Terraform Founder Arraigned In NY, Denies $40B Crypto Fraud

By Pete Brush

Terraform Labs creator Do Kwon appeared Thursday before a Manhattan federal judge to deny charges that he orchestrated a $40 billion fraud on customers and investors who backed the cryptocurrency platform based on promises that it had real-world viability.

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'It Ends With Us' Director Sues NYT Over Blake Lively Story

By Rachel Scharf

"It Ends With Us" director and actor Justin Baldoni has filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit accusing The New York Times of amplifying co-star Blake Lively's "unverified and self-serving narrative" that he orchestrated a public relations smear campaign in retaliation for sexual harassment complaints.

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Migrant Detentions Violated NY Law, Constitution, Judge Says

By Elliot Weld

A federal judge said Thursday that Suffolk County, New York, violated state law and the Fourth Amendment by detaining hundreds of immigrants past their release dates at the request of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

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IBM And GlobalFoundries Settle Contract, Trade Secret Suits

By Rae Ann Varona

IBM and semiconductor maker GlobalFoundries US Inc. have settled lawsuits lodged against each other in which IBM accused GlobalFoundries of breaching a $1.5 billion manufacturing deal, while GlobalFoundries accused IBM of unlawfully disclosing its confidential trade secrets, the companies announced Thursday.

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Ex-Trader Joe's Exec Can't Revive Sex Bias Suit At 2nd Circ.

By Grace Elletson

The Second Circuit backed the dismissal Thursday of a Trader Joe's executive's suit claiming she was fired out of sex bias, stating she failed to put forward proof that her termination resulted from discrimination rather than her decision to take a vacation during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Stanley Cup Maker Sued Over Alleged Lid Hazard

By Rachel Riley

The Seattle-based maker of the trending Stanley-brand tumbler has been hit with a proposed class action in Washington federal court by a New York consumer accusing the manufacturer of failing to adequately compensate customers for a lid defect that led to the recall of 2.6 million travel mugs.

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Southern Comfort Malt Liquor Buyers Score False Ad Cert.

By Gina Kim

A New York federal judge certified a class of Southern Comfort customers alleging Sazerac Co. deceptively labeled its malt beverage products, but declined to allow one plaintiff to serve as class representative, finding Thursday he lied in interrogatory answers and "appeared not to know the basic premise of the case."

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Real Estate Investor Gets 2 Years For Mortgage Fraud Scheme

By George Woolston

A New Jersey real estate investor was sentenced to two years in federal prison on Thursday for his role in a multiyear conspiracy to defraud Fannie Mae by getting the company to purchase or fund millions in mortgage loans.

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A-Rod's SPAC Deal Seeks Extra Innings, Plus More IPOs Filed

By Tom Zanki

The period between Christmas Eve and Jan. 1 wasn't completely quiet on the capital markets deals front, with A-Rod's special purpose acquisition company seeking an extension to complete its merger and several new IPOs being filed. Here, Law360 looks at the capital markets news from the holiday break.

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Food Service Tech Biz Buys PE-Owned Delaget In $132M Deal

By Jade Martinez-Pogue

Food service technology company Par Technology Corp. on Thursday announced plans to acquire restaurant analytics business Delaget LLC in a $132 million deal.

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UBS To Pay $1.1M FINRA Fine Over Trade Confirmation Flubs

By Sydney Price

UBS Financial Services has agreed to pay the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority $1.1 million to settle claims that it failed to meet regulatory requirements for trade confirmations for over a decade.

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Barclays To Pay $1M Fine Over Net Capital Rules Violations

By Katryna Perera

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority has fined Barclays Capital $1 million to settle claims that the investment bank violated certain requirements of the self-regulatory organization's net capital rules between 2020 and 2021.

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Hogan Lovells Gets $1.25M Afghanistan Award OK'd

By Caroline Simson

Hogan Lovells won enforcement on Thursday of a $1.25 million arbitral award it won against Afghanistan over its representation of the country in various legal matters, an award that the new Taliban-led government has ignored for two years.

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Former Sullivan & Cromwell Arbitration Head Goes Solo

By Andrea Keckley

A decadelong leader of Sullivan & Cromwell LLP's arbitration practice announced he is going solo on Thursday after nearly four decades with his prior firm.

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How Changes In State Gift Card Laws May Affect Cos. In 2025

2024 state legislative movements around the escheatment of unused gift card balances and consumer fraud protections should prompt issuers to consider whether changes in company domicile or blanket cash-back policies are needed in the new year, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.

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Lessons From The SEC's 2024 Crackdown On AI Washing

AI washing was the subject of increased scrutiny from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2024 following a surge in the commercial adoption of generative artificial intelligence technologies in 2023, highlighting the importance of transparency, accuracy and accountability when communicating about AI, say attorneys at Perkins Coie.

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Series

Playing Esports Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Competing in a global esports tournament at Wimbledon last year not only fulfilled my childhood dream, but also sharpened skills that are essential to my day job, including strategic thinking, confidence and networking, says AJ Schuyler at Jackson Lewis.

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Bonus Spotlight

Holland & Knight Matches BigLaw Bonuses In Major Markets

By Anna Sanders

Holland & Knight LLP announced associates in major U.S. markets will receive year-end and special bonuses matching those given by other BigLaw firms, with attorneys working in regional offices making smaller figures, according to a report.

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Biden Honors Del. Jurist For Role In Brown V. Board Ruling

By Jeff Montgomery

President Joe Biden issued a top civilian award, posthumously, to former Chancellor Collins J. Seitz of Delaware Chancery Court, father of the state's current chief justice, for his role in decisions woven into the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark 1954 Brown v. Board of Education ruling.

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Clyde & Co. Merges With Dallas Insurance Boutique

By Emily Sawicki

Clyde & Co. LLP has announced a merger with Dallas boutique Tillman Batchelor LLP, expanding the global law firm's insurance capabilities in Texas amid its ongoing growth in North America.

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Taft Hired BCLP Comms Director Ahead Of Merger

By Andrea Keckley

Once its merger with Sherman & Howard LLC became effective at the start of the new year, Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP announced Thursday it had hired Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner's former director of communications.

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AI Chatbots Will Transform Legal Scholarship, AI Chatbot Says

By Matt Perez

Generative artificial intelligence like OpenAI's ChatGPT software will redefine legal scholarship, according to a new paper primarily produced by the chatbot.

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States Debate High Court Solution To Election Map Catch-22

By Katie Buehler

Louisiana has implored the U.S. Supreme Court to decisively resolve litigation over its federal election map in one of three ways, suggesting the justices could toss the case on standing, decide the merits, or, preferably, find that federal courts have no role in refereeing redistricting disputes.

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Ex-GMU Prof.'s Accusers Say He Can't Prove $108M Damages

By Aebra Coe

Former FTC Commissioner Joshua Wright allegedly failed to provide information to back his $108 million defamation damages claim and then walked out of a deposition, according to a Virginia court filing by two former students whom Wright sued over their statements to Law360.

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Atty Wants Free Speech Suit Over Tenn. Court Rule Kept Alive

By Jack Karp

A free speech challenge to a Middle District of Tennessee rule barring attorneys from making "any extrajudicial statements" about cases in the district should be allowed to move forward since the court is not entitled to sovereign immunity, according to the Nashville civil rights lawyer behind the suit.

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Giuliani Says Memory Faulty In Meandering NY Contempt Row

By Pete Brush

A Manhattan federal judge mulled a bid to hold Rudy Giuliani in contempt of a $148 million defamation judgment Friday, during a day of sparring in which the former New York City mayor repeatedly told counsel for two defamed Georgia poll workers that he doesn't remember case details.

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Battling Berts: Judge Enjoins Ga. Law Firm In Trademark Row

By Kelcey Caulder

A Georgia federal judge Friday temporarily barred an Atlanta-based law firm from advertising and promoting its personal injury legal services through messaging like "If You're Hurt ... Call Bert!" and "If You're Hurt, Call Bert," ruling that it is too similar to another personal injury firm's trademarked slogan.

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GC Cheat Sheet: The Hottest Corporate News Of The Week

By Sue Reisinger

How to deal with diversity, climate change and artificial intelligence are the key issues giving general counsel night terrors at the start of the new year. And in Delaware, the Chancery Court is allowing a stockholder suit to move forward against Fox Corp., related to its false reports of voting fraud in 2020.

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

By Laura Stewart Liberty

This past week in London has seen Chris Eubank Jr. hit with a libel claim from a boxing promoter, a perfume boss face proceedings from his businesses following sanctions violations claims, and Israeli broadcasters file intellectual property claims against BT and Sky. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.

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