Colo. Rehab Center Must Face Nurse's Civil Theft Claim

By Irene Spezzamonte

A Colorado rehabilitation center can't escape a nurse's civil theft claim in her suit alleging the center required her to work through meal breaks without proper pay, a federal judge ruled, saying a longer statute of limitation applies.

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Judge Tosses Some Wage-Fix Claims Against Meat Packers

By Thy Vo

A Colorado federal judge on Wednesday ruled that plaintiffs alleging meat producers conspired to fix industry wages can't recover under certain claims for conduct that happened before January 2020, finding an amended complaint raised a new conspiracy for which the companies weren't on notice they could be held liable.

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Kaiser Left Holiday Pay, Incentives Out Of OT, Worker Claims

By Irene Spezzamonte

Healthcare company Kaiser Permanente miscalculated workers' overtime by leaving out rates for extra days of work and holidays, according to a proposed class action filed in Colorado state court.

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Trump Admin Asks Justices To End 'Fiscal Micromanagement'

By Brian Dowling and Katie Buehler

The U.S. Department of Education asked the Supreme Court on Wednesday to vacate a Boston federal judge's order reinstating $250 million in teacher training grants that the Trump administration targeted for cuts, saying the case presents an ideal vehicle to put a stop to "district-court fiscal micromanagement" of the executive branch.

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Engineering Co. Owner Can't Deduct His Time, Tax Court Says

By Anna Scott Farrell

The owner of a Colorado engineering company cannot deduct the value of the time he spent working on software without showing any amounts actually paid, the U.S. Tax Court ruled Wednesday in upholding the majority of $135,000 in tax deficiencies, plus penalties, against the owner.

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Sotomayor Urges Caution On Nondelegation Doctrine Revamp

By Katie Buehler

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor cautioned her colleagues during oral arguments Wednesday against using a challenge to the Federal Communications Commission's administration of a broadband subsidy program as a way to resurrect the long-dormant nondelegation doctrine. Several conservative justices, however, seemed willing to disregard that admonition.

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AGs Seek 1st OK For $39M Apotex Deal In Price-Fixing Case

By Aaron Keller

A coalition of 50 state attorneys general on Wednesday asked a Connecticut federal judge to accept a $39.1 million deal settling claims that pharmaceutical company Apotex Corp. schemed with others to fix generic-drug prices, with 70% earmarked for a restitution fund and 30% for consumer notices and attorney fees.

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Justices Rule Ch. 7 Trustee Can't Recover Tax Payments

By Anna Scott Farrell

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday reversed a Tenth Circuit decision allowing the bankruptcy trustee of a defunct Utah company to claw back $145,000 in federal taxes, saying the sections of the Bankruptcy Code relied upon by the trustee provide only a limited waiver of sovereign immunity.

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Soured Colo. Housing Partnership Spawns Another Suit

By Grace Dixon

A Colorado affordable housing project undermined by a trio of investors' soured partnership generated yet another lawsuit filed by an original investor alleging a partner brought on later intentionally tanked the project out of "seething vindictiveness."

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Brief

10th Circ. Tosses Bid To Undo Block Of Okla. Immigration Law

By Britain Eakin

The Tenth Circuit dismissed Oklahoma's appeal of a district court ruling enjoining a state law barring unauthorized immigrants from residing in the state, saying the matter is moot after the Trump administration dismissed the underlying suit.

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Series

Adapting To Private Practice: From Fed. Prosecutor To BigLaw

Making the jump from government to private practice is no small feat, but, based on my experience transitioning to a business-driven environment after 15 years as an assistant U.S. attorney, it can be incredibly rewarding and help you become a more versatile lawyer, says Michael Beckwith at Dickinson Wright.

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Associate Recruitment Helps Boost Law Firm Lateral Hiring

By Anna Sanders

After a two-year market downturn, U.S. law firm lateral hiring grew almost 14% overall in 2024, driven by a significant boost in associate recruitment, a report released Wednesday by the National Association for Law Placement found.

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Feature

Even With Few Openings, Courts Can Still Shift Under Trump

By Cara Bayles

There were record low vacancies on the federal bench when Donald Trump took office in January, but the president could still radically alter some courts and swing the judiciary rightward, especially if Congress creates more judgeships during his second tenure.

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State AGs, Bars Urge Attys To Speak Up Over Trump Orders

By Rachel Rippetoe

In a pair of letters released on Wednesday, dozens of bar associations and over 20 state attorneys general urged lawyers to speak out against perceived threats to the rule of law in response to President Donald Trump's recent executive orders against prominent law firms and his call for the impeachment of a federal judge.

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Women Make Up 13% Of Attys In Front Of The PTAB

By Theresa Schliep

Women account for 13% of attorneys appearing in front of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board in post-grant proceedings going back to the board's founding in 2012 despite comprising up to 30% of all patent attorneys, according to a report from the PTAB Bar Association.

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DOJ Can't DQ Judge In Perkins Coie Suit Over Trump Order

By Jack Karp

A D.C. federal judge on Wednesday shot down a demand from the U.S. Department of Justice that she step aside from Perkins Coie LLP's lawsuit against the federal government over President Donald Trump's executive order targeting the firm.

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Quinn Emanuel Boosts Federal Clerkship Bonus To $175K

By Tracey Read

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP confirmed Wednesday that it is now offering $175,000 federal clerkship bonuses, plus $25,000 more for those with two qualifying back-to-back clerkships.

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Holland & Knight Gains Ex-EPA Regional Leader In Dallas

By Lynn LaRowe

Holland & Knight LLP has boosted its ability to serve clients with complex environmental challenges by bringing on a former Environmental Protection Agency regional counsel as a partner in Dallas.

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Baker McKenzie Partner Joins DOJ Antitrust Leadership Team

By Bonnie Eslinger

The new head of antitrust enforcement at the U.S. Department of Justice has landed a Baker McKenzie partner for her leadership team who previously worked in the office during the administration of Barack Obama.

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Brief

New Bill Would Make Supreme Court Televise Future Sessions

By Nadia Dreid

The U.S. Supreme Court could conduct oral arguments in front of television cameras for the first time if a bipartisan pair of senators get their way and succeed in passing a new bill that would require the high court's open sessions to be open to the public via video.

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Mitchell Silberberg Promotes IP Litigator To Firm Chair

By James Mills

Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp LLP has tapped a Los Angeles-based longtime entertainment and intellectual property litigator, who once was vice president of legal at NBCUniversal Television, to be the new chair of the firm.

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BCBS Settlement Opt-Outs Ordered To Disclose Funding Deals

By Ryan Boysen

Four law firms representing hospitals that opted out of the landmark $2.8 billion Blue Cross Blue Shield antitrust settlement must disclose whether their clients were motivated by a "quick payment" from litigation funders, an Alabama federal judge ordered Tuesday.

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Goldstein's Devices Must Be Monitored, Judge Affirms

By Phillip Bantz

A Maryland federal judge on Tuesday rejected U.S. Supreme Court lawyer and SCOTUSblog publisher Tom Goldstein's request to dismiss a bail condition that requires his electronic devices to be monitored out of concerns that he's been hiding millions in cryptocurrency from the government and could flee while facing tax evasion charges.

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Brief

Susman Godfrey, Kelley Drye Attys Named FTC Deputies

By Bryan Koenig

Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson further filled out his senior leadership Wednesday with the announcement of deputy directors for the bureaus of Competition and Consumer Protection, filled respectively by a Susman Godfrey LLP associate and a partner at Kelley Drye & Warren LLP.

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Judge Newman Maintains Fitness Probe Must Be Transferred

By Rae Ann Varona

Counsel for suspended 97-year-old Federal Circuit Judge Pauline Newman on Wednesday told the D.C. Circuit that its decision to transfer ethics complaints against a senior district court judge, lodged by his own colleagues, supported her contention that her fellow circuit judges shouldn't investigate her fitness to remain on the bench.

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Senate Confirms Aaron Reitz To Lead DOJ Legal Policy Office

By Ali Sullivan

Aaron Reitz, chief of staff for Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and a former deputy attorney general in the Lone Star State, was confirmed on Wednesday to lead the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Legal Policy by a 52-46 vote in the Senate.

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