preempted by the Airline Deregulation Act.
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August 06, 2024
Zelle Fraud Victims Seek Class Cert. In BofA Refunds Suit
Consumers suing Bank of America NA for allegedly stiffing them on reimbursement for Zelle fraud and scam losses asked a California federal judge to grant class action status to their case, seeking certification for several classes of customers with denied refund claims from the past four years.
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August 06, 2024
Cadwalader Slams Lloyd's For 'Needless' Disclosure, Mockery
Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft LLP has opposed a bid by a Lloyd's of London syndicate to unseal the law firm's complaint seeking $1 million of coverage for a November 2022 data breach, telling the North Carolina Business Court that Lloyd's has chosen to "mock and insult their own customer" while exposing confidential information in its filing to the court.
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August 06, 2024
Louis Vuitton Slams 'Prolific' TM Infringement At Conn. Market
French luxury brand Louis Vuitton Malletier SAS is seeking statutory damages of up to $2 million per counterfeited mark from the operator of a Connecticut flea market where fake goods were repeatedly sold despite a June 2018 agreement to cease such activity, according to a federal lawsuit.
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August 06, 2024
Ex-Mayor's Fight With Law Firm No RICO Case, 5th Circ. Told
Counsel for convicted fraudster and former Texas Mayor Laura Maczka-Jordan said it's significant that a law firm accusing her and her husband of racketeering represented itself during oral arguments before the Fifth Circuit Tuesday, arguing that the case deals with a lease dispute rather than a racketeering scheme.
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August 06, 2024
Houston Partially Escapes Pappas Restaurants' Airport Suit
A state appeals court agreed Tuesday with Houston's argument that a concessions contract with the William P. Hobby Airport did not require the city to follow the Texas Government Code's competitive bidding requirements, partially tossing a suit brought by Pappas Restaurants over its loss of the 2023 agreement.
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August 06, 2024
Horse Trainer Says Conn. Club Stiffed Him, Sues For $275K
A historic Connecticut country club stopped reimbursing the head of its horse-riding program for expenses he paid out of his own pocket, ceased paying his salary and fees, and canceled his membership, according to a breach-of-contract suit filed in state court.
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August 06, 2024
Fifth Third Bank Faces MDL Bid Over Allegedly Hidden Costs
A group of consumers is urging the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation to centralize in New Jersey five proposed class actions alleging Fifth Third Bank NA's solar panel financing business hid loan costs from consumers.
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August 06, 2024
Feds Seek $3.5M Premerger Penalty From Sporting Events Biz
Federal prosecutors have struck a deal requiring sports and entertainment event company Legends Hospitality to pay a $3.5 million penalty to settle allegations that it illegally conducted business with acquisition target ASM Global Inc. before finalizing the deal.
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August 06, 2024
Miss. Casino Says License Dispute Belongs In State Court
A lawsuit challenging the gambling license awarded to the Cherokee Nation's entertainment business should be sent back to state court where it was originally filed, a Mississippi casino operator told an Arkansas federal judge Monday.
Expert Analysis
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Del. Rulings Make Clear That 'Arbitrator' Isn't A Magic Word
Recent decisions by the Delaware Chancery Court clarify that calling a process an "expert determination" or "arbitration" in a purchase agreement is not sufficient to define it as such, so practitioners must consider how to structure dispute resolution provisions to achieve their clients’ desired result, say attorneys at Troutman Pepper.
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Protecting IP May Be Tricky Without Noncompetes
Contrary to the Federal Trade Commission's view, trade secret law cannot replace noncompetes' protection of proprietary information because intellectual property includes far more than just trade secrets, so businesses need to closely examine their IP protection options, say Aimee Fagan and Ching-Lee Fukuda at Sidley.
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A Look At FERC's Plan To End Reactive Power Compensation
A recent notice of proposed rulemaking indicates that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is likely to eliminate compensation for reactive power within the standard power factor range — causing significant impacts for the electric power industry, which relies on income from providing this service, say Norman Bay and Matthew Goldberg at Willkie and Vivian Chum at Wright & Talisman.
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8 Legal Issues Influencing Investors In The Creator Economy
The rapidly expanding digital creator economy — funding for which more than doubled in the U.S. in the first quarter — comes with its own set of unique legal issues investors must carefully consider before diving in, say Louis Lehot and Alan Pate at Foley & Lardner.
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E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On Text Message Data
Electronically stored information on cellphones, and in particular text messages, can present unique litigation challenges, and recent court decisions demonstrate that counsel must carefully balance what data should be preserved, collected, reviewed and produced, say attorneys at Sidley.
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IP Considerations For Companies In Carbon Capture Sector
As companies collaborate to commercialize carbon capture technologies amid massive government investment under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, a coherent intellectual property strategy is more important than ever, including proactively addressing and resolving questions about ownership of the technology, say Ashley Kennedy and James De Vellis at Foley & Lardner.
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What's Notable In JAMS' New Mass Arbitration Rules
The Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services’ recently released guidelines, coming on the heels of similar American Arbitration Association amendments, suggests that mass arbitrations will remain an efficient means for consumers to vindicate their rights against companies, say Jonathan Waisnor and Brandon Heitmann at Labaton Keller.
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How New Rule Would Change CFIUS Enforcement Powers
Before the May 15 comment deadline, companies may want to weigh in on proposed regulatory changes to enforcement and mitigation tools at the disposal of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, including broadened subpoena powers, difficult new mitigation timelines and higher maximum penalties, say attorneys at Venable.
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Series
Swimming Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Years of participation in swimming events, especially in the open water, have proven to be ideal preparation for appellate arguments in court — just as you must put your trust in the ocean when competing in a swim event, you must do the same with the judicial process, says John Kulewicz at Vorys.
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Breaking Down 4th Circ. Pendent Appellate Jurisdiction Ruling
As illustrated by the Fourth Circuit's recent decision in Elegant Massage v. State Farm, denying class certification and granting a motion to dismiss, federal appellate courts continue to struggle with defining the scope of pendent appellate jurisdiction — or jurisdiction over nonfinal orders below, says Joan Steinman at the Chicago-Kent College of Law.
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FTC Noncompete Rule May Still Face Historical Hurdles
The Federal Trade Commission's final rule banning noncompetes might face challenges that could have been avoided with more cautious consideration of the commission's long history of failed lawsuits that went beyond the agency's statutory authority, as well as the mountain of judicial precedent justifying noncompete agreements in employment contracts, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.
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Microplastics At The Crossroads Of Regulation And Litigation
Though there are currently not many federal regulations specifically addressing microplastics as pollutants, regulatory scrutiny and lawsuits asserting consumer protection claims are both on the rise, and manufacturers should take proactive steps to implement preventive measures accordingly, say Aliza Karetnick and Franco Corrado at Morgan Lewis.
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How EB-5 Regional Centers Can Prepare For USCIS Audits
In response to the recently announced U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services guidelines that require EB-5 regional center audits every five years to verify their compliance with immigration and securities laws, regional centers should take steps to facilitate a seamless audit process, say Jennifer Hermansky and Miriam Thompson at Greenberg Traurig.
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As Arbitrator Bias Claims Rise, Disclosure Standards Evolve
The growth in post-award challenges based on arbitrators' alleged conflicts of interest has led to the release of new guidance and new case law on the topic — both supporting the view that professional familiarity alone does not translate to a lack of impartiality, say attorneys at Skadden.
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How Cos. Can Protect IP In Light Of FTC Noncompete Rule
While several groups are challenging the Federal Trade Commission’s recently approved rule banning noncompetition agreements, employers should begin planning other ways to protect their valuable trade secrets, confidential information and other intellectual property, says Thomas Duston at Marshall Gerstein.